Charter 08 (Língbā Xiànzhāng) is a manifesto initially signed by over 350 Chinese intellectuals

and human rights activists to promote political reform and democratization in the People's
Republic of China.[1] It was published on 10 December 2008, the 60th anniversary of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopting name and style from the anti-Soviet Charter 77
issued by dissidents in Czechoslovakia.[2] Since its release, more than 8,100 people inside and
outside of China have signed the charter.[3][4]

One of the authors of Charter '08, Liu Xiaobo, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010.

Charter 77 (Charta 77 in Czech and in Slovak) was an informal civic initiative in communist
Czechoslovakia from 1976 to 1992, named after the document Charter 77 from January 1977.
Founding members and architects were Václav Havel, Jan Patočka, Zdeněk Mlynář, Jiří Hájek,
and Pavel Kohout. Spreading the text of the document was considered as a political crime.[1]
After the 1989 Velvet Revolution, many of its members played important roles in Czech and
Slovak politics. The group was linked to the National Endowment for Democracy.[2][citation needed]

A new language in Arunachal Pradesh

team of linguists working with National Geographic's Enduring Voices project uncovered this
hidden language, known as Koro, in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. A member of the Tibeto-
Burman language family, it has only 800 to 1,200 speakers and is unwritten. Koro is very distinct
from other languages spoken nearby, and the researchers hypothesize it may have originated
from a group of people enslaved and brought to the area, though more research is needed.
Koro is so different from other Tibeto-Burman languages that the researchers have not been
able to identify any in the language family that are closely related to it. The people who live in
the area speak Aka languages, also very rare, and learn Hindi and English to speak to
outsiders.

Koro was discovered when the research team went to the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh in
2008 to find out more about two poorly documented languages, Aka and Miji. To their surprise,
they also began to hear a third, unknown language, Koro, which was not listed in any of the
scientific literature.

Koro brings the number of known languages worldwide up to 6,909, Harrison says. He
documents the discovery in a new book, The Last Speakers: The Quest to Save the World's
Most Endangered Languages(National Geographic, $27). A scientific paper on Koro will be
published in December in the journal Indian Linguistics.

GLIESE 581 G

A team of U.S. planet hunters has discovered an Earth-sized body orbiting a nearby
star in the middle of the star's habitable zone, where liquid water could exist on the
planet's surface and the planet could sustain life as we know it.
The planet, named Gliese 581g, is about three to four times the mass of Earth. The
scientists say this mass indicates a rocky planet with a definite surface and enough
gravity to hold onto an atmosphere.

More than 500 planets have been found outside our solar system, but discoverer
Steven Vogt, professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz says, "This is
the first exoplanet that really has the right condititions to allow liquid water to exist on
its surface."

Water has been discovered on moons of Jupiter and Saturn and even much farther
away in the Orion Nebula where stars and planets being born, said Vogt. "Water is a
very common consitituent. it's everywhere in the universe."

The scientists report the discovery of two new planets around Gliese 581. This brings
the total number of known planets around this star to six, the most yet discovered in a
planetary system other than our own solar system.

Like our solar system, the planets around Gliese 581 have nearly circular orbits.

The planet Gliese 581g is tidally locked to the star, meaning that one side is always
facing the star in perpetual daylight, while the side facing away from the star is in
perpetual darkness.

One effect of this is to stabilize the planet's surface climates, said Vogt. The most
habitable zone on the planet's surface would be the line between shadow and light,
with surface temperatures decreasing toward the dark side and increasing toward the
light side.

"Any emerging life forms would have a wide range of stable climates to choose from
and to evolve around, depending on their longitude," Vogt said.

The researchers estimate that the average surface temperature of Gliese 581g is
between -24 and 10 degrees Fahrenheit (-31 to -12 degrees Celsius). Actual
temperatures would range from blazing hot on the side facing the star to freezing cold
on the dark side.

If Gliese 581g has a rocky composition similar to the Earth's, its diameter would be
about 1.2 to 1.4 times that of the Earth. The surface gravity would be about the same
or slightly higher than Earth's, so that a person could easily walk upright on the planet,
Vogt said.
Two previously detected planets in the Gliese 581 system lie at the edges of the
habitable zone, one on the hot side (planet c) and one on the cold side (planet d).

While some astronomers still think planet d may be habitable if it has a thick
atmosphere with a strong greenhouse effect to warm it up, others are skeptical. But the
newly discovered planet g lies right in the middle of the habitable zone.

PEDRO

The fossil of a giant penguin that lived 36 million years ago has been discovered in Peru.

Scientists say the find shows that key features of the plumage were present quite early on in
penguin evolution.

