Mission & Programme

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DST has fortified its programme on technology development in key areas by undertaking mission

mode programmes for implementation and deployment existing technologies. Key technology areas

in which Mission programmes are being operated are missions on Climate Change, Mission on Nano

Science and Technology, National Mission on Bamboo applications and Mission project on

reinvigorating of Indian agriculture. The Mission project on reinvigorating of Indian agriculture that

has now been expanded and renamed as Mission for Geospatial Applications the activities of this

mission include Agricultural Assessment, Flood Modeling and Forecast.

DST has been entrusted with the responsibility of coordinating two out of eight national missions

launched under the National Action Plan on Climate Change. The mission on sustaining Himalayan

ecosystem aims to develop and build national capacity in studying and protecting Himalayan

ecosystems. Under the mission on strategic knowledge for climate change, knowledge centers in

climate change science are being established.

The Mission on Nano Science and Technology (Nano Mission) has been launched as an umbrellaprogramme on May 2007 for promoting pre-competitive R&D in this area of research. Under the

nano mission, basic research in nano science has been actively fostered. More than 250 PhDs have

been produced and about 2700 publications in prime journals have been published from the projects

supported under the mission.

National Bamboo Application Mission (NMBA) has been successful in adding value of bamboo

materials through technologies for applications. Structural materials and Public service facilities like

schools, hospitals etc have been constructed from bamboo in short spans of time. Leh has received

60,000 Sq.ft constructed area for housing after the recent floods.

CHAPTER 7

MISSION PROGRAMMES

CLIMATE CHANGE & ADAPTATION PROGRAMME

The Climate Change Programme (CCP) is a new initiative of the Department of Science & Technology,

Ministry of Science & Technology which is spearheading two out of eight national missions on climate

change as part of the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC). These are: (a) National Mission

for Sustaining Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE) and (b) National Mission on Strategic Knowledge for

Climate Change (NMSKCC).

The broad objectives of NMSHE include - understanding of the complex processes affecting the

Himalayan eco system and evolve suitable management and policy measures for sustaining and safeguarding

the Himalayan eco-system, creating and building capacities in different domains, networking of knowledge

institutions engaged in research and development of a coherent data base on Himalayan ecosystem, detecting


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and decoupling natural and anthropogenic induced signals of global environmental changes in mountain

ecosystems, studying traditional knowledge systems for community participation in adaptation, mitigation

and coping mechanisms inclusive of farming and traditional health care systems and developing regional

cooperation with neighboring countries, to generate a strong data base through monitoring and analysis, to

eventually create a knowledge base for policy interventions.

The NMSKCC has been launched with the broad objectives of mapping of the knowledge and dataresources relevant to climate change and positioning of a data sharing policy framework for building

strategic knowledge among the various arms of the Government, Identification of knowledge gaps, and

Formation of global technology watch groups to help accomplish the task of technology selection and

prioritization, Networking of knowledge institutions after investing critical mass of physical, intellectual and

policy infrastructure resources, creation of new dedicated centers within the existing institutional framework,

building international cooperation on S&T for climate change agenda through strategic alliances and assistance

to the formulation of policies for a sustained developmental agenda.

The two missions envisage building upon and creating synergy amongst existing initiatives of various

Ministries and Departments of the Government of India which provide support for research and development

in climate change through intra- and extra-mural systems. The missions propose to create linkages with

state governments and their establishments/ institutions on climate change related aspects.Some of the major initiatives taken up and progress made by CCP in respect of the two missions are

as under-

a. NMSKCC

o Mission deliverables were approved by the PMO in September, 2010 wherein DST was given

go ahead to initiate follow-up action.

o Actions initiated in respect of key mission deliverables - Setting up of Centres of Excellence,

Strengthening of Existing Centres of Excellence, launch of Major R&D Programmes and major

Human Capacity Building programmes in the month of September, 2010.

o The Mission document was sent to all State Governments and Union Territories requesting

them to set up coordination mechanism and enroll R&D Institutions engaged in climate changeaspects into the mission. A number of state governments have responded. Response from other

states is awaited.

o A meeting of Stakeholders including state governments, R&D institutions, NGOs, Civil Society

Organizations is being planned.

b. NMSHE

o Approval on Mission document was received from PMO in September, 2010. DST was asked

to initiate further action for submission of a Cabinet Note.

o The mission document was sent to all 12 Himalayan States requesting them to communicate

their comments and designate nodal coordination point at their end. Majority of states have

responded. Response from a few of them is awaited.

o A meeting of Stakeholders which include governments of all 12 Himalayan states, concerned

central ministries/ departments, NGOs, Civil Society organizations, Institutions working on

Himalayan ecosystem is being planned.


