[1] It is currently a Cabinet Secretary level position created in 1999 by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.
[3] This was followed by Rajagopala Chidambaram who held the rank of a Minister of State and was the PSA for 16 years.
[6] There have been a total of four PSAs so far: The Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India advises the government in science and technology policies and interventions that are of strategic socio-economic importance to the country.
[8] On 6 March 2019, the PSA announced nine new science and technology missions with a focus on 'Science for People and People for Science':[9][10] Other major projects include Research Clusters, Earth Museum, Brahmaputra River System, I-STEM Facilities Map, and Energy Security.
[12] The PM's STIAC increases the collaboration and focus needed to answer complex problems in appropriate time periods.