R&D Project Management,

Ethics in project Management,

Administrative Reforms at
IGNTU and ERP

P. Siluvainathan
Registrar
Indira Gandhi National Tribal University
Amarkantak, M.P.
&
Former Sr. Principal Scientist
CSIR-CFTRI, Mysuru
 R&D Project
Management, Ethics in
project Management
Types of Projects

• Basic
• Applied
• Major and Minor Research Projects in Social Sciences
• Consultancy Projects
• Sponsored Projects
• International Collaborative Projects

How Funding is arranged?

• In-house : For e.g. 12th Plan Project Funding

• Extra-Mural Funding from DST, SERB, DBT, ICSSR etc.,
• International Collaborations
• Public-Private Partnerships
• Self-Financing
Guidelines if any….

Bio-safety
Animal Ethics
Institute/ Lab
IPR Sharing
 There are other funding
agencies beyond SERB, DBT &
DST !

UGC, ICSSR, SERB, MFPI , LSRB,

PCRA, MoEF, DSIR, CSIR, BRNS,
ICAR, ICMR & NOVOD Board
…………….
 International Funding Agencies
- Canadian International Development Agency
- Melinda & Bill Gates Foundation
- Australian Centre for International Agricultural
Research
- European Framework Programme Seven (FP7)
- European Molecular Biology Organization
- Wellcome Trust
- European Science Foundation

Beware of Ethical & other guidelines which

will be thrusted on you silently.
Read the fine prints or take help from
Planning Professionals before you sign
 Why Research Proposals?

• Advancement of Science
• Human Resource Development
• Global Networking
• Financial freedom in R&D spending
• National Development in terms of
Technological Independence
• Opportunity to explore the dream of S&T
Time bound approvals need to be facilitated to the
faculty members / scientists
For externally Funded Projects

-Guidelines of funding agencies to be followed

-Project appointments to be Co-terminus with the Project
-Equipments remain open for use by the funding agencies and also
by anyone the funding agency may permit.
-IPR to be shared jointly. Research Papers must carry mention of the
funding agencies support.
-GeM purchase is mandatory for commonly used goods. If the
Scientific equipments are not available in GeM other modes of
procurement to be followed, with due recording. As of now GeM is
evolving.
-Project Management Guidelines need to be developed and
implemented.
-OH is not for the PI. It is for the Institution (Internal Revenue)
-Institute’s Contribution is in-terms of Manpower, Space and
Management Support
-Interest from the grant normally adjusted from the future instalments
Ethics in Project
Management
 Why Concern about Scientific Ethics?
• Illicit or unwise research activities can generate
negative publicity and legal liability.

• To avoid damaging repercussions, faculties need

to be concerned about ethics in the laboratory,
book publications and in their interactions with
society.

• Scandals have an adverse impact on the public’s

support for research and its trust in science.
• Science’s evolving relationship with private
industry has raised many ethical issues in
research, because the academic values of
objectivity and openness frequently clash with
the business interests in profit and
competitiveness.
• In science, some of the goals are
• (a) to develop systematic knowledge about the
natural world,
• (b) to understand and explain natural
phenomena, and
• (c) to predict and control natural phenomena.

• Ethical rules like “honestly report data and

results” are necessary for developing
knowledge, because knowledge cannot be built
on false beliefs and deceptions.
Some Areas of Scientific / Academic Dishonesty

1. Plagiarism - using the ideas, writings,

drawings of others as your own
2. Non ethical Notable examples
3. Fabrication & falsification - making up
or altering data
4. Nonpublication of data , “cooking data”
5. Faulty data-gathering procedures
6. Poor data storage and retention
7. Misleading authorship - who should be an author?
Causes of Scientific/Academic Misconduct

 Pressure to publish
 Need to complete graduate/ Ph.D.,
work
 Desire to continue to get funding
 Desire for academic rewards,
promotions
 Foreign trips / Nomination to higher
posts
 Few words of Wisdom to manage
an externally funded project
•In the era of self-financing PIs earn our Salary. Treat them with priority
•Now, Universities have to pay back their HEFA loans. So, whoever earns is
doing a favour to you. So serve them with humility
•Artists, Scientists are very difficult to manage, but they may be emotionally
weaker. Win them with love and respect.
•Academicians need to worry about their research and work and not about UCs
and other administrative works. Facilitate in a way that they feel supported.

In my office, any faculty can walk in and get the declaration certificates within 30
Seconds. At the end of the day I personally see that no file is on my table.
Though no one watches over me, God is watching atleast!

Because, one day delay may be someone’s ruin tomorrow. Deliver Today,
so that tomorrow is a Happy ending for someone.

Afterall we all are paid by the Tax payers hard earned money.
 Administrative
Reforms at IGNTU
Administrative Reforms at IGNTU, Amarkantak

• Finance Officer empowered to sanction upto 50000

• Separate R&D Unit
• Water Conservation – Creation of ponds/lakes.
Hydroelectric plant in pipeline
• Plantation of over 32000 plants to reduce Carbon Foot
Print & to create Green Campus for Students
• Solar Power Plant
• Teaching & Co-Teaching employees deputed for
training programmes
• Biometric (AEBAS)
• File Tracking System
• RFID Tag for Vehicles
• S/W for Inventory Management System
• Medical Support on Priority
• Annual Award (For all levels of employees)
• Annual Employees Sports Meet
• Yoga Classes for Employees
• Moringa plantation – for employee welfare
• 28-days training programme
• Files processed in 3-4 days
• Establishment of various cells
• Administration Manual
• Dedicated Sports Complex
• Gond Painting on walls
• Flower bouquets – local (IGNTU) made
• LBI (Livelihood Business Incubator)
 Modernization of
Administration through
computerization and ERP
Enterprise Resource Planning
(ERP)

ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) is integrated

multidimensional system for all functions of an institution for
planning, control and global optimization of the entire decision
making by using ICT tools that enable value added services to
all internal and external stakeholders.
 Benefits of ERP Systems in an
Academic Environment

The major objective is to integrate Academic and Non-

Teaching department’s functions on a single
computerized ERP system for facilitating faceless
administrative services for quicker decision making by
the management. Also for cost cutting measures and
expansion, ERP becomes inevitable part.
 Benefits of ERP Systems in an
Academic Environment

• ERP results in transparency and uniform information

access. Also, it ensures that the departments no
longer work in isolation pursuing their institutional
goals and helps in tracking the wide range of
institutional events in an integrated fashion and in
turn helps in planning future activities in an informed
manner.
 Benefits of ERP Systems in an
Academic Environment
• Completely Cloud Based – Anytime, Anywhere, smooth and seamless flow of
information across institutional stakeholders, automating intuitional processes
and functions and thus helping the organizations to work and move forward as
an unified entity. In a pandemic situation also, service delivery can remain
undisturbed. Also, ransomware like situation, recovering data may be easy, if
the system is cloud based.
• SAMARTH is well designed one,
which can be considered by the HEIs
 Points to Ponder
• Centrally Funded Institutions like Central Universities a
major role in shaping the student community for playing
major role in National Development. In the current scenario
these institutions need to be strengthened with advanced
ERP systems, to cater the needs of the community at large in
a continual manner. Cloud based systems will be ideal.
• In-House development of ERP systems is proposed as it pays
major dividend in the long run. Dependency on private
players places extra financial burden on the revenue earned.
• ERP may result in improved NIRF/NAAC ranking and
employee satisfaction.
• More freedom in operating Projects will be mutually
beneficial to the PIs and others in the ecosystem.