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o The Expert Committee set up for preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR) on National

Centre for Himalayan Glaciology has submitted its report.

NATIONAL MISSION ON BAMBOO APPLICATIONS

The objectives of the National Mission on Bamboo Applications (NMBA) are development and

scaling up of bamboo based economic activities in the country to enable enhanced opportunities, employmentgeneration, entrepreneurship, exports and the environment protection. The thrust area of the Mission

includes:

Knowledge, information gathering and dissemination.

Technology development and validation.

Demonstration and promotional activities for bamboo based value added products and applications.

Support to entrepreneurial projects and the commercialization of technologies.

Disaster management.

Amalgamation of Technology with Bamboo

The amalgamation of technology in various aspects with bamboo has been fruitful and over the years

NMBA has collaborated with SDR Technologies, Delhi and talks are on with other agencies in this regard

as well.

Products such as Bamboo microscope, bamboo kaleidoscope, and bamboo solar garden light, bamboo

speakers were developed with bamboo as a green alternative, replacing plastics, metals and wood etc. In

term of initiating the fusion of electronics, bamboo solar light were developed. The prototypes of products

have already been developed.

Contribution towards Society

NMBA intends to facilitate the erection of 144 structures of various sizes to be used as schools and

hospitals in the disaster stricken area of Leh along with providing shelters to the homeless of Leh. These

are being erected to help the homeless and these structures can sustain any high temperature or weather

conditions.

Fig. 7.1 Solar light Fig. 7.2 Fig. 7.3


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In order to fill the gap between the producer and the consumer

community, steps like procurement of material at the NMBA warehouse

has been initiated in order to help the producers market their products

and the consumers could be well aware of the bamboo alternative available

in the market.

In addition to this, NMBA has been actively participating in various

expos and fairs to help promote the bamboo industry.

Bamboo timber- A breakthrough innovation

Bamboo timber in the form of Reinforced compressed Bamboo Beam and Board. It is a 100%

substitute of wood timber as it can be cut sawn, sanded and polished in any direction. India has the second

largest bamboo resource after china & a long term sustainable alternative to wood timber can be found by

setting up Bamboo timber unit. Bamboo timber is a revolutionary type of board that has been growing in

market .It is now the most popular type of bamboo flooring board on the market. It can be used for all

other wood application such as doors, windows and furniture. Both products have huge potential in India

as we are a wood timber deficit country.NMBA supported M/s DLS Industries Pvt Ltd for establishment

of Bamboo Timber manufacturing unit at Chichala Distt Nagpur.Hydroponics

Hydroponics is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions in water, without soil,

using PVC pipes mounted on aluminum frame. M/s World Kids Inc, Mumbai is developing Hydroponic

unit made of Bamboo which will replace the plastic and aluminum version along with rooftop hydroponics

demo garden.

Centre for Bamboo Training and Product Development

NMBA has decided to support the establishment of a Centre for Bamboo Training and Product

Development (CBTPD) for purposes of skills training, entrepreneurship development, product development

and related applications in the bamboo sector in the Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode or in joint

collaboration with the State Bamboo Agency or Mission or similar autonomous agency set up by the StateGovernment for the promotion of the bamboo sector. The above project has already been approved for

establishing 10 Centers for Bamboo Training and Product Development, where MoU has already been

signed with six centers and machines are also in the process of installation for the four centers with the

various state agencies.

NANO SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY MISSION

The Mission on Nano Science and Technology (Nano Mission) - an umbrella programme was launched

in May 2007 to promote R&D in this emerging and highly competitive area of research in a comprehensive

fashion. The main objectives of the Nano Mission are - basic research promotion, infrastructure development

for carrying out front-ranking research, development of nano technologies and their applications, human

resource development and international collaborations. During the year 2010-11, Nano Mission continued

to record expansion in its activities and also continued to break new grounds in promotion of R&D andhuman resource development in this field of nanotechnology.Also, the process of laying down a regulatory

framework for Nanotechnology in India has been initiated.

