Columnist-Dr. R K Chadha

Scientific publications: Commercialisation of Science

Today, scientists working, particularly in basic research, are facing significant struggles as scientific publishing has decisively shifted from a community-driven academic exercise to a highly lucrative, multi-billion-dollar corporate business model. In a traditional academic ecosystem, universities, research institutes, and in some cases, patrons cover the subscription cost of the majority of scientific journals required by…

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Columnist-Dr. R K Chadha

Retracting 2025 Seismic Zoning Map: Not a Wise Step

The Union government withdrew the recently revised Seismic Zoning Map of India, which provides earthquake design codes for buildings and other infrastructure projects across the country’s seismic zones. This map was prepared based on seismic data accrued from state-of-the-art digital instruments over the last three decades. The 1993 Latur earthquake, which claimed more than 10,000…

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