DRDO Newsletter Vol 32 No 4 April 2012

A monthly house bulletin of Defence Research & Development Organisation ■ Vol. 32 No. 4 ■ April 2012

DRDO demonstrates Ballistic Missile Defence Capability

The Air Defence Missile, developed by DRDO, successfully hit a mimicking ballistic missile and destroyed it at a height of 15 km off the Coast of Orissa near the Wheeler’s island on 10 February 2012. Radars, located at deferent locations, tracked the incoming ballistic missile. Guidance computers continuously computed the trajectory of the incoming ballistic ballistic missile and launched the interceptor missile

at a precisely calculated time. With the target trajectory continuously

updated by the radar, the on-board guidance computer

guided the interceptor missile towards the target missile. The on-board radio frequency seeker identified the target missile and guided the interceptor missile towards the target missile. The target missile was hit directly and the warhead exploded to destroy the target missile into pieces.

Radar and electro-optic tracking systems (EOTS) tracked the missile and also recorded the

fragments of target missile falling into the

Bay of Bengal. It was one of the finest missions

where the interceptor has hit the incoming ballistic missile directly. The mission was carried out in the final deliverable user configuration mode. India is the fifth nation in the world to have these ballistic missile defence capabilities.

Dr VK Saraswat, Scientific Advisor to Raksha Mantri (SA to RM), Secretary Defence Research and Development and DG DRDO, reviewed the total configuration and mission and also witnessed the launch. Shri Avinash Chander, Distinguished Scientist (DS) and Chief Controller (CC) R&D (Missiles) and Shri P Venugopalan, Outstanding Scientist (OS) and Director, Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad, reviewed the flight readiness of both the target and interceptor missiles. Shri DS Reddy, Programme Director, Air Defence System, along with his team carried out all the preparations for the launch. Shri SP Dash, OS and Director, Interim Test Range (ITR), Chandipur; Dr SK Chaudhuri, OS and Director, Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad and other top DRDO scientists were present during the mission. The mission was also witnessed by the senior officers of three armed forces.

Shri AK Antony, Hon’ble Raksha Mantri, congratulated the scientists for the successful demonstration of ballistic missile defence capability.

2 April 2012

DRDO launches BASIX-Aahaar

Shri Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman of the Planning C o m m i s s i o n launched Aahaar on 28 February 2012. Aahaar, a high shelf life dal and roti pack, has been developed by DRDO to cater to the needs of the Aam Aadmi, during long journeys, nutritional feeding, catering programmes and other similar civilian applications.

In his keynote address at the launch function, Shri Ahluwalia urged the Aahaar project collaborators—DRDO, BASIX (a social enterprise group) and Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI)—to explore the possibility of integrating the project with the mid-day meal scheme and the integrated child development scheme with “acceptable fortification” to serve the nutritional requirements of children aged between three and six. He said that as women in rural areas get engaged in larger numbers in farming activities, rural India is bound to generate local demand for the dal and roti packs. “The involvement of women self-help groups in the formation of small production units using DRDO food technologies would go a long way in enhancing livelihoods of the rural community”, said Shri Ahluwalia.

Dr VK Saraswat, SA to RM, in his address said, “DRDO not only develops state-of-the-art weapons systems for our armed forces, but also innovative technologies and processes to keep our forces fighting fit. DRDO’s life sciences labs have made contributions for the armed forces, right from scientific selection of personnel with suitable physical and psychological state of preparedness, to help them perform with high efficiency and effectiveness even under extreme stressful conditions. Technology to provide packaged ready-

to-eat nutritious food, meeting Indian tastes and traditions, is one such area. Through BASIX we expect the benefits of these innovative products to reach millions in the civil society and help generate employment and contribute to inclusive growth.

This engagement with BASIX has the potential to generate large employment at the bottom of the pyramid. I congratulate FICCI for their continued support to DRDO”.

Welcoming the guests, Dr Rajiv Kumar, Secretary General, FICCI, said, “This landmark initiative will go a long way in providing succour to the poor as it would cushion them in large measure from food inflation that has been raging for some time now. It will also become a key instrument in meeting the challenges of providing our teeming millions with cheap, hygienic and nutritious food.”

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Vijay Mahajan, Managing Director, BASIX Group, said “BASIX is using DRDO research for enhancing food security for the masses by bringing this product to the market.”

