99 h INDIAN SCIENCE

t CONGRESS 3-7 JANUARY 2012

First Women•s Science Congress:

Women in Science and Science for Women

Date: 5-6 January 2012

INDIAN

SCIENCE

CONGRESS

FIRST WOMEN'S SCIENCE CONGRESS January 5-6, 2012, KilT University, Bhubaneswar

*

Prof. Geetha Bali General President ISCA

Vijay Laxmi Saxena General Secretary (Scientific Affai rs) ISCA

Veena Goswami Convener Women's Science congress

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

First Women's Science Congress: Women in Science and Science for Women

The theme chosen for the 99th science congress is

"Science and Technology for Inclusive Innovation - Role

of Women". This pre-centenary science congress will be

unique and has many special features. This is the first

science congress focusing on women. As the slogan

"Reaching the Unreached" indicates, this science

congress wil l del iberate on how to employ Science and

Technology effectively to ensure development of a l l

sections of the society. The congress wi l l especially focus

on innovations to ensure the benefits of science and

technology reach people irrespective of whether they

are rich or poor, urban or rural, men or women, thus

empowering every citizen to achieve inclusive

development for successful transition into a developed

country. I t is now accepted across the world that any

developmental project which is not engendered is only

endangered.

Women are a great human resource in all countries and

the role of women in society is critical for development.

Given proper own space, they can play an increasingly

important role in social, industrial and economic

development of the country. The involvement and

engagement of women in science on an equal footing

with men would directly contribute to improving the

livelihood of people, making it more susta inable and

thereby promoting the social and economic

advancement of societies.

The united Nation's Mi l lennium Development goals

(MDGs), set to overcome poverty, exclusion and

environmental problems by the year 201 5 have

identified eight international development goals that

include eradicating extreme poverty and hunger

including achieving decent employment for women,

universal primary education, promoting gender equality

and empowering of women, reducing child mortality,

improving maternal health, combating disease

epidemics such as HIV/ AI DS, among other things.

Interestingly, even a cursory look at these goals drive

home the point that almost all of them centre round the

welfare of women and also spell that the aim of the

MDGs can never be achieved sans the participation and

unfettered involvement of women.

The women's science congress is being conducted for

the first time on the theme "Women in Science and

Science for Women"This programme is designed to

spread the understanding of the need to empower

women who constitute nearly 50% of the population

a nd involve them effectively in nation building activities

tapping their potential as innovators and implementers

of innovations other than being beneficiaries of

innovations. While Science and Technology can be

powerful tools in empowering women, Science and

Technology can be vastly enriched by women's

involvement. Thus, women's science congress will also

showcase the contributions of women for Science and

Technology. Leading women scientists wil l deliver

lectures on their contributions. This, it is hoped, will help

in breaking the myth that sti l l persists that women are

less su ited to pursue science and encourage more

women to pursue science.

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99th I ndian Science Cong ress

99th Indian Science Congress

First Women's Science Congress January 5-6, 2012, KilT University, Bhubaneswar

INAUGURATION Date: January 05, 2012

Welcome Address

Inauguration & Address

Address by Guest of Honour

Keynote Address

Time: 9.00-10.00 Hrs

Prof. Geetha Bali, General President, ISCA

Her Excellency Mrs. Nirupama Rao

Ambassador of India to USA, Washington D.C

Dr. Gretchen Kalonji, Hon'ble Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences, UNESCO

Dr. D. Purandeswari, Hon'ble Minister of State (Education)

Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of I ndia

Presidential Address Smt. Sheila Dikshit, Hon'ble Chief Minister of the Government of NCT of Delhi

Vote ofThanks Dr. Vijay Laxmi Saxena

(Gen. Secretary, Scientific Affa irs, ISCA)

WOMEN IN SCIENCE -SESSION I Date: January 05, 2012

Chairperson

Co-Chair

11.00 -11 :15

Time : 1 0.00-13.00 Hrs 20 mins each

Dr. Polly Roy

Smt. Geeta Varadan

Dr. Polly Roy, London WCIE, United Kingdom.

From Atomic Structure to safe Vaccines for a Viral disease.

Mrs. Geeta Varadan,

Director, ADRIN, ISRO, Hyderabad.

Harnessing Remote Sensing Technology for National Needs - An experience

Dr. Kiran Katoch

Director, National JALMA Institute for Leprosy &

Other Mycobacterial Diseases, Tajganj, Agra 282001.

Tea-Break

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13:00- 14:00

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Prof. Indira Nath, ICMR,

Safdarjung Hospital Campus, New Delhi

The enigma of human Leprosy

Dr. Vijayalakshmi Ravindranath,

Chairperson, Center for Neuroscience, l iSe, Bang lore.

New approaches to disease modifying therapies for Alzheimer's disease

Prof. H. S. Savithri, Professor, Department of Biochemistry, I ndian Institute of Science , Bangalore.

Functions of viral encoded intrinsically disordered domains/ proteins

Dr. Shashi Bala Singh,

Director, Defence Institute of Physiology and Al l ied Sciences, New Delhi .

Low cost sustainable technologies for cold arid desert

Dr. Chitra Rajagopal, Associate Director, Centre for Fire, Explosive & Environment Safety,

Timarpur, New Delhi

Lunch - Break

WOMEN IN SCIENCE -SESSION II Date : January OS, 2012

Chairperson

Co-Chair

Time : 14.00-16.00 Hrs 20 mins each

Dr. Shashi Bala Singh

Dr. Vineeta Sharma

Dr. Tessy Thomas,

Project Director, Advanced Systems Laboratory, Kanchangagh, Hyderabad.

Long Range Missile Systems - Technology Breakthrough

Dr. M. Sreepriya, Assistant Professor in Biotechnology

Department of Microbiology and Biotechnology

Bangalore University, Bangalore.

Dr. Qamar Rahman, Department of Biological Sciences Institute of Cell Biology

and Biosystems Technology, University of Restock.

Technological advancements! Past experiences future challenges for Health and environment.

Dr. Nabanita R Krishna, Director, Directorate of

Management Information System and Technologies, DRDO Bhawan, New Delhi

A Scientist's Journey in DRDO

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99th I ndian Science Cong ress

16:00 - 16:15

Dr. G. Rohini Devi, Programme Director,

Advanced Systems Laboratory, Hyderabad.

Development Of High Temperature Composites For Strategic Applications

Tea-Break

SCIENCE FOR WOMEN- SESSION I Date : January 05, 2012

Chairperson

Co-Chair

Time : 16.15-18.15 Hrs

Dr. Nirupama Prakash

Dr. Ritu Anand

Dr. Vinita Sharma Department of Science & Technology, Go I

Dr. Nirupama Prakash, Director, Centre for Women's Studies,

Jaypee University of Information Technology, H imachal Pradesh

Involving Women in Science & Technology: An Empowering Tool

Dr. Ritu Anand, Vice President & Deputy Head-Global

H R, Tata Consultancy Services.

Innovation led transformation: the role of Women

Dr. M. Vasundhara, Professor, Medicinal & Aromatic Section,

University of Agricultural Sciences, Bengaluru

Empowered women in conservation - Karnataka experience

20 mins each

Am ita Chattopadhyay, Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture, Bhubaneswar.

Vermitech: An Ecofriendly Approach for Providing Financial Security to Rural Women

Bijoya Mishra,

Ex Principal, Rama Devi Women's Autonomous College, Bhubaneswar.

Science and Technology for Women

SCIENCE FOR WOMEN- SESSION II Date: January 06, 2012 Time : 9.00-11.00 Hrs 20 mins each

Dr. S. G. Senthil Vel, SME and solution leader, Health Care and Life Sciences,

India Software Lab, I BM Software group, Bangalore,

Dr. Mukulika Hitkari, DGPG College, CSJM University, Kanpur

Women - Motivation to Scientific Development

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11 :05-11 :15

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Prof. K. Rudramma Devi, Osmania University, Hyderabad

On Science Education and Women Empowerment

Dr. Padma Saxena, D. A. V. Col lege, CSJM University, Kanpur

Women Practicing Science - Is there a glass ceiling in India?

Pushpa Srivastava, Department of Botany, University of Rajasthan, Jaipur

Income Generating Spirulina Cultivation- Management by Rural Women

Charanjit Kaur, Sri Sathya Sai College for Women, Bhopal, MP

Science for Women

Tea-Break

WOMEN IN SCIENCE- SESSION Ill

Date: January 06, 2012

Chairperson

Co-Chair

Time : 11.15-13.00 Hrs 20 mins each

Dr. A. Anushya

Dr. S. Karpagam

Neeta Thacker, Chief Scientist and Head Analytical Instruments Division,

National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Nagpu r .

Environmental Release of Persistence Organic Pollutants -A Human Concern

Keisham Radhapyari and Raju Khan, Chemistry Division,

North East Institute of Science & Technology, Jorhat.

Development of electrochemical biosensor of horseradish peroxidase immobilized

on polyaniline for direct determination of anticancer drug tamoxifen

Smita Karpe', S.M. Kamble', P. B. Vidyasagar', S.C. Karl, ' PG Department of

Physics, New Arts, Commerce and Science College, Ahmed nagar 'Biophysics laboratory, Department of Physics, University of Pun e.

Effect of altered gravity (hypergravity) on germination (growth) of mungbean &

chlorophyll pigment

A.Pethalakshmi', R.Raja Rajeswari', A.Anushya' ' Department of Computer Science, M.V.M. Govt. Arts Col lege, Dindigul. 'Department of Computer Science,

Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Tirunelveli,

Convergence of Earthquakes, Atmospheric anomalies and Neuro Fuzzy

Models : A Close Study

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99th I ndian Science Cong ress

13:00- 14:00

POSTER SESSION

Date : January 06, 2012

S. Karpagam & R. Ananthasayanam, Department of Educational Technology,

Bharathiar University, Coimbatore.

Factor analytic study of Internet usage on educational perspectives

Lunch - Break

Jyotshna Mahapatra, Regional Institute of Education, Bhuba neswar

Let Us Know the Chemicals Present in Our Food

Dr. Paramita Deb, BARC, Mumbai

Women working in Challenging areas of Science

DISCUSSION

Time : 10:30-16:00 Hrs

R. Annapurna Ramamurthy, T. Rajya Lakshmi Prabhu, S.V. University, Tirupati

Rural Livelihood Security - Role of Women Organization

M. Narayana Swamy, Department of Education, Bangalore University

A Study Of Self-Concept And Achievement Motivation of Female Adults Towards Literacy

D Usha Rani and B. Jyotsna Devi, Centre for Extension Studies &

Centre for Women's Studies, S.V.University, Tirupati

Relationship between Socio-Economic Characteristics of SHG Women farmers and Their Adoption of Farm Technologies in Chittoor District

Huma Naz and Asma Naz,

Department of Plant Protection, Aligarh Musl im University, Aligarh.

Importance of Women's for protecting the environment

Sucheta Priyabadini, KilT University, Bhubaneswar.

Journey through the gender prejudices: Women in Engineering.

'Gayatri Mohanty, 'Deepika Muduli, 'Bijayalaxmi Pradhan and 'Luna Samanta, ' Department of Zoology, Ravenshaw University, Cuttack, 'Utkal University, Bhubaneswar.

Fertility and ageing: awareness and perceptions of female students to leading universities of Odisha

Prabha Shastri Ranade, ICFAI Business School, Ahmedabad.

Women's role in conservation of natural resources

S.A. Kazi, Onkar Kakade, P. G.Tadasad, T. Shanta Devi, S.R. Ghanti,

S.R. Soudagar, G.R. Naik,

Karnataka State Women's University, Bijapur.

Women's Technology Park - Road to Empowerment of Rural women.

