The 10%-150% hike in chemical prices per this year's Union Budget leaves researchers, academicians in a fix

Many citizens may have been cross with the Government of India after the announcement of the Union Budget for the financial year 2024-25, on July 25 by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. It certainly did not bode well with the fraternity of researchers, especially scientists and chemists.

A social media post on X by Santosh Chauhan (@Chauhanlab_ILS), a senior principal scientist at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Hyderabad, expresses astonishment at the hike in rates of a crucial element for researchers: Chemicals.

According to a document released by the Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue) on July 23, 2024, certain amendments have been introduced in the Finance (No. 2) Bill, 2024 in the Lok Sabha on July 23.

Under the 'Duty Rate Changes' section, subsection (11) named "Others", it is mentioned that "the BCD rate on Lab chemicals classified under HS 9802 00 00 has been increased from 10% to 150% (The duty rate is effective from 24.7.2024 by virtue of declaration under Provisional Collection of Taxes Act 2023)."

Finding plausibility in '10% to 150%'

Chauhan writes, "Please tell me this is a misprint So that I will delete this. Lab chemicals custom duty increased from 10% to 150%? How we do research and whether funding agencies will compensate by reducing expectations or providing more funds?..."

He further posted an image of an email received from Merck Life Science, a company offering tools, equipment, and services to researchers specifying that there has been a revision in the cost of the material, and subsequently, the prices will be revised.

It further mentions that the basic prices of the products remain unchanged, and the change is due to the hike in the basic customs duty.

"Basically if one order cost previously with tax 1.1 lakh, the same will now cost 2.5 lakhs. 1 lakh chemical and 1.5 lakh tax," writes Chauhan. 

He additionally says that these global companies are not local suppliers, and their manufactured chemicals are globally used for research. Switching suppliers may even lead to different outputs, producing different results, thereby, running the risk of tarnishing the quality of the research output.

Will "Make in India" work?

Another academician and researcher from the Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISER), Kolkata, Ayan Banerjee (@ayanban7) expressed his ire at the decision on 'X'. The professor of Physics questions if Indian researchers will now be forced to use chemicals produced by manufacturing units with no proper facilities and sub-par equipment.

He writes, "Lab chemicals to cost 15x higher?!! This is chemical warfare now! Against your own researchers. Or are you demanding that chemicals be made in India? With facilities that don't exist."

Professor Abhijit Majumder (@abhijit_MLab) from the Department of Chemical Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay also commented on the issue on 'X'. Listing a series of issues with the decision, he writes,

"Cut the funding.

Increase custom duty.

Remove tax exemption.

Make purchase complicated.

Double the paperwork.

And thn give us lectures on becoming Science Superpower."

The professor's comment reiterates the challenges the budget has imposed on ordinary citizens this time. He expresses his displeasure over the increase in customs duty and the reduction in funding for educational institutions. His post also highlights the difficult situation faced by academics. 

With increasing academic responsibilities and now gradual funding cuts, he questions how one can expect efficiency in research output.

"How do we give science back?"

Chinmaya Jena, a researcher at the Department of Chemistry, Banaras Hindu University (BHU) sheds light on how the decision has impacted him, as well as his department. Chinmaya told EdexLive that research labs at most universities and institutions do not have government-sponsored projects. Most of the funds used by the researchers come

a) Either from their fellowship

b) Or, a contingency fund received from the department (For non-National Eligibility Test (NET)/Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) fellows)

He said, "These contingency funds, which is a meagre amount of Rs 20,000 per year, would certainly not cover the amount needed to procure these chemicals, with the 4x hike in rates. All of these chemicals that we use are procured from Japan, China and the USA (United States of America), even the basic chemicals are imported. Now, how do these people cover their expenses, if they are not privileged enough? How do we now give science back? How do we contribute?" he questions.

Chinmaya's apprehensions and questions certainly resonate with the community of researchers. He added that with the cuts in the University Grants Commission (UGC) funding as per the announcement in the Union Budget this year, the departments in these government-aided central universities are affected. Now, the decision comes as an added blow to the dilemma of funding.

The research fellow said that as soon as the announcement came through, they were sent emails and messages about the revision and the dates from when they would come into effect. "I hoarded as many materials as I could before the revised prices were in circulation. For DMSO d6, which is a solvent frequently used by all researchers, the price has increased from Rs 10,000 to Rs 35,000 for 50 gms. It was a wise decision to stock up, as the revised rates are abysmal," he stated.

Chinmaya, who now is serving a part of his research tenure in Taiwan, addresses the significant differences in the ways research is carried out in other nations. 

"Are the laboratories in Taiwan at par compared to the Indian facilities? There is a huge difference. Here, a consumable once used is discarded, whereas in India, it is used again. Reason? To save costs, and due to lack of funding." He wonders what would now be the new method the researchers may employ to save costs further in this dire situation.

Another researcher from Hyderabad's Osmania University (OU), Ravindar Ponakanti, asserted that the government has kept hiking the rates through the years, with no such increase in university funding. "For the last five years, the price has been exponentially increasing. Ten litres of ethanol now cost Rs 8,000, which previously was Rs 5,000, on top of it the added GST (Goods and Services Tax) of about 18-35%, making it more difficult for us scholars to acquire good quality chemicals."

The OU researcher opines that research outputs may run the risk of getting hampered with such decisions and with the cuts in funding, researchers will suffer manifold.