• Global Warming Equals WMDs: Scientist
• A Bionic Eye From the Armed Forces
• INSAT 4-A Launch
• Nafed Plans Biofertilizer Plants in Nepal, Mauritius
• India Potential Leader in Nanotechnology

• Pune Wind Energy Firm to Enter Chinese Project
• Indigenous Cochlear Implant to Hit the Market Soon
• Laser Communication Without Use of Cables
• Government Investment in R&D Surpasses That in US, Japan
• World's 1st Voice e-mail From India

After successfully going public in September this year, India's ace wind energy company - Suzlon Energy - has started adding wings to its global expansion plans into Asia's most competitive and fastest growing economies of China and Korea. According to a reliable source close to the developments, Suzlon has entered into an approximately Rs 500-crore worth single-source power project for establishing wind turbines in China and Korea for a combined capacity of 100 MWs. The source adds that the company is also currently in talks for more turbine projects with the same companies for 100MW-125 MW of combined capacity. The company spokesperson refused to comment on the issue. According to industry experts, the most interesting dimension to these deals is that Suzlon has acquired these projects for developing each independent unit of 2MW. This is higher than the global industry standards in wind energy of 1.25MW-1.5MW reflecting the technical prowess that Suzlon has achieved up against global companies like Westas, Enercon and GE who are dominant players in these geographies. Currently, Suzlon is the sixth-largest wind energy company in the world and the largest in Asia with an annual turnover of around Rs 2,000 crores. Although, these new projects in China and Korea are bound to provide Suzlon with a significant upward surge to those figures in the next fiscal.In China and Korea, Suzlon will be developing these 2MW wind turbines with its state-of-the-art technology using the resin infusion moulding (RIM).

Courtesy: The Asian Age, November 30, 2005

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The impact of spiralling pollution on the planet poses a threat to civilisation just as catastrophic as much-vaunted weapons of mass destruction, Britain's top scientist warned on Monday. Robert May, president of the country's leading scientific body, the Royal Society, issued the warning as a 12-day conference was set to get underway on Monday in Montreal to decide the fate of the Kyoto Protocol, the United Nations' troubled treaty for curbing greenhouse gases. "The impacts of global warming are many and serious: sea-level rise ... Changes in availability of fresh water ... and the increasing incidence of extreme events -- floods, droughts, and hurricanes -- the serious consequences of which are rising to levels which invite comparison with weapons of mass destruction," May said in an advance copy of a speech released to coincide with the start of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change on the same day. The Montreal meeting is the first by the convention since the UN's pollution-cutting Kyoto Protocol, signed by 156 countries, took effect on January 16. But a notable non-signatory of the pact committing industrialised nations to reducing or offsetting emissions of carbon dioxide and five other greenhouse gases is the planet's heaviest polluter: the United States. Observers are gloomy about the prospects of the Montreal round coming up with a post-2012 deal that satisfies the European Union, green groups, business and US President George W Bush, who argues Kyoto penalises the oil-dependent US economy.

Courtesy: The Hindustan Times November 28, 2005

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Here is some good news for those with hearing problems. With help from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and top medical professionals, President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam will soon be `gifting' to the country its first indigenous cochlear implant. The instrument - an electronic device surgically implanted into the skull of the patient, who is either congenitally deaf and as a result dumb or has become deaf later on in life, for restoring hearing - can be used by both children and adults. However, the reason why its entry into the market is being so keenly awaited is because the cost of this indigenous instrument is only one-fifth that of the cheapest cochlear implant available in the country. A cochlear implant sells for anything between Rs. 5 lakhs and Rs. 9.5 lakhs apart from the cost of surgery and hospital stay. This latest `gift from the President' is ready to go in for animal testing soon. This will be followed by human trials after which the product will hit the market. The implant is expected to help a million people affected by the problem besides, of course, the pride of carrying the tag "Made in India." The design and working mechanism of this low-cost implant is still a `well kept secret' with talks under way with manufactures, suppliers and dealers to create a proper market for the product. "DRDO Hyderabad team and other experts have been working earnestly towards making the instrument and we will be testing it on guinea pigs soon at Delhi's Defence Institute of Psychological and Allied Sciences in Timarpur. The instrument was to be tested on cats, which has an ear that resembles that of humans, but with strong protest from animal rights activists a new animal had to be selected for testing. After selecting the guinea pig we had to modify the instrument, making it smaller to fit into the animal," explained senior ENT specialist and head of unit, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, J. M. Hans. The hospital was also among the first in the country where the minimally invasive technique for cochlear implantation was started. "The indigenous implant, which can be put in through the minimal invasive path will, however, not be smaller or lighter than the present instrument, but with the reduced cost, it would be accessible to more people. The President is virtually gifting to his people the joy of sound and we are thrilled to be part of the project that will help a million people in India alone," said Dr. Hans.