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VALEDICTORY

Date : January 06, 2012

Welcome Address & Report

on Women's Science Congress

Address by Guest of Honour

Presidential Remarks

Valedictory address

Vote ofThanks

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Sumalatha K.R', Sreepriya M' and Sheela Praveen' ' Department of Biotechnology, Bangalore University 'Department of Pathology, Clunex Diagnostics, Bangalore

Em bel in augments apoptotic cell death in estrogen receptor positive human breast adenocarcinoma eel/ line MCF-7, A positive correlation between its anti-estrogenic and antiproliferative effects.

Meera Patnaik and Supriya Patnaik,

Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences, Bhubaneswar

Stepping through Partnership

Sunanda Sharan and Veena B Department of Food Science a nd Nutrition, UAS, GKVK, Bangalore

Rural Technology/ Agriculture Sustainable Entrepreneurial Activity through Nutri Soya Products

Neena Joshi, Lata Kulkarni and Go pika Muttagi Department of Food Science a nd Nutrition, University of Agricultural Sciences,

Bangalore

Agriculture and Forestry Sciences Low Cost Appropriate Technology for Rural Women - Dehulling and Value Addition of Sunflower Seeds.

Hemalata J. Wankhede

Director, Pre lAS Training Centre & Institute of Science, Govt. Science College,

Aurangabad

Role of Women in Science

Time : 04.15 PM

Dr. Vijay Laxmi Saxena Gen. Secretary, Scientific Affa irs , JSCA

Dr. Vinita Sharma

Department of Science & Technology, Go I

Prof. Geetha Bali, General President , ISCA

Dr. Mahtab S Bamji

Vice President INSA

Dr. Veena Goswami

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99th I ndian Science Cong ress

Brief-Profiles

Her Excellency

Mrs. Nirupama Rao

Nirupama Menon Rao is the current Ambassador of India

to the United States of America. She is also the first

woman spokesperson of the External Affairs Ministry,

Chief of Personnel, Ambassador to Peru and China, and

High Commissioner to Sri Lanka. She was a Fellow at the

Weatherhead Center for I nternational Affairs at Harvard

University. She has written a book of poetry, named Rain

Rising. Her poems have been translated into Chinese and

Russian.

Dr Gretchen Kalonji

Dr Gretchen Kalonji, is the first woman to hold the

position of Assistant Director-General for Natural

Sciences in UN ESCO. She is a distinguished honorary

Professor at Sichuan University, Chengdu and a visiting

Professor at Beijing's Qinghua University. Professor

Kalonji's work, has been recognized by numerous awards

a nd honors, including: the Presidential Young

Investigator Award; the George E. Westinghouse Award

from the American Society for Engineering Education;

the Leadership Award from the International Network for

Engineering Education and Research; and the National

Science Foundation's Director's Award for Distinguished

Teaching Scholars, the highest honor offered by the NSF.

Dr D Purndeswari

Dr. D Purandeswari is presently the Minister of HRD

(State) GO I . I n appreciation of her performance in

parliament, the Asian Age adjudged her as the best

parliamentarian for 2004-05. Recently she authored a

book "In quest of Utopia" comprising of her i l luminating

speeches she del ivered on national and international

forums. Padmavthi University, Tirupati and Karnataka

State Women's University Bijpur have honoured her with

Honorry Doctorates.

/ Smt. Sheila Dixit

Smt. Sheila Dixit is presently the Chief Minister of NCT of

Delhi . She is serving the NCT of Delhi as Chief Minister

for the third consecutive term. She has represented I ndia

at United Nations Commission on Status of Women for

five years ( 1 984-1 989). She has a lso served as a Union

Minister during 1 986-1 989. As Chief Minister of Delhi,

Dikshit was awarded the Best Chief Minister of India, by

Journalist Association of I ndia in 2008. 1n 2009, she was

awarded Politician of the Year by NDTV. She is a lso the

Secretary of the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust.

08---------------------------------------------------------

Prof. Polly Roy

Professor Polly Roy is presently the chair of Virology at

the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

She is also a co-ordinator of several EU projects and is

currently carries out research with support from the EU,

BBSRC and NIH. Her salient contribution has been the

first complete molecular understanding of a distinct

group of viruses, orbiviruses of serious health and

economic impact.

Dr Geeta Varadan

Presently she is the Director, Advanced Data Processing

Research Institute (ADRIN) at Hyderabad. She is the first

woman to become the Director of an ISRO Centre in the

h istory of ISRO. She has a number of accolades to her

credit; viz - Recipient of India Today "Women in Science"

award 201 0, ISRO Merit Award in 2009, ISRO team award

in 2007 and "Best Women Scientist" award by

Astronautical Society of India in 2006.

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Prof. Indira Nath

Professor Indira Nath is a world renowned authority on

leprosy and a recipient of Padma Shri ( 1 999) for her

contribution to the field of immunology. She is

awarded with the t:Oreai-UNESCO 2002 award for

"Women i n Science -- Asia/Pacific Region". At present, she

is Head of the Department of Biotechnology at Al l I ndia

Institute of Medical Sciences a nd Research Professor at

the S.N. Bose Centre.

' Dr. Vijayalakshmi

Ravindranatha

Dr. Vijaya lakshmi Ravindranatha is Professor and Chair of

the Centre for Neuroscience at l iSe, Bangalore. She is an

elected Fellow of Indian National Science Academy,

Indian Academy of Sciences, National Academy of

Sciences, India. She is also a Fellow of the National

Academy of Medical Sciences, India, I ndian Academy of

Neurosciences and Third World Academy of Sciences.

She is a recipient of the prestigious S.S. Bhatnagar award

( 1 996), Omprakash Bhasin Award (2001 ), the J.C. Bose

National Fellowship (2006) and Padma Shri (201 0).

99th I ndian Science Cong ress

Prof. Savithri H. S.

Presently she is the Professor & Chairperson, Dept of

Biochemistry Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. She

is a recipient of J.C. Bose Fellowship, 2008 and Alumni

award for excellence in research, l iSe, 20 1 0. Prof. Savithri

is the Chairperson of women scientists' scheme (WOS-A

- Life Sciences) of the DST, GOI. She has also served as a

member ofT ask Force - Agricultural Biotechnology, DBT.

Dr. Shashi Bala Singh

Dr. Shashi Bala Singh is presently Director of Defence

Institute of Physiology and Al l ied Sciences. She has the

distinction of being the only lady Director in DRDO to

have served in immensely difficult terra in l ike

Leh- Ladakh. During her tenure as Director DIHAR,

National Mission on Sea buckthorn was launched.

She is the recipient ofTitanium Trophy-201 0, Marico

Innovation Foundation Award-201 0 amongst the

various awards and honors to her credit. She has more

than 60 publ ications in national and international

journals to her credit.

Dr. Chitra Rajagopal

Dr.Chitra Rajagopal, presently working as Scientist G'

(Associate Director). Centre for Fire, Explosive and

Environment Safety, DRDO

Dr. Tessy Thomas

She has been associated with Agni Programme right

from its developmental flights. She has designed the

guidance scheme for long range missile systems which is

used in all Agni missiles. I n her work spanning 24 years,

she has contributed in various fields such as Guidance,

Control, I nertial Navigation, Trajectory Simulation and

Mission Design. She is Associate Project Director

(Mission) for Agni-1, II & I l l systems. Currently she is

leading a major project A2 Prime, for a state-of-art

system with many new technologies for the first time.

She is also Project Director (Mission) for the long range

AS system and Technology Director for Mission Design

a nd System Analysis Group of Advanced systems

Laboratory. She is a recipient of many awards and

prominent among them are Dr. Kalpana Chawla

Memorial Lecture honour, India Today Woman of the

Year (2009)

Dr Qamar Rahman

Presently Dr Qamar Rahman is the expert Consultant of

Dept. Pulmonary Medicine, King George Medical

University, Lucknow, Adjunct Professor Hamdard

University, Delhi, Visiting Professor Rostock University

Rostock, Germany and Dean Research (Sc. & Tech.) Amity

University, I ndia. She is a recipient of Honorary Doctorate

2009, Rostock University Germany, and awarded UP­

RATNA, for l ife time achievements. She is a Group

Leader, European Union's HENVINET Project on

Nanoparticles & Health and she is in the expert panel

board of European Union's Public Health panel.

1 0------------------------------------------------------------------

Dr Nabanita R Krishnan

Dr.Nabanita Radhakrishnan is currently the Director,

Management Information System and Technologies

(MIST) at DRDO Hqrs. She has undertaken a number of

in itiatives including upgradation of a Pan-India

I ntranet backbone complete with multi tiered security,

an enterprise-wide Video Conferencing setup

connecting a l l labs/Hqrs and an application services

layer which wil l in due course serve all the operational

day to day transaction processes of DRDO. She is a

Member of Aeronautical Society of India and I nstrument

Society of India.

Dr. G Rohini Devi

At present she is Associate Director (Technologies) at

Advanced Systems Laboratory, DRDO. Currently she is

working on development of thin wall Carbon Carbon

Composite Nozzles, Development of High Temperature

Carbon and Ceramic Composite Structures for

hypersonic environment and Carbon Nano tube based

Composite Structures.She is recipient of several awards

and honours and prominent among them is

performance excel lence award in 2008, Indian Carbon

Society Award in 2009 for development of Carbon

Carbon Brake Discs Products and Scientist of the Year

Award 2009 from DRDO.

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Dr Nirupama Prakash

Dr. Nirupama Prakash is currently Professor of Sociology, Head, Department of Humanities & Social Sciences and Coordinator, Centre for Women Studies at Jay pee University of Information Technology (JUIT), Waknaghat, Solan, Himachal Pradesh in India. Earlier, she served as Head of Women Studies & Societal Development Un it and Chairperson, Department of Humanistic Studies and M.Phil program on Hospital & Health Systems Management at BITS, Pi lani . She was also fou nder -Director, UGC Centre for Women Studies. She pursued post-doctoral work at Hartshi l l Medical I nstitute, Stroke­on-Trent, U.K. a nd was a visiting scholar at George Washington U niversity, Washington, D.C; Tulane University Medical Center, New Orleans; U niversity of Maryland at College Park; University at Buffalo, State University of New York, U.S.A; Casa Asia, Barcelona, Spain, Ben Gurian U niversity, Israel; UNESCO, Paris. Her main i nterests include gender studies, medical sociology, social conflicts, socio-cultural & development issues.

Dr. Mahtab S. Bamji

Dr. Mahtab Bamji is an eminent n utrition scientist. Since her retirement from the National Institute of Nutrition as Director grade scientist, and head division of Biochemistry, she is working in vi l lages of Medak district in AP on projects related to improving health, food, nutrition, and environment security. Dr. Bamji has received 2 1 national and international awards, including, Sir CV Raman gold medal of I ndian National science academy and Woman bio-scientist of the year award for the year 2000, (DBT). Dr. Bamji is a fellow of Indian National Science Academy, National Academy of Agricultural sciences, National Academy of Medical Sciences and Hon. Fellow of the AP Academy of Sciences. Currently she is Vice President of the Indian National Science Academy in charge of Science and Society Programme.

1 1

99th I ndian Science Cong ress

ABSTRACTS

WOMEN IN SCIENCE SESSION I

1 2----------------------------------------------------

From atomic structure

to safe vaccines for a

viral disease

Polly Roy London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London, WCI E 7HT, United Kingdom

Viruses are the cause of medical, veterinary a nd

agricultural problems infections, including emerging

infections. Although viruses are generally simple in

comparison to bacterial or protozoan pathogens, they

can be highly complex in their own right and their

i nfection processes a re highly regu lated both by host

factors and viral components. A detailed knowledge of

both these areas offers the best possibility for control.