The team told Science magazine that the animal's feathers were brown and grey, distinct from
the black "tuxedo" look of modern penguins.

It was about 1.5m (5ft) tall and nearly twice as heavy as an Emperor Penguin, the largest living
species.

The bird, named Inkayacu paracasensis, or Water King, waddled the Earth during the late
Eocene period.

It had a long, straight beak, much longer than that of its modern relatives.

The fossil was found in Reserva Nacional de Paracas in Peru. The scientists nicknamed the
penguin "Pedro" - after a scaly character in a Colombian TV series.

One of the highlights of the study was the presence of well-preserved feathers and scales.

Diversity, Beauty of Marine Life Charted in First Global Census

Marine explorers from more than 80 countries have issued the first global Census of
Marine Life, the result of a decade of scientific exploration.

Discoveries made during the Census raised the estimate of known marine species
from about 230,000 to nearly 250,000.

Among the millions of specimens collected in both familiar and seldom-explored

waters, the Census found more than 6,000 potentially new species and completed
formal descriptions of more than 1,200 of them. It found that species once thought to
be rare are, in fact, common. A seven meter tall carnivorous plant, a fish with vampire fangs,
and a frog that sounds like a cricket are among 145 new species described last year in the Greater
Mekong, reaffirming the region as a one of the most significant biological hotspots on the planet
ahead of the UNConvention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Nagoya, Japan.

New Blood: Greater Mekong new species discoveries 2009, reveals an average of three new
species recorded by science each week including Asia’s only bald songbird the Bare-faced bulbul
and the uniquely adapted Sucker-fish, which uses its body to sucker onto rocks in fast flowing waters
to move upstreamThe report says while these discoveries highlight the Greater Mekong’s immense
biodiversity it also pinpoints the fragility of this region’s diverse habitats and species. The likely local
extinction of the Javan rhino in Vietnam is one tragic indicator of the decline of biodiversity in recent
times.

Other new species standouts that were discovered in this region that comprises Cambodia, Laos,
Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and the southern province of Yunnan in China include five new
mammal species, two bats and three shrews, a poisonous pit viper and an entirely new genus of
fang-less snake. It was the biggest event in our planet's history since the extinction of the
dinosaurs.

Three million years ago, the Americas collided.

The creation of the Panama Isthmus - the narrow land bridge that joins the two continents -
wreaked havoc on land, sea and air. It triggered extinctions, diverted ocean currents and
transformed climate.

Now a multi-billion dollar project to widen the Panama Canal is set to reveal new secrets about
the event that changed the world.

Panama is a tiny country, but in a perfect location.

Positioned just north of the equator in the Caribbean, its famous canal is the strategic hub of the
global shipping industry.

The 80km (50-mile) -long Panama Canal, completed in 1914, connects the Atlantic and Pacific
oceans. Its existence means that ships can avoid - at a price - the treacherous 8,000 mile
journey round Cape Horn, the southernmost tip of South America.

Georges Charpak, who won the 1992 Nobel Prize in Physics for inventing a device to sift
through the billions of hurtling subatomic particles liberated by collisions in atom smashers,
opening the way for discoveries on the nature of matter, died on Wednesday in Paris. He
was 86. Particle accelerators, popularly known as atom smashers, whip subnuclear particles
like protons and electrons to high speeds and then force them to collide. The collisions
generate a storm of particles flying in many directions. Some of these short-lived particles
have not existed since the Big Bang created the universe nearly 14 billion years ago, and
identifying them and charting their behavior have been principal goals of modern high-
energy physics.
With his invention, the multiwire proportional tracking chamber, Dr. Charpak vastly
improved the ability of physicists to measure and record what goes on inside particle
accelerators. Earlier detectors, like the cloud chamber and bubble chamber (which, too,
earned Nobels for their inventors) depended on taking photographs of the tracks left by
particles as they emerged from collisions.

Dr. Charpak’s chamber, by contrast, used many minuscule wires to capture electric pulses,
thus generating vastly more information. The data was instantaneously fed into a computer
for interpretation. No longer did scientists have to scan thousands of photographs.

The invention meant that hundreds of millions of particles a second could be sensed,
evaluated and recorded. It allowed scientists testing theories to search out the one particle
in a billion for which they were hunting.

Two Nobel Prizes were awarded for identifying subatomic phenomena using Dr. Charpak’s
device before he received his.

Other physicists used it to earn Nobel Prizes later. Variants of the device now contribute to
the $10 billion Large Hadron Collider put into operation this year at the European
Organization for Nuclear Research, or CERN, in Geneva, where Dr. Charpak worked for
decades. That project aims to explain the origins of the universe.