Shri S Sundaresh, DS and CC R&D (ACE&SI), DRDO, in his address said that the tripartite MoU between DRDO, FICCI and BASIX is yet another initiative under the Accelerated Technology Assessment and Commercialisation (ATAC) Programme. He further opined, “With FICCI creating a dedicated team for food technologies, I am confident that in the coming months, we will have many more technologies reaching the commercial space through this initiative”.

Dr AS Bawa, OS and Director, Defence Food Research Laboratory (DFRL), Mysore, said

Release of BASIX-Aahaar.

3April 2012 3

“Chapaties are highly perishable and spoil within 24- 36 h depending upon storage conditions due to microbial spoilage. With DFRL technology the shelf life has been extended to more than 12 months and with both nutrition and taste. For the instant dal and channa mix, cold shock dehydration technology has been mastered and patented by DFRL for making a variety of tasty convenience mixes which can be reconstituted within 6-8 min with a shelf-life of more than 12 months under ambient conditions. These products are suitable for use during long journeys, nutritional feeding, catering programmes and other similar civilian applications”.

Shri S Radhakrishnan, Director, Industry Interface and Technology Management, DRDO, said “This new engagement with BASIX is in fact an innovation within innovation; ATAC being the first.”

Under the FICCI-DRDO ATAC Programme, DRDO, BASIX, and FICCI have come together to collaborate on long-term basis to develop and execute viable and scalable models for commercialisation of the technologies developed by DRDO with the specific intent of developing and enhancing livelihoods. The three partners will identify and commercialise sub-set of technologies/products/processes developed by DRDO focusing on the base of the pyramid as both producers and consumers and thereby improving the lives of the disadvantaged and creating livelihoods for them.

Initially, this collaboration will focus on the food technologies developed by DFRL. The aim of the project is to build women-oriented enterprises using the food technologies of DFRL. The first pilot project under this collaboration is Aahaar that encompasses a set of technologies and products including ready-to-eat roti, and two variants in dal―instant palak dal with masala

channa curry mix. BASIX shall subject the identified technologies/products/processes to three levels of testing, viz., technical feasibility, economic viability and consumer acceptance.

BASIX will play the lead execution role in bringing together all aspects of this project and conducting the commercialisation pilot. The pilot will involve developing a model of creating small production units comprising

predominantly of women, by organising and building a range of skills and deploying simple technologies developed by DFRL. For the consumer, Aahaar is a hygienic, nutritious and convenient meal that tastes fresh yet has longer shelf life, that is tasty yet quick to serve. Roti will have a shelf life of 15 days and the two variants of dal will have a shelf life of 12 months. This will have differentiated and unique positioning in the market in this category of foods.

The project has been designed in three stages: (a) test market to test key hypothesis on supply and demand side using the women groups as the key customer interface resource,

(b) commencement of a pilot stage with women groups as producers, and (c) post pilot stage, scale up the project and set up multiple production units catering to the needs of multiple market segments. It is envisaged that 2-3 women groups will be set up. Women will be trained extensively and set up as high quality and viable production units for making a variety of ready-to-eat/instant foods. The pilot stage will exhaustively test and establish technical viability, commercial scalability and consumer acceptance.

The test market for Aahaar has been concluded in the cities of Delhi and Bangalore.

“Through BASIX we expect the benefits of these innovative products to reach millions in the civil society and help generate employment and contribute to inclusive growth. This engagement with BASIX has the potential to generate large employment at the bottom of the pyramid. I congratulate FICCI for their continued support to DRDO.”

4 April 2012

Conference on CBRN Disaster Management and Security

“India deserves place at top tables where decisions are taken”, said Mr Jeremy Browne, Hon’ble Minister of State at the UK Foreign and Commonweal th Office, in the Conference on CBRN Disaster Management and Security. The two-day Conference was jointly organised by DRDO, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Office for Security and Counter Terrorism (OSCT), UK Government Home Office. CBRN disaster management refers to the management of disasters from the use of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear materials. Mr Jeremy Browne expressed keeness to share UK’s expertise in this field with India as there is much to be gained through sharing of experiences. He lauded India’s economic rise and its strong industrial base.