Our research has centered on a molecular dissection of

Orbiviruses, particularly Bluetongue virus, an insect­

vectored emerging pathogen of wild ruminants and

livestock (with mortality reaching 70% in some breeds of

sheep). BTV was originated in South Africa in early 1 900

and is currently endemic in most tropical and subtropical

countries including India and other south eastern Asian

countries. BTV has recently had a severe economic

impact on European agriculture. Currently 24 different

serotypes have been recognized around the world. BTV

particle is architectural ly complex structure composed of

seven discrete proteins that are organized into 4

consecutive layers enclosing a genome often double­

stranded (ds) RNA segments. We have used multi­

discipl inary approaches including protein engineering,

synthetic biology and reverse genetics system in

combination with 3-dimentional atomic structural and

molecular studies to provide a fine level of

understanding of the overa l l structural organization of

the virus as well as the functional basis of"who does

what" in the virus l ife cycle. A reconstituted

transcription/replication complex has a l lowed us to

identify the individual steps required for replication of

'NachiYJ_J fhe unreachel First Women's Science Congress

the viral dsRNA genome. Further reconstitution studies,

using the expression of the viral capsid proteins have

shown how each of the structural proteins is organized

in the multiple capsid layers of the virus and in what

order they are assembled. I nformation gained from

these studies al lowed us to produce highly efficacious

virus-like-particle vaccines for bluetongue and related

diseases. Since BTV infection in animals results in

variable cl inical features (e.g., fever, lameness, excessive

sa livation and congestion) and mortality dependent on

breed a nd species, a range ofVLP vaccine tria l studies

based on different serotypes have been undertaken in

different breeds of sheep a nd the data obtained

confirmed that VLPs were completely protective against

virulent virus challenge.

A recent major finding was the derivation of the first

reverse genetics system for BTV (the synthesis of

i nfectious virus solely from synthetic genes), a technique

long sought by researchers worldwide for this class of

viruses. The abil ity to directly manipulate the virus has

opened a new window of opportunity to understand

how the virus invades the host to cause disease. Further,

this breakthrough system has been exploited to produce

an efficacious disabled infectious single cycle (DISC)

virus. In a recent vaccine trial study we showed that DISC

vaccine is highly protective against virulent virus

challenge i n sheep. These vaccines represent

economically feasible and safe vaccine sources for BTV

and related viruses. The advantage of such a vaccine

would be that it would represent a safe, cost effective

alternative to recombinant and i nactivated vaccines and

would fulfi l l the requirement for a DIVA compliant

vaccine which could be used for emergency control of

BTV outbreaks. The combination of manipulated genes

via reverse genetics with high resolution structural

information may a l low the design of a single cross­

protective BTV vaccine in the future.

99th Indian Science Congress

Harnessing Remote Sensing

Technology for National

Needs - An experience

Mrs. Geeta Varadan Director, A DR IN, ISRO, Hyderabad

The planet Earth could be viewed in its tota lity only after

the launch of Satellites into Space. Over a span of four

decades, the space borne remote sensing capabil ities

have grown to such an extent that space based

observations have become the prime source of

information on earth's resources a nd it's environments,

enabl i ng a host of applications related to the protection

of our planet Earth. Space has become an attractive

arena for remote sensing due to its unique features. It

enables synoptic observations of large areas on a

repetitive basis with unpara l leled speed; over even

remote i naccessible areas. In view of several beneficial

applications, ISRO put considerable emphasis on

rea lizing an operational remote sensing programme,

with strong accent on societal needs. Significant

progress has since been made in reaching the benefits of

this technology to the grass root level, thus making the

Indian remote sensing programme, one of the widely

acclaimed efforts, world over.

The Beginning

During 1 980 ISRO embarked on the first operational

I ndian Remote Sensing (I RS) programme I RS-1 A. On the

ground segment there was a need to work out the

detailed specification requirements for the design and

development of the front end hardware, a very critical

unit for Frame Synchronization and De-commutation of

serial data from the satellite in real-time. The Quick Look

System (QLS) facil itated the visual ization of the raw data

on the display systems in real-time during the satellite

pass, which was rea l ized using a microprocessor based

hardware. The major challenges were realization and

qualification of the systems with simulated data leading

to a fully operational system, va l idated with actual data

after launch in 1 988. This was fol lowed by the launch of

the I RS-1 B in 1 99 1 , later second generation satellites IRS-

1 C, I RS-1 D with enhanced resolutions were launched as

follow-on to these satell ites, a nd thereafter appl ication

specific satellites such as Oceansat, Resourcesat etc.,

gained prominence.

Enabling Data Exploitation:

Commensurate with the developments in satellite

technology, there was a need to plan infrastructure for

effective uti l ization of the satellite data. In order to

optimally uti l ize the data from various Indian Remote

Sensing satellites for various applications, a National

Natural Resources Management System (NNRMS) was

setup in which severa l user Ministries/Departments of

Government participated in planning the use of space

based remote sensing in their respective fields. Visual

interpretation techniques were then predominantly

used for identification of objects and classification from

photographic prints based on the image characteristics.

With the advent of computers, the digital processing and

analysis techniques gained momentum in view of its

inherent advantages which facil itated using various

advanced techniques for enhancing the i nterpretability

for mapping purposes.

Considering the need for enabling users to use the

digital techniques for resource mapping, under the aegis

of the NN RMS, five Regional Remote Sensing Services

Centers (RRSSCs) geographically distributed to cater to

the different regions, were established. In addition, four

associate centers were also operationalized. As the

leader of the team for establ ishing these centers, the

challenges faced were multifold. It involved planning of

the infrastructure, final ization of system configuration

a nd sizing of the systems based on the throughput

requirements, evaluating the various image analysis

software packages, finalize and operationalize the same.

The total qual ification procedures had to be formulated

and audit of the procedure and results final ized.

1 4------------------------------------------------------

A number of appl ication specific software packages were

developed and installed at these centres. The digital

analysis methodologies were developed for various

national applications projects such as the generation of

normal ized d ifferential vegetation index imagery for the

whole country on a regular basis (fortnight) basis for

various software packages such as the Drought Mission,

land use/land cover mapping, crop acreage and

production estimation, forest change detection,

command area monitoring etc. All the nine centers were

fully operational ized during 1 985-87 l inked with the

launch of iRS-1 A in1 988.

While remote sensing data was operationally being

uti l ized for mapping various resources, the need was

integrating these resource maps with other socio­

economic data for generating action plans. Availability

of an indigenously developed GIS package was of

utmost importance. Spearheaded the development of a

raster-based GEOSPACE package and planned its usage

at various user agencies. This culminated in organizing

the National Resources I nformation system (NRIS) across

34 districts, spanning 1 7 states in the country. The

challenge was to evolve a standard for the classification

schemes for the database layers in close co-ordination

with the user community.

Concerted efforts were put to conduct training

programmes for the user departments both at district

and state levels. Creation and validation of the GIS

databases, integration of the software models and

generation of action plans on the click of a button for

the decision makers was an uphil l task which was

successfu lly achieved.

Turnkey Solutions:

The efforts on usage of remote sensing technology for

Natural resources survey opened up a new frontier for

strategic appl ications. This paved the way to provide

end-to-end solutions from data reception to processing

and analysis. Most importantly the entire processing had

to be time critical. This resulted in a new paradigm shift

in the data processing approach. While conventionally

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

the processing systems were satellite specific, now it

called for an integrated multi-mission approach. The

technological advances in computers and

com munication facil itated exploitation of high

performance computing techniques which enabled the

data readiness in less than two hours. Emphasis was

predominantly on automation for change detection,

time series analysis floods inundation estimation for

relief operations, early warning systems to plan

precautionary measures to reduce the risks and

damages, etc, a l l in near real time. Creation of seamless

large databases to meet the National needs warranted

quick turnaround time for data products. The state of the

art Grid computing methods were effectively exploited

for this purpose and successfully utilized.

The next leap during the last couple of years was

harnessing of the GP/GPU technology. The challenges

were enormous as it called for re-engineering the

programming approach to optimally uti l ize all the cores

with a major thrust on parallelizing. The results were very

encouraging. This in conjunction with 3G network

provided a breakthrough in dissemination of the data in

real time on to a PDA I i PAD, which could be with a field

personnel in remote areas to meet emergent needs was

a major stride forward. This is the first of its kind realized

in the country for multi-mission real time processing and

dissemination.

Future Direction:

While great mi lestones have been achieved in the areas

of appl ication of satellite based remote sensing

technology to meet the day-to-day needs of the Nation,

the continuous advances in satellite technology and

increasing satellite constellations pose a major challenge

to the exploitation approaches. The volume of data that

needs to be handled would call for better performance

systems both on-board and ground systems, newer

techniques in data analysis, and higher bandwidths for

data dissemination.

1 5

99th Indian Science Congress

The enigma of human

Leprosy

Prof. Indira Nath, MD, FRCPath, UK

National Institute of Pathology, New Delhi

Leprosy is an ancient disease which mainly affects the

skin and nerves of man. It is the only bacterial infection

that affects the peripheral nerves thereby leading to loss

of sensation and causes ulcers in the l imbs. It is caused

by Mycobacterium leprae a close kin to the tuberculosis

causing organism and is not cultivable in the laboratory.

Both these bacteria hide within macrophages thereby

escaping attack by antibodies of the host. Of interest to

immunologists has been the fact that the disease

presents in 5 different forms by symptoms, signs and

histological features even though all forms are caused by

infection of same organism. This cl inic-pathological

spectrum consists at one end of localized skin patches

with nil or few bacteria ca lled tuberculoid leprosy and at

the other end by generalized disease called lepromatous

leprosy affecting most of the skin and other organs and

characterized by a high load of detectable bacteria. ln

between these polar types which are stable are also 3

forms of leprosy which are unstable and called

borderline leprosy. In addition, leprosy patients develop

episodes of fever, joint and nerve pains which are

clinically serious and need immediate intervention by

the doctor. These are of 2 types, type 1 or reversal and

type 2 or erythema nodosum leprosum reactions. These

various forms of leprosy are thought to be due to the

immune response of the host and not due to differences

in the pathogen. Since the baci l l i are not cultivable, it has

not been possible to understand the organism ti l l the

genome of the organism was publ ished and the

armadil lo was shown to be a large reservoir of baci l l i

after infection with the human strains. Recent evidence

from Mexico suggests that the organism causing severe

reactions has DNA sequence differences which may put

it in another category to the classical organism.

Of interest is the fact that whereas the patients with

local ized disease have low antibodies and high cel lular

immunity by T cel ls, those with general ized disease

shows the opposite. Intriguingly, such patients can

recognise other organisms and mount an immune

response but are unable to recognise M.leprae even after

treatment. This T cell decifit which is exquisitely antigen

specific would be the focus of my talk. In addition, it has

been shown by our group that such patients can

recognise the organism when they develop reactions.

This recognition wanes off after the episode is control led

by drugs. In order to address the question of whether we

can stimulate the immune response in the lepromatous

group we also looked at cytokine therapy with interferon

gamma one of the cytokines which we and others had

shown earlier to be lowered in lepromatous patients and

which is required for ki l l ing intracel lular bacteria. As

suspected this cytokine was able to ki l l bacteria in the

patients faster than the muti drug therapy currently

used. Thus it is possible to combine cytokines with drugs

to treat patients in a shorter time. Due to its cost this

cytokine is considered not to be useful on a large scale.

The conventional model for studying drug resistance

and therapy efficacy was the mouse foot pad model

which used to take 9 months and required air

conditioned faci l ities with constant electricity, features

which are not always available in countries which have

the disease. Taking a clue from GPTalwar's initial report

our group developed an in vitro model which

maintained organisms from patient's skin biopsies in

human or mouse macrophage cultures and studies their

viabil ity using radio-labelled markers.This assay took 2-3

weeks and was amenable to studying drugs and viabil ity

of organisms. To understand the organism of leprosy

better we developed strategies to study the M.leprae lambda gt 1 1 expression l ibrary. Using patients sera we

identified Lsr 2 gene which mimicked the native baci l lus

in immune responses and were able to identify the

amino acid sequences that were identified by antibodies

and T cells of the patients. Moreover we were able to

show the type of cytokines that were important for the

immune response against the organism. This also

provided clues for predictors of reactions.

