India bags 52nd position in Global Innovation Index

NEW DELHI: India has seen a five position improvement in the Global Innovation Index (GII), which is an index of the world’s most innovative economies. The index is published annually by Cornell University, INSEAD and the UN World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and GII Knowledge Partners. According to a report released on Wednesday, July 24, India maintained its position as the top exporter of IT services. India’s three top metropolises, Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, were also featured in the world’s top 100 science and technology clusters. Switzerland topped the GII rankings again, followed by Sweden, the US, the Netherlands, the UK, Finland, Denmark, Singapore, Germany and Israel holding the top 10 positions respectively.

Piyush Goyal, Commerce and Industry minister in the Government of India, said that the government is committed to further improving the ranking as innovation is key for the country’s economic growth. “I assure you that going forward, the country will not rest until we achieve the target of coming in the top 25 and then in top 10 in the world.” India maintained its top place in the Central and Southern Asia region.

India has improved its position in labour productivity growth, knowledge and technology outputs, intellectual property related variables. It also witnessed improvement in institutions, human capital and research, and market sophistication indicators. But, logistics performance and women employment were some issues the country still face. “The largest drops are found in logistics performance, females employed with advanced degrees, and printing and other media,” the report said. Ramesh Abhishek, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)secretary,said that the government is working to improve its intellectual property rights (IPR) regime.