Fig. 7.4: School structure


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BASIC RESEARCH PROMOTION

40 new individual scientist-centric R&D projects were funded this year which aimed at investigating

fundamental scientific aspects of nano-scale systems. Some of the topics on which projects were funded

are - development of innovative peptide and peptide hybrid material based multifunctional nanostructures

for cancer imaging and targeted drug delivery, nanoscale fabrication with metal phosphides as anode for

next generation lithium-ion battery applications, nanosensor array for real time monitoring of toxic volatileorganic compounds, computational study of functionalized nanoparticles, characterization of composite

materials and application of nanomaterials for sustainable energy and development of polymer

nanocomposites for nanocoating and nanostructured magnets.

Support to ongoing projects was continued. Some important achievements from the supported projects

are summarized below:

Chitosan nanoparticles and chitosan tripolyphosphate were used to deliver DNA vaccine in aquatic

animals. A CD-14 co-receptor nanopeptide agonist was successfully designed and bioproduced which

can be used for targeted delivery of drugs to monocytes, dendritic cells and macrophages. Different types

of glass matrices have been prepared and processing procedure for quantum dot growth was optimized.

Gold and ZnO nanoparticles were prepared by liquid phase pulsed laser ablation and wet-chemical route

respectively and were embedded in polymer matrix for non-liner optical applications. In a study, it wasobserved that rheological properties of many soft materials at micro and nano scale are helpful for manufacture

of better paints, gels, toothpaste and many other commercial products. Stable ferro fluid of different

capabilities has been developed. New magnetic resonance active colloidal amine-functionalized Fe3O

4

nanoassembly with enhanced T2contrast properties has been fabricated which can be used as an effective

carrier for drug molecules and a source of hyperthermia treatment for cancer. Studies using low concentration

of TiO2nanoparticles were carried on human skin cell line demonstrating the cytotoxic and genotoxic effect

of TiO2nanoparticles. Sulfur nanoparticles were prepared using an effective and easy route. Also, the

mechanism of formation of AgBr nanoparticles in aqueous surfactant solutions was developed. Cellulose

microfibrils extracted from four different sources were studied by different methods of analysis. It was

found out that using nanoparticles with biodegradable polymer matrix such as cellulose microfibrils can

lead to biodegradable nanocomposites.

INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT FOR CARRYING OUT FRONT-RANKING

RESEARCH

6 new Units/Research facilities on Nano Science were established during the year and support to

existing Units /Centers continued. Some important achievements from these units & centers are summarized

below:

Detailed investigations were carried out on the catalytic effect of carbon nanomaterials with different

structure morphology for improving the hydrogen storage behavior of complex hydrides. The carbon

nanovariants used are single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), multiwalled carbon nanotubes

(MWCNTs), twisted graphitic nanofibres (TGNFs) and planar graphitic nanofibres (PGNFs). It was

observed that TGNFs possess superior catalytic effect than that of other carbon nanostructures. Thus 2

wt. % TGNF admixed NaAlH4 exhibits fast hydrogen desorption at lower desorption temperature. Thecatalytic effect of graphitic nanofibres (GNFs) on improving the hydrogen storage behavior of NaAlH

4

was observed for the first time Carbon nanomaterial catalyzed NaAlH4can be used as a hydrogen storage

material for vehicular applications.


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Studies were made on hydrogen adsorption behavior of functionalized graphene synthesized by thermal

exfoliation of graphite oxide. Hydrogen adsorption was carried out at 300 K and at 77 K by applying

constant H2pressure. Hydrogen adsorption rate on graphene was found to increase with an increase in

applied hydrogen pressure.

The maximum amount of hydrogen adsorbed at 300 K under 80 atm is ~ 0.5 wt.% H2. However, at

77 K under 50 atm H2, ~ 2.2 wt.% H2 gets adsorbed with higher adsorption rate. The binding energycalculated using ab-initio simulation for perpendicular adsorption of H

2molecule on the bridge site of

graphene with and without epoxy oxygen is 13 meV and 28 meV, respectively with the mean adsorption

distance of 0.34 nm.