16-------------------------------------------------------

Since the peripheral nerve was a target of the baci l lus

and it was i nvolved i n reactions we wished to f ind ways

to predict reactions or find therapy efficacy in a non

invasive manner. Using color Doppler high resolution

sonography Suman Jain showed thatthis methodology

was useful in patients for both diagnosis a nd for

monitoring treatment. Thus using a muti pronged

approach of immunology, molecular biology, tissue

culture a nd ultrasonograpghy our group has been trying

to understand the basic immune-biology of this disease

as well as provide possible tools for the cl inician.

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

New approaches to disease

modifying therapies for

Alzheimer's disease

Vijaylakshmi Ravindranath Centre for Neuroscience, Indian Institute of Science, C. II. Raman Avenue, Bangalore 5600 7 2, Karnataka, India

Bra in related disorders contribute up to one-third of the

tota l disease burden i n both developed and developing

countries. Among the brain related d isorders, which

comprise of both neurological a nd psychiatric i l lnesses, a

cause of serious concern are the age-related disorders

such as senile dementia, Alzheimer's disease and

Parkinson's disease etc. These disorders are progressive

and irreversible and the etio-pathogenesis of these

disorders are poorly understood. Senile dementia

including Alzheimer's disease (AD) results in severe

cognitive dysfunction including memory loss for which

no cure or disease modifying therapies are currently

available. Traditional systems of medicine, such as

Ayurveda offer a knowledge base that can be uti l ized for

development for therapeutic intervention strategies for

treatment of these disorders. Util izing the knowledge

base from Ayurveda, we have identified an herbal extract

that reverses AD pathology both in terms of the

cognitive dysfunction and the clearance of plaques in a

transgenic mice model of AD. The remarkable

therapeutic effect of the extract is mediated through up­

regulation of low-density l ipoprotein receptor-related

protein (LRP) in the liver indicating that targeting the

periphery offers a novel mechanism for rapid el imination

of Af342 peptide and reverses the behavioral deficits and

pathology seen in Alzheimer's disease models.

1 7

99th I ndian Science Cong ress

Functions of viral encoded

intrinsically disordered

domains I proteins

H.S. Savithri Department of Biochemistry, Indian Institute of Science, Bongo/ore 560 0 7 2.

Intrinsica l ly disordered proteins I domains lack a well

defined tertiary structure, although they may contain

residual secondary structural elements. Such domains

often attain folded conformations upon interaction with

specific target proteins or l igands. Higher structural

flexibi lity of these domains al lows interaction with a

large mil ieu of targets and thereby permits regulation of

a number of biochemical processes. Viruses, which have

very smal l genomes, have adopted the strategy of

coding for intrinsically disordered domains to regulate

the function of their own proteins as well as those of the

susceptible host. Such disordered domains tend to be

rich in charged amino acid residues and contain

relatively lower content of hydrophobic residues. They

have characteristic CD spectra and exhibit abnormal

behaviour when examined by size exclusion

chromatography.

Several viral genomes have a covalently l inked protein

domain (VPg) at their 5' end. The VPg domains of both

Sesbania mosaic virus (SeMV) and Pepper vein banding

virus (PVBV) are interesting examples of intrinsica l ly

disordered domains. These polypeptides interact with a

repertoire of proteins and regulate multiple processes

vital to virus propagation and multiplication. The VPg

domain is covalently l inked to the C- and N-terminus of

the respective protease domains in SeMV and PVBV. We

have carried out extensive investigations on how the

interactions of the VPg with the protease domain

influence the structural and functional characteristics of

the two domains. The protease and VPg domains of

these viruses, as well as the fusion polypeptides SeMV

protease-VPg and PVBV VPg-Nia and their mutants have

been over expressed and purified. Functional analysis of

these recombinant proteins clearly demonstrates the

importance of interaction between the intrinsically

d isordered VPg and the folded protease in modulating

the function of both of these domains.

I n SeMV, the inactive protease is activated by the

covalently l inked VPg domain. The crystal structure of

the protease shows a well-formed active site and an

oxyanion hole as in chymotrypsin l ike proteases and yet

the protease requires VPg as a (-terminal fusion domain

to be catalytical ly active. Interestingly, addition of

purified VPg in trans to the protease does not activate

the latter. Our results suggest that aromatic stacking

interaction between Trp43 ofVPg with Trp271 and

His275 of the protease is responsible for this activation.

In contrast to these findings, the same VPg domain,

when present at the N-terminus of RNA dependent RNA

polymerase (RdRp) renders it less active.

PVBV protease domain is active as an isolated protein.

However, its activity is enhanced by the presence ofVPg

in cis as well as in trans. VPg interacts in vitro N la-Pro that

results in the quenching of the intrinsic tryptophan

fluorescence of the Nla -Pro. Analysis of the structure of

protease obtained by homology modell ing reveals that

Trp1 43 is the only surface-exposed aromatic residue

present in the protease domain. It occurs on the W-C

loop which also contains the active site residue Cys1 5 1 .

This loop has been earlier shown to be crucial for

interaction with the incoming substrate and products.

Additional ly, we have shown that Trp1 43 is hydrogen

bonded to Ser1 29 of N I a-Pro. Ser1 29 gets

phosphorylated by host cel l kinases and thereby

abrogates catalysis. Interaction ofVPg with N la-Pro

prevents phosphorylation of Ser1 29, as the residue is in

the close proximity ofTrp1 43. Molecular dynamics

simulations of the wild type and S 1 29D Nla-Pro, the

phosphorylation-mimic mutant of the protease, have

shown that the W-C loop undergoes gross structural

changes when compared to the wild type protease, with

the result that Cys151 in the mutant is flipped away from

1 8---------------------------------------------------------

the active site accounting for the loss of protease

activity. Trp143 might also influence the orientation of

Cys 1 5 1 by its interaction via His1 42 and His1 67. These

residues undergo concerted movements during the

simulations. Therefore, conformational changes that take

place at the surface (Trp1 43) in the presence ofVPg can

be relayed through main-chain interactions along the W­

e loop or via H i s 142 and His1 67 to the active site pocket

(Cys 1 5 1 ). This in turn could influence catalytic activity of

the protease.

Interestingly, PVBV VPg acquires a new function upon

interaction with the protease domain. The cleavage site

mutant of PVBV VPg-Pro, E 1 91 A VPg-Pro is capable of

hydrolyzing ATP whereas the individual VPg and Pro

domains cannot. This is the first example of disordered

domain assuming an altered /ordered structure upon

interaction with a globular domain that makes it an

ATPase. lnfact, addition of Nla-pro in trans also results in

a functionally active ATPase. Analysis of the amino acid

sequence of PVBVVPg revealed the presence of Walker A

and B motifs, commonly found in nucleotide binding

proteins and ATPases. Mutation of Lys47 of walker motif

A and Asp88:Giu89 of walker motif B to alanine resulted

in the loss of a lmost all ATPase activity in E 1 9 1 A VPg-Pro

confirming that the ATPase function is inherent to the

VPg domain and is induced only by its interaction with

the protease domain. Further, the structural

characteristics ofVPg were altered upon interaction with

the protease domain. The presence of the folded

globular N la-Pro domain at the C -terminus stabi l izes the

PVBV VPg structure which manifests as an ATPase. This

could have important i mpl ications in several crucial

steps in the viral l ife cycle. Until recently it was bel ieved

that disordered proteins act as hubs and provide

platforms for interaction with proteins from multiple

convergent pathways while ordered proteins are crucial

for enzymatic activities. Our results show that disorder­

to-order transitions ofVPg could lead to a catalytical ly

active ATPase. Thus, the disordered segments of viral

encoded proteins play crucial structural and functional

roles and regulate the functions of neighbouring folded

domains.

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Low cost sustainable

technologies for cold arid

desert

Dr. Shashi Bala Singh Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Science, Lucknow Road, Timarpur, Delhi- 1 1 0 054

The Indian soldiers require scientific interventions for

sustaining themselves in the most difficult to inhabit

terrains. I have worked substantial ly for contributing

towards improvement in the quality of l ife of the soldiers

deployed at high altitudes. After completing my M.Sc.

and Ph.D. in Physiology from All India Institute of

Medical Sciences, New Delhi, I joined DRDO in 1 990. 1

have had the privilege of being the lady Director in

DRDO to have served in immensely d ifficult terrain l ike

Leh- Ladakh. My innovative approach ensured health &

food security even at frontier posts of the Indian Army

and has resulted in close interaction between the troops

and natives providing insulation from security threats to

this region.

The troops deployed at high altitude complain of

anorexia, loss of appetite which leads to decrease in

body weight. Another common complaint is the

impairment in cognitive functions of the troops posted

at high altitude which are unique to Indian army as our

soldiers are posted at extreme high altitude. I have

worked in the field of high altitude physiology and

pioneered the development of nutraceuticals and

prophylactics for several high altitude maladies that

include hypophagia and cognitive impairment. The

studies have led to elucidation of some of the basic

mechanisms involved in hypophagia at high altitude in

terms of taste receptor sensitivity changes. We

developed a method for amel iorating hypophagia by

taking ginger based appetizers before meal .

Results from our study showed that impairment in

99th I ndian Science Cong ress

memory function is mainly due to the oxidative stress

leading to neuro-degeneration in brain structures

(hippocampus, cortex a nd striatum) involved in learning

and memory. We have contributed in the development

of supplementation with antioxidant and

cholinomimetic drugs to improve high altitude induced

impai rment in cognitive functions. In pursuit for

developing therapeutic strategies for amel ioration of

hypoxia induced neurodegeneration, we investigated

the therapeutic efficacy of several antioxidants l ike

N-acetyl-cystein, Acetyi-L-Carnatine and elaborately

elucidated their mode of action. We formulated a

composite herbal formulation to combat hypoxia

induced cognitive deficits in the soldiers guarding the

frontiers of the nation.

Our findings on changes in evoked potentials and

altered hedonic matrix in soldiers deployed at high

altitude conditions have lead to formulation of herbal

interventions for amelioration of hypobaria induced

sleep disturbances and hypophagia in troops. Fol lowing

preliminary studies on the alterations in P3 brain waves

and occurrence of cognitive dysfunctions on exposure to

high altitude, she pioneered the research on

identification of suitable therapeutic targets for

amel ioration of hypoxia induced cognitive impairment.

Our studies revealed novel therapeutic targets for

hypoxia induced neuronal damage that include p75NTR

receptors, Sp fami ly of transcription factors and they ARE

regulating N rf-2.

We participated in the Indo -Krygyz project entitled

"Study of Physiological mechanisms of human

adaptation at high altitude in population to evaluate and

increase acclimatization to HA" which led us to the

understanding of differential physiological responses of

Indian a nd Kyrgyz soldiers posted at high altitude. Acute

induction to HA at 3200m affected the cardia respiratory,

hematological and endocrinal system to the similar

extent in Indian and Kyrgyz volunteers. Indian subjects

exhibited improved � adrenoreceptor desensitization

compared to Kyrgyz subjects.

I have taken in itiatives for permafrost based germ plasm

conservation, cl imate change mitigation and

development of herbal interventions for improving

performance at high altitude.

In DIHAR, my endeavors have resulted in augmentation

of fresh food productivity through introduction of new

varieties, establishment of greater infrastructure a nd

intensification of lab to land programme. I have

implemented technologies l ike vermi-composting for

organic farming and non-conventional methods of

storage of fresh produce. Development of broiler sheep

for MOH and insta llation of world's highest biogas plant.

During my tenure as Director DIHAR, National Mission on

Sea buckthorn was launched. Appointment of DIHAR as

Technical Agency for "Sea buckthorn Cluster

Development in Ladakh" for promoting smal l scale

industries, program in itiated by Khadi and Vi l lage

Industries Commission.

