by rakesh | Feb 22, 2008 | Health & Fitness
Demand for new and more effective antibiotics continues to grow particularly as bacterial resistance to existing antibiotics spreads. The market for antibiotic drugs is huge. In 2005, worldwide sales of oral antibiotics totaled USD 25 Billion including US sales of $8.5 billion ($7.0 billion for adults and $1.5 billion for children). Apart from being huge, the market is also growing at a significant rate, with adult and pediatric prescriptions growing in 2005 at 8.5% and 10.8% respectively.
Department of Biotechnology has recently initiated a network project called “Screening for Bio-molecules from microbial diversity collected from different ecological niches”. The project involves nine institutes, with NPIL Research & Development Limited (NRDL) as an industrial partner. The total cost of the project is Rs.24.86 crores with DBT contribution of Rs.17.98 Crores. Rs. 6.88 Crores is being contributed by NRDL. The participating institutes are:-
Ø National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Nagpur
Ø National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS), Pune
Ø Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB), Delhi
Ø University of Delhi, South Campus (UDSC), Delhi
Ø Institute of Life Sciences (ILS), Bhubaneswar
Ø M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), Chennai
Ø Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU), Amritsar
Ø Institute of Bioresources and Sustainable Development (IBSD), Imphal
Ø National Institute of Oceanography (NIO), Panjim
The project envisages a mega scale screening programme for various environmental isolates. This is the first project in the country where industry and academia will work together to screen such a large number of bacterial isolates. Different academic institutes will isolate organisms specific to diverse ecological niches. For each sample, isolation of bacteria will be carried out on 30 different growth media.
This multi-institutional effort will generate approximately 7000 isolates/month (~1000/institute), which will be regularly sent to NRDL, the industrial partner of the project. Screening will be carried out for anti-cancer, anti-infective, anti-diabetes and anti-inflammation properties. In addition to culture dependent method, the culture independent approach will also be taken up for a few selected samples.
The project will lead to selection of potential candidate molecules, which will be taken to process scale-up strategies with appropriate partners. The credit sharing in this project amongst the PI and industry has been mutually worked out and an agreement has been signed on 22nd February 2008 in the presence of Union Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Shri Kapil Sibal.
A separate Microbial Repository is being set up at National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS), Pune to maintain the 2,00,000 isolates generated under this project. This would be the largest such facility in the country and would confirm to International Depository Authority (IDA) standards.
PIB/PRA/SKK
by rakesh | Feb 15, 2008 | Business
NTPC Limited and Bihar State Electricity Board (BSEB) signed a bipartite JV Agreement to promote a Joint Venture Company to establish, operate and maintain a 1980 MW (3X660MW) coal based power station at Nabinagar, Distt. Aurangabad, Bihar. NTPC and BSEB shall have equal shareholding of 50:50 in the JV.
The JV agreement was signed by Shri T. Sankaralingam, CMD, NTPC Limited and Shri Swapan Mukherjee, Chairman, BSEB in the presence of Shri Nitish Kumar, Chief Minister of Bihar.
NTPC presently has an installed capacity of 28644 MW (including 1794 MW JVs). It is diversifying into hydro power, coal mining, power distribution, power trading, power equipment manufacturing, EPC etc. The Navratna Company plans to be a 75000 MW company by the year 2017.
by rakesh | Feb 13, 2008 | India News
Incidents of piracy on the high seas have declined considerably since India ratified a regional agreement one-and-a-half years ago. This was pointed out in talks between Brigadier General (NS) Tay Lim Heng, Chairman of the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against ships in Asia (ReCAAP), and Vice Admiral RF Contractor, Director General, Indian Coast Guard (DGICG) and Vice Chairman of ReCAAP, here yesterday. Brig. General Tay Heng is leading a four member ReCAAP delegation on a visit to India to discuss steps to enhance cooperation and force building.
India acceded to the ReCAAP on June 6, 2006. The agreement aims at enhancing cooperation amongst its 16 member countries, including the ASEAN, China, Japan, South Korea, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It enables the maritime forces to seize ships or aircraft involved in piracy and armed robbery besides information sharing, capacity building and cooperation for extradition and mutual legal assistance. In the ASEAN only Malaysia and Indonesia have not ratified the treaty. The ReCAAP achieved a distinction when it concluded an agreement with the International Maritime Organisation in December last year.