India and UK entered into a letter of arrangement (LoA) on 16 September 2011 to pursue collaborative Defence R&D and facilitate best use of research and technology capabilities through joint programmes, including participation of industry and academia. The present Conference was the first milestone towards scientific, academic, and industrial participation in the areas of CBRN Disaster Management and Security Technologies. Mr Jeremy Browne was leading a delegation of over 20 scientists, policy planners, and academicians to the Conference.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr W Selvamurthy, DS and CC R&D (LS&IC), DRDO, listed four entities, viz., standard operating procedures, guidelines, equipment and systems, and trained manpower required for the preparedness to manage CBRN disasters. He expressed confidence that synergy between India and UK will lead to products that are best in the world. Dr Selvamurthy said “DRDO has developed more than 60 products and technologies for CBRN defence, most of

which have been p r o d u c t i o n i s e d by ordnance factories, defence PSUs and private sector industries, and inducted into services”. He also mentioned that Govt of India has approved establishment of a National Centre for CBRN Mitigation and Training under

the aegis of DRDO. The mandate of this Centre would be to provide quality training to military, paramilitary, police and civilian as ‘First Responders’ in handling CBRN eventuality. DRDO will also function as a CBRN emergency response centre.

Inaugurating the two-day Conference, Shri M Shashidhar Reddy, Vice Chairman, NDMA, said that CBRN disaster threats are on the rise, especially with the growth of international terrorism, and cause of concern because of the ease with which chemical and biological materials are available and can be disbursed.

Dr Muzaffar Ahmad, Member, NDMA and Major General (Dr) JK Bansal gave an overview of the medical disaster preparedness and underlined the need for training with the use of equipment. It was suggested that NDMA, DRDO and FICCI could evolve a mechanism for training personnel through the PPP mode along with the provision of equipment.

On the occasion, an exhibition of CBRN technologies and products developed by UK and India with applications in both civil and military response to CBRN incidents was also organised. A wide range of products, designed, developed and productionised by DRDO, for detection of CBRN threats, as well as those offering individual/collective protection, were on display.

Dr RP Tripathy, OS and Director, INMAS, Delhi; Dr AK Saxena, Director, DMSRDE, Kanpur; Dr MP Kaushik, OS and Director, DRDE, Gwalior; besides other top DRDO scientists and a galaxy of scientists from UK were present in the Conference.

5April 2012

Demonstration of Bulletproof Jacket to Raksha Mantri and SA to RM

Due to increasing number of counter-insurgency operations, protection of defence personnel has become challenging. There are challenges in designing bulletproof jacket in terms of protection and weight. Army has requirement of bulletproof jackets with capability to provide 360o protection not only against conventional weapons like AK-47 mild steel core bullet but also against advance ammunition like AK-47 hard steel core (KF) and 7.62 SLR bullets. To cope up with these challenges, Defence Materials and Stores Research and Development Establishment (DMSRDE), Kanpur, has developed a state-of-the-art modular lightweight (<10.5 kg) bulletproof jacket.This jacket complies with Indian Army requirements as per GSQR 1318.

Dr AK Saxena, Director, DMSRDE, demonstrated the jacket to Dr VK Saraswat, SA to RM. Earlier, Dr J Narayan Das, OS and CC R&D (NS&M), had demonstrated the jacket to Hon’ ble Raksha Mantri Shri AK Antony.

To commemorate the discovery of Raman Effect by Sir CV Raman on 28 February 1928, the day is celebrated as National Science Day (NSD) every year on 28 February. Raman Effect, a phenomenon in spectroscopy, was discovered by the eminent physicist while working at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Kolkata. The basic objective for the celebration of National Science Day is to spread the message of importance of science and its applications. It is also an opportunity to impress upon the young minds the importance and

Defence Science Forum celebrates National Science Day 2012

significance of science in the everyday life. DRDO celebrates the occasion by holding National Science Day orations, DRDO level quiz, poster, and essay competitions, and many such events related to science. DRDO labs/estts also organise various programmes at their respective labs/estts.

Defence Science Forum (DSF), organised National Science Day 2012 at Dr Bhagavantam Auditorium, Metcalfe House, Delhi. The celebrations started with the welcome address by Dr R Muralidharan, OS and Director SSPL. Dr V

Release of DRDO Science Spectrum.

6 April 2012

Bhujanga Rao, DS and CC R&D (HR), the Chief Guest of the function, while delivering his presidential address lauded the initiatives being taken by DSF for organizing lectures by the eminent professionals from different disciplines. The National Science Day Oration this year was delivered by Dr SK Jain, Chairman and Managing Director, Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited on the topic Nuclear Power: An Inevitable Option. A compilation of lectures delivered at various DRDO labs/estts–DRDO Science Spectrum 2012–edited and published by Defence Scientific Information and Documentation Centre (DESIDOC) was also released by Dr Bhujanga Rao during the occasion.