The establishment of permafrost based germ plasm

storage facil ity at 5360m, biogas plant at DIHAR and

establishment of Biotechnology lab at Chandigarh are

other achievements. Establishment of Physiology

Workstation and establishment of National Germ plasm

Storage Facility at Chang Ia Top (Only second of its kind in

the world after Norway) were other achievements duri ng

my tenure.

During my tenure at Leh, DIHAR was registered in Limca

Book of Records 2009 for the World Record of having

highest agro-animal technology Institute in the world. It

a lso holds a National Record for producing some of the

largest agricultural crops in the country and for growing

78 different types of vegetables in one season.

20-----------------------------------------------------------

Towards an Integrated

Systems approach to

Safety management

Dr. Chitra Rajagopal, Sc 'G' and Associate Director, CFEES, DRDO, Delhi

MoD establishments handle a variety of HAZMATs and

under various operating conditions. The kind of hazards

which arise range from explosive, radiation, toxic to

mechanical, electrical, thermal, environmental,

occupational health etc. Further , the systems are

complex, encompassing sub-systems and components

whose interactions could lead to unanticipated

outcomes. This makes them a prime area of focus for an

integrated systems approach to safety management.

My work over the past 25 years has been focused on

many of these aspects of safety management.

Safety Lab planning :

Evolution of Lab charter for the Centre for

Environment and Explosive safety (CEES),

I nfrastructure planning: and setting up of lab and

support faci l ities for environmental and explosive

safety

Capacity building through creation of expertise and

ski l ls in the relevant environment, explosive and fire

safety research areas.

Environment Safety Management

Development of Eco-friendly technologies for MoD:

To address the explosive safety/ waste management

I environment safety problems faced by DRDO I

Ordnance Factories/ Services

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Transfer ofTechnologies to Civil Sector: Some of the

technologies developed have been be patented and

have been selected for g lobal commercialization.

Work on clean and portable power source based on

hydrogen generated from bio-fuel in compact, on­

board reformers to address the requirements of

Energy security in Defence and the need for

sustainable carbon neutral energy technologies.

Proess Safety Management

Appl ication of Risk Assessment techniques to

HAZCHEMs in Defence: A quantitative approach to

probabi l istic analysis has been evolved, resulting in

Risk values which could be compared with

I nternationally acceptable standards, and a

Sensitivity analysis which helped provide inputs for

decision making in prioritising safety measures and

Emergency planning.

An integrated software package using Rapid hazard

Ranking technique, knowledge based hazard

identification, fuzzy logic based fault tree analysis

specifica l ly tai lored for Defence use, was developed.

R&D activities/ consultancies provided in the areas of

Risk and Hazard Analysis & Disaster Management

(disasters involving Fires, Explosions and Toxic

Releases), Hazchem & Hazwaste management,

Environment Impact Assessment and Safety Audit,

occupational Safety, Hazard classification of

ammunition & explosives, safe d isposal of obsolete/

rejected ammunition, accident investigation

Explosives Safety Management

The safety of Munitions and Explosives is of fundamental

i mportance to the mi l itary user and to the public at

large. We have a responsibi l ity to handle, store a nd

transport their munitions and explosives in a safe

manner and in compliance with international and

national agreed legislation. Even in time of mi l itary

conflict, it is essential to minimize the risk of ammunition

2 1

99th I ndian Science Cong ress

or explosive accidents so as prevent loss of own forces'

lives and assets. The following in itiatives have been

taken to addressing the Ammunition Safety Needs of the

MoD Stakeholders:

I nnovative designs for safe storage of ammunition

(LRC Igloos, Unit Risk principle based explosive store

houses, Underground Storages). Full scale

instrumented blast tria ls have been conducted to

va l idate the CFEES designs of explosive storehouses

and to refine the non-linear dynamic models

predicting blast effects on structures.

Quantitative Risk Assessment to complement the

conventional worst case scenario approach to

explosives safety management, providing i nputs to

decision makers for taking risk management

decisions.

Explosive and environmental safety regulatory

activities and compliance monitoring in MoD, (Army,

Navy, Air Force, Ordnance factories, DRDO labs,

Defence public sector undertakings, qual ity

assurance estts)

Knowledge dissemination : through User friendly

documents, explosive safety regulations in

electronic format, Formation of Study groups,

Organisation of Lectures/ training programmes for

sensitizing MoD establishments on relevant safety

issues.

Integrated Safety management initiatives

Safety, Health & Environment management for

DRDO work centres

Disaster management for northern region DRDO

labs

Implementation of National Environment Policy in

DRDO

Contributions to meeting national

obligations under International conventions:

These include the Chemical Weapons Convention, UN

Committee on Transportation for Hazardous Goods, and

meeting DRDO obligations u nder various National

environmental acts and regulations

The last 24 years at DRDO have been eventfu l and have

offered rich opportunities for research in areas having

direct appl ication for MoD. In all these efforts, I have

been guided by luminaries both within a nd outside the

organization, who served as inspirational role models

22---------------------------------------------------------

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

ABSTRACTS

WOMEN IN SCIENCE SESSION II

-------------------------------------------- 23

99th I ndian Science Cong ress

Long Range Missile

Systems - Technology

Breakth rough

Dr. Tessy Thomas Project Director, Advanced Systems Laboratory, Kanchangagh, Hyderabad-500 058

Missile Systems can be broadly classified into Strategic

and Tactical Systems. Missile Programme of DRDO has a

wide reach ranging from a few kilometer 'Nag' missile to

Thousands of kilometer 'Agni' missile systems. Strategic

Systems play a vital role in the country's defence and to

provide a minimum deterrence against external threats.

Basic design drivers for a Strategic missi le system are

many, the primary being the range capabil ity, accuracy,

survivabil ity, mobil ity and anti-ba l l istic defence

capabil ity, which forms the design specifications.

The primary component of this system is Propulsion

stages. The stages of rocket motor are propelled either

by solid or l iquid propulsion systems, which have their

own merits and l imitations. A new guidance scheme was

designed and evolved for Agni solid propelled system,

which gave a technology breakthrough in establ ishing

long range explicit guidance system with high accuracy.

This guidance scheme is used in all the Agni series.

Mission Design of a strategic missi le is the most

cha l lenging field which includes the mission sequencing.

The main features of mission sequencing are event

based decision making, backup time for critical events

and software interlocks between events. Design of

strategic missions is a confluence of scientific and

mathematical formulations, statistical techniques,

engineering concepts, numerical s imulations and threat

ana lysis, involving a tremendous effort of multi­

discip l inary optimization at all phases of design. Mission

design culminates from many design conciliations by

careful optimizations of configuration design, to achieve

a final system that meets the overa l l system

requirements.

On ground the performance prediction is essentia l ly

done before flight in six Degree of freedom trajectory

simulation. The real time simulation is performed in OBC­

I n-Loop simulation and hardware in Loop simulation

(HILS). Missi le trajectory is simulated in a 6-DOF

environment and performance of the system such as

flight loads, aerodynamic and wind dispersions are

evaluated for design of flight control systems. This

simulation is a lso used to interpret the flight data and

reconstruct the flight events by plugging in the flight

data. Hence 6 DoF Simulation is an efficient

mathematical tool which is used right from a system

design, validation of Control & Guidance algorithms to

realization of a mission and also after flight for post flight

analysis.

24------------------------------------------------------------------

Tinospora cordifolia

upregulates the expression

of genes promoting

osteoblastic activity on

osteoblast model systems in

vitro- Influence on bone

remodeling and potential

applications in the therapy

of osteoporosis.

M.Sreepriya 1 , G. Abiramasundari1

and Sheela Praveen2 'Department of microbiology and Biotechnology Bangalore University, Jnana Bharathi Campus, Bangalore - 560 056, Kama taka, India. e-mail: mpriya7@ yahoo. com

' Department of Pathology Clumax Diagnostics Jayanagar, Bangalore- 560 0 7 7 Karnataka, India.

Abstract: Osteoblasts are bone forming cells that are

responsible for the production of bone extracel lular

matrix. Based on ethnopharmacological leads, we

investigated the effects of alcoholic extract ofTinospora

cordifolia (TC) (Menispermaceae) to promote the

upregulation of genes influencing osteoblastic activity

viz a lkal ine phosphatase, type I collagen and osteocalcin

on two osteoblast model systems (human osteoblast-like

cel ls MG-63 and rat preosteoblastic cells isolated from

femur ) in vitro. Alendronate (a bisphosphonate) widely

used in the treatment of osteoporosis was used as the

reference drug in the study for comparison purposes.

Quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR) was

performed to elucidate the effects ofTC extract on gene

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

expression. In addition to this, activity of a lka l ine

phosphatase was assayed in the cell culture

supernatants, qual itative and quantitative

determination of collagen by Sirius red sta ining and

l ight microscopic analysis of the cells after hematoxyin­

eosin stain ing was performed to substantiate our

findings. Results of the study indicated that TC extract at

a concentration of 251-lg/ml has a positive influence on

osteogenesis by upregulating the expression of

osteocalcin, a lka l ine phosphatase and type I collagen.

This is expected to have significant influence on the

regulation of bone remodeling and potential

appl ications in the therapy of osteoporosis.

--

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99th Indian Science Congress

Tech no log ica I advancements! Past

experiences future

challenges for Health and

environment

Prof. Dr. Qamar Rahman University of Rostock, Department of Biological Sciences Institute of Cell Biology and Bio-systems Technology

Science and technology are the main components for,

economic, and social development and g lobalization.

Technological development on one hand is responsible

for the improvement in the qual ity of l ife, but on the

other hand, if proper safety evaluations are not appl ied

before their use, they may have serious adverse health

impact not only on the health of exposed population,

but also on the related environment.

During various technological revolutions as agricultural,

industrial and biotechnological, and the most recent

nanotechnological, fibers/particles/nanoparticles have

become a part of these revolutions. They were emitted

knowingly or unknowingly from various sources.

Among fibers come asbestos, technical use was

introduced in 1 878. Commercia l ly it was used in

thousands of products and industrial appl ications a l l

over the world. Because of its fire resistance, high

tensile, strength and durabi l ity, asbestos was used in the

construction industry and its breakdown products

created a major health hazard even in public schools.

Several diseases including the mal ignant mesothelioma

of the pleura and peritoneum, pulmonary fibrosis and

cancer of the lung are caused by asbestos exposure.

However, these diseases caused by asbestos were

identified only after a long latency period' .

The novel and rapidly growing field of nanotechnology,

using engineered and artificially synthesized

nanoparticles (NPs), currently expands to another

cardinal source of man-made NP exposure. It is the

science of extremely smal l particles (app 1 - 1 00 nm

range), revolutionized the field of engineering,

electronics, medicine, information technology etc.,

mainly because of their extreme surface area and the

resulting high activity. Present studies suggest threats to

human health and environment'.

The great speed at which new engineered NPs are being

manufactured far exceeds the potential avenues, abi l ities

and resources available for their parallel scrutiny of

physicochemical analysis and investigation of their

possible toxic health effects. Among the several types of

engineered nanoparticles, Carbon Nanotubes (CNT) has

become one of the most promising nanomaterials in

many industrial and biomedical applications. Due to

their unique physicochemical properties, interest is

growing in the manufacture of CNT-based products and

their subsequent marketing. Assessment of risks to

human health and adoption of appropriate exposure

controls is critical for the safe and successful introduction

of CNT-based products. The growth and use of this

material without prior human health evaluations

challenge society with the possibility that CNT could

become the "asbestos of the 2 1 st century':

Multiwal led Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNT) with several

similar properties to that of asbestos such as durabil ity

and high tensile strength resulting in m ultitude of

appl ications in industry and medicine. Several in-vitro I

in-vivo studies have a l ready demonstrated that exposure

to MWCNT causes acute inflammation, oxidative stress,

and a rampant granulomatous fibrotic response

associated with molecular changes3. It was also

reported that MWCNT are biopersistent in the lung and

are translocated to sub-pleural areas and induce

mesothal ioma.

