Annual Report 2006-2007

International Science & Technology Cooperation

1. Department of Science and Technology (DST) continued with the execution of its mandated responsibility of (i) negotiating, concluding and implementing Science and Technology (S&T) Agreements at bilateral and regional levels; (ii) providing interventions on S&T aspects of multilateral bodies. This responsibility was carried out by DST in close consultation, on the Indian side with Ministry of External Affairs; Indian Missions Abroad; Science Counsellors posted in Indian Missions located in USA, Germany, Japan, Russia; S&T related Ministries and Sectoral Ministries of Government of India; Indian Scientific Agencies and Indian Science and Engineering Academies. There was a spurt in engagement of Indian Industrial & Trade Associations for building opportunities for shared strategic partnerships and foreign collaborations in the realm of technology and innovation.

2. India's S&T relations with other countries and international bodies were guided by the principles including

• Leveraging international expertise (including Scientists and Technologists of Indian Origin abroad- STIOs abroad), financial resources, access to large scale advanced research facilities and international mega-science projects, cross border training opportunities for (i) strengthening nationally important on-going research programs, (ii) accelerating institutional and human capacity building vital to India becoming a global player in knowledge based economy (iii) reflecting on global practices relevant to technology and innovation based demands and infrastructural requirements;
• Promoting international initiatives which may reflect India's leadership in empowering developing countries in S&T. in general.

3. During the year , DST along with its counterpart agencies in other countries, regional bodies and international organizations, co-sponsored /undertook a spectrum of cooperative actions such as : (i) Exploratory scientific and ministerial missions; (ii) Joint workshops; (iii) New bilateral mechanism for joint research and technology development with co-investment of resources including financial, for strategic partnerships of India with selected countries ; (iv) Joint research projects; (v) Joint Research and Development (R&D) Centres, (vi) Networking of centres of excellence; (vii) Utilization of large scale research facilities abroad; (viii) Advanced training fellowships; (ix) Participation in international mega-science projects.

3.1 Another facet for promoting international cooperation relate to;(i) Organization of Ministerial level Science Conferences; (ii)Technology summit, industrial fairs, S&T exhibitions;(iii) Fielding talented Indian research scholars to International Meetings with Nobel Laureates; (iv) Regular participation of Indian scientists in The Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) related Scientific Events; (v) Involving foreign scientists (including STIOs abroad) for joint projects with home country scientists; (vi) Meetings in India for motivating Indian youth in science;(vii) Contributions to international non-governmental scientific bodies that allow India to empower other developing countries.

3.2 During the visits led by Hon'ble Minister for Science,Technology and Earth Sciences to different countries, there has been a move in favour of building shared strategic partnerships by proposing matching dedicated grants.. As a follow-up,the roadmaps are being jointly drawn for operationalization of such dedicated bilateral funds. To derive industrial perspectives in charting out roadmaps for bilateral partnerships, Minister for S&T mooted the CII-DST MOU on Global Innovation Technology Alliance.

4. Salient activities carried out during the year are described below:

4.1 S&T Agreement

India signed two new S&T Cooperation Agreement with Belgium on Nov.3,2006; with Norway on Nov.14,2006 . Renewal of S&T Agreements were carried out with Brazil on Sept.11,2006.

4.2 New Framework for S&T Cooperation:

i. Indo - UK Science & Innovation Council; Indo-UK Joint Cooperation Fund (with allocation of equivalent of Pounds 8 Million for next five years) :1st Meeting of Indo-UK Science & Innovation Council (at London, June 26,2006) led by Shri.Kapil Sibal Hon'ble Minister for S&T,India and Lord David Sainsbury Minister for S&T,UK came up with new strategies for deepening Indo- UK cooperation in the area of science & innovation. Following decisions & shifts in programmatic focus emerged from the meeting::

• Earmarking of about Pounds 6.5 to 8 Million from each side sides for next five years for supporting joint science and innovation initiatives of the two Governments; Formation of "Joint Oversight Committee" for best deployment of science and innovation fund by developing guidelines and roadmap for cooperation in area of science and innovation;
• Adoption of bottom -up approaches for joint research projects between individual scientists and engineers;
• Adoption of top-down model for mounting mega projects under networked mode in five jointly agreed thrust areas, namely, (i) Stem cell research & animal biotechnology;(ii) Next generation Networks in telecommunications; (iii) Nano science and materials science;(iv) Weather science and climate change; (v) Energy technologies including hydrogen fuel;
• Support to grand challenge projects of importance to both nations
• Continuation of on-going modalities of cooperation, namely, Joint Thematic Workshops & Mobility of scientists & engineers as capacity building initiatives;

ii. Indo-US S&T Sub Commission; Bi-national S&T Endowment Fund (of US$ 30 M to be matched by DST) : DST has prepared a Concept Paper on Indo-US Bi-national S&T Commission which is being set up to strengthen and deepen the cooperation , it will oversee and monitor all existing program of S&T cooperation, it will evolve new joint programs and activities ( such as public-private partnerships , commercialization of R&D output/innovation and education technologies) as well as working out the modalities of operation of the Indo-US S&T Endowment Fund. A "Review Paper" to take stock of existing Indo-US S&T cooperation was prepared for proceeding with Brainstorming Session within India before being placed to the Bi-national S&T Commission .

iii. India-Israel Initiative for Industrial R&D ; Indo-Israel Fund for Industrial R&D Cooperation (with matching annual contributions upto equivalent of US$ 1 M from both sides) - to support joint projects aimed at development of products and process to be commercialized in global market and involving lead industrial partner each from India & Israel.

iv. Australia-India Strategic Research Fund (with allocation of equivalent of Aus $ 20 Million per year for a period of 3 years) :- joint research project support on top down & bottom up basis is operational. A call for proposal was initiated for bottom up approach for Science & Technology projects against which 85 proposals have been received.

v. Indo-Russian Technology Center ( with a financial allocation of US$ 1 Million/year from Government of India side) -A Protocol of Intention for establishment of Indo-Russian Technology Centre at Moscow was concluded between Department of Science & Technology, Government of India and Ministry of Science & Education of the Russian Federation with a view to commercialize results of projects under the framework of Integrated Long Term Program (ILTP) with Russia..

vi. CII-DST MOU on Global Innovation Technology Alliance: An "Agreement on Global Innovation and Technology Alliance (GITA)" between the Department of Science and Technology and the Confederation of the Indian Industry was signed by Secretary, Deptt. of Science and Technology and the President of Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) in the presence of the Hon'ble Minister for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences on the occasion of 12th Technology Summit organized jointly by CII and DST with Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN ) as partner in New Delhi on Nov.6-8,2006 . This Agreement aims to: promote and facilitate technology partnerships between overseas and Indian Industry/Institutes with the aim of enhancing technology competitiveness of Indian Organizations. Such partnership may take place through various modes under the frame work of National/International Laws viz. Joint Development, Technology Transfer/Licensing, Joint Venture Collaborations, to name a few. These partnership shall be facilitated organizing Summits / Seminars /Workshops /Missions and direct facilitation services by interacting with organizations on either sides.

Exchange of Agreements on Global Innovation and Technology
Alliance (GITA) between Secretary DST and President CII

viii.MOU between DST and Purdue University was signed on February 5,2007 which focuses on sharing Purdue University's experience in for setting up of a "Discovery Park in India".

4.3 Exploratory Ministerial & Scientific Missions:

High Level Visits from India

High level visits, several of them led by Hon'ble Minister for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences, from India were supported and undertaken to intensify cooperation in S&T .These visits included:

• Ministerial discussion on implementation of Indo-US Bi-national S&T Joint Commission, bi-national S&T Endowment Fund with US State Officials;
• Ministerial discussions in Germany on establishing an Indo-German Science Research and Technology Centre, holding of European S&T Ministers Conference in India in 2007 and inauguration of Indo- German Technology Partnership Forum;
• Discussion on competitive clusters with French Ministers for Research, Industry and Foreign Affairs ;
• Launch of India-UK Science & Innovation Council jointly by Indian Minister for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences India and UK Minister for Research and Innovation ;
• Participation in Meeting of S&T Ministers of G-77 countries as well as with India-Brazil-South Africa S&T Ministers in the context of trilateral IBSA framework ;
• Participation in the 1st Ministerial Level Meeting of Indo-China Steering Group;
• Preparatory Meeting towards India-Japan Summit and launch of India-Japan S&T Initiative;
• Ministerial review of on-going Indo-Swiss S&T cooperation and initiation of joint industrial R&D cooperation;

Other high level visits were undertaken for focused bilateral S&T cooperation of India with Croatia, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, South Africa and Tunisia.

Visit of Foreign Dignitaries to India

• H.E Mr. Leif Pagrotsky, Hon'ble Minister for Education, Research and Culture of Sweden to discuss the composition, areas of collaboration and functions of the joint committee in furtherance of implementing S&T Agreement (April 3-5,2006);
• Malaysian Parliamentary Secretary for discussion on matters relating to bilateral S&T cooperation (April 17,2006);
• Senior Level Delegation from National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) for discussions on bilateral matters of interest; H.E Mr. V Massangiue,
• Minister for Science & Technology of Mozambique led a 7 member delegation to India (July 23-30,2006) for obtaining Indian expert assistance in building materials, food processing solar energy systems and S&T research systems creation;
• Prof.Tissa Vitrana Sri Lankan Minister of Science and Technology visited India on oct.22-28,2006 for reactivation of existing S&T MOU ;
• President National Science Foundation (NSF) ,Dr.Arden Bement led delegation on Oct.16,2006;
• President Maryland University led delegation to explore possibilities of cooperation with India;
• Science Adviser to US Secretary of State Dr.George Atkinson in Oct2006 to discuss the details of Indo- US Binational S& T Commission and Bi-national Endowment Fund with DST and Minister for S&T

Scientific Exploratory Mission

• From USA to India : Delegations from Oakridge National Laboratory, National Oceanographic & Atmospheric Administration, Fermi Lab were in India in Dec.2006 for exploring cooperation possibilities. including development of mega-science projects. Delegations from Purdue University are visiting India in February 2007 for sharing experience in developing concepts such as Discovery Park & Innovation Parks . Delegation from California Institute of Telecommunication & Information Technology (Calit2) is visiting India in February 2007 to finalize cooperation activities including organization of an event "High Tech for All" (October,2007 in New Delhi) and setting up an institution modeled on the line of Calit2 which will help in faster technology transfer from R&D labs to the users .in rural & semi-urban areas (such as water, education, health, environment & communication) .
• From China to India: DST supported Chinese Exploratory Scientific Missions in the areas of Astronomy/ Astrophysics (with NCRA Pune as the nodal agencies to develop joint projects) Application of Membrane Technology in Biological and Environmental Protection (with CSMCRI, Bhavnagar designated as the nodal agencies to develop joint projects)
• From Republic of Korea to India: A senior level ROK Scientific Delegation led by the Director, Centre of Mechatronic and Manufacturing (CMM) paid an official visit to India during 16-21 December, 2006. Besides discussions Meetings at DST and CSIR ,the delegation visited DAE (Mumbai) and ISRO, NCBS, IISC and STEPI (Bangalore) to have discussions on specific topics of common interests to both sides.
• From Thailand to India : Thai Delegation led by a Senior Adviser, National Science and Technology Development Agency paid an Official Visit to India during April 2006 and held discussions in the areas of Information Technology and Bio-Technology at NIC, NBRI and TERI in New Delhi. Another Thai Scientific Delegation visited India in the field of metrology
• From India to Colombia :A scientific delegation comprising of representatives of National Mission on Bamboo Applications and experts visited Colombia in Nov. 27-Dec.1,2007 . This resulted in short listing of topics of joint interest such as bamboo and its applications for economic value, basic sciences, agriculture, food processing, biotechnology and health.
• Indo-Taiwanese exchanges: Promotion of Indo-Taiwanese cooperation will focus in areas of Nano- Science and Technology, Functional Genomics, Seismic Evaluation and Retrofit of Buildings, Organic Chemistry, and Synchrotron facility. Thus , DST extended support for hosting of Taiwanese Exploratory Mission to India (with CDFD Hyderabad scientist as Indian coordinator) for building joint program on synchrotron facility, DST fielded Indian scientific team to Indo-Taiwan Workshop on : Functional Genomics at Taipei, March 3-4, 2006; Seismic Evaluation and Retrofitting of RC Building(hosted by National Centre for Retrofit and Earthquake Engineering NCREE at Taipei on Oct. 11-12, 2006; Organic Chemistry (proposed at Taipei on Jan. 8-11, 2007)
• From India to Germany: 2 Exploratory Scientific Mission under DST-BMBF Programme were undertaken for joint project formulation in the fields of railway radar safety technology (June 2006)

4.4 S&T Events in Partnership with Indian Industrial Associations / GOI Banner

i. CII's India-China Technology Exhibition at Beijing Sept.2006: Shri.Kapil Sibal , Minister for S&T from India inaugurated CII's "India-Tech" exhibition along with the Minister In-charge of CCPTI with participation of President CII and the Vice Minister, In-Charge of S&T at the China Ministry of Science and Technology. Hon'ble Minister for S&T from India also gave the inaugural address at the China Business Summit .

ii. CII Technology Summit & Platform with ASEAN as partner country Dec. 2006: Confederation of the Indian Industry (CII) "Technology Summit", with ASEAN as partner (held at New Delhi on Nov.6-8,2006) was attended by 10 Ministerial / Head of Agencies from 10 ASEAN Member States attended this event.

Inauguration of CII-DST Technology Summit presided by Shri Kapil Sibal,
Minister of Science Technology and Earth Science

• Creation of a common "India-ASEAN S&T Development Fund" to undertake collaborative R&D and Technology Development in areas of common interests including Bio-Technology and Pharmaceuticals, Agriculture for Food Security, and Advanced Materials;
• Consider establishment of an "India-ASEAN Institute for Intellectual Property" for building human resource capacities and training to serve the ASEAN Region;
• Design ,through harmonized standards, a regulatory frame work in relation to Bio-Technology Products and the Agricultural Processing Industry to ensure that the value addition resulting there from is beneficial to the ASEAN regions;
• Popularize science through interaction of Indian youth (including school children) with the ASEAN region and establish a suitable mechanism in this regard.

iii. FICCI's India R&D 2006 Think India Think Innovation: Mind to Market Dec.4-6,2006: An international conference on India R&D 2006: "Think Innovation, Think India" "Mind to Market" was held at New Delhi on Dec.4-6,2006 with primary objective to showcase India's knowledge based services.

The conference was supported by DST, DIPP, CSIR and was organized by FICCI. Key recommendations include:

• Technology which impacts rural employment and rural livelihoods should be adopted and commercialized through an institutional framework;
• Knowledge Transfer Networks, which facilitate innovation and knowledge transfer should be established; Indian R&D should aim at perfection in the products being innovated by using quality tools such 6-Sigma to reduce the variation and making the products conform to world quality standards;
• Country's education system needs to be transformed from traditional role learning system to one, which emphasizes on creativity and critical thinking;
• Develop the framework "World Knowledge Platform" in the areas of energy, water, healthcare, traditional medicines, automobiles, agriculture and food and knowledge products, which will integrate the core competencies of the partner countries to develop knowledge products. The Platform will enable joint-design, development, cost effective production and marketing of the knowledge products in various domains based on core competency of the partner national in international markets. The mission of this Platform would be to connect

iv. India-EU Ministerial Science Conference and associated Interaction Meet for Motivating Youth in Science (New Delhi,Feb.7-8,2007): Pursuant to decisions taken during India's Prime Minister's visit to Germany in April 2006, 7th India-EU Summit at Helsinki in October 2006 and Joint Statement endorsed during 3rd India-EC S&T Steering Committee at Brussels on Nov.15, 2006, DST , on behalf of Government of India, hosted

• India-EU Ministerial Science Conference at New Delhi on February 7-8,2007 for providing impetus and strategic direction for strengthening India-EU S&T Cooperation. This event was co-chaired by H.E.Mr.Kapil Sibal Minister for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences, India, H.E.Dr.Annette Schvan German Minister for Education & Research under the framework of German Presidency of EU and H.E.Dr.Janez Potocnic European Commissioner for Science & Research.
• Another associated event on this occasion was the Interaction Meet for Motivating Youth in Science addressed by President of India ,Policy Leaders & Science Leaders including Nobel Laureates from Europe.

These events were unique in following ways:

• EU valued the relations with India and talked about shared partnerships on principles of symmetry, reciprocity and co-investment of resources in joint actions. Minister for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences suggested an allocation from India of upto Euros 5 M to be matched by EC for joint calls ;
• EU Member State's science ministerial delegations, at the highest political level, met outside Europe(24 EU Member States were represented at Minister/Deputy Minister/Secretary of State/ Director General responsible for Science, Research, Innovation level /Ambassador of EU Member States in India )
• Indian & European science leaders including nobel prize winners ,together with Indian & European policy leaders interacted and enthused bright Indian students (600) and young research scholars (400) outside of Europe for attracting them to pursue a career in science . President of India addressed the august gathering and emphasised on guiding principles for nurturing and fostering talents into science

Interactive Meet on Motivation of youth in Science, presided by Hon’ble President of India,
with Dr. Annette Schvan, Dr. Janez Potocnic, Shri Kapil Sibal on the dias.

The India-EU Ministerial Science Conference concluded with adoption of New Delhi Communique that inter-alia

• Underlines the potential benefits of joint or coordinated calls for proposals, in strategically important research fields of mutual interest involving the co-investment of resources equally open to research communities in the EU and in India on a partnership model for balanced mutual benefits for both sides.
• Provides for holding India-EU strategic workshop series on some key areas like climate change, clean energy, combustion, comprehensive approach to system biology with a focus on infectious diseases and drug development including pre-clinical and clinical trials
• Recommends establishment of a critical number of Joint EU-India nodes for networking innovation systems in different regions of India and Europe

Signing of New Delhi Communique on conslusion of India-EU Ministerial Science Conference
by Shri Kapil Sibal, Dr. Annette Schvan, Dr. Janez Potocnic.

i. Meeting of Indo-Tunisian Joint Committee on S&T at Tunis on April 27-28,2006): Indo-Tunisian Program of Cooperation in S&T 2006-08 was adopted reflecting support for joint workshops, exchange visits and joint projects in areas of Biotechnology, Water Technology, Information Science, including Software Development, Renewable Energy Sources, Medical Sciences, including Pharmaceutical Research and Development, Science Popularization as priority areas .

ii. 4th Session of Indo-Bulgarian Joint S&T Committee (Sofia April 3-5, 2006): Recommended 3 on-going projects for extension by one year; and approved 7 new projects proposals out of 17 proposals for inclusion in the programme.

iii. Meeting of ASEAN-India Working Group Joint Cooperative Committee and Sr Officers Meeting (Vientiane, Laos PDR April 25-28,2006).

iv. Meeting of Indo-Croatian Joint Committee on Science & Technology (April 29,2006) :First meeting of this Joint Committee adopted programme for 2006-07. It approved 9 out of 11 joint R&D projects received for its consideration. Two workshops on "Commercialization and Societal Application of Sciences" and "Marine Science" has been agreed to.

v. 2nd Meeting of the Indo-Russian Working Group on Technologies ( New Delhi May 18,2006) chaired by DST and provides opportunities for direct agency based cooperation by respective nodal national agency in the two countries. This meeting recommended setting up various Thematic Sub-groups on Agricultural Research; Biotechnology; Building Materials; Industrial Realization of High Technology; Information Technology Parks; Medical Research; Meteorology; Metrology & Standards; Oceanology; Seismology; Software Technology & Satellite Communication. The Group also reviewed bilateral cooperation under Integrated Long Term Programme (ILTP) and inter-academy cooperation.

vi. 1st Meeting of India-UK Science & Innovation Council (London June 26-28, 2006) came up with new strategies for deepening Indo-UK cooperation in the area of science & innovation.

vii. Meeting of India-Mexican Joint S& T Committee (at Mexico City, June 20,2006) : Decided to organize two joint workshops in the fields of water management in the Metropolis & earthquake & seismology & issue a Call for Proposal.

viii. 2nd Meeting of SAARC Technical Committee on S&T (Islamabad, August 28-29,2006) : The SAARC Calendar of S&T Activities adopted for 2007-2008 included Indian proposals, namely, SAARC Training Course on Ground water exploration and management techniques; SAARC Conference on Solid Waste Management; SAARC Workshop on empowering SAARC countries through ICT;SAARC Workshop on Use of satellite data in weather forecasting .

ix. 6th Meeting of the Indo-German Joint Committee on S&T ( New Delhi Sept.25,2006): The Meeting reviewed the progress of the on-going activities under Indo-German S&T umbrella. New additional areas of future collaboration were agreed ,namely, production technologies, sustainability research and disaster and security research; and 20 Thematic Joint Workshops were identified. Both sides also agreed to work towards organizing India-EU Science Ministers Conference in New Delhi and also to work for finalizing the modalities and mechanisms for creating Indo-German Science, Research and Technology Center.

x. 1st Meeting of Ministerial level Indo-China Steering Group( Beijing Sep 6-12, 2006) discussed identification of topics of common interest .While China expressed interest to collaborate in Energy, Environment and Water Technology, India proposed working for developing projects/ programmes in areas like Nano-S&T, Bio-Technology including Genomics, Seismology and Earthquake Engineering, Climate Change and Bamboo Technology. Significant outcomes from this meeting include: (i) Development of 2 major joint projects (IC-2 ) between DST and National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC);(ii) setting up of India-China Nano-Science Forum;(iii) Promote Genomics Research through interaction between IGIB (India) and BGI(China)

xi. Meeting of the Indo-South Africa Joint Committee on S&T (Cape Town Sept. 27-29, 2006)

xii. 2nd Meeting of India-Republic of Korea Joint S&T Committee (at New Delhi,Nov.8,2006) cochaired by Secretary DST, India & Vice Minister for S&T ROK approved India-ROK POC in S&T 2006-2009 in areas of Bio-Technology, Telecommunications (including Information Technology), New Materials, Nano-Science and Technology and High Energy Physics

xiii. 2nd Meeting of India-Thailand Joint S&T Committee (at New Delhi,Nov.8,2006) agreed that cooperation will be effected through exploratory visits, Joint R&D Projects, Joint Seminars/ Workshops, Training, Fellowships, and Participation in International Conferences held in each others countries.

xiv. 3rd Meeting of India-European Commission S&T Technology Steering Committee ( Brussels Nov.15-16,2006): Co-chaired by Dr.T.Ramasami Secretary DST and Dr. Jose Manuel Silva Rodriguez, Director General Research European Commission. Meeting recommended the following:

• Taking steps for timely renewal of India-EU S&T Agreement beyond Oct.2007;
• Work towards joint actions during 2006-2007 such as India-EU Strategic Workshop on Next Generation Air Transportation System, Energy Technologies, ICT for defining possible joint priorities and Coordinated / Joint Calls for Proposals with India; under the India-EC S&T Agreement framework.
• Endorsement of Joint statement calling for inter-alia (a) Establishment of India-EU Expert Group for advise on research areas and issues which can benefit from cooperative actions; (b) In a limited themes of shared priority as well as shared research excellence, agreement of both Parties to co-invest resources including financial on Coordinated/Joint Call for research proposals ;(c) Organization of India-EU Strategic S &T Workshop Series;

xv. 5th Meeting of ASEAN -India Working Group on S&T (Manesar,Nov.2006): India is a dialogue partner of ASEAN. DST as co-chair of ASEAN-India Working Group on S&T, hosted its 5th Meeting and as its follow-up ,actions are underway for (i) ASEAN-India Workshops on Bioinformatics; (ii) ASEAN-India Training Programs in information technology and space science and technology (iii) Concept Paper for ASEAN-India Technology Information & Commercialization Centre

xvi. Meeting of 2nd Indo-Brazil Science Council : (at Bangalore, Dec.14-15,2006) under the cochairmanship of Prof.CNR Rao and Prof.Jack Palis , Brazilian Academy of Sciences recommended to include bio-resources for energy as an additional area of cooperation (besides ocean and marine sciences and technology; computer science, computer modeling and simulations; physical sciences and mathematics; biomedical sciences and biotechnology; materials science & engineering including nanosciences; molecular sciences and materials). The Council discussed the report presented by Area Coordinators who visited Brazil during June 19-23,2006. The Council decided that cooperation may be implemented through organization of joint workshops,lectures by eminent scientists, exchange of junior & senior researchers/scientists and joint R&D projects. Action Plan for 2007-08 was adopted which also included an access to and utilization of Brazilian Light Synchrotron Facility by Indian scientists.

xvii. Meeting of Indo-Hungarian S&T Joint Committee (Dec.2006) :Noted that 28 new R&D proposals have been received. Since assessment on Indian side is yet not complete, it was agreed to exchange letters between co-chairs for conveying the approval by January 2007.

xviii. Meeting of Indo-Slovenian S&T Joint Committee.:13 new proposals were recommended for approval whereas 2 ongoing proposals were extended by exchange of letters between two cochairs for the Indo-Slovenian S&T Joint Committee.

xix. 5th Meeting of ITPAR Scientific Committee & 2nd Meeting of ITPAR Steering Committee (New Delhi,Jan.17-18,2007): India-Trento Program for Advanced Research (ITPAR) is a significant bilateral project within the Indo-Italian POC of Cooperation in S&T. Its Management Committee(s) met and adopted the following :

• Under ITPAR Phase I (2003-2006) 4 projects were supported , 46 Indian researchers to Trento(Italy) and 35 Trentino researchers to India visited, over 35 joint publications appeared in international journals and dual PhD program of University of Trento with TIFR Mumbai & University of Hyderabad were concluded ;
• ITPAR Phase II framework (2007-2009) reflecting broad basing of the bilateral project from regional to national level ,additional areas of cooperation, financial commitment by co-sponsors including that for joint projects under Joint Centres of Excellence. Province of Trento agreed for Euros 300,000/year for ITPAR Phase II . Additional support by Italian Federal Ministries for University & Research (MIUR) as well as Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) is anticipated;
• ITPAR Phase II Action Plan for 2007-2008 : which includes build new joint proposals in Nano Photonics, Cognitive Neurosciences

xx. 1st Meeting of Indo-Canadian Joint S&T Cooperation Committee ( at New Delhi,Feb.5,2007) resulted in adoption of joint calendar of activities including joint workshops and call for proposal in areas of biotechnology, nanotechnology, information and communication technologies, natural disaster, energy and environment.

xxi. 2nd Meeting of India-Australia Joint S&T Committee (at New Delhi on March 15,2007) examined 85 joint proposals under bottom up approach and shortlisted for co-funding in areas of agricultural research,energy and environment,materials science including electronic devices.Further, Committee approved two proposals of inter-institutional character, namely CSIR-CSIRO & IIT Bombay- Monash University under tops down approach.

4.6 Joint Research Projects:

Bilateral S&T cooperation was executed during the year in the form of over 500 joint research projects by DST from India with its counterpart agencies in 15 countries, namely, USA, Russia, Germany , Italy, Ukraine, Japan, Israel, Croatia, Slovenia, Belarus, Portugal, Argentina, Bulgaria, Mexico, UK as per the breakdown given below:

• 100 on-going Indo-US projects under DST-NSF framework+ 1 new joint project involving Indian partner under Materials World Network Program of NSF where India is a partner country
• 120 on-going Indo-Russian projects under LITP framework
• 20 new Indo-German projects under DST- German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Project based Personnel Exchange program & 40 on-going + 9 new joint projects in application oriented areas under DST-German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) framework & 10 on-going + 3 new joint projects & 15 exploratory visits for joint project formulation& 3 on-going under DST-German Research Foundation (DFG) framework + 3 Indian Partner Institutes in India under DST-Max Planck Society (MPG) framework
• 45 on-going Indo-Italian projects under DST-MAE framework
• 22 on-going Indo-Ukraine projects under DST-MES framework
• 18 on-going Indo -Japan projects under DST-JSPS framework
• 14 on-going Indo-Israel projects under DST-OCS Framework
• 14 new Indo-Croatian projects under DST-MES framework
• 12 new Indo- Slovenian projects under DST-MES framework
• 12 Indo-Belarus projects under DST-State Committee on S&T framework
• 11 on-going Indo-Portuguese projects under DST- GRICES (Wing of Ministry of Science & Technology) framework
• 8 new Indo-Argentina projects under DST- SECYT (Secretariat for Science, Technology & Productive Innovation ) framework
• 7 new Indo-Bulgaria projects besides on- going projects under DST-Ministry of Education & Science Bulgaria framework
• 6 new Indo-Mexican projects under DST-CONACYT framework
• Indo -UK projects under UK-India Education & Research Initiative (UKERI ) framework

Indo-Russian projects : Non-invasive diagnostics- Research & Development activities in the field of Non- Invasive Imaging technology and for clinical and research application are being studied. Infra-red (IR) Thermograph application for diagnosis of breast cancer, peripheral vascular disorders and thyroid disorders was evaluated at AIIMS, DIPAS, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and Mangalore University and correlated with conventional diagnostic tools. IR-Thermograph was evaluated for application in Yoga research and patho-physiology of cold injuries. It has also other non-medical applications. GSR based alertness monitoring for stress evaluation and as a biotrainer tool for voluntary relaxation was studied. It has also application in preventing automobile and train accidents by monitoring the alertness of drivers. Efforts are on to identify industry partnership for commercialization. Telescope-Astronomy (Russia): Russia agreed to provide technical assistance in establishment of 3.8 meter optical telescope at ARIES, Nainital to study of Star Clusters and understanding the problem of Dark Matter in the Universe

Indo-German Projects :The DST-BMBF Programme primarily focuses on application oriented projects involving industries from both sides. The projects supported so far aims at Designing self organized adaptive services for open source internet telephony over P2P networks, Development of functional nanophase ceramic matrix composites using CVD technique, Hydrogen production by catalytic reforming of glycerol in aqueous medium, Ecological inter-linkages between terrestrial and coastal environment in Indian and western pacific region, Search for super heavy isotopes: A new phenomenon. The DST-DAAD Project based Personnel Exchange Programme (PPP) emphasize academic training to young scientists at doctoral and post-doctoral levels. The Programme has resulted in more then 150 joint publications and training of more then 200 Indian PhD students in Germany. The programme also enables Indian scientists to use international facilities like DESSY/BESSY etc. The DST_DFG Programme aims to support mega joint research projects; support to use major facilities in Germany and India; workshops/seminars, exploratory missions. Some of the projects are Formation of metallic nano-structures in organic matrix by vapour and plasma phase deposition and its modification by ion irradiation and Study of vapor liquid equilibrium of wide fluorocarbon mixture at low temperature and development of mixed refrigerant cascade refrigerator. The specific themes envisages creation of partnergroups in the areas of Wafer bonding and layer transfer for novel engineered substrates, Electronic structure of low dimentional and nanoscale systems and developmental biology

Indo-Israel projects: 14 in areas of Agricultural and medical biotechnology, Advanced materials, Nanotechnology & Genomics are currently under implementation under DST, Govt.of India -Office of Chief Scientist, Govt.of State of Israel Framework; these include (i) "Fabrication of novel biomaterials in nanoscale by peptide self-assembly" using novel scaffold technology ( between Indian Institute of Technology- Kanpur, Kanpur.& Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel ) . It involves effective utilization of advanced microscopic facilities available at Israeli institution as well as expertise vital for evaluation of selected peptide based biomaterials for bio-chemical applications; (ii) "Molecular identification and characterization of potential heat tolerance -inducing genes in tomato" (between ICGEB, New Delhi & The Volcani Center, Bet Dagan, Israel) with an effective utilization of Israeli expertise and instrumentation

Indo-Japanese projects: 18 new projects have been initiated during this year under the DST-Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) framework in areas of Molecular structure,dynamics & molecular materials; Advanced Materilas,Modern biology & biotechnology; Manufacturing sciences; Astronomy & astrophysics; Surface & interface science. On-going Indo-Japanese research projects during the year include (i) joint technology development in X-ray optics and associated instrumentation and test facilities for completion of integrated advanced X-ray telescope; (ii) Biomimetic processing of inorganic-organic composites for biomedical application

Indo-Italian projects: 45 joint research projects are predominantly in the fields of biomedical sciences,materials science and technology,electronics,accelerator physics and technology . One of the flagship significant bilateral project is India-Trento Program for Advanced Research (ITPAR). Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Provincial Government - Autonomous Province of Trento on Italian side and Department of Science & Technology on Indian side are the sponsors of ITPAR framework Uniqueness of ITPAR framework lies in (i) project based two-way mobility of researchers at par with European Commission norms & stipend for Italians in India at par with Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Fellowship rates; and (ii) incremental research infrastructural facilities, at par with Trento/Italy, at Indian project sites/laboratories (on equal shared investment basis by the co-sponsors of ITPAR ) Some noteworthy accomplishments are:

• Fabrication of prototype of MEMS Accelerometer for pollution detection in automobiles using the fabrication process optimized by IIT Kharagpur & (ii) Fabrication of prototype of Hot film MEMS Liquid Flow Sensor on quartz substrate for biomedical applications at ITC-ist Trento.
• Femtosecond written channel waveguides; familiarization of Indian research scholars with techniques and equipment for assessing spectroscopic properties of rare earth activated tellurite glasses; investigation of structural properties of metal induced laterally crystallized amorphous semiconductor thin films for display applications
• Development of: model based approach to multi-resolution fusion in multi-spectral remote sensing imagery, content specific technique to partially supervised classification of multi-spectral remote sensing images (IIT Mumbai); development of fuzzy thresholding method for unsupervised change detection (ISI Kolkatta); unsupervised change detection with a modified Hopfield neural network (Jadavpur University).
• Goal driven requirement analysis has been applied for complex pipeline processor verification and the methodology is being generalized for application to high level design languages such as VERILOG with scalable tool support of SAT solvers and model checkers; (ii) New models of security with policy specifications have been proposed for certified software execution that would enable a high confidence of the security of execution environment with realization of privacy requirements; and (iii) requirements and enhancements workflow languages, web service languages such as BPEL are being investigated and also realize efficient composition of web services for various applications.

Indo-Argentina projects 8 new in the field of agriculture, agricultural bioechnology, food processing and drugs & pharmaceuticals have been awarded for implementation under DST- SECYT (Secreatariat for Science, Technology & Productive Innovation ) framework . These include: Biocatalyst : A novel approach for the production of pharmaceuticals between RRL Trivandrum & CONICET Researcher;Use of bacteriocins from lactic acid bacteria in the preservation of fish and meat oducts between Karnataka Veterinary,Animal & Fisheries Sciences Univ. Mangalore & CERELA-CONICET Tucaman

Indo-Portuguese projects: A small Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV), Maya, has been developed at NIO, Goa under the Indo-Portuguese S&T Cooperation Programme. Maya uses a single underwater motor to propel through the water. It has two stern planes and a single rudder to control diving and heading maneuvers respectively. The AUV can receive commands from the shore over a high speed radio link or download data over the same link. The Maya AUV has many applications in oceanography as it can collect standard oceanographic data in confined areas; do shallow water bathymetry in coastal waters; or detect phytoplankton blooms with the help of optical radiometers & fluorometer. It can be used as a platform for testing new marine sensor technologies. Technology transfer discussions are underway.

Indo -UK projects A joint proposal for formation of "Indo-UK Advanced Technology Centre of Excellence in Next Generation Networks & Services" led by UK British Telecom and evincing strong interest from Indian industry is one of the noteworthy follow-up of the Indo-UK Workshop on Next Generation Communication Network (at IIT Madras which was held on Jan.31-Feb.2,2006)

Indo-Ukraine projects: Advanced Welding - Live Tissue Welding has been attempted at SJ College of Engineering, Mysore in collaboration with Ukrainian scientists. The basic phenomenon of soft tissue welding is based on electro-thermal denaturation of albumen molecules. The application provides coagulum, which is thin, smooth and does not deform the organ or make the lumen of hollow organs narrower. Has been successfully performed on animals.

Indo-Polish projects: Alternate cryogenic insulation system - Modelling and experimental investigation of the multilayer insulation (MLI) and aluminium foil insulation have been initiated at IUAC, New Delhi in partnership with Poland. Based on the trend of experimental data, two experiments with different layers of MLI (25 and 20) at pressure 80 K. Additional sensors were attached on different layers to monitor the temperature till stabilization.

4.7 Joint Centres Of Excellence

i. Two Indo-Swiss Joint Centres of Excellence on Micro-engineering & Micro-electronics were agreed by both sides during the recent visit of Minister for S&T and ES to Switzerland in Nov 2006.

• The Centres on Micro-engineering envisages the creation of miniaturized unit or hybrid processes integrated with metrology, material handling and assembly to create micro-factories capable of producing micro-precision products at low cost.
• The Centres on Micro-electronics aims at developing joint curriculum among other joint activities

ii. Indo-Russian Thematic Centres on Biomedical Technology, Laser & Accelerator, Non Ferrous Metallurgy under ILTP framework (Russia) ;

iii. 2 Joint Centres of Excellence on Micro-Electronic Mechanical Systems (MEMS) & Centre for Enabling Web Technologies & Applications under ITPAR Framework (Italy) are underway.

iv. Seven Joint Indo-Russian Centres of Excellence are promoting bilateral scientific cooperation in their respective thematic area. These centres are pursuing high end science, working out new technologies and interacting with user community for possible technology transfer. Highlights of some of the joint centres are:

• International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy & New Materials, Hyderabad: The Centre has started transferring some of the jointly developed technologies to industries, namely, electro-spark, ceramic honey-comb, heat pipe and stainless filter. R&D work on some other technologies, namely, Diamond like carbon coating, mechanically alloyed powders for thermal sprays coatings, cold spray coatings, is in advanced stage. Technology Incubator has been created to develop, demonstrate and facilitate transfer of technology.
• Russian - Indian Centre for Advanced Computing Research, Moscow : The parallel computing system PARAM 10000 has been installed at the Centre. The relationship is poised to a new level with plans to install the next generation PARAM Padma and to address markets, R&D and product development in Russia (viz production of PARAM Padma RU). Projects on development of software for the applications like Computational Fluid Dynamics, Seismic Data Processing and Development of Parallel Compiler have been implemented.
• Indo-Russian Centre for Gas Hydrates, Chennai: Eight joint projects are under implementation through this center including development of remotely operated submersible for the gas hydrate sampling capable of operating up to the water depth of 6000 m, which is likely to be commissioned in 2007. During the first successful joint expedition at Lake Baikal (Siberia) for Gas Hydrate studies in September 2005, longest core of 1.2 m length of gas hydrate was collected.
• Russian - Indian Centre for Ayurvedic Research, Moscow: Projects on "Genotype-Phenotype Correlation based on the Principles of Ayurveda with special focus on Prakriti" is under implementation. A four member team visited Russia for correlation of Prakriti on Russians. They have collected questioners from four different parts of Russia. The negotiations with various Indian Ayurvedic schools were held for promotion of Ayurveda system in Russia and introduction of ayurvedic drugs/ formulations in the Russian market.
• Indo-Russian Centre for Earthquake Research, New Delhi: India Meteorological Department and Institute of Physics of Earth & Design Bureau for Geophysical Instruments are the coordinating agencies from the Indian and Russian side respectively. Seventeen joint R&D projects are being coordinated by the centre. The projects are aimed at pre-cursor studies, simulations, disaster mitigation and developing techno-morphic maps of the high seismic regions.

4.8 Joint Workshops

Some of the noteworthy joint workshops supported during the year were:

• Indo-Japanese Workshops (6) were organized in areas of Surface Sciences (hosted by IICT Hyderabad) , Manufacturing Sciences, (hosted by IIT Kanpur) Materials Sciences (hosted by Delhi University South Campus and University of Tokyo) and Molecular Sciences (hosted by Kobe University). These events provided platform for Indian & Japanese scientists to share latest trends and ideas in research in related areas. To illustrate ,(i) Indo-Japan Workshop on "Emerging Frontiers of Molecular Spectroscopy" (at Kobe University,Sept.25-26,2006) allowed exchange of ideas and information on effective use of femtosecond spectroscopy, microscopy and computer simulation, surfaces under high vacuum clusters in vapour phase and dynamics of liquids; (ii) Indo-Japan Workshop on Zinc Oxide Materials & Devices" (at S.Campus,Delhi University .on Dec.18-20,2006) reflected a renewed interest in Zinc Oxide research by theoretical prediction and experimental confirmation of ferromagnetism at room temperature for potential optoelectronic (blue LEDs, Lasers) and spintronic applications. In-depth discussions were carried out on mechanical, chemical, electrical and optical properties of Zinc Oxide as well as technological issues such as growth, defects, p-type doping, band-gap engineering and nanostructures
• DST together with JSPS is hosting in India the Asian Academic Seminar cum Winter School, with Molecular Sciences as its focal theme. The Asian Academic Seminar is held annually as Winter School on selected topics in India, Korea and China by rotation and provides a valuable opportunity for young scientists and students of Asia (50% from the host country) to intensively interact with International experts in class room lectures as well as laboratory experiment modes. While JSPS provides for international airfare for the international experts and young scientists from other countries, the hosting side supports the hospitality, domestic travel of local students and experts.
• Indo-Russian workshop on Seismology was organized during October 15-21, 2006 at Moscow. The Indian delegation was led by Prof. VK Gaur, and had scientists from leading institutes like WIHG, NGRI, C-MMACS, GSI, and IMD. 12 new joint projects were identified to prepare catalogue of Indian earthquakes; understanding co-seismic environmental effects; seismic velocity on Indian lithosphere; experimental design and analysis of multi-geo data sets such as electrical, hydrodynamics, tectono-electric, magnetics and tectonic -stress signals.
• Indo-Russian Workshop on Problems in Nonlinear Mechanics of Solids with Large Deformation at IIT, Delhi during November 22-24, 2006. 5 Russian and around 100 Indian scientists attended this workshop. Scientists from IIT, Kanpur, IIT, Delhi, BARC, DRDO and other scientific institutions discussed various possible projects for joint collaboration. Several new collaborative projects are being worked out on multi scale modeling of contact interaction and wear; fracture dynamics; nanomechanics; super plastic flow; coating.
• IBSA Workshops: Three Thematic Workshops under the India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA ) framework were held in S.Africa & Brazil on Biosafety, Tuberculosis & Nanotechnology. DST fielded Indian scientific team to these event with a view to learn from each other's experiences and identify themes for further collaborative activities.
• Indo-Australian workshop on Sustainable Energy was held at New Castle, Sydney during December 3-9, 2006. Indian delegation was led by Professor SS Murthy, IIT Delhi and had representation from MNES, Coal India, TERI, INAE and IIT Chennai. The workshop identified several sectors for developing projects in the fields of in Coal and Biomass (Biomass gasification, post combustion capture of CO2; from conventional power stations; underground gasification of coal; methane from coal deposits) Wind (generation capacity); solar (solar enhancement of natural gas; efficient building); energy storage etc.
• Indo-German Workshop on HIMPAC (Oct.2006 Delhi hosted by .Kumaon University) for joint project formulation . Exploratory Scientific Mission from Germany to India-Univ.of Hyderabad Dec.2006) visited in connection with project development under International Research Training Group scheme Exploratory Scientific Mission from India to Germany (May 2006) for joint project formulation in nanomaterials
• Indo-Mexican Workshop on Water Management in Metropolis (at IIT Delhi,Oct.30-Nov.1,2006) was attended by experts from field agencies such as Delhi Jal Board, MCD, CPCB, relevant NGOs and experts drawn from academia & research laboratories. 6 Mexican experts participated and shared their experiences in areas ,namely, water storage and distribution system, leak detection systems, sewerage system, water pricing ,water purification ,water pollution and other legal issues. 2nd Indo- Mexican Workshop on Seismology is slated in Mexico City in July 2007.
• Indo-UK Workshop on "Hot Plasma in Intense Electromagnetic Fields" (at TIFR, Mumbai April 22-26,2006) strongly recommended collaboration on (i) development of laser pulse compression techniques (ii) laser cluster interactions with ultra short laser pulses.
• Indo-Chinese Workshop on Micro-Electronics Mechanical System ( NPL Delhi 5-7 April 2006).
• India-EU Workshop on Infectious Diseases TB, Malaria, HIV ( Bangalore, June 5-6,2006) reflected on India-EU research partnerships in domains of (i) New drugs targets development; (ii) Genomic analysis of TB persistence; (iii) Development of new inhibitors for TB and malaria ; (iv) Systems biology approach for developing new strategies for treating infectious diseases-in vivo effect of new drug on host and pathogen, up or under regulation of genes, surge or decline of protein activity;9v) Vaccines for Malaria,TB,HIV.
• International Symposium on "Frontiers in Nanoscience, technology, education and research" ( organized by NPL at Cochin, Aug.16-19,2006) jointly supported by DST, NSF et al

4.9 Participation In International Mega-Science Projects/ Utilization of International Advanced Research Facilities

i. India made its intention to enroll in the International Facility for Anti-proton & Ion Research (FAIR) by way of contributing at-least 3% of the total projected cost of the FAIR project. This contribution would be "in kind" only to be jointly shared by DST and DAE in next 7 years of the construction period. The FAIR documents relating to Final International Agreement and Articles of Associaiton (AoA) for establishing a, limited liability company to ru FAIR, are being vetted from legal angle by the Indian side. India will establish a network of India-FAIR Centers in India to coordinate the FAIR activities in India.

ii. India is the Plenipotentiary member of the International Centre for Scientific & Technological Information (ICSTI),Moscow, Russia. India continued with participation in ICSTI's technical programmes and receiving information on scientific developments in ICSTI member States.

iii. Collaboration in the field of accelerator physics, technology and application between Sincrotrone Trieste SCpA and Indian institutions is one of the significant bilateral project within the current Indo-Italian Program of Cooperation in S&T . This project allows inter-alia utilization of Elettra beamlines by Indian researchers; the gain to Italy is that they are able to get new ideas of research that this machine can handle and gain to Indian R&D lies in getting better resolution data on research experiments and strengthening of on-going research and facility INDUS-II commissioning at CAT Indore in India India's collaboration with Sincrotrone Trieste witnessed a significant increase in allocation of beamtime on Italian synchrotron machine,Elettra for Indian scientific experiments during 2006-07 : 24 Indian scientific experiments have received 366 shifts on Elettra beamlines and has allowed 65 Indian scientists to visit Trieste for conducting the scientific experiments. These 65 Indian users were drawn from evenly from Universities (IISc Bangalore,Goa University, Pune University, Nagpur University, IUCSR Indore,IIT Bombay) & Research Laboratories (BARC Mumbai, SINP Kolkatta, CDFD Hyderabad, CGCRI Kolkatta). Illustrative examples of different investigations performed on Italian synchrotron machine are given below:

By Universities:

• Role of surface atoms in photoluminescence quantum yield of CdSe & ZnSe quantum dots (VUPE Beamline): Probing internal structures of semiconductor nanocrystals that impart extraordinarily high quantum yield/brilliance. Such investigations provide a deeper understanding, impossible to obtain otherwise, of the origin of such high brilliance, which is extremely important for display technologies using such semiconductor nanocrystals. (IISc)
• Study of Lanthanum Cobalt Manganese Oxide & Lanthanum Strontium Cobalt Manganese Oxide perovskites (XAFS Beamline): Investigating change in local and electronic structure of these CMR materials by Mn & K edge studies (Goa University & Nagpur University)
• Study of intralayer structure and molecular packing in Langmuir Blodgett multilayers (SAXS Beamline): The LB technique plays a very important role in developing various interesting multilayer structures and the nanometer length scale and therefore, such studies provide a deeper understanding in such frontier areas of research (IIT Bombay)

By Research Laboratories:

• Antiferromagnetic domain structures of NiO films (Circularly Polarization beamline) : Investigating spin reorientation transition in nickel oxide single crystal as a model system for antiferromagnetic surface. These studies help us understand the fundamental aspects of spin arrangements in ultra-thin systems, which have important technological ramifications in memory as well as read-write devices (SINP)
• Evolution of electronic structure in polymers and metal polymer nanocomposites with confinement (BEAR Beamline): Investigating effect of thinning on electronic structure of polystyrene film, which when thinned below a limit, enters a fundamentally new phase "Nanoconfinement Phase". There is a molecular ordering whereby benzene ring lines up along a particular orientation on film surface. This has polarizing effect in a wide range of radiation from 4 to 300eV (Vacuum UltraVoilet to Soft X-Ray range) (SINP)
• Structural studies of redox and transcriptional related proteins from M. tuberculosis (XRD Beamline): Such studies investigating the structure of proteins are important for a range of biological processes. (CDFD).
• EXAFS Study of indigenous phosphor(CaSO4:Dy) EXAFS Beamline: Insight into effect of annealing on regenerative capability of indigenous phosphor CaSO4:Dy ,which is widely used for radiation exposure monitoring (BARC)

4.10 Fellowships & International Exposure for Indian S&T Personnel

i. DST-JSPS RONPAKU (Dissertation PhD) Programme: This program provides tutorial and financial support to promising young researchers who wish to obtain PhD degree from Japanese universities through submission of dissertation without going through a full time doctoral course and DST has the role of recommending annually Indian working scientists to JSPS for enrolment in Japanese universities. During this year, six Indian researchers working at BARC Mumbai, NIV Pune, NEERI Nagpur,NIRM Kolar Gold Fields,and NICD Kolkatta were awarded PhD degree by different Japanese universities.

ii. Indian participation in 56th Lindau Meeting of Nobel Laureates & Students (in the field of chemistry) . DST selected a team of young promising Indian researchers representing a spectrum of inter-disciplinary competencies for interaction with Nobel Laureates and their fellow peers. Indian student team (26 in number) was the 3rd largest contingent to Lindau meeting, students from US and Japan participation ranking amongst the top two contingents. This DST sponsored initiative continues its impact in (a) helping young promising Indian researchers to reorient /fine tune their own research program in light of exposure to current research trends /challenges being investigated by global icons of science, the Nobel

Lindau Meeting of Nobel Laureates & Students

iii. DST-ICTP Agreement based Fellowship Program:Indian young researchers were awarded "Fellowship" jointly by DST and ICTP to participate in five ICTP scientific events (Workshops,College, School etc) at Trieste during April-December 2006. Usefulness of the Fellowship to the individual Indian researcher as well as to on-going Indian research, inspired by expertise gained at ICTP Workshops, is evident from details given below:

• ICTP Workshop on "Driven States in Soft & Biological Matter" allowed (i) Exposure to forefront research on understanding physics of non-equilibrium states in soft material ( such a state arises from external stresses, electronic or magnetic fields, thermal fluctuations etc); (ii) Exposure to interesting problems being investigated world-wide such as dislocation dynamics in colloidal crystals using laser diffraction technique and laser scanning confocal microscope, dynamics and functional role of viscoelastic material within a living cell; (iii) New insight on subject of doctoral work of Indian researchers sent on Fellowship (from IIsc Bangalore)- Dynamics of visco-elastic gels under shear ;Study of velocity fluctuations in colloidal sedimentation; Development of new models for molecular motors for applications in biology; Short-listing of future research problems/ future line of investigation of on-going research worth investigating by Indian researchers sent of Fellowship (from RRI Bangalore, IIT Madras )- Rheology of active suspensions such as role of fluctuation of shear bands (interfaces ) in rheological chaos, rheology of ageing gels,sedimentation of red blood cells; Lattice Boltzmann model for active particles; (c) Refining the scope of a proposal for research grant being made by Indian researcher sent on Fellowship (from IIT Bombay) on the topic"Dynamics of biopolymer FtSz, which is responsible for generating contractile force during cell division of a bacteria".
• ICTP Workshop on "3-D Modeling of Seismic Waves Generation, Propagation and their Invasion" provided (i) exposure to fundamental techniques and recent developments in solid earth geophysics; (ii) new insight relevant for pursuit of doctoral work "Zonation of peak ground acceleration and seismic hazard assessment of Guwahati & Sikkim region" of Indian researcher sent on Fellowship(from IIT Karagpur)- exposure to latest techniques such as finite difference method, empirical green's function simulation, wave number integration for mathematical modeling of propagation of seismic waves in earth ; exposure to latest software and data management for estimation of crustal structure of earth using receiver function ad surface wave dispersion.
• ICTP Workshop on "Ion beam studies of nanomaterials: synthesis, modifications and characterization" was useful to the Indian researcher sent on Fellowship (from IUAC Delhi) in fine-tuning of ongoing doctoral research on "Manipulation of nanostructures by ion beam focused on silver particles embedded in silica matrix " - to further investigate exact origin of elongation of silver particles in silica matrix by ion beam irradiation ; it also helped in elaboration of a new application oriented experiment on non-linear optical properties using ion beam irradiation .
• ICTP College on "Non-Linear Differential Equations" helped the Indian researcher sent on Fellowship (from Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology Sikkim) to (i) utilize new tools of differential equation modeling (DEM) such as Degree Theory Model ; Indian researcher so far had been using Lyapunov tools for DEM purposes; (ii) move a request under ICTP scheme for free on-line access to journals such as Ecological Modeling Jr, Biosystems Jr., Jr. of Mathematical Analysis & Application, Non-Linear Analysis: Real World Problem Jr.

4.11 S&T Initiatives With Indian Diaspora: 2006-2007 STIO Program (New Initiative)

DST selected 27 collaborative projects for supporting STIO's visits into India during 2006-2007 under its new initiative "Collaborative Projects with Scientists & Technologists of Indian Origin Abroad Program (CP-STIO Program), with the help of High Level Peer Review Committee . Those selected offer project based connectivity between home country scientists and STIOs abroad in frontier areas of science and cutting edge technologies for strengthening institutional and human capacity & accelerating achievement of goals set out in on-going nationally important research . These "selected projects" focus on a range of themes such as

• Germanium nanotransistors , a technology for next generation circuits for computer devices; Non Contact Ultrasound (NCU) as new emerging Non Destructive Testing (NDT) probe for materials analysis for India centric application /needs of aerospace, automotive, power ,roadways industries;.
• Spintronic device-lateral spin valve fabrication, spin transport in silicon;
• Transdermal delivery of high molecular weight drug for treating prostrate/breast/uterine cancer; Inducing spinal cord regeneration in mammals (for cases affected by neurodegenerative diseases and spinal cord injuries) based on the process found in animal model-"zebra fish"
• Improved and reliable diagnostic method for mass screening of people for identification of thalessemia carrier;.
• Computational aeroeleasticity including prediction of transonic flutter, understanding instability in aircraft and possible solutions
• Medicinal Chemistry training at post PhD level providing modern context to drug discovery
• Development of plasma technology for processing of textile fibres which are advantageous in making textile fibre hydrophilic,oil repellant and antimicrobial
• Application of Weather Research & Forecast Model to understand monsoon variability over Indian region
• Indian Neutrino Observatory-Design & fabrication of detectors & planning experiments + Theoretical basis of electron acceleration in supernovae-stellar explosion+ investigations using atto second laser

4.12 INDIA- The Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS) Cooperation in S&T

The Academy of Sciences for Developing Countries TWAS, Trieste (founded in 1985) is an international non-governmental scientific organization under the auspices of UNESCO (Category-II Institute) with 700 fellows drawn from 83 countries. TWAS has endeavoured to execute its mission to promote and support scientific capacity and excellence in science in the developing countries of the South. Its operational and secretariat expenses are borne out of interest income from "TWAS Endowment Fund" of US$ 8 Million contributed by 16 Governments (until 2005)

TWAS has facilitated India's presence and enlargement of its direct influence for empowering scientists of Asia, Africa and South America through the medium of scientific activities. In an effort to proactively shoulder India's responsibility to continually bolster TWAS as a voice of South, DST requested INSA New Delhi for conducting an "Evaluation report on benefits accruing from and impact generated by Government of India contribution to TWAS" (April,2006); this report reveals aspects including:

• With 139 Indians as TWAS Fellows in a total of 700 TWAS Fellows from 83 countries, one in every five TWAS Fellow is from India;
• Of the 120 TWAS Science Prizes, 27 TWAS Science Prizes accounting for over 30% have been won by Indian scientists during 1985-2005;
• Of the 122 TWAS affiliated Centres of Excellence located in various developing countries, 28 such TWAS Affiliated Centres of Excellence are located in India (accounting for 23% share);
• Of the 5 TWAS Regional Offices, the TWAS Regional Office for South & Central Asia in India hosted by JNCASR Bangalore. This Regional Office allows organization of TWAS Meetings & Scientific in India offering excellent opportunities for exposure of Indian scientists to status of scientific capacity and common challenges typical to South & Central Asia;
• TWAS funding to Indian scientists and institutions has been US$ 605,353 during 2000-2005 with 43 TWAS -UNESCO Associateship Program grants, 35 TWAS Research Grants & 11 TWAS Science Prizes being the predominant type of activities
  This led to DST ,on behalf of Government of India, making an afresh contribution of US$ 500,000 to "TWAS Endowment Fund" in August 2006. India thus retains its presence amongst the top three countries providing funds to "TWAS Endowment Fund".

4.13 INDO-US S&T Forum

Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) has been functioning from 2000 year onwards to promote, catalyse and seed bilateral collaboration in science ,engineering and biomedical sciences through substantive interaction amongst government, academia and industry. Its operative budget was contributed by DST to the tune of Rs. 3.2 crores this year and a matching interest grant from a US government endowment. IUSSTF mobilized external cash inflow to the tune of Rs. 85 lakhs to support specific bilateral programmatic activities. Some of the significant activities and opportunities supported/created through proactive role played by IUSSTF during 2006-07 are as follows:

• The University of California - India R&D initiative is built upon identifying 'grand challenges' and supporting bilateral projects through partnership mechanism. The US-India E-education program will enable faculty from 21 US universities to impart pedagogical courses to 42 engineering colleges in India linked through the ISRO Edusat. The IUSSTF-MIT Internship program is designed to expose young American graduates from MIT & Harvard to undertake internship attachments in Indian R&D establishments. Technopreneurship in academia program is aimed at promoting entrepreneurship in Indian R&D institutions through adopting the successful US models.
• Indo-US Frontiers of Engineering Symposium (FOE-2006), at Agra and planned Indo-US Frontiers of Science Symposium (FOS-2007), Irvine, CA in partnership with the U.S. National Academies has provided a unique platform to the best and brightest young minds (below 45 years) from India and US to interact and show case cutting edge scientific pursuits across disciplines through a designed interactive format.
• Five Knowledge R&D and Public-Private Networked Centers have been established on Advanced and Futuristic Manufacturing; Bioremediation and Phytomediation of Chemopollutants; Development of nano-structured materials; Tissue Engineering; and iGEON - India (Geological Information Networking). The Centre concept is designed to showcase leapfrogging capabilities that will be made possible by synergistically integrating individual strengths of partners;
• IUSSTF supported 25 Indo-US symposium and workshops .These events helped in disseminating information and expertise sharing, leading to the development of long term activities like joint research projects, academia-industry linkages and inter-institutional educational programs. These bilateral meetings have also helped to charter road maps and contours of cooperation on topics like (i) Microlight air vehicle development (National Aeronautical Laboratory & University of Maryland) (ii) Primate national action plan (Primate Research Council & US Wildlife and Fisheries Agency) (iii) Indoflux program for biogeochemical flux measurements (DST); (iv)Carbon sequestration (NGRI-NTPC & U.S. PNWL); (v)Linear collider for high energy physics (DST/DAE & U.S. DOE labs) and (vi)Weather & climate modeling (IIT-NCMRWF & US NCAR).

4.14 Indo-French Centre For The Promotion Of Advanced Research (IFCPAR/CEFIPRA)

Established jointly by Government of India and the Government of France and budget shared equally between the two Governments, , this Centre entered the 20th year of its activities and is looked upon as a "Global Model" for international bilateral cooperation in S&T. The highlights and achievements are as follows:

• 77 collaborative research projects are under implementation in topics of mutual interest and current scientific relevance. Such as health care, environmental sciences, materials science, nano sciences, biotechnology, computer and information science, water management ; 170 scientists from India and France have completed their visits ;
• On an average 100 research papers (arising from the collaborative projects) have been published jointly in international scientific journals with good impact factor;
• 2nd India-France Quiz: With a view to promote awareness among the youngsters of both countries in each others culture ,an "On Line Quiz " was organized on October 15,2006 in which about 2000 students participated;
• Indo-French Training School in "Optical Astronomical Observations" was held at IUCAA Pune on Feb.12-26,2007 which is significant and beneficial in view of state of the art optical telescopes with advanced instrumentation recently acquired by India ;
• New scientific information and knowledge generated under the collaborative research projects that have concluded in 2006-2007 / which are on-going during 2006-2007 include purification and fractionation of polycomb complex regulating silencing work accomplished in the collaborat