It was found that graphene possess better hydrogen adsorption behavior at liquid N2temperature.

Thus the maximum amount of hydrogen adsorbed at 77 K under 50 atm H2, ~2.2 wt.% H

2. It was also

observed that the epoxy oxygen functionalities in functionalized graphene increase the hydrogen adsorption

energy.

Very high strength carbon nanotubes/ aerogel composite were prepared. Tuning the photoluminescence

emission of Cu doped CdSe was achieved. Electron energy levels were determined in ZnSe/ZnS core/

shell nanostructures. It is observed that the wave function can be engineered in these nanostructures. First

principle calculations to understand effect of stoichiometry on passivation of nanocrystals. ZnO nanocrystalsshow size dependent anti-bacterial activity for E Coli.

Agarose based 3D scaffolds through lyophilization with uniaxial macroporous distribution were

fabricated successfully. This topology mimics the natural hepatic lobule matrix environment and hence was

exploited for in vitro hepatic regeneration studies. It was proved that incorporation of Fibrin to these

constructs enhanced their potential to induce in vitro cell proliferation & differentiation.

Fig. 7.5: SEM images of Agarose- Fibrin scaffold showing the uniaxial topology and

uniform distribution of fibrin nano-particles over the scaffold

Membrane scaffolds for wound healing using chitin/chitosan gels containing nanoparticles were created.

Fig. 7.6: A) Chitosan/ZnO Hydrogel, (B), (C) & (D) Chitosan/ZnO Hydrogel nanocomposite Sponge


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Bioactive fibrin-alginate composite scaffold with uniformly dispersed nano-graphene, resulting in

biocompatible gels with superior control over mechanical properties was prepared.

A novel method for the fabrication of Fibrin based electrospun scaffolds for tissue engineering

applications was developed. The hMSCs adhered and migrated well in to the composite scaffold with

excellent cytoskeletal organization compared to PCL scaffold.

Fig. 7.7: Targeted imaging of human mesenchymal stem cells using antibody conjugated ZnS nanocrystals

(i) bright field image and (ii) fluorescence image

Fig. 7.8: Confocal Images of hMSCs seeded on a) electrospun PCL Micro nano scaffold b&c)

PCL fibrin scaffold. Fibers are shown in green colour.

A new class of magnetic resonance (MR) active aqueous Fe3O

4magnetic nanoparticle nanoassemblies

(Fe3O

4MNNA) of 40 nm size comprising 6 nm particles was formulated. Intercalation and characterization

of pravastatin and fluvastatin drugs in MgII/AlIII layered double hydroxides (LDHs) has been investigated

to form stable drug carrier. The mechanism of drug release has been investigated in detail. A novel arginine-

based dendritic block is grown on the surface of APTES-coated Fe3O

4nanoparticles by conventional

growth approach of Michael addition/amidation reactions. The nanocarriers showed good capacity to

encapsulate DOX, with loading as high as 65% (w/w) and a pH-responsive sustained release of 54% at

pH 5.0. Also, the release of DOX from the nanocarriers increased up to 80% on application of an AC

magnetic field. A temperature sensitive folate targeted doxorubicin containing magnetic liposomes has been

developed for thermo chemotherapy of cancer. Enhanced uptake into tumor cells by virtue of the synergistic

effect of biological and magnetic targeted liposomes has been observed. Highly mesoporous spherical

three dimensional (3D) ZnO nanoassemblies have been fabricated by a simple approach. The drug-loadingefficiency of the nanoassemblies was investigated using doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX) as a model

drug. The studies suggest that drug release is dependent on the pH of the medium and externally applied

ultrasound.


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Zinc blende alloy nanocrystals were designed which composed of Cd, Zn and S and doped with Cu

to produce composition/size dependent tunable dopant emission in entire visible spectrum have been

designed. This is the first alternative to work horse CdSe in group II-VI semiconductor systems to produce

such a large window tunable emission with all visible color.

Fig. 7.9: Digital image Cu doped alloyed nanocrystals of Cd, Zn and S,

samples collected at different intervals.