The winners of the various events organised by the DSF were felicitated by the Chief Guest and Dr Jain. The winners were:

Quiz CompetitionIst: Shri Ram Singh, INMAS, DelhiIInd: Dr SV Kamat, DMRL, HyderabadIIIrd: Shri Mohit Sharma, DL, Jodhpur

Besides, one scientist from each DRDO lab/estt, who delivered talk on the thrust area of their respective lab/estt was presented a medal and a certificate by the Director of their respective lab/estt on behalf of SA to RM. Twelve scientists from Delhi-based DRDO labs/estts were given medals by Dr Bhujanga Rao during the function.

The function was webcasted through out DRDO. Dr Rajeev Vij, Secretary DSF, proposed the vote of thanks.

Poster CompetitionIst: Shri Vineeth, NPOL, Kochi IInd: Shri Ankur Mendiratta, DPI, DRDO HQIIIrd: Ms Nidhi, DP&C, DRDO HQ

DRDO Oration

Defence Science Forum in association with DESIDOC, Delhi, organised an DRDO oration on the topic Communicating Research: Past, Present and Future on 24 February 2012 at Dr Bhagavantham Auditorium, Delhi. The oration was delivered by emeritus Prof. AJ Meadows from Loughborough University, UK. Prof. Meadows has authored 24 books and around 300 research papers in various field of S&T.

Prof. Meadows enriched the audience with his ideas and thoughts through the educative and illuminating

oration. The pro-gramme began with the lighting of lamp followed by welcome address by Shri AK Maini, OS and Director, Laser Science and Technology Centre (LASTEC), Delhi, and Convener DSF.

Dr AL Moorthy, Director, DESIDOC, Delhi, introduced Prof. Meadows to

audience. Dr W Selvamurthy, DS and CC R&D (LS&IC), DRDO HQ, who presided the function, highlighted the success stories of DRDO in his presidential address. Dr Rajeev Vij, Secretary DSF, proposed the vote of thanks.

Dr Selvamurthy presenting memento to Prof. Meadows.

Essay CompetitionIst: Shri Md Shahid Quamar, ADE, BangaloreIInd: Shri Govind Kumar Jha, DFRL, Mysore IIIrd: Shri Vineet Dwivedi, SAG, Delhi

7April 2012

CAIR, Bengaluru

Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR), Bengaluru, a 330 plus employee enabled, premier lab of DRDO celebrated its Silver Jubilee on 13 February 2012. With Dr VK Saraswat, SA to RM, as the Chief Guest, the CAIR fraternity participated in this momentous occasion along with the dignitaries from

communication and networking, the Centre would bring out defence communication backbone complete with monitoring sub-systems and indigenous security.

INMAS, Delhi

Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), Delhi, a premiere institute under the Life Sciences cluster of DRDO, celebrated its 51st Annual Day on 13 February 2012. Dr V Bhujanga Rao, DS and CC R&D (HR), was the Chief Guest and Air Marshal DP Joshi, AVSM, PHS, Director General Medical Services (Air), was the Guest of Honour on the occasion. Dr W Selvamurthy, DS and CC R&D (LS&IC), Maj Gen BK Chopra, Commandant, Base Hospital, and Directors of various DRDO labs/estts also graced the occasion. The function marked the culmination of several scientific, societal, cultural, and sports activities at INMAS.

Silver Jubilee/Annual Day Celebrations

Dr VK Saraswat, SA to RM during the silver jubilee function.

defence, space and armed forces. In his speech, SA to the RM, illustrated the glorious past and contributions of CAIR in the information and communication technology domain solutions for the defence forces.