Courtesy: The Hindu, November 25, 2005

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The armed forces are not merely into protecting the nation. Its medical services wing is pioneering medical technologies. The Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS), after establishing its expertise in cochlear implants with electronic or bionic ears (bio-electronic ear), is crafting a bionic eye. According to AFMS Director-General, Surgeon Vice-Admiral V.K. Singh, the Army Hospital (Research and Referral) in New Delhi is nearing success in the bionic eye project. Vice-Admiral Singh said here that specialists were being trained to create a bionic eye in two years. Coordination of the individual's ophthalmic nerves with the e-eye is yet to be perfected. "As of now, just like bionic eyes made in other countries, an individual with our bionic eye is able to make out only light or an image, not distinguish a person or an object. Though that itself is a major step forward for a person without eyesight at all, our aim is to make it as good as a normal human eye. That should be done in two years," he said. The AFMS' expertise in cochlear implants is advancing too. In association with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) it is preparing indigenously an e-ear. Vice-Admiral Singh's teams are also trying to learn how human beings can be enabled to live under water. The AFMS Marine Research Centre in Mumbai is conducting research-oriented diving exercises, the results of which can be useful for marine warfare, underwater cultivation and so on. "Our aim is to realise the idea of human survival under water. For this, we are learning aspects of handling immense pressure under water, breathing techniques and others. The High Altitude Medical Research Centre at Leh and the Aviation Research Centre in Bangalore are also into similar projects," he said.

Courtesy: The Hindu, November 25, 2005

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A laser communication system that does not require cables for transmission of information has been developed by Karunya Institute of Technology and Sciences Deemed University. "It is called `Free Space Optical Communication' and uses available laser technology," V. Joseph, Professor of Physics at the University, told The Hindu. "It can be used for intra-institutional communication and the advantage is that there is no need to dig in order to lay cables. Installation is immediate." Prof. Joseph said that he had installed a low power semiconductor laser as the transmitter and modulated its output with electrical signals from audio, video and digital sources. The laser beam was capable of traveling long distances in a straight line and reached the receiver if it was within the "line of sight". One of the easiest ways to modulate the laser was to add the signal current to the laser source current. If the receiver was not in a straight line from the transmitter, the laser beam could be reflected to make it reach the receiver, where a photodiode or phototransistor converted the variations in light intensity into variations in voltage across a resistor.

Patent soon

This demodulated the laser and separated the audio, video or digital data signal, which could then be amplified and modified to reproduce itself through a speaker, television set or computer monitor. The method is to be patented soon. Encoding and decoding of the signal could also be done to protect it from unauthorised detection during transmission. "It can be used to reproduce sound in large public meetings, on open grounds or for communication between tall buildings where they might otherwise use optic fiber cable. We can multiplex signals and send out hundreds of channels. There is a lot of research potential in this method," Prof. Joseph said.

Without distortion

To carry the laser signal over long distances, there could be repeater stations that received the signal and reflected it to the next station so as to cover uneven terrain or overcome large obstacles that hindered the "line of sight". A small object such as a bird would not disrupt audio or video communication. Signals would be reproduced without distortion, even over long distances. He said that the system could be easily modified for telephone communication and cable television transmission, doing away with the need for lengthy and costly connecting cables. Direct communication between high-rise buildings in a crowded city would become easy.