After winning the prize, Dr. Charpak tried to apply its principles in biology and medicine.
One of his first projects was to study electrical impulses in rats’ brains.

His research led to the development of a camera used by NASA to monitor astronauts’
hearts. He developed an X-ray machine that uses one-tenth the radiation of a conventional
X-ray. He worked on ways to reprogram cancerous cells so they would no longer be
malignant.

Lutetia, the giant asteroid visited by Europe's Rosetta probe in July, is covered in a thick
blanket of dusty debris at least 600m (2,000ft) deep.

Aeons of impacts have pulverised the space rock to produce a shattered surface that in terms of
texture is much like Earth's Moon, scientists say.

The finding is one of the first to emerge from the wealth of data gathered by Rosetta during its
close flyby.

The details are being discussed thi

Researchers with the Ovarian Cancer Research Program of BC (OvCaRe) reveal a major new cancer gene-ARID1A.
Mutations are frequent in this gene and link two types of ovarian cancer to endometriosis. ARID1A mutation and loss
of function is believed to be an early event in the transformation of endometriosis into clear-cell and endometrioid
cancer.
The ARID1A mutations were found in 46 per cent of ovarian clear-cell carcinomas and in 30 per cent of endometrioid
carcinomas. After making the initial discovery the OvCaRe team engaged national and international collaborators to
determine the frequency and relevance of these mutations. Clear-cell carcinoma and endometrioid carcinoma are the
second and third most common forms of ovarian cancer; together they account for one quarter of all cases in North
America and a greater proportion in Asia.

NASA loosens GRIP on Atlantic hurricane season

Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processes (GRIP) experimentHurricanes Earl and Karl
each became important objects of observation for scientists during GRIPHormone
acting as ‘molecular glue’ could boost plant immune systems
The discovery of a hormone acting like molecular glue could hold a key to bolstering plant immune systems and
understanding how plants cope with environmental stress.

The study, which is featured in the Oct. 6 issue of Nature, reveals how the plant hormone jasmonate binds two
proteins together – an emerging new concept in hormone biology and protein chemistry. The study also identifies the
receptor’s crystal structure to provide the first molecular view of how plants ward off attacks by insects and
pathogens.

Scripps Research scientists develop novel test that identifies

river blindness
The breakthrough will assist massive effort to eliminate the widespread tropical scourge

LA JOLLA, CA – October 6, 2010 – For Immediate Release – Scientists from The Scripps Research
Institute have developed the first screening method that rapidly identifies individuals with active river
blindness, a parasitic disease that afflicts an estimated 37 million people. The test could change the
current strategy of mass treatment in areas where river blindness, also known as onchocerciasis, is
suspected.

Humans acquire the disease after they are repeatedly bitten by black flies that harbor the worm,
Onchocerca volvulus, which breed near fast moving rivers. When the flies bite a human host, O.
volvulus larvae, called microfilariae, eventually spread throughout the body. The worms, which
congregate in subcutaneous nodules, trigger an immune response that causes acute dermatitis and, if
left untreated, tissue destruction that can lead to blindness.

The drug ivermectin, manufactured by Merck and distributed free in affected areas, effectively kills the
larvae in most cases, and has served as the principal means of onchocerciasis control. Ivermectin
must be taken twice yearly over a period of 15 to 20 years – the life span of the worms.
Nano drugs
Insoluble medicines can be made orally available if in nano crystal form

Researchers in India have demonstrated that producing nanoscopic crystals of a pharmaceutical

product can allow the medication to be absorbed by the gut even if the drug is not soluble in water.

Research suggests that more than half of the medicinal drugs being developed by the pharmaceutical
industry dissolve only very weakly in water, if at all. This is a major problem for administering such
drugs as it means they are not effective if taken by mouth. The industry has developed many
approaches to addressing this problem, such as adding a small quantity of an organic solvent, such as
ethanol, to the mixture, coupling the drug with a charged ion to increase bioavailability and in more
recent times using water-soluble "carriers", such as the ring-shaped cyclodextrin. A much more
effective approach would be to somehow make the drug soluble without resorting to such additives.

Scientists have, over the last decade or so, discovered that producing microscopic crystals of a
pharmaceutical product can make it soluble in water even if the bulk compound is not. The tiny
particle size, means a much greater surface area to volume ratio giving access to more water
molecules that can surround the particles, which is the essence of dissolving a compound. This effect
can then allow the particles to be carried across the lining of the gut wall where they would previously
simply move past with no interaction. The effect can be explained in terms of the physical chemistry
and mathematics known to nineteenth century scientist Lord Kelvin, Herbert Freundlich, and Wilhelm
Ostwald.

