Why is it in news?

The World Economic Forum (WEF) is going to set up a Centre for a Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) in Mumbai.

Details

• The World Economic Forum (WEF) in partnership with Reliance Industries (RIL) has agreed to set up a new Centre for Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) in Mumbai to promote Digital India and Startup India programmes to promote young entrepreneurs.
• This would be first (C4IR) opened outside Silicon Valley at San Francisco, which is already home to several of these exciting developments in the digital space including include Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Internet of Things (IoT), Blockchain amongst many others.
• The C4IR in India will operate as the Sister Centre to the World Economic Forum Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution in San Francisco, allowing policymakers and thought leaders in India to stay ahead of the curve through unique insights in new forms of governance and new technology applications, and connections with cutting-edge technology innovators globally.

About World Economic Forum

• The World Economic Forum (WEF) is a Swiss nonprofit foundation, based in Cologny, Geneva, Switzerland. Recognized by the Swiss authorities as an international body, its mission is cited as "committed to improving the state of the world by engaging business, political, academic, and other leaders of society to shape global, regional, and industry agendas".
• The Forum is best known for its annual meeting at the end of January in Davos,
• The organization also convenes some six to eight regional meetings each year in locations across Africa, East Asia, and Latin America, and holds two further annual meetings in China and the United Arab Emirates. Beside meetings, the foundation produces a series of research reports and engages its members in sector-specific initiatives.
• The forum also has offices in New York, Beijing and Tokyo. The World Economic Forum strives to be impartial and is not tied to any political, partisan, or national interests. Until 2012, it had observer status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council; it is under the supervision of the Swiss Federal Council. The foundation's highest governance body is the foundation board.
• The foundation is funded by its 1,000 member companies, typically global enterprises with more than five billion dollars in turnover (varying by industry and region).
• Global Competitiveness Report (GCR), Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report, Global Information Technology Report are some of the important reports published by WEF annually.

Conclusion

• This would be a great step in improving India’s research and scientific capabilities.
• It would also help provide a global platform to Promote India’s capabilities in the field of science and research.

Source

The Hindu