Human Resource Development

2 new Post Graduate Programmes [M.Tech (Nano Science & Technology)] were started in twomore Universities and support to 15 ongoing Post Graduate programmes continued.

Attractive Post-doctoral fellowships to encourage talented Young researchers towards advanced

research in the field of Nano Science & Technology continued through JNCASR-Bangalore. 6 Post

Doctoral Fellows have completed their research while 5 are continuing at present.

Support to 1Ramanna Fellowship also continued.

International Collaborations

Support to India-Japan Beamline established at the Photon Factory, KEK, Tsukuba, Japan during

last year continued. Experiments were carried out on different modes i.e. powder diffraction, single-crystal

diffraction and small angle scattering using one Goniometer under low temperature and high pressure

conditions. Scientists and researchers from IISc-Bangalore, JNCASR-Bangalore, BARC-Mumbai, IUC-

Indore, BHU-Varanasi, SNBNCBS-Kolkata and SINP-Kolkata are using the beamline.

The process of financial sanction of PETRA-III project is in progress. Indo-Canada collaborative

project is also under process.

Development of Nano Technologies and their applications

Support to ongoing projects in this category continued. Significant progress has been made in these

projects. Some important achievements from the supported projects are summarized below:

A solar cell module was developed which can also store electrical energy in the same thin film. Theprinciple of the new generation device is to coat the photovoltaic thin film layers with thin film storage layers

that is also nanostructured and uses titania nanotubes providing very high capacitances. A double layered

titania structure was used for photovoltaic storage device.


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Si sheets measuring 5-8 mm wide and 8-10 cm long and 0.5-1 mm thick could be grown at 5-10 mm

per minute as shown in the figures above.

Novel hydride catalysts were prepared using hydrogen decrepitation technique which provide fresh

surfaces with large surface area, free from oxidation which further increases the catalytic sites for the

formation of CNTs. High hydrogen absorption, large decrepitation and low cost makes these hydrides

better catalysts for large scale production of CNTs.

Fig. 7.13: Automated experimental facility for CVD process (10 g of CNTs in a single step)

Also, single furnace fully automated CVD facility has been indigenously fabricated using mass flow

controllers, furnace and quart tube to get a yield of ~10 gm in a single step. Carbon nanotube/Folic acid/

Fe3O

4magnetic nanovectors were developed which have the potential to destroy cancer cells by

hyperthermia treatment.

The new discoveries were made in the Research Programme on Smart and Innovative Textile are

Nanofinishes, Thermo-regulated textiles and nanofiber based automotive filters.

Nanofinishes: A silver nanoparticle based anti-microbial finish and was developed for the first time in

the country. The finish is stable for several months and does not impart undesirable color to the fabrics on

application and the finish gives nearly 100 % activities durable for over 30 washes.

Thermo-regulated textiles: A novel technology was developed to stablilize Phase Change Materials

(PCM) formulations. Using this technology, PCMs were developed for 29 OC and -15 OC that show

negligible super cooling and have high stability for large number of transition cycles.

Nanofiber based Automotive Filters:A proprietary technology for continuous production of nanofiber

webs of large widths at a linear speed was developed for the first time in the country.The technology is

able to produce highly uniform nanowebs even at very low amounts of depositions. Studies have been

made on the effect of electrospinning process parameters on the nanofiber diameter, pore size distributionof nanowebs and its subsequent effect on filtration behaviour. Using the knowledge, a prototype automotive

oil filter has been developed with filtration efficiency up to 99 % for 1 m size standard dust without

sacrificing their dust holding capacity.


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Fig. 7.14: Prototype of automotive filter using Nanowebs

1 National Review & Co-ordination Meeting and 1 Advanced School was organized. Support to 10

International /National conferences, Seminars, Workshops were provided.Output Indicators

Outputs from Individual R&D projects, Units/Centers projects and Industry-Institute Collaborative

projects have led to a good number of publications in cited journals and Patents. A good number of PhDs

have been produced from these projects. Also, a large number of technical and other manpower have

been trained. The details of the cumulative output indicators from projects, units and centers supported

under Nano Science & Technology Initiative (NSTI) and Nano Mission are summarized below:

Research papers in cited Journals 2687

Research papers in Conferences 375

Patents 82PhDs produced 253

Other Manpower trained 737

MISSION FOR GEOSPATIAL APPLICATION

The Mission Mode project was started during 2007 as Reinvigorating Indian Agriculture through

S&T at a total cost of 4.90 crore for the 11th Plan. The project has now been expanded and renamed as

Mission for Geospatial Applications and the outlay for 11th Plan has been revised to Rs.24.50 crore.

