The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Coimbatore News : `Develop vaccine for soldiers'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jul 08, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore

`Develop vaccine for soldiers'

Staff Reporter

LIFE AND SCIENCE: The Vice-Chancellor of Bharathiar University, S. Sivasubramanian (second from left) explaining to the President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, and the Tamil Nadu Governor, Surjit Singh Barnala, the salient features of the Centre for Life Scie nces at the inaugural function at the university in Coimbatore on Wednesday. The Chief Controller of Defence Research and Development Organisation, A. Sivathanu Pillai (extreme left) looks on. - Photo: M. Periasamy

COIMBATORE: : The President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, on Wednesday asked scientists specialising in life sciences to invent a therapeutic solution to "pulmonary oedema" affecting soldiers serving at high altitude.

He was inaugurating a function organised by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Bharathiar University (BU) to dedicate the Rs. 18-crore Centre for Life Sciences. The DRDO has extended Rs. 14 crores and the university Rs. 4 crores.

Having a word of concern for soldiers who were fighting intruders and enemies at high altitudes such as 24,000 ft in places like Siachen, he said that they were becoming vulnerable to "pulmonary oedema" and incidents of frostbite.

"Time is now ripe for intensive interaction between DRDO and BU in the life-sciences area, encompassing environmental science, bio-sciences and bio-remediation", he said.

For example, the study of heat shock protein of the blood sample of an individual can be used as a biomarker for determining the susceptibility of an individual to high altitude sickness and the level of acclimatisation need for different individuals. This type of segregation of individuals would enable the army to keep a panel of individuals with low susceptibility for emergency induction into the high altitude sector.

Referring to the education sector, he said the country was now focussing on syllabus, curriculum and project works.

The real issue was the development of creativity among students for innovations, which was still absent.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Centre for Life Sciences was signed between BU and DRDO. The Vice-Chancellor of BU, S. Sivasubramanian and Chief Controller, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), A. Sivathanu Pillai.

The Vice-Chancellor handed over the MoU copy to the President by the Vice-Chancellor and the DRDO-Chief Controller handed over his MoU copy to the Governor of Tamil Nadu, Chancellor of the University, Surjit Singh Barnala.

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