In my presentation, I wil l d iscuss the problems faced by

asbestos, toxicity and future chal lenges of nanoparticles

especially carbon nanotubes, along with my own

findings.

The presentation will also discuss the issues of evidence

based safety policies on nanotechnologies.

26-------------------------------------------------------

A Scientist's Journey in

DRDO

Dr. Nabanita R Krishna Director, Directorate of Management Information System and Technologies, DRDO Bhawan, New Delhi.

Science & Technology plays a pivotal role in determining

the trajectory and projected course of a nation. Part of

the S&T requirements of India is met by DRDO- One of

modern India's largest R&D organisation. DRDO's

mission is to design & develop state-of-art defence

systems and technologies and to provide technological

solutions to the Services while developing infrastructure

and committed qual ity manpower. For its over 25,000

personnel DRDO offers a m ultitude of

scientific,technologicaland techno-managerial

chal lenges which are a feast for the fertile minds of its

enthusiastic workforce.

This presentation describes the journey of one such

scientist who has travelled up the ladder.

As a young scientist inducted into DRDO in the early

eighties she had the good fortune of working for two of

DRDO's biggest programs - the Main Battle Tank

(MBTArjun) and the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA Tejas). In

the MBT Program, she worked for the evaluation of a l l

major subsystems of the MBT- the engine, suspension

and transmission. This was the first exposure to a

massive combat platform with every sub-system bigger

than l ife, which necessitated development of a

continuous learning curve, working with newer and

cross technology domain- a confluence of hydraul ic,

mechanical, electronics, and control system knowledge.

This resulted in the setting up test and evaluation

centres and carrying out assessment of the operational

capabi l ity of imported and indigenous sub-systems. The

next major activity was chal lenging task of development

and qual ification of the Aircraft Mounted accessory Gear

box for LCA- India's indigenously developed combat

'NachiYJ_J fhe unreachel First Women's Science Congress

aircraft.She was instrumental in assessing the system

requi rement and developing state-of-the-art Test

faci l ities for the qualification of AMAGB and the

indigenously developed Power Take off shaft.As Project

Manager, she oversaw the completion of over 1 000 hrs

oftesting and the critical a irworthiness certification

process of AMAGB- and its installation as the single

largest, dynamically operating, indigenously developed

LRU in LCA.

A major change in hercareer came when after 20 years in

the lab, she moved to the Corporate Hrqrs to assist in

techno-management analysis and decision making

process for policy development. Here her focus for the

next 4years was in the science & technology global

developments- assessing its i mpact, comparative

technology status in the country and providing decision

aids for development priorities.

Based on her experience of project system development

and backed by her Corporate experience, she was given

the responsibility of heading the newly created

Directorate of Management Systems & Technology with

the opportunity to work in the field of I nformation

Technology and take DRDO as an organisation into the

next generation IT enabled processes. The focus was in

the reorganization and upgradation of the PAN-I ndia

intra net of DRDO ca l led DRONA- DR DO's Rapid Online

Network access. The intra net is the backbone of the

communication mechanism of DRDO and faci l itates

information sharing and everyday communication

amongst the various laboratories of DRDO. It is also

imperative to maintain the security of the intranet and

protect it from threats and unauthorized access and

hence a 3 tier security system was put in place for each

of the physical, network and appl ication layers.

With the accelerated pace of technology development

both in IT and Networking domains, there was

requirement of simultaneous voice, video, data

transaction in addition to bandwidth intensive

appl ications across domains and labs. Hence was

established a DRDO wide Video Conference system for

onl ine reviews and deliberations. A wide range of ICT

appl ications, systems and services have been

99th I ndian Science Cong ress

progressively hosted on DRDO's Intranet in the areas of

Corporate a nd technical functioning including Project

Management, Mai l ing services and Open & Closed

Interest Groups. A web-based project reporting and

a nalysis system (PTS) has been created for Tracking of

projects by DRDO's top management.

The above have been challenging tasks cutting across

technology streams,which have aided in broadening

one's horizons while working in such a technologically

diverse organisation l ike DRDO.

Development of high

temperature composites for

strategic applications

Dr. G Rohini Devi Programme Director, Advanced Systems Laboratory, Kanchandagh, Hyderabad-500 058

Design and development of Aerospace Systems

operating in hypersonic environment pose extraordinary

chal lenges to material Scientists and Technologists

towards developing high temperature and ultra high

temperature materials. The rapid change in temperature

of the vehicle during flight environment induces severe

thermal stresses with surface temperatures reaching up

to 3000 degrees Celsius. Materials and structures are the

key elements in determining the rel iabi l ity and

performance of such systems. Material erosion due to

high aerodynamic shear has to be minimized with

suitable material architecture.

A family of high temperature composite products with

carbon and ceramic matrix have been designed and

developed to meet the thermal, thermo-structural and

other functional requirements of end products. Key

technologies developed include multi-d irectional ly

reinforced fiber architectures; perform densification

technologies a nd product design, development and

testing. Chal lenges associated in developing highly

process intensive technologies and faci l ities are

addressed.

28------------------------------------------------------------------

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

ABSTRACTS

SCIENCE FOR WOMEN SESSION I

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99th Indian Science Congress

Involving Women in

Science & Technology:

An Empowering Tool

Prof. Dr. Nirupama Prakash Head, Department of Humanities & Social Sciences Coordinator, JUIT Centre for Women Studies, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat (Solan), H.P. nirupama.prakash@juit.ac.in

The gender dimension of science and technology has

become one of the most i mportant and debated issues

worldwide. Over the past 30 years, the United Nations

General Assembly and UN Economic and Social

Commission (ECOSOC) have emphasized issues related

to inequal ities, insufficiencies and disparities in the

access of women to education, training and the labor

market. Various major international initiatives on the

subject have been undertaken; including the United

Nations Decades on Women and Development, and

special attention has been directed towards the role of

women in science and technology. Gender equal ity is

one of the eight United Nations Mi l lennium

Development Goals, which clearly cal l for action related

to science, technology and gender. (UNESCO Report on

Science, Technology & Gender, 2007)

Women are identified as seriously under-represented in

science, mathematics and engineering fields. They are an

under-util ized pool of talent and resource that could

contribute i mmensely towards the social and economic

development of societies through participating in

science and technology programs. Women comprise

more than half of the population of any society.

The challenge is to find ways of changing the situation

such that women can be used as a resource for science

and technology. There is no doubt that country the

world over need to open up opportunities to bring more

women to science and technology, thereby producing a

critical mass of scientifica lly skilled women. It is

important for ordinary women to appreciate and access

the findings of science and technology so as to improve

the living conditions of fami l ies and that woman

scientists take up this agenda and develop projects to

address the under-representation of women.

There is need to remove structural obstacles and barriers

that continue to exclude girl children and women from

the study of science and technology. There is urgent

need for the development and mobil ization of a l l

segments of populations across cultures to contribute to

the eradication of poverty, fighting diseases, stemming

environmental degradation and i mproving global

economic competitiveness through the appl ication and

development of science and technology.

Science and Technology have been an integral part of

Indian civil ization and culture. Over the years Indian

women have overcome the traditional mindsets and

have excelled in professions l ike teaching, medicine and

pure sciences. Women have made important

contributions in all walks of l ife and made inroads into

new fields l ike engineering, information technology,

biotechnology, nuclear science, space and many such

specialized fields in the domain of science and

technology.

While these developments have been highly satisfying,

constraints in the form of socio-cultural factors,

discrimination, lack of self-confidence and disparity

between the sexes continue to affect Indian women and

their choices of career.

In an I ndian National Science Academy ( IN SA) study in

2006 on "Gendered Science: Trends and Analysis of

Contributions of Indian Women Scientists'; taken up with

a view to focusing on achievements and recognition of

Indian Women scientists, it has been pointed out that

women reaching to higher positions in the cadre in their

science careers are few and far between. Many women

have done exceedingly well in their scientific and

academic pursuits, however not many are seen being

awarded and rewarded. Some of the contributing factors

30------------------------------------------------------------------

mentioned in the IN SA study were: fami ly, motherhood,

inadequate support systems, societal/cultural issues that

could be due to fixed mind set, restriction on movement,

nepotism and sexism.

The study revealed dissatisfaction of most respondents

regarding professional growth and career advancement.

Reasons cited were lack of time; household

responsibil ities; lack of encouragement from the

organization and ill health. Respondents who were

denied promotion attributed it to gender bias and lack

of connections. The parameters focus on strong flavor of

gendered science. The study suggests that remedial

measures to improve women's participation in science

need to be implemented at the earliest.

It has pointed out that in India, as in many other

countries, women have had to fight to be accepted as

capable of being equal partners with men in science and

technology. (http://www.indiatogether.org/2004/jun/

ksh-science.htm) Within science, there are areas

considered suitable for women and others considered

outside their rea lm of capability. Thus it has taken a

struggle, for instance, for women to become engineers.

Rather than looking at the reason why more women do

not pursue careers in a particular branch of science and

technology, it is generally concluded that women have

no aptitude for that stream. Each time a woman

becomes an aeronautical engineer, or a nuclear physicist,

or excels in some area previously considered a male

preserve, she is applauded and celebrated, but strictly as

an exception.

Even before they reach the point of choosing a career in

science, women have to make d ifficult choices. Every

year, gir ls do far better than boys, in science and arts, in

the Class X and Class X I I examinations. In some

institutions, the majority of the toppers are girls. What

happens to them after that? Do they drop out? Are they

forced by their fami lies to make choices which are not

their own? Do they fai l to get through the competitive

entrance examinations? Are they forced to make

pragmatic choices about the future because they are

conditioned to bel ieve that marriage and fami ly come

first? Is there no way for them to balance their

'NachiYJ_J fhe unreachel First Women's Science Congress

commitments to fami ly with their desire to follow a

career? There are great concerns now being shown in

India about careers for women in science and

consideration is being given to nurturing their talent by

faci l itating and providing various options.

The declining number of girls who follow through on

their apparent aptitude for science at the school level is

evident in the few women scientists at the top of the

academic pyramid. Those women who do manage to

pursue a career in science, often have to strategise how

to survive and to move ahead.

In the education sector, information and communication

technologies (ICTs) hold great potential. Distance

education can enable women who don't have physical

access to schools to participate through online, radio or

other ICTs in education classes and programs. E-learning,

which can involve a wide variety of technologies such as

DVD, CD-ROM, or internet, offers students access to a

vast amount of information and resources that are not

possible in a single instructional setting. Onl ine teaching

support programs for teachers who have minimal

teaching background can assist with lesson planning,

curricu lum design and other learning tools. Tra ining of

women in the use of ICTs, media management and

content development can enable them to participate in

decision-making processes at government, private

sector and civil society levels. Moreover, teaching

methods and tools must be gender sensitive and

responsive to women's and girls' unique need and

learning styles.

Education, training and skil l development are critical to

ICT interventions. These areas represent an entry point

for encouraging women to become more involved in ICT

appl ications development, shaping ICT solutions and

framing ICT policies according to female-specific needs

and experiences.

Scholars argue that women suffer from an unequal

atta inment in other scientific fields too - from

engineering and biology to nuclear science - and the

inequal ity is observed along some important

d imensions: recognition, awards, productivity,

------------------------------------------------------------- 3 1

99th I ndian Science Congress

consulting, and inventions (scientific entrepreneurship).

Some recent evidence gives cause for optimism showing

that, especially in the field of biological sciences, the

gender gap has narrowed. This evidence pertains only

to the most-developed societies of Western countries

and it does not necessarily represent the situation in a

wide range of countries.

