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The Niti Aayog, in its report titled Ease of Doing Research & Development in India - Removing Obstacles, Promoting Enablers, has said that India should significantly enhance its investment in research and development from the current level of 0.64% to at least 2% of GDP in the next four to five years to strengthen the country's R&D ecosystem. It pointed that the level of investment relative to GDP remains low despite overall allocations increasing in absolute terms. It also noted that the funding ecosystem continues to be heavily dependent on public sources, with limited participation from the private sector and philanthropic institutions. This is compounded by inefficiencies in the way funds are allocated, disbursed, and utilised.

Besides, it said that current fund flow mechanisms, coupled with accounting and compliance requirements, often result in delays, disruptions, and underutilisation of resources. Issues, such as limited overhead provisions and cumbersome procurement procedures, further constrain the effective use of funds, ultimately affecting the pace and quality of research. It also highlighted that challenges related to human resources, which form the backbone of any research ecosystem. It noted that despite India's large pool of young talent, the overall density of researchers remains low, and the system struggles to attract and retain high-quality human capital. 

In order to support R&D procurement, it has suggested the government should consider restoring a 5% GST slab for R&D procurement. It also added that the country needs to introduce time-bound, incremental fiscal incentives to boost private sector investment in R&D. Moreover, Niti Aayog has emphasized on creating an inter-departmental committee within the Ministry of Science & Technology, which meets at regular intervals, to target synergy and complementarity of schemes and calls across constituent departments and funding agencies, and ensure avoiding or minimising duplication of schemes across departments.