R Chidambaram, the chief scientific adviser to the Government of India, has strongly supported the requirement for a dedicated network of defense and academic institutions for facilitating associative research in the area of robotics. Chidambaram, who is popular for his part in the 1974 Pokhran nuclear tests, is also the ex-chairman of Bhabha Atomic Research Center or BARC.
The Robotics Society of India (RSI), in association with Research & Development Establishment, has hosted the initial worldwide conference on “Advances in Robotics – 2013.” The introductory address at the conference was given by Chidambaram.
In a statement, Chidambaram said, "This is the way to push forward the development of robotics, which will play a major role in all future military and civil applications. The Government of India, as part of the National Knowledge Network, wants to connect all educational institutions across the country with a high capacity optical fiber network. In that, we can form a grid for research in specified areas. Creating a robotics grid can facilitate collaborative research."
During the address, Chidambaram emphasized the significance of robotics and computerization in several applications from atomic energy, space and defense to industrial automation. He highlighted the efficacy of robotics in managing hazardous materials like explosives, infectious biological threats and radiological materials.
Chidambaram said, "Robotics remains one of the key components of the third industrial revolution that is also being driven by the Internet, digital manufacturing and the desire to develop green technologies. DRDO should encourage and guide academia and industries toward directed basic research. Similarly, the robotic society should help build the robotic grid using the virtual lab supported by high speed Internet-based LAN knowledge networks to accelerate the interactions of the scientific community, academia and industries."
An insight into combat engineering applications was delivered by S Sundaresh, chief controller for R&D at DRDO. He felt that it was imperative to introduce a program for developing preliminary robotic parts like sensors, actuators, communication systems.
The attendees at the conference were offered insights regarding the value of the society by Manjit Singh, president of RSI. According to Singh, this type of conference allows researchers and developers across the globe to put forth and exchange novel ideas.