During his stay in New Delhi, Brig. General Tay Heng also held discussions with Shri PK Rastogi, Special Secretary, Ministry of Defence. The four-member ReCAAP delegation will visit the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), which is also the Piracy Reporting Centre in India, and participate in a table top exercise on piracy control during their visit to Mumbai over the next two days.
The Coast Guard is India’s nodal agency for the ReCAAP. The role of the Indian Coast Guard shot into fame when it tackled the 1999 piracy incident of MV Alondra Rainbow.
PK-PIB
by rakesh | Feb 13, 2008 | India News
The Mughal Gardens and other Rashtrapati Bhavan Gardens will be opened for public viewing this year for the general public from February 16th to March 28th.
The Gardens will be open from 10 AM to 5 PM on all days except on Mondays on account of maintenance. Further the Gardens shall also remain closed on March 21st and 22nd. Entry into the Gardens will be only upto 4 PM.
Entry and exit to the Gardens shall be from Gate No. 35 of President’s Estate, which is located near North Avenue at the extreme end of Church Road about 300 meters West of Cathedral Church.
Entry for physically challenged pesons using Wheelchairs will be through the Rashtrapati Bhavan Reception. Such persons can arrive at Rashtrapati Bhavan through Hukmi Mai Marg or Rajpath along with their escorts.
Visitors are requested not to bring any water bottles, briefcases, handbags/ladies purses, cameras, radios/transistors, cell phones, umbrellas, arms/ammunitions and eatables. Such articles, if any, will not be allowed to be carried into the Mughal Gardens and other Gardens and will have to be deposited at the entry point at the owner’s risk.
Schools desirous of organizing a visit to the Mughal Gardens and the other Gardens by students below the age of 10 years, during this period may contact Section Officer (Invitation Section), President’s Secretariat, Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi-110004 on telephone numbers 23012960 and 23015321 Extn.4229, 4479 and fax number 23013189, two days in advance so that their entry can be arranged on a priority basis.
-PIB
by rakesh | Feb 9, 2008 | India News
Union Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences Mr. Kapil Sibal has held discussions with Senator Kim Carr, Australian Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research at Melbourne. Both Ministers agreed to step up scientific cooperation between the two countries.
Mr. Sibal is visiting Australia as Guest of the Australian Government from February 7 to 12, 2008 and his visit is being coordinated by the Australian Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. He is also the first Indian Minister to visit Australia after the new Government led by the Leader of the Australian Labor Party, Mr. Kevin Rudd MP, was sworn in on 3rd of December 2007.
Taking note of the ongoing 21 projects under the India-Australia Strategic Research Fund, the two Ministers agreed to further strengthen bilateral scientific cooperation focussing on industrial research and development and high technology areas such as nano-composites, bio-energy, health and agricultural bio-technology, climate change and renewable energy particularly using photo-voltaic technology. They also agreed to set-up a Joint Working Group (JWG) to create a roadmap for strengthening bilateral S&T cooperation in the next six months.
During the visit, Mr Sibal met with Senator Ms. Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change and Water, and Mr. Robert McClelland, MP, Attorney General. He also met the Victorian Governor, Professor David de Kretser,AC: Victorian Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Innovation, Mr. Gavin Jennings, MLC: and NSW Minister for Science and Medical Research, Ms. Verity Firth, MP. Mr. Sibal also visited three of the Austria’s group of eight Universities (University of New South Wales, University of Sydney and the University of Melbourne), amongst the leading universities of the world, as well as some of the Premier R&D institutions e.g. Wolter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, centenary Institute of Cancer and Cell Biology and Bio21 Institute.
Mr Sibal also addressed the Australia-India business council at Sydney, and invited the Australian Industry to jointly work with their Indian counterparts for accessing global market for the production of world class products at affordable prices using complimentary strengths available in two countries.
Page 4 of 5« First«...345»