A recent survey often women achievers in l ife sciences

industry reveals the fol lowing:

Successful women leaders in this stream believe that

women entrepreneurs face the same challenge as

men

Entrepreneurship is not gender based

Follow gender-blind h iring process

Practice meritocracy in performance management

Offer reasonable flexibil ity to both women and men

to balance their professional and personal

commitments

It also revealed that the number of women in the l ife

sciences industry is quite significant.

In US more women are pursuing science and higher

studies than men are.

More women are opting for engineering and

medicine; the challenge is to pull women from smal l

towns;

For women to reach senior level management right

amount of train ing and business exposure should be

given

Challenge is to fight stereotype views that society

had about the role that women play in the world.

The best way to overcome this is to stay committed

and focused to one's objectives, and persistently try

to achieve & excel .

Organizations must make sure that equal

opportunities exist for women, not only in letter but

also in spirit.

I m plementing small but effective changes l ike

flexible office timings for women can bring

promising results.

Few common traits for successful women

entrepreneurs-passion & perseverance to succeed,

flexibil ity to adapt, perceptiveness in identifying and

seizing opportunities.

Family support is important.

Women in l ife sciences industry are armed with "can

do attitude" and look for feedback frequently.

Most women are better at multi-tasking and have

the abi l ity to stay focused on work along with

nurturing and caring for their fami l ies.

There are several jobs in l ife sciences sector that

require staff to be present at night and after hours.

These are by nature d ifficult for women.

About 60 o/o of women take up science at the college

level, and not all start a career in their field after

college. This is why few women reach leadership

roles. (Biospectrum Volume 8 Issue 1 1 November

201 0)

The gender gap persists in a majority of developed and

developing countries. The diverse underlying causes of

gender disparity in science could be summarized as

perta ining to the overa l l level of societal development

determining the level of economic opportunities open

to women for employment and education; to the

existing political system promoting or inhibiting policies

of gender equality; and to gender stereotypes depicting

women as incapable of achieving in technical and

scientific fields.

The gender gap in academic science, in technology and

engineering is not only a topic of ongoing policy

changes and scholarly debates, but also is of interest to

policy makers and governments engaged in initiatives to

32------------------------------------------------------------------

narrow the gap between women and men in these

fields.

Much progress has been made toward the

empowerment of women through science and

technology interventions, but much more needs to be

done before women and men can be said to enjoy equal

status.

I would now l ike to share some of the i nitiatives that I

have taken for empowering women in the domain of

science & technology :

One had organized a Round Table Discussion on

"Sharing Best Practices for Increased Participation of

Women in Science & Technology Education & Career"

(February 1 0, 2007) with the following objectives :

To explore the challenges encountered i n

participation o f women in science a n d technology

education a nd career.

To brain storm on low enrol l ment of g irls in science &

technology education & to explore solutions for

overcoming the same.

To help academicians and professionals develop

innovative strategies, policies a nd actions for

enhancing their participation in Science and

Technology education, research and career.

To discuss technological interventions for

empowerment of rural women.

Deliberations of one-day Round Table

Discussion:

Good Institutions must have systems in place which not

only show but actually incorporate the following :

practice good qual ity education

have conducive environment for g irls

good job opportunities for females & males

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Congress

make efforts for enhancing skil ls of both-female &

male students by improving their communication

skills, leadership role, opportunity for creativity.

Women employees should be provided alternative work

arrangements; flexible hours; flexible locations; chi ld

care in the work place, care of elderly parents in specific

cases; maternity and paternity leave.

2. With regard to correcting gender imbalance, there

is a need to build a culture to al low fu l l participation

of women.

3. Accessibil ity; affordabi l ity; acceptabil ity and

mentoring in relation to science stream need to be

realized.

4. Infrastructure at rural areas; streaml in ing qual ity

education and provision of e-learning distance

coaching for competitive examinations and also e­

learning for distance education in rural areas should

be made.

5. There should be motivational exercises for women

scientists. There is a need to speak about role

models and mentors. Awards and fellowships

should be introduced. There is also a need to

encourage Industry to take CSR in itiatives to

introduce scholarships for women scientists for

higher studies.

6. I ndia has more female doctors as compared to

other countries. These strengths should be

harnessed.

7. There is a need to rea l ize the gaps which are

existing at the Plus Two level, e.g. investment in g irls

for higher education; discrimination at that level

could be addressed at the societal level, but at the

same time scholarships for bright girls from

I nstitutions/Industry should be provided.

8. Very few women innovators are reflected in relation

to Intellectual Property Rights, this issue needs to

be addressed.

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99th I ndian Science Congress

34------------------------------------------------------------------

women to access the choices; providing timely

information; strengthening support system and

enabling them to select the higher streams l ike

Science, Technology and Information Technology.

3 1 . Women m ust decide for themselves what they

would l ike to do.

32. Women's access to resources is very important,

which should be taken care of.

33. Young chi ldren internalize their potential and make

up their m inds to select the streams for higher

education.

34. Teachers should also be motivated to pursue

research studies at the university level.

35. In relation to the rural women, need is to enhance

their knowledge, skil ls and capabi l ities.

36. Right information at the right time for right g irls

and women need to be provided at the vil lage level.

37. Need is to bring the IT revolution in rural I ndia.

38. Need is to collect success stories and innovative

experiences at one place.

39. On-line knowledge-based information on women

and entrepreneurship and the role of ICTs need to

be collated and shared

40. There should be online information/knowledge at

one website on "Women and S&T: Like-minded

institutions can join hands to establish a cel l to

provide online information.

• Study on 'Gender Related Issues Regarding

Admissions to Higher Professional

Educational Institutions' (2008-09)

We undertook a study on above mentioned topic

with the objective of finding out reasons for low

enrollment of girls in engineering and management

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Congress

institutions. ( o/o of girls fel l drastica l ly at BITS,Pi lani once

competitive examination replaced admission based on

1 0+2 marks).

Closed ended questionnaire was designed highlighting

gender d imensions in admission to higher professional

Institutions. Two sets of questionnaire were prepared

and posted along with stamped self addressed

envelopes to 70 professional educational Institutes in

India during September, 2007. One set of questionnaire

was prepared for the Registrar of the Institute and

another was designed for students of I ITs, I IMs, N ITs,

BITS-Pi lani and various professional Institutes across the

country. 1 0 sets of questionnaires were mailed to

Presidents of Student Union of the Institutes to be filled

by 5 female and 5 male students. 429 filled in

questionnaires were received.

The key finding was that almost 70% of the respondents

were influenced by their parents in choosing the

particular stream in professional educational Institutions.

Since enrolment of boys is more than girls in educational

Institutes undertaken for the study, it may be inferred

that parents motivate boys more than girls to seek

admission in professional educational Institutions.

Gender sensitization of the society at large would help in

this d irection.

ICT Interventions for Empowerment of Rural

Women (2006-7)

A project on "Socia economic up-l iftment of Rura l

Women through Technology Intervention: Realizing

Mi l lennium Development Goals through ICTs" was

launched during February, 2006 by Centre for Women

Studies in collaboration with One World South Asia, New

Delhi .

Goal

Empowering communities on health, social and

development issues through Mass Media and promoting

various ICT tools

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99th I ndian Science Congress

Objectives Address Mi l lennium Development Goals d irectly related

to health such as :

Reduce I nfant Mortality

Reduce Child Mortality

Improve maternal health

Efforts towards prevention from communicable and

sexual ly-transmitted diseases.

To address other related issues l ike l iteracy, sanitation

and hygiene, employment having direct or indirect

relation to improving health & livelihood indicators

Strategies :

Promotion of Mass Media and various ICT tools in

connecting communities and empowering people

Advocacy Centers

Two village knowledge centers (called Advocacy

Centers) which empower rural women and the vil lage

communities with knowledge on social awakening,

health and environment relevant to local needs were

established near Pi lani in Rajasthan - the first one at

Jherli Village near Pilani and the second one at Dhandhar

Village Panchayat during February, 2006 respectively.

After the establ ishment of Advocacy Centers in early

2006, CD players and COs with pre-recorded audio

programs were distributed to selected volunteers.

These programs addressed issues on gender, health,

education, superstitious bel iefs, poverty, unemployment

and green environment.

The information dissemination was done through

l isteners' clubs. Series of capacity building workshops

were organized by CWS in collaboration with One World

South Asia, New Delhi at Advocacy Centre, Jherl i near

Pilani for vil lage volunteers during 2007.

The vil lage volunteers were trained to collect local

knowledge, add g lobal knowledge provided by Centre

for Women Studies and One World South Asia and

address the issues related to MDGs. Capacity bui lding on

Hindi typing was imparted to the volunteers for sharing

of knowledge-based content.

Volunteers were also trained to write and upload local

stories on Ek Duniya website

(www.ekduniyagyansagar.net) in order to connect

communities and empower them through sharing local

knowledge. They were also trained on designing of local

newsletter.

Outcome

Increased awareness on gender sensitization.

Techno-savvy and computer l iterate.

Some of the volunteers involved in the project are now

working at BPO, Pi lani .

Training Program in Computer Literacy for

rural women and girls (2005-1 0)

Objective :

To train rural girls and women in computer l iteracy and

l ibrary management

Strategies:

A three and a half months tra in ing program in computer

l iteracy and cata loguing of books and journals for rural

based girls and women has been imparted every

semester since October 2005. Evaluation scheme

comprises of three tests and a home assignment. After

completion of the Train ing program, Certificates are

given to the participants. Outcome: After completion of

the training, some of the trainees from previous batches

have got employment in government, private schools

and at computer training Institute. A trainee of the

second batch now runs a Computer Centre.

36------------------------------------------------------------------

Training on Paper Recycling (2007-10)

Objective :

To help rural women in entrepreneurial activity

Strategies:

Everyday lot of paper waste gets collected. An activity on

recycl ing of paper was i nitiated by setting up the Mini

Paper Recycling Unit purchased from "Technology and

Action for Rural Advancement" (TARA) during

September, 2007. Ten rural women were trained by me &

the team on recycl ing of waste paper. Out of these, fou r

were selected for making paper sheets. This ski l l i s

helping them create a mode o f economic livelihood. A

calendaring machine has been installed at paper

recycl ing u nit during J u ly 2008. The trained women are

using the recycled paper sheets for making letter pads

and visiting cards.

Outcome

Rura l women/girls have been trained in ski l ls for paper

recycling, Income generating activity

Awareness & Training Program on Effective

Use of Domestic Electrical Appliances for on­

campus Women' (2009)

Objectives :

To promote awareness regarding basic understanding

about electricity, maintenance and repair of domestic

electrical & electronic appliances

To promote awareness about saving energy

To bui ld confidence a nd reduce the fear of handling

electrical equipment

Strategies:

The training was conducted in collaboration with

1<t;achin:; the unreachel First Women's Science Congress

I nstrumentation Unit of the Institute on Sept 20, 2009. 20

females participated in this Workshop. "Learning by

doing" was the approach. The first lecture covered

history of electricity, various means of generating

electrical energy, scientists who are the founders of

electrical engineering, terms & units used i n electrical

circu its, basic circuit components, their characteristics,

governing equations, safety precautions in handl ing

electricity, tips for saving energy. Lectures were followed

by hands-on-experience in u nderstanding working of

tube light, testing various components of tube l ight,

connections of PCs. Lectures were also del ivered on

optimal use of energy, use of instruments to monitor the

performance and safe operation, working of home

appliances l ike iron, grinder, geyser. The hands on

experience on seeing waveforms on CRO, soldering,

fixing three pin plug, setting up circuits to read voltage,

current and power consumed by bulbs, tube l ight, iron

were performed.

Outcome:

The female participants were very happy with the

learning experience and have requested for continuation

of such sessions with combination of theory and

practical knowledge.