Information technology plays a major and indispensable role today in the defence preparedness of the nation. Situations whether of conflict or peace, both, demand planned applications of IT and information processing systems. Communication technologies and systems form an essential component of the digital battlefield. CAIR addresses these critical issues with IT-based solutions incorporating challenging technologies such as artificial intelligence, computer vision, robotics and virtual reality. Spread over a sprawling modern campus, CAIR has grown into a vibrant, productive and one of the most-sought-after places to work today among the 52 plus DRDO labs in the country. Under the leadership of visionary Shri VS Mahalingam, DS and Director, CAIR is poised to be the focal hub to achieve network centric capability in the nation’s defence. In

Dr RP Tripathi, OS and Director, INMAS, welcomed the guests. In his address, Dr Bhujanga Rao, appreciated the scientific and societal contributions made by the INMAS, particularly in the areas of thyroid disorders and non-invasive imaging as well as radiation biology. He expressed his happiness that prospectively, INMAS will be shouldering the additional responsibility of training of medical and Armed forces personnel in the areas of CBRN defence. On this occasion, Nucleus, newsletter of INMAS was released by the Chief Guest, who also awarded scientists and other staff for their outstanding contributions. A colourful cultural programme was presented by the teams from Song and Drama Division, Govt of India and Sahitya Kala Parishad, Govt of Delhi. Dr Rajeev Vij, Chairman of the Annual Day Celebrations Committee, proposed the vote of thanks.

Dr Tripathi lighting the lamp during the annual function.

8 April 2012

Manpower Development Activities

Conferences/Seminars/Symposia/Training Courses/Meetings

DMSRDE, Kanpur

Defence Materials and Stores Research and Development Establishment (DMSRDE), Kanpur, organised a five-day training programme on Injection

Moulding Technology: Recent Trends and Challenges duirng 6-10 February 2012 for scientists and technical cadre of DRDO. Twenty-one participants attended the course. Dr DK Setua, Addl. Director, DMSRDE, inaugurated the Course. Dr Sarfaraz Alam, Group Director, in his address emphasised the various aspects of injection moulding technique, to get the desired product from variety of thermoplastics. In his Inaugural Address, Dr Setua, underlined the importance of injection moulding technology in defence sector. Dr AK Saxena, Director, DMSRDE, distributed certificates to the participants in the valedictory function.

HEMRL, Pune

High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL), Pune, organised a Continuing Education Programme (CEP) on Non-destructive Evaluation and Mechanical Properties Testing of High Energy Materials during 16-20 January 2012. The Course was designed to deliver the knowledge and hands-on experience in the field of non-destructive evaluation of various products related to high energy materials (HEMs) like rocket propellants, high explosives and pyrotechnics. It was also designed to impart knowledge about

the importance of mechanical properties of various types and compositions of HEMs. Shri A Apparao, Sc G, inaugurated the Course.

Twenty-five participants from DRDO, DGQA, DGOF, and the public and private sectors organisations attended the Course. The CEP covered manufacturing aspects of HEMs, conventional non-destructive methods, radiation safety and advanced topics like advancement in the field of radiography detection technologies, neutron radiography, computerised tomography and high energy LINACs. Practical sessions on radiography, ultrasonic

testing and use of UTM for testing of mechanical properties were arranged. Speakers from Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) and SAMEER, both in Mumbai; ACEM, Nasik; Defence Laboratory (DL), Jodhpur, and HEMRL, Pune, delivered lectures on various topics. Shri B Bhattacharya, OS and Director, HEMRL, was the Chief Guest in the valedictory function. Shri DK Kankane, Sc G, was the Course Director.

PXE, Chandipur

Proof and Experimental Establishment (PXE), Chandipur, orgnaised a CEP on Rocket Ballistics during 6-10 February 2012. Ten participants from PXE and 31 students from the Department of Applied Physics and Ballistics, FM University, Balasore, attended the

Shri AK Pandey, Dr DK Setua, and Dr Sarfaraz Alam releasing the course material.

Shri Bhattacharya presenting certificate during valedictory function. Shri DK Kankane (right), Sc G, was also present

during the occasion.

9April 2012

Course. Maj Gen P Mathur, Director, PXE, inaugurated the Course, which was designed for refreshing the knowledge of the participant on the latest development in the field of ballistics. Thrust areas of CEP were introduction to rocket science and rocket propulsion, dynamics of rocket motions, introduction to missile propulsion and missile control, types of guidance/ guided system, wound and forensic ballistics, hydro dynamics and hydro ballistics, modelling and simulation of external ballistics. The topics were dealt in details by experts from PXE and Integrated Test Range (ITR), both at Chandipur; Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE), Pune; Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, and Central Forensic Laboratory, Hyderabad. Maj Gen Mathur, distributed certificates to participants in the valedictory function. Dr AK Sannigrahi, Sc F, was the Course Director.

RCI, Hyderabad

Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad, organised the third one-day Hindi Workshop on Rajbhasha and Grammar on 25 January 2012. Dr CG Balaji, OS, RCI, inaugurated the Workshop. Shri Sunil Sharma, Director, Official Language and O&M, DRDO HQ, was also present during the occasion and spoke on compliance of Rajbhasha policy. Others speakers during the Workshop included Shri K Ramasharma, Sc G, who spoke about importance of Hindi implementation in day-to-day work; Shri N Venkatesh, Sc F, who informed about the various Hindi training courses and programmes of RCI. Dr RN Awasthi, CDA R&D and Shri Kazim Ahmed delivered lectures on Rajbhasha Policy and Rules and various

aspects of Hindi Grammar, respectively. Shri R Jagdish, TO C, proposed the vote of thanks.

� RCI conducted a special Course on Advanced DSP Processors Architectures and Applications during 30 January-3 February 2012. Dr SK Chaudhuri, OS and Director RCI, inaugurated the Course. Thirty-five participants including 19 from other DRDO labs/estts attended the Course. The faculty comprised experts from National Institute of Technology, Warangal; Osmania University, JNTU and RCI all from Hyderabad; Texas Instruments, Analog Devices, and LRDE all from Bengaluru, and NSTL, Vishakhapatnam. Dr CG Balaji, OS, RCI, distributed prizes to the winners and certificates to the participants in the valedictory function. Shri M Sankar Kishore, Sc G, was the Course Director.

Maj Gen P Mathur lighting the lamp in the inaugural function of CEP.

Dr SK Chaudhuri inaugurating the special training programme.

� RCI conducted a special Workshop on Guidance and Control-2012 during 16-18 February 2012. The Workshop had expert lectures by two invited eminent speakers, Prof. PK Menon on Optical Synthesis, and Prof. Paul Zarchan from MIT, USA, who spoke on Missile Guidance and Control. The Workshop was inaugurated by Dr SK Chaudhuri, OS and Director, RCI, and attended by 100 select participants form guidance and control field

10 April 2012

from DRDO and academia. Dr DR Jahagirdar was the Convener and Shri MVYS Ravikumar was the Chairman of Technical Sessions.

� RCI also organised a special Course on Low Power VLSI Design during 20-24 February 2012. Dr SK Chaudhuri, OS and Director RCI, inaugurated the Course and released the course material. Twenty participants including 15 from other DRDO labs/estts attended the Course. The faculty comprised experts from National Institute of Technology, Warangal; Osmania University, JNTU, BITS, ANURAG, RCI and Synopsys all from Hyderabad and Synopsys, Bangalore. Dr SB Gadgil, Sc G, distributed prizes to the winners and certificates to the participants in the valedictory function. Shri M Sankar Kishore, Sc G, was the Course Director.

SSPL, Delhi

As a part of its Golden Jubilee Celebrations, Solid State Physics Laboratory (SSPL), Delhi, invited Prof. Dinesh Singh, Vice Chancellor, University of Delhi, and distinguished mathematician to deliver SSPL Golden Jubilee Oration on Mathematicians and their Times: A Personal Viewpoint on 8 February 2012. Dr KD Nayak, DS and CC (MED&MIST) presided the function.

VRDE, Ahmednagar

Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (VRDE), Ahmednagar, organised a two-day Rajbhasha Seminar during 2-3 February 2012. Shri Sunil Sharma, Director, Official Language and O&M, at DRDO HQ, inaugurated the Seminar and briefed about the various incentive schemes for implementation of Rajbhasa. He also appreciated the work done by VRDE for implementation of Rajbhasha Hindi. Dr CP Ramnarayanan, Director, VRDE; Dr SB Singh, Principle Assoc. Director, and Shri Pawan Kumar, Member Secretary, Rajbhasha Implementation Committee were also present during the inauguration.

Dr Richa Sharma, Head of the Hindi Department, Ahmednagar College, delivered the keynote lecture on this occasion. Twenty-four research/technical/general papers related to research and development in DRDO and implementation of Rajbhasha Hindi were presented in the Seminar.

The Oration delivered by Prof. Singh was informative and interesting and left the audience spellbound. Prof. Singh highlighted the contributions of Fourier to mathematics. He also emphasized the importance of ‘Learning by Doing’ and goaded the young scientists to dedicate themselves to the pursuit and proliferation of science and mathematics.

Prof. Dinesh Singh delivering the oration.

Dr Nayak felicitating Prof. Dinesh Singh.