Via satellites

With a powerful laser, it would even be possible to communicate using satellites to reflect the signals. The simplest version of the system would cost about Rs.20,000. Of this, Rs.5,000 would be for the laser and an equal amount for the modulator - demodulator system. "It can serve as an exercise for students and they can learn from practice how the system operates and what the difficulties are." Those interested could send e-mail to Prof. Joseph at vjoseph@karunya.ac.inor joseph_vj_46@yahoo.com, for further details.

Courtesy: The Hindu, November 21, 2005

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The Indian Space Research Organisation will launch the INSAT 4-A satellite by the middle of next month. It would enable Direct-to-Home broadcast services in the country, ISRO Chairman G. Madhavan Nair said here on Tuesday.

Courtesy: The Hindu, November 09, 2005

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The government contributes 65 per cent to the total R&D spends in India whereas in Japan, US and Germany, governments account for only 30-40 per cent of the total spend for this purpose. R&D investment in India, at present, stands at US$ 6.8 billion and is growing at a CAGR of 45 per cent per annum from 2002. Around 3 lakh people are employed in the industry, according to a survey by outsourcing firm Evalueserve here on Monday at the India R&D Summit, 2005 organised by Ficci. The cost competitiveness of R&D work in India is attracting global majors like IBM, GE, LG, Philips, Eli Lily, Pfizer and HP. The cost of a researcher in India is one-fifth of that in the US. For instance, salary of a chip designer in India is about $1500 per annum compared with $7000 per annum in the US. From the government side, major investment in R&D goes for agriculture, forestry, defence, space, healthcare and industrial development. Amongst key sectors for investment from industry, IT sector comprises the maximum share and is witnessing the highest CAGR at 32%. The IT R&D outsourcing market in India is expected to reach $9.1 billion in 2010 from $1.3 billion in 2003. The R&D market in Telecom is projected to grow from $0.7 billion in 2003 to $4.1 billion in 2010 registering a CAGR of 28.7%. Due to inferior salaries and work environment, many people working in India prefer to migrate. Indians constitute 38% of total doctors and 12% of scientists in the US, and 36% of scientists at Nasa are Indians. 34% of Microsoft's workforce and 20% of scientists at Intel are of Indian origin. Still, there is a lack of trained manpower in R&D in India. Inaugurating the summit at Vigyan Bhawan, President APJ Abdul Kalam said: " I have not found even 2% of students saying that their mission would be science. To alleviate this problem, a science cadre with attractive salaries should be created."

Courtesy: The Financial Express, November 08, 2005

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National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (Nafed) is planning to set up biofertiliser plants in Nepal and Mauritius. The farmers' cooperative organistaion is in talks with National Cooperative Federation of Nepal and Agriculture Development Marketing Association, Mauritius, for setting up the proposed plants at an estimated cost of Rs 1 crore per unit, with an annual production capacity of 150 metric tonne. The project is expected to take off in three years. "The scope for biofertiliser in Nepal and Mauritius are greater when compared to other South Asian countries. We are exploring a joint venture route for biofertiliser plants," said Alok Dwivedi, Nafed deputy general manager. At present, Nafed is working on the construction of production units in West Bengal, Uttaranchal and Uttar Pradesh. In West Bengal, the plant is to come up at at Siliguri. However, nothing has been finalised yet, Dwivedi said. The Uttaranchal plant will be located at Ranipura. Nafed is also looking for an ideal location for its third plant near their complex and warehouse in Lucknow. Dwivedi said the three plants would be completed over the next two years. Nafed will take up its overseas joint venture project immediately after the completion of its domestic plants, though it plans to simultaneously proceed with talks for the Nepal and Mauritius projects, he said. In 2004-05, the cooperative organisation had exported 12 metric tonne of biofertiliser to Nepal, where the demand is rising. Demand from Mauritius farmers is much lower. "However, the sugar cane growers in Mauritius are keen to try biofertilisers. For the two units, Nafed has to ship machinery, which will further increase the cost of the plants," Dwivedi said. As part of their second phase expansion projects, Nafed is also eyeing the South Indian markets. It has submitted proposals to the central government to set up plants in Kerala and Karnataka. "If the government provides us the land, we will go ahead with these projects. Currently, Nafed has two biofertiliser plants in Indore and Bharatpur (Rajastan). The capacity of the Indore unit is 450 metric tonne per year and the Bharatpur unit is producing 300 metric tonne," he added.

Courtesy: Business Standard, November 07, 2005

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In three weeks from now, a next-generation e-mail service will hit the market. Called NowPos (now possible), this will be the world's first voice mail service, indigenously developed by Hyderabad-based NowPos Online Services, a subsidiary of TrulyIntelligent Technologies Pvt Ltd. This service has the potential to make text format e-mails redundant. This technology will enable users to record and send voice messages as mails. The fact that users will be able to send mails in the text format as well is just incidental. Speaking to Business Standard, Ayyappa Nagubandi, leader (title equal to a CEO), TrulyIntelligent Technologies, said, "We took nine months to develop the technology and will launch it in the next three weeks. It will be a free e-mail service. While the sender will need to register with NowPos to send a voice message (up to three minutes), the receiver will not." Incidentally, advertisers will also find a new format to market products and services through NowPos. "We plan to allow advertisers to play commercials before receivers listen to their mails. This will, therefore, work as a radio commercial in an online medium," Nagubandi said, adding that the firm would, however, permit only one commercial before a message and that too not exceeding 10 seconds. "We will also use the AJAX technology that will enable users to customise their inbox and pages. This means, users will be able to drag and place an item of their pages anywhere they like, or even ensure that it is out of sight," Nagubandi said. AJAX or Asynchronous JavaScript and XML is a web development technique that helps in creating interactive web applications. Rediff, for instance, is using this technology to enable users to drag and drop mails into the trash folder. "Besides, another feature that the e-mail service will have is a tracking mechanism. So, if you send a voice mail to someone who in turn forwards it to another person, you will be informed about it so that you can delete it before it is heard by a third person," he added.

Courtesy: rediff.com, November 05, 2005

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Nanotechnology is set to expand into a US$ 1 trillion industry by 2010 according to various estimates. But, a debate rages whether nanotechnology is really that big. Paramjyothi Chowti, COO, YashNanotech admits nanotechnology has potential. Just five years ago, nanotechnology was mere pure science, she points out. "Now we are starting to see products," she adds. While estimates of a trillion dollar nanotechnology industry may be way off the mark, nanotechnology products should soon start permeating every area, she asserts. What is nanotechnology? A nanometer is a billionth of a meter. The essence of nanotechnology is the ability of scientists to work at the molecular level - atom by atom - to create materials, devices and systems that have novel physical, chemical and biological properties due to their nanoscale. Nanotechnology's power lies in the fact that common materials like carbon, when reduced to nanoscale, often exhibit previously unattainable traits. Governments of nations and private organisations are investing moneys to the tune of billions of dollars, says Ms Chowti. Rahul Patwardhan, MD and CEO, India Co, says that while other nations are investing billions of dollars, India is investing far less - just a few million dollars. But he argues that the multiplier effect in India may be much higher due to the availability of good talent at lower costs. He argues that nanotechnology is an area where India can be a leader in technology and be a net technology seller rather than a technology buyer. India needs to develop a coordinated National Nanotechnology Initiative, says Meyya Meyyappan, director of the centre for nanotechnology at Nasa. In a research paper, he argues that all developed countries have initiated massive nanotechnology research programmes. For instance, the US government's national nanotechnology initiative had a budget of $604m in '02, $422m in '01 and $710m in '03. Japan spent $650m on a nanotechnology initiative in '02 and may spend $1bn in '04 and '04. South Korea plans to spend over $2bn over a 10-year period from '01 to '10. The European Union is likely to spend $3.3bn on nanotechnology from '03 to '06. While India is spending few million dollars, it can, and must do more.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, November 03, 2005

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