Study sheds new light on how the sun affects the Earth's
climate
The sun's activity has recently affected the Earth's atmosphere and climate in unexpected
ways, according to a new study published today in the journal Nature

The Sun's activity has recently affected the Earth's atmosphere and climate in unexpected ways,
according to a new study published today in the journal Nature. The study, by researchers from
Imperial College London and the University of Colorado, shows that a decline in the Sun's activity does
not always mean that the Earth becomes cooler.

It is well established that the Sun's activity waxes and wanes over an 11-year cycle and that as its
activity wanes, the overall amount of radiation reaching the Earth decreases. Today's study looked at
the Sun's activity over the period 2004-2007, when it was in a declining part of its 11-year activity
cycle.

Although the Sun's activity declined over this period, the new research shows that it may have
actually caused the Earth to become warmer. Contrary to expectations, the amount of energy
reaching the Earth at visible wavelengths increased rather than decreased as the Sun's activity
declined, causing this warming effect.

Following this surprising finding, the researchers behind the study believe it is possible that the
inverse is also true and that in periods when the Sun's activity increases, it tends to cool, rather than
warm, the Earth. This is based on what is already known about the relationship between the Sun's
activity and its total energy output.

Overall solar activity has been increasing over the past century, so the researchers believe it is
possible that during this period, the Sun has been contributing a small cooling effect, rather than a
small warming effect as had previously been thought.
Cold Start is a military doctrine developed by the Indian Armed
Forces. It involves joint operations between India’s three
services and integrated battle groups for offensive
operations. A key component is the preparation of India's
forces to be able to quickly mobilise and take offensive
actions without crossing the enemy’s nuclear-use
threshold. Re-location of Armoured Divisions, Armoured
Brigades and Strike Formations Headquarters

Since the most significant aim of the new war doctrine is to strike offensively without giving
away battle indicators of mobilization, it is imperative that all strike formations headquarters,
Armoured Divisions and Armoured Brigades are re-located from their existing locations in
Central India and in depth, from Punjab to locations forward.

All such formations should be moved forward to the general line of Barmer-Jaisalmer-Bikaner-
Suratgarh from their present locations in the interior.

It can be envisaged that armoured formations would be loath to move forward from their cushy
cantonments on the plea that an adequate infrastructure should first come up. If infantry
formations have existed in field area conditions for decades, there is no reason why armoured
formations cannot similarly exist.

In this connection, the author would like to observe based on his exposures to NATO armies and
United States forward deployments in Okinawa and Korea that no Army wastes so much money
on building huge garages etc. for their tanks. Field coverings of tanks etc. should suffice.

Since conflicts in South Asia can erupt without long drawn out battle indicators, it is necessary
that armoured formations are moved to the general line suggested above, and infrastructure
creation can follow.

[edit] Higher Commanders Mental Robustness and Military

Audacity

Military operations of the type envisaged in Indian Army’s new war doctrine incorporates swift,
fluid and relentless offensive operations, without the luxury of pauses and time duration spans of
defensive operations to which Indian Army’s higher echelons are so conditioned to today.

Such swift and mobile fast-paced operations present the challenges of rapidly changing tactical
situations and fleeting opportunities. The exploitation of these demands a high order of mental
resilience and an eagle eye for reading such rapidly changing battle situations.

Military audacity does not come overnight. It has to be cultivated over a long period of time. If
the German Panzer generals like Rommel and Guderian had been brought up in defensive
mindsets of the Indian Army and the Indian political leadership, the blitzkrieg’ lightening
operations with which they covered themselves with glory would not have come their way.

Military orthodoxy in the Indian Army must give way to military audacity and offensive spirit,
and the Indian Army higher commanders should ensure that it becomes the hallmark of junior
leaders too.

C4I-(Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence Networks) Need

Upgradation and Fine Tuning:

Mechanized offensive operations by joint Army and Air Force cooperation require a highly
upgraded and fine tuned C4I network. Since line communications become redundant in such a
war doctrine, so envisaged, the command and control of such mechanized operations where fresh
orders have to be passed every other minute, there will be a generation of high density traffic on
C4I networks.

The Indian Army would have to create an extensive C4I network which can handle high density
traffic on the move, which is secure, having scrambling and unscrambling features including
digital voice fax and telex encryption capabilities.

Alternative and duplicate means will also have to be provided due to disruptions and destruction
by enemy action.

[edit] Indian Air Force (IAF) Planning and Concept of

Operations

The Indian Air Force may have a marked superiority over its traditional enemies in terms of
sophisticated combat aircraft and advanced training,but this is not enough by itself.