11April 2012

Re-certification of ISO 9001: 2008 to HEMRL

HEMRL, Pune, is one of the prestigious DRDO laboratories engaged in the design and development of high energy materials and allied products as well as related technologies required for Defence preparedness. HEMRL was given ISO certification in August 1999. The laboratory has now been re-certified for ISO 9001: 2008 by TUV Management Services GmbH trading.

The scope of the ISO certification is “research, design and development of formulations and technologies in the area of high energy materials covering solid/liquid propellants, high explosives, pyrotechnics and allied chemicals, their testing and performance evaluation”.

Awards

Basanti Devi Amir Chand Prize

The Basanti Devi Amir Chand Prize was awarded to Dr MM Parida, Sc F, Defence Research and Development Establishment (DRDE), Gwalior, by Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad, Hon’ble Minister of Health and Family Welfare at the DS Kothari Auditorium, DRDO Bhawan, New Delhi. Shri Sudip Bandopadhyaya, Hon’ble Minister of State for Health and Dr VM Katoch, Secretary, Department of

Health Research, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt of India, and Director General, ICMR, New Delhi, were also present. The award included a certificate and cash prize of Rs 50000. This prestigious prize was awarded to Dr Parida for his outstanding research work in the field of detection and characterisation of emerging and re-emerging viruses especially dengue, Japanese Encephilitis, Chikungunya and Swine flu (HINIs).

GOC-in-C, ARTRAC Commendation Card In recognition of their determination, planning and

unstinted technology and domain contribution to the success of Operationalisation of Sangram-II at Army War College, Mhow Junior Cmd Wing (Army Project Brahmastra), GOC-in-C ARTRAC Commendation Card has been awarded to Shri SB Taneja, Sc G, and Shri JK Bhargav, Sc F, of Institute for Systems Studies and Analyses (ISSA), on Republic Day 2012. Shri MMP Singh,

TO D of ISSA has also received the GOC-in-C ARTRAC Commendation Card for his dedicated services during the installation of the systems.

HR Leadership Award

Shri Ashwagosha Ganju, Director, Snow and Avalanche Study Establishment (SASE), Chandigarh, was conferred HR Leadership Award-2012 on 3 March 2012 by Knowledge Resources Development Group at Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. The award is in recognisition of his outstanding leadership efforts in encouraging innovations in R&D and the introduction of many innovative practices at SASE in revamping the contemporary HR practices, viz., competency mapping, performance management systems, career progression, knowledge updation programme, HRIS, etc.

Shri SB Taneja Shri MMP SinghShri JK Bhargav

12 April 2012

ISSN:0971-4391

EDITORIAL TEAM

Visits to DRDO Labs/Estts

CABS, Bengaluru

Mr Celso Amorim, Hon’ble Defence Minister, Brazil, on 7 February 2012.

DARE, Bengaluru

Air Marshal J Chandra, AVSM, VSM, AoC-in-C, MC, on 3 February 2012.

Shri AP Regu Kumar, GD (Avionics), is explaining Su-30 avionics upgrade to Air Mshl Chandra.

HEMRL Cell, Nasik

Shri Shekhar Agarwal, Secretary, Defence Production, on 3 February 2012. He was accompanied by Shri PV Deshmukh, Officiating Chairman, HAL, and Shri Manoj Saunik, Joint Secretary (Aerospace) and senior officers of HAL, Ozar, Nasik.

Director, HEMRL, explaining Propellant Casting and Curing Facility to Shri Shekhar Agarwal.

Shri HV Srinivasa Rao, Director ISSA (extreme right), discussing activities of the ISSA with

Maj Gen Jain (second from right) and his team.

Brig Chauhan being briefed about the activities of the Net Centric Warfare and Security Group.

CAIR, Bengaluru

Brig BS Chauhan, SM, DDG Inf (B), Directorate General of Infantry, New Delhi, on 22 February 2012.

DIPR, Delhi

Lt Gen Manvender Singh, AVSM, VSM, Commandant of the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, on 8 February 2012.

ISSA, Delhi

Maj Gen SC Jain, VSM, Cdr, HQ Tech. Group EME (Army), on 27 February 2012.

Lt Gen Manvender Singh in discussion with Dr Manas K Mandal, Director, DIPR.Mr Amorim (2nd from right) and his team

with Director CABS (extreme right).

The Editorial Team thanks DRDO Newsletter Correspondents for their contributions.