While delivering the 13th Foundation Day lecture at the Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts of India (ICFAI), Dr Raghunath Anant Mashelkar, FRS, Former Director General of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) said that business houses must move towards affordable, functional and high-quality products.

As per an official press release from ICFAI, Dr Mashelkar delivered a lecture on Dismantling Inequality by the Magic of Disruptive Inclusive Innovation at the ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education, Hyderabad today, Tuesday, February 13. 

“An inclusive innovation leads to affordable access to quality goods and services, which helps create livelihood opportunities for excluded populations on a long-term sustainable basis. And play a huge role in dismantling inequality,” said Dr Raghunath.

In order to overcome these disparities, comprehensive policy interventions that promote equitable and inclusive growth for all segments of the society are necessary, he further added.

Dr Raghunath mentioned the role scientists can play as a frontier to inclusive science. He urged that scientists will have to be given special charters to work on cutting-edge science that leads to inclusion, a mandate of creating products ‘affordable excellence’ and back it up with systems and processes that will create acceptability and accessibility in rural masses. 

Meanwhile, Dr C Rangarajan, Chancellor of the university, also addressed the event virtually. Dr Rangarajan laid emphasis on the fact that there was difficulty in estimating inequality and that in a developing economy, the more important factor to look at is actually a reduction in the poverty ratio. More and increased attention was to be laid on the livelihood opportunities for the people at the bottom of the pyramid.

Technology should focus on innovations that provide financially deprived individuals with facilities that are affordable and accessible, he said.