The entire Indian Air Force planning will have to undergo a significant re-orientation in terms of
concept of operations.

[edit] The following points need to be noted

• New war doctrine of the Indian Army would call for more massed air
operations as against compartmentalized sorties and small scale air
operations in vogue so far.
• IAF should be able to generate very high sortie rates round the clock with
effective maintenance support.
• Advanced C4I systems and use of AWACS system is a must. Indian Defence
Ministry needs to speed up AWACS acquisition. In the interim explore for a
lease; it may not be a problem.
• PGMs (Precision guided munitions) would be used extensively in such
operations. Extensive stocks should be built up from now.
• Systems to paralyse and jam enemy radar and air defence networks would be
a high priority.
The aim of the IAF in support of the Indian Army’s new war doctrine should be to combine mass
with technology and PGMs and advanced munitions to paralyse the enemy’s reaction and
destroy his war waging materiel and potential.

[edit] Air Defence Networks and Systems

A sizeable expansion of India’s air-defence network would be required with multi-layered air
defence in terms of surveillance, range capabilities and engagement ranges. This would need to
be backed by an effective C4I system integral to the air defence system.

Mobile air defence weapon systems for the strike formations, combat area air defence networks,
rear areas air defence networks for VAs and VPs and of all air bases calls for significant
investments.

It must be remembered that an effective air defence system for IAF bases would enable release
of that many combat aircraft on air defence duties to support combat operations. India’s air
defence planning should now also incorporate ballistic missile defense systems as the enemy has
a vast array of ballistic missiles. Here one is not talking of the NMD or TMD level of ballistic
missile defences but of the US PATRIOT or the Russian S-300 systems.

The fourth generation of S-300 that is S-300PMU-1 system entered in service in 1995. In the
Russian arsenal, a battery of this system includes 48 48N6 missiles mounted on 12-transport-
erector-launchers. The missiles have a range of 5–150 km and a maximum altitude of 27 km.All
of this supported by a highly sophisticated C4I battle management system including engagement
radars. It is named as ALMUZ 83 M6

India was considering acquisition of these mobile systems but the “considering” has now to be
translated into 'fast track' acquisition.

[edit] Integration with Nuclear Warfare Plans Both Defensive

and Offensive

India’s new war doctrine has to take into account that in the execution of its “Cold Start” War
Doctrine and if lightening success comes their way, the enemy could use its nuclear weapons or
even tactical nuclear weapons it might have.

India’s execution of its new war doctrine must be integrated with nuclear warfare plans both
defensive and offensive. And by defensive it is meant that the enemy goes in for in first strike
and by offensive it is meant the scenario in which India resorts to “second strike” in response. In
both cases strike formations of Indian Army will have to operate on a nuclear battlefield.
[edit] NBC proofing of tanks/APCs, provision of NBC combat
suits for personnel and systems within strike formations

As a corollary of the above it follows that on first priority, the Indian Army’s strike formations to
be used in the new war doctrine are well equipped for battlefield combat under NBC conditions.
It means that all tanks and APCs, command and control tanks, and allied vehicles, have NBC
sealing kits and that strike formations are equipped with decontamination vehicles and kits and
that all personnel are equipped with NBC suits to undertake battle operations in NBC scenario.

[edit] Imperatives of Digitalised Real Time Information and

Satellite Coverage

India’s intelligence penetration of traditional enemies such as the Pakistan Army in terms of
human intelligence is not satisfactory. This limitation has to be off-set by technical means
encompassing high attitude surveillance aircraft and satellite imagery with high resolution.

More importantly, such technical means should be geared to provide real time digitalized
information to strike force commanders, with special reference to movements of enemy’s reserve
formations. The Indian Army has to devise and acquire systems for such capabilities.

[edit] Indian Army’s Electronic Warfare (EW) Capabilities

Enhancement

Fortunately, the Indian Army has been focusing on this aspect from the 1980s, but the demands
of the new war doctrine call for an effective enhancement of existing EW capabilities.

India’s EW capabilities must cater for jamming and neutralizing of the enemy's nuclear
command and control systems, air-defense and surveillance system jamming and a complete
paralysis of the enemies C4I system in the battlefield area of India’s strike formations.

India’s technological capability in electronics and allied systems and Information Technology
should enable it to use cyber-warfare as a force multiplier.

India’s ICBM and SLBM Development: India’s new doctrine would be unable to generate its full
potential without an ICBM and SLBM back-up. Both in the Congress regimes and in the BJP
regime, external pressures have impeded their development. A national will is now required for a
“Fast track ’’materialisation of these missiles in India’s missile arsenal.

[edit] Concluding Observations

The Indian Army needs to make an exhaustive study of United States military operations in Gulf
War I and Gulf War II. The Chinese have painstakingly gone through every detail of US military
operations to draw the relevant lessons.
It would be wrong to surmise that the US military has been ineffective in Iraq because of the
present problems that have now surfaced. These problems are post-war and are political in nature
and do not detract from the US military’s use of high-technology war-fighting to subdue the
enemy by demoralization of the Iraqi military machine in the war fighting phase.

This is not pontificating but an accurate appraisal of the achievable in relation to strategic means
available. The only caveat being that it calls for national political will to use military power
ruthlessly and the military hierarchy of India to be militarily audacious and relentless in
offensive operations

Charter 08 (Língbā Xiànzhāng) is a manifesto initially signed by over 350 Chinese intellectuals
and human rights activists to promote political reform and democratization in the People's
Republic of China.[1] It was published on 10 December 2008, the 60th anniversary of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopting name and style from the anti-Soviet Charter 77
issued by dissidents in Czechoslovakia.[2] Since its release, more than 8,100 people inside and
outside of China have signed the charter.[3][4]

One of the authors of Charter '08, Liu Xiaobo, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010.

Charter 77 (Charta 77 in Czech and in Slovak) was an informal civic initiative in communist
Czechoslovakia from 1976 to 1992, named after the document Charter 77 from January 1977.
Founding members and architects were Václav Havel, Jan Patočka, Zdeněk Mlynář, Jiří Hájek,
and Pavel Kohout. Spreading the text of the document was considered as a political crime.[1]
After the 1989 Velvet Revolution, many of its members played important roles in Czech and
Slovak politics. The group was linked to the National Endowment for Democracy.[2][citation needed]

National Biofuel Policy

The National Policy on Biofuel was prepared by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. It
was approved by the Union Cabinet on 11th September, 2008.

Salient features of the National Biofuel Policy

• An indicative target of 20% by 2017 for the blending of biofuels – bioethanol

and bio-diesel has been proposed.
• Bio-diesel production will be taken up from non-edible oil seeds in waste /
degraded / marginal lands.
 • The focus would be on indigenous production of bio-diesel feedstock and
import of Free Fatty Acid (FFA) based such as oil, palm etc. would not be
permitted.
• Bio-diesel plantations on community / Government / forest waste lands would
be encouraged while plantation in fertile irrigated lands would not be
encouraged.
• Minimum Support Price (MSP) with the provision of periodic revision for bio-
diesel oil seeds would be announced to provide fair price to the growers. The
details about the MSP mechanism, enshrined in the National Biofuel Policy,
would be worked out carefully subsequently and considered by the Bio-fuel
Steering Committee.
• Minimum Purchase Price (MPP) for the purchase of bio-ethanol by the Oil
Marketing Companies (OMCs) would be based on the actual cost of
production and import price of bio-ethanol. In case of biodiesel, the MPP
should be linked to the prevailing retail diesel price.
• The National Biofuel Policy envisages that bio-fuels, namely, biodiesel and
bio-ethanol may be brought under the ambit of “Declared Goods” by the
Government to ensure unrestricted movement of biofuels within and outside
the States.
• It is also stated in the Policy that no taxes and duties should be levied on bio-
diesel.
• The National Biofuel Coordination Committee is to be chaired by Hon’ble
Prime Minister
• The Bio-fuel Steering Committee is to be chaired by Cabinet Secretary
• In regard to research in bio-fuels, a Sub-Committee under the Steering
Committee would be constituted led by the Department of Biotechnology,
Ministries of Agriculture & Rural Development and coordinated by the
Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
• Major thrust to be given to Research, Development & Demonstration with
focus on plantations, processing and production technologies including
second-generation cellulosic bio-fuels.

National Biofuel Policy

The National Policy on Biofuel was prepared by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. It
was approved by the Union Cabinet on 11th September, 2008.

Salient features of the National Biofuel Policy

• An indicative target of 20% by 2017 for the blending of biofuels – bioethanol

and bio-diesel has been proposed.
• Bio-diesel production will be taken up from non-edible oil seeds in waste /
degraded / marginal lands.
• The focus would be on indigenous production of bio-diesel feedstock and
import of Free Fatty Acid (FFA) based such as oil, palm etc. would not be
permitted.
 • Bio-diesel plantations on community / Government / forest waste lands would
be encouraged while plantation in fertile irrigated lands would not be
encouraged.
• Minimum Support Price (MSP) with the provision of periodic revision for bio-
diesel oil seeds would be announced to provide fair price to the growers. The
details about the MSP mechanism, enshrined in the National Biofuel Policy,
would be worked out carefully subsequently and considered by the Bio-fuel
Steering Committee.
• Minimum Purchase Price (MPP) for the purchase of bio-ethanol by the Oil
Marketing Companies (OMCs) would be based on the actual cost of
production and import price of bio-ethanol. In case of biodiesel, the MPP
should be linked to the prevailing retail diesel price.
• The National Biofuel Policy envisages that bio-fuels, namely, biodiesel and
bio-ethanol may be brought under the ambit of “Declared Goods” by the
Government to ensure unrestricted movement of biofuels within and outside
the States.
• It is also stated in the Policy that no taxes and duties should be levied on bio-
diesel.
• The National Biofuel Coordination Committee is to be chaired by Hon’ble
Prime Minister
• The Bio-fuel Steering Committee is to be chaired by Cabinet Secretary
• In regard to research in bio-fuels, a Sub-Committee under the Steering
Committee would be constituted led by the Department of Biotechnology,
Ministries of Agriculture & Rural Development and coordinated by the
Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
• Major thrust to be given to Research, Development & Demonstration with
focus on plantations, processing and production technologies including
second-generation cellulosic bio-fuels.

Biomass

What is biomass

The plants fix solar energy through the process of photosynthesis to produce biomass. This
biomass passes through various cycles producing different forms of energy sources. For
example, fodder for animals that in turn produce dung, agricultural waste for cooking. The
current availability of biomass in India is estimated at about 120-150 million MT per annum
covering agricultural and forestry residues corresponding to a potential of 16,000 MW.

Usage

Biomass is an important source of energy accounting for about one third of the total fuel used in
our country and in about 90% of the rural households. The widespread use of biomass is for
household cooking and heating. The types of biomass used are agricultural waste, wood,
charcoal or dried dung.

Advantages
 • Available locally and to some extent abundantly
• It is a relatively clean fuel when compared to fossil fuels. In a way biomass also cleans
our environment by trapping Carbon di-oxide

Disadvantages

• Drudgery involved in collection of fuel

• During indoor cooking and in the absence of sufficient ventilation fuels such as dung
cause air pollution which is a serious health hazard
• Unsustainable and inefficient use of biomass often leads to destruction of vegetation and
hence environmental degradation.

Technologies for productive use of biomass

Technologies that enable efficient use of biomass are becoming prevalent in rural areas.

The efficiency of fuel usage is increased by

• use of improved designs of stoves which double the efficiency such as smokeless energy
efficient chulhas
• compressing the biomass to form briquettes which not only occupy lesser space but also
are more efficient
• conversion of organic matter into biogas through anaerobic digestion which apart from
meeting fuel needs also gives digested manure for farms
• conversion of biomass into producer gas through partial combustion of biomass under
controlled air supply

Biofuels

Biofuels are predominantly produced from biomass feed stocks or as a by-product from the
industrial processing of agricultural or food products, or from the recovery and reprocessing of
products such as cooking and vegetable oil. Biofuel contains no petroleum, but it can be blended
at any level with petroleum fuel to create a biofuel blend. It can be used in conventional healing
equipment or diesel engine with no major modification. Biofuel is simple to use, biodegradable,
non-toxic and essentially free of Sulphur and aroma.
INDIA YEAR BOOK …..SCI & TECH
COUNCIL OF SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCHIts recent programme namely
'CSIR-800' presents a

socialistic, yet commercially viable business model linked to the economic

prosperity

of a large section of the Indian Population. Another programme, initiated by CSIR,

the 'Open Source Drug Discovery' (OSDD), has a vision to develop low cost health

solutions for the masses by involving volunteer researchers through a global

platform.

In this forum the best minds can collaborate and collectively endeavor to solve the

complex problems associated with discovering novel therapies for neglected

tropical

diseases like Malaria, Tuberculosis, Leshmaniasis, etc. Contribution to

'Chandrayaan': In October 2008 India launched Chandrayaan-I,

India's first scientific mission to the Moon. As many seven CSIR laboratories have

contributed in significant way to this prestigious mission. It includes space weather

information/alerts, zinc oxide-based microelectromechanical systems acoustic

sensor,

acoustic testing, wind tunnel tests, designing of various civil structures etc

In the area of Healthcare: One of the major initiatives is launching of OSDD.

Modeled

on development of 'www' and 'Linux', this programme was launched on September

15, 2008 and so far more than 1300 registered participants are on the portal. To
begin

with, OSDD seeks to develop low cost molecules for the treatment of tuberculosis,
an

infectious disease widely prevalent in India. Another significant achievement is the

development of Indian Genome Variation Database (IGVDB), which houses Single

Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) frequency data in over 1000 genes from disease
and

drug response candidates in population representing the entire genetic diversity of

India. CSIR has also developed hydroxypatite-based artificial hip joint implants, a

boon for patients, particularly of old age, suffering from broken hips. Even both the

hip joints can be replaced simultaneously. Yet another significant achievement in

this sector is the commercialization of nano-size synthetic hydroxypatite bone graft

for dental surgery. It has also developed an ayurvedic formulation namely

'Prostalyn'

for treatment of prostate cancer.

CSIR-800: The programme has a mission, that is to increase per capita income by
Rs

15.00 per day of the target group which 800 million people of India living in the

bottom half of the developmental pyramid. The focus areas are 'affordable health',

'sustainable energy', 'waste to wealth', 'potable water', low-cost housing' and

'empowering masses'. In first of its new endevours, CSIR has launched 'Soleckshaw'.

an optimally designed, pedal operated-motor-assisted, zero carbon emission urban

transport vehicle. It is expected to have four major societal effects viz. conservation
of

natural petroleum resources; zero pollution (no exhaust fumes); increased

selfemployment

for the urban and rural poor at grassroots level; enhanced dignity of

human labour and cut down on the drudgery and exhaustion of pulling/peddling

traditional rickshaws. To mitigate the housing problems, particularly for

disasterprone areas, CSIR has developed low-cost instant houses made up of
natural fibres

and industrial waste. In the area of Sustainable Energy: CSIR has developed India's
first push-button type

300 W self-supported Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell System. Apart from
that it has developed solid oxide fuel system also towards its commitment to

sustainable energy. Taking forward the concept of 'waste to wealth', CSIR has

developed a technology for conversion of bagasse to biofuel which has already been

transferred to sugar industry. Augmenting its technology for conversion of jatropha

to biodiesel, CSIR has installed ITPD plant in collaboration with Defense Research

and Development Organization(DRDO). CSIR has significant contribution in the

area of solar energy research also. Technology for production of solar water heater

'Nalsun' has been developed and commercialized. In the area of solar photovoltaics,

CSIR has developed materials for dye-sensitized solar cells. Further, CSIR has

developed and installed small turbine to produce 5kW power utilizing geothermal

energy from a natural geyser in Himachal Pradesh. In addition, CSIR has developed

and installed 300 kW and 500 kW wind mills. CSIR has joined hands with Research

Institute for Sustainable Energy, a section 25 company, registered under the

Companies Act to carry out collaborative research in the area of sustainable energy.

In the area of Ecology & Environment: CSIR has developed an eco-friendly and

energy-efficient bioleaching process for low-grade uranium ores and installed 2

tonne plant at one of the sites of Uranium Corporation of India Ltd. CSIR has

developed bioceramic based composite adsorbent media for defluoridation of

wastewater, which shows excellent defluoridation properties as compared to

activated alumina. This adsorbent media shows high fluoride uptake capacity and

selectivity under the wide range of pH, which is of immense practical importance.

CSIR has also set up a bench scale Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket Reactor for

thee biological treatment of wastes containing Hexachlorocyclohexane. Based on a

two-dimensional hydrodynamic model, CSIR has proposed a storm surge disaster

mitigation plan for the group of Andaman Islands. CSIR has come up with a firstever

long climate simulation with a global general circulation model with a spatial
resolution of 20-km. Another significant contribution of CSIR in this area is patenting

a decentralized Secure Landfill System for sludge generated from tannery sector

alone with Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) structure which has a provision to

collect leachate and treat in CETPs and also to accommodate more quantity of
sludge

with less area.

In the area of Biology & Biotechnology: A traditionally strong area of research for

CSIR, the laboratories working in this domain contribute through high quality of

research output, including basic studies, industrial processes & products. CSIR has

made a comparative biochemical analysis of purified protein which suggests that

Leishmania actin is an unconventional form of actin that could serve as an

alternative

target for designing novel anti-leishmanial drugs. CSIR has recently reported

discovery of two spermicidal compounds (DSE-36 and DSE-37, disulphide esters

of carbothioic acid) with extremely potent spermicidal action that killed 100%
human

sperm at just 4% of EC100 of N-9 while remaining practically inert to human cervical

cells and Lactobacillus at spermicidal concentration. Another significant contribution

is the development of 'FishMap', a unified and centralized resource for storage,

retrieval, and display of genomic information of zebrafish. Yet another achievement

is construction of Helical nanofibers by CSIR from suitable self-assembling