99th I ndian Science Congress

Innovation led

transformation: The role of

Women

Dr. Ritu Anand Vice President & Deputy Head-Global HR of Tat a Consultancy Services.

The 3 1 st of October 201 1 witnessed an important world

event. The planet welcomed its Seven Bi l l ionth member,

a nd a baby born in the Asia Pacific region was

considered to be a symbolic representative of this big

moment. I ncidental ly, whether it was Danica May

Camacho in Phil ippines or Oishee in Bangladesh or

Nargis in India, all of them were g irls. These baby girls

have been born at a time in h istory when the world, and

India in particular, is geared up to leverage technology

to improve standards of living and help them real ize

their potential.

The future prosperity of India depends largely on its

abil ity to i nnovate. New ideas, processes and products

hold the key to changing the lives of over one bil l ion

people. Converting knowledge i nto viable solutions wil l

increase capacity, improve productivity and efficiency,

and promote growth. Innovation also plays an

increasingly crucial role in addressing development

related challenges that impact economic and social well­

being.

In order to support holistic nation building efforts,

benefits of innovation need to transcend al l boundaries

and impact people at the grass-root levels. 70% of India's

population is rural, 90% of workers are employed in the

informal sector. The working-age population is expected

to increase from 780 mi l l ion in 201 0 to a whopping 1

bi l l ion by 2030. While the dynamic young population

under the age of 25, often referred to as the country's

demographic dividend is its biggest competitive

advantage, less than 20% of them have access to

secondary education. To sustain rapid growth and

al leviate poverty among masses, the time has come to

usher in a new wave of innovation led transformation.

This would be imperative to create and support

communities and nurture ecosystems where al l

segments of population can thrive.

Owing to the increasing importance of i nnovation in our

lives, the decade of 201 0-2020 has been declared as the

'Decade of Innovation' with a focus on inclusive growth

by the President of India. No country can make progress

without improving the lot of its women. Women

constitute a significant percent of the world and India's

population. They roughly control $20 trill ion of total

consumer spending globally and that number is

expected to go up to $28 tri l l ion by 2014. The UNDP

predicts that India's GDP growth rate could jump by 2 to

4% if women participation rates increases to 70% from

the current 35%. The need of the hour is to ensure that

women are involved in economic, social and political

progress donning the hat of catalytic change agents.

Innovation can benefit women in multiple ways and can

spur widespread changes in the way society is

organized. From improvements in healthcare and l ife

expectancy to access to markets nurturing the

entrepreneurial spirit leading to financial independence

it boosts confidence and creates positive reinforcement.

While this is the tip of the iceberg, the next step is to

address deep rooted societal norms and institutional

practices which will result in a paradigm shift in mindset.

For the end objective to be met, the process must

encourage a collaborated effort from all stakeholders ­

government, academia, industry and individuals, with

accountability pinned at all levels. Inclusive innovation

lies at the heart of India's growth story and is the answer

to bui lding sustainable solutions for the future.

38---------------------------------------------------------

Empowered Women in

Conservation- Karnataka

Experience

Dr. M. Vasundhara Professor, UAS, GKVK, Bangalore.

Women are the primary conservers of Biodiversity.

Women's ecological knowledge base is vast but

documentation is fragmentary. Women play a key role in

preserving biodiversity. Women provide knowledge,

expertise that is essential to conservation. It is not

possible to preserve the knowledge without preserving

the environment in which it is situated. We real ize the

importance of preserving biodiversity but we fa i l to

preserve the environment. Only after the biological

diversity convention of the UN in 1 992, that the gender

d imensions of the biodiversity has been studied.

Systematic field ethnography of the gender dimensions

of biodiversity started only in late 90's. U nder the Central

Sector Scheme in 5 year plan mode, UAS, Bangalore

began its journey in 1 992 to conserve the germ plasm of

medicinal and aromatic plants in 30 acre area. The

Garden serves as a source of elite planting material, a

place for women to identify the medicinal and aromatic

plants, learn about its util ization, nursery management,

propagation, cu ltivation, collection, and post-harvest

management. Women can establish their own kitchen

garden or cultivate them on a bigger scale. They even

get trained for extraction of essential oils and other value

added products. Recently this garden has a lso been

declared as the biodiversity heritage site.

'NachiYJ_J fhe unreachel First Women's Science Congress

Vermitech : An Ecofriendly

Approach for Providing

Financial Security to Rural

Women

Dr. Am ita Chattopadhyay DST Women Scientist, Centra/ Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture, Po- Kausalyaganga, Bhubaneswar-75 1002

Vermitech is a simple biotechnological method of

production of vermicompost, vermiwash, a nd

earthworms through organic waste decomposition

using earthworms a nd could be easily adopted by rural

women. Emerging concepts of organic farming and

ecological agriculture have i ncreased the demand for

vermitech products. Vermicompost is an excellent

organic fertilizer that takes care of soil health and leads

to sustainable production. Vermiwash is a bio-fertilizer

cum bio-pesticide. Earthworms are processed into

protein rich vermimeal used as fish, poultry and a nimal

feed. They also find use i n pharmaceutical and consumer

industries. A case study of a women Self Help Group

(SHG) has been cited to highl ight the vial ibi l ity of

vermitech as a tool for control l ing environmental

pollution and providing financial security.

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99th I ndian Science Congress

Science and Technology

for Women

Bijoya Mishra Ex Principal, Rama Devi Women's Autonomous College, Bhubaneswar.

In the "National Consultation on Science Technology for

Women: A Mi l lennium Dialogue" held on 20th

December, 1 999 in New Delhi, the message delivered by

Dr. Mural i Manohar Joshi, the then Minister of Science &

Technology and Ocean Development read that - "In our

way of thinking womanhood is identified with

primordial energy. The creator causes the energy to

create and that is how this universe moves in an orderly

fashion. This is l ike fire and its burning power. This

"Shakti" is described as "hridaya" (heart) and the "sara"

(essense) of Shiva.

The Rig Veda, the oldest known work of literature in the

world contains hymns by as many as twenty seven

women called Bramharadinis or women seers,

underscoring the fact that in the Vedic tradition women

were equal partners in what was held as the highest

category of human activity - Scientific and Spiritual

inquiry. Our tradition did not discriminate against

women. " In this coming of the new mi l lennium, it is

these traditions which deserve a renaissance and it is

these traditions we need to delve into find ways of

correcting gender imbalance in our attitude:'This

message from a great man leads us to think about

gender discrimination in society today and particularly

in the field of science and technology.

Women constitute 80% of the workforce in the

agriculture, but have the highest i l l iteracy rate indicating

that not more than SO% of women have reached the

primary level of education. We know, in our country, that

women constitute biggest source of potential workers in

rural areas. However it is unfortunate that 70% of the

poorest of the poor are women in the world. Science and

Technology has tremendous potential to address the

problem of poor, economical ly weaker section and in

particular women, who represent 50% of the human

resource of the country.

If the country has to move forward with science in the

driving seat for economic and industrial revolution in the

2 1 st century, the involvement of women in Science and

Technology is essential. The appl ication of Science and

Technology has to be designed to benefit women and

ensure that women scientists and technologists are

gainful ly employed; they should be encouraged to

pursue science as a career.

For a long time Department of Science and Technology

has been making pioneering efforts in initiating and

implementing programmes based on appropriate

Science and Technology inputs for the welfare for

women. This endeavor has multifaceted objectives l ike

reduction in drudgery Involved in the dai ly chores of

women, improvement in their qual ity of l ife and

empowering them with opening of new avenues of

income generation. The Department of Science and

Technology initiated the scheme "Science and

Technology for Women" in 1 98 1 with the objectives of

supporting projects aimed at appl ication of science and

technology for the benefit of women, especia l ly in rural

areas. Many projects have been funded under the

scheme and much insight gained during the

implementation. Often it has been found that women in

rural areas are not able to pinpoint their own problems.

This is where it becomes necessary to encourage

scientists, especia l ly women scientists, to spend time in

rural areas to enable them 'to identify the problems and

find solutions based as local resources.

In the male dominated society, selection of the

technology, whether useful to women or against their

interest, is lodged in the hands of man folks in the fami ly.

For example, a l l the new agricultural technologies

preferred in the name of modern agricu lture is being

introduced without taking rural women into confidence.

This is irrespective of the fact that 60 - 70% of the labour

requi red for different agricultural operations is

40-----------------------------------------------------------

contributed by women. Introduction of some of the

modern tools in the villages are reducing the burden of

males at one hand while at the other they are

el iminating female workers from job opportunities. For

example use of tractor is providing more idle hours for

the males due to reduced working days required for land

preparations, at the same time use of mechanical

weedier a l ienates female labour from a job of weeding

operation.

It has been mentioned in the "National Policy for

Empowerment of Women" adopted in the ninth plan

that - "Application of Science and Technology is vital for

the advancement of women. Technology wil l reduce

household drudgery and provide better working

condition for women, particularly in rural areas with

emphasis on the improvement of the environment and

qual ity of women's lives at affordable costs".

Compared to their male counterparts, women as policy

managers or decision makers can play an i mportant role

in selection and adoption of appropriate technology

relevant to welfare of women of rural areas or s lum

dwel l ing fami lies in u rban areas. It is therefore necessary

to expose the women, who have active share in pol icy/

decision making either at national, state or panchayat

level to the basket of alternatives, cost effective and

simple technologies beneficial to women. It is high time

to educate this class of female parliamentarians,

legislators, bureaucrats and social activists about right

kinds of women oriented technologies. Once convinced

about relevance of such technologies they would be in a

position to generate pressure for implementation of the

related programmes. The social functioning of

technology is to make l ife easier, more comfortable and

happier for women.

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Congress

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99th I ndian Science Congress

ABSTRACTS

SCIENCE FOR WOMEN SESSION II

42------------------------------------------

On Science Education and

Women Empowerment

K. Rudrama Devi Dept. of Zoology, Osmania University, Hyderabad-7

It is a fact that science education brings growth and well

being to people and it is not only the empowerment of

women through science but also the enrichment of

Science & Technology through women participation.

Study of science does not ensure further opportunities

and smooth career path for women - thanks to the

notorious "Glass Ceil ing"; there is a tremendous sexual

nepotism and women who seek science career have to

face triple burden of professional work, domestic work

a nd fighting male chauvinism. Recognition received by

women scientists and their total R&D work force reveals

gender discrimination relative presence of women is our

own national establishments l ike CSIR, ICAR, DOD, DAE,

1 . 1 . Sc. and a l l Central Universities is less than 1 Oo/o and

much less as the promotional ladder goes up. My own

involvement in research reveals that even the

epidemiological survey of i nd ustrial toxicity being

caused to women has not been carried out. I had to

struggle over the last 30 years to establish that men

work in mines (specially in Coal Mines) and their wives

suffer from stil l births, premature deaths of infants,

genetic deformation etc., Similarly, women exposed to

tobacco dust in beedi women works suffer from

i ncreased i ncidence of Cancers, Still- births and genetic

deformations etc. in their off springs. Our male

dominated national research establishments are doing

research for their own satisfaction to gain International

recognition and to have publications in high i mpact

parameter Journals rather than solving our own national

industrial and technical development.

Empowering women in science will certa inly have the

much needed national outlook towards our National

goals of R&D activities. Recent trends based on market

'NachiYJ_J fhe unreachel First Women's Science Congress

survey, driven by Global ization of economy, have been

widening the gap between men and women for better

opportunities making them to join software oriented

jobs at the cost of getting i nto science stream of

education.

Girls a re often taken away from secondary school level as

soon as they reach puberty especially in impoverished

communities in I ndia. In our country the first worry in

getting the daughter married. Denial of school

education blocks the stream that would feed to higher

education. These challenges can be overcome by

promoting fellowship facil ities a nd making the teaching

of science more female oriented. Activities l ike, Science

and Mathematