Life Sciences Research in India: A Profile Based on Biosis 1998

Life sciences research in India is mapped based on papers published in 1998 and indexed in Biosis Biological Abstracts. The findings are compared with those of an earlier study covering the years 1992-1994. There were 8352 papers in all, and these were published in more than 1080 journals. About 55% o'f life science papers were published in 75 Indian journals and more than 82% of papers were published in journals of impact factor less than 1.0. The two areas in which the largest numbers of papers were published are Agriculture and Biochemistry and molecular biophysics. While most agriculture papers had appeared in journals of impact factor zero or less than 1.0, many Biochemistry and molecular biophysics papers were published in journals of moderate to high impact factors. There has been a tendency over the years to publish papers in journals of higher impact factor. Close to 59% of papers were published by academic institutions, much less than the 64.5% in 1992-1994. This decline in research in academic institutions needs to be addressed. This report was prepared by the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation and was submitted to NISSAT, Department of Scientific & Industrial Research Government of India, New Delhi in November 2001.