Government reiterates robust conflict-of-interest and merit-based governance for RDI Fund disbursals
Government officials reiterated that RDI Fund disbursals follow disclosure, recusal, collective approval and matching-investment-linked soft loans through TDB and ANRF.
GS2GS3GS4PIBGS2Conflict of Interest GovernanceResearch Funding InstitutionsDST-TDB-ANRF
What happened
The Government through DST, TDB and ANRF reiterated governance and conflict-of-interest safeguards for Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) Fund disbursals. The Government stated that funding decisions follow approved implementation guidelines and due process.
Background and earlier position
RDI Fund implementation guidelines recognise that experts able to evaluate cutting-edge technologies may also have prior experience in the innovation ecosystem through professional or investment associations. The Government’s position is that prior association is managed via disclosure and proposal-specific recusal, not blanket exclusion.
What changed now (clarification added in the latest reiteration)
The latest Government reiteration clarified COI operational rules: association with an innovation ecosystem entity is not treated as a violation by itself; disclosure and complete recusal are required for the concerned proposal where conflict exists; TDB Investment Committee COI rules link an Investment Committee member’s ownership in an ETE to a restriction on that ETE’s project submission during the member’s tenure.