Brief activities of the Mission

(I) Agricultural Assessment -The project was initially started with the objective of tracking impact ofsevere weather events such as hailstorm, floods and drought. The objective is to provide data on

crop coverage, crop health, output, etc up to village level on real time basis to Central/State


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Governments and other users. Information on the above parameters is being provided to different

sugar mills, state governments and other government agencies.

(II) Flood Modeling and Forecast The objective is to provide a warning system and build a flood

index of the vulnerable river basins with probabilities before the actual flood event occurs. The

capabilities developed include (a) area of inundation up to village level, (b) flood inundation maps up

to village level, (c) volume of inundated water, (d) depth of inundation, (e) flood forecasting up to

village level (based on rainfall and river discharges), (f) rainfall recharge to rivers, (g) approximate

time of flooding after release of discharges from various dams and reservoirs, (h) submergence period

of a particular area/village, (i) left bank/right bank inundation, etc.

Flood modeling of Tapi river basin in Gujarat and Mahanadi in Orissa have been under taken in

collaboration with respective state agencies. The NDMA has expressed desire to expand this with

high resolution DEMs to other flood prone states and rivers.

(III) Internal Security

A. 3-D Terrain Models: Under this project the mission is developing 3-D terrain models integrating

high-resolution satellite imagery and digital topo maps. The models showing difficult terrains and

slopes with other attributes to help navigation and operational planning are being used in ControlRooms of MHA and other Government agencies dealing with internal security. Terrain Models have

been provided to MHA, Govt. of Jharkhand, Chhatisgarh, N.E states, BSF, CRPF etc.

The Mission has developed 3-D models of Jharkhand,19 towns of Jammu & Kashmir plus Jammu

and Punch,Chhattisgarh,Orissa,Tripura,12 districts of Bihar,07 districts of Madhya Pradesh, Part of

Manipur (to be completed).

B- Cadastral: The Deptt. Of Land Resources has assigned the task of preparing cadastral maps

using satellite imagery as well as ground surveys. This is a pilot project and in case successful, the

centre will advise states to update and modernize their cadastral maps in digital format using this

approach.

C. Communication System:

(i) Wideband Receiver - This receiver is intended for government, military, security, surveillance,

broadcast monitoring, and demanding applications. This software contains numerous advanced

features such as analog and digital signal reception, three types of scanning, five types of squelch,

many tuning options and virtually unlimited memories.

A prototype has been developed and after successful testing handed over to BSF.

(ii) HF/VHF SDR Tactical Radio System - An SDR in general is a radio that has:-

Primary functionality (mod/demodulation, filtering, etc) defined in software

DSP algorithms implemented in configurable hardware and/or PC software.

(iii) GPS Vehicle and Portable Trackers- The mission for geospatial Applications has developed

AVLS and personal GPS/GPRS/GSM trackers for asset, personnel and fleet management.

These trackers may be also used for covert operations and mission planning and control as the

personal trackers also feature two way voice communications.


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(iv) Electronic Sensors & Fencing - Uses RF, Laser and Ultrasonic Sensors for Surveillance and

electronic fencing over difficult terrain and rivers.Water Level Sensors with high accuracy and

remote programming and data fetch capability using GPRS

Above noted communication systems have been provided to Central Police Organisations like

BSF, CRPF, CISF and state police of Jharkhand. Other Police organisations like SSB, ITBP

and State Govts. of MP, West Bengal, Jammu & Kashmir and North-East States have also

made similar requests.

D. Disaster Management and Monitoring of Developmental Activities : Besides the above

activities recently the Mission has embarked upon new areas of Disaster Management and Monitoring

of Developmental Activities. Govt. of Manipur has requested this Mission to monitor their

developmental activities like road construction, rural housing, etc. Similarly Uttarakhand Govt. has

also approached this Mission for their landslide monitoring.

Documents

Mission & Programme