The Hindu Business Line : IICT plans chemical weapons testing lab

THE Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) has proposed to set up a chemical weapons testing facility with an investment of Rs 5 crore for buildings and equipment, according to its Director, Dr J.S. Yadav. The institute will approach the Ministry of Defence for funding.

IICT is on the verge of becoming the first Indian institute to have the capability to test chemical weapons. It has crossed two stages of the three-stage tests for certification with the Organisation for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the Netherlands.

Addressing newspersons on the eve of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of the IICT, Dr Yadav said that once the designated certification is obtained, which is will take one year at the most, the laboratory will become the 13th in the world to have the expertise to test chemical weapons.

India is among the 128 countries, which have signed the Chemical Weapons treaty. India has also decided not to allow chemicals to be taken out of the country for testing, hence the urgent need for the IICT kind of facility, he said.

The OPCW maintains stockpiles of chemical weapons, reviews and monitors chemical weapons and carryout tests for industry and labs. Chemical used in insecticides and mob control such as tear gas and mustard as well as several used as intermediates in chemical industry are also categorised as scheduled chemical weapons materials, Dr Yadav said.

He said the IICT had earned Rs 16.4 crore from external sources such as industry and scientific departments during 2003-04. During the current fiscal, against the target of Rs 18 crore, it had earned Rs 10 crore by July end. In terms of research papers, it stood first among all the Council of Scientific Industrial Research labs with a total of 415.

The Union Ministry of Commerce has also identified IICT as the nodal agency for nanotechnology. Under this, the lab would work on improving the efficiency and life of solar fuel cells from the present 10 per cent and 3 years using nano-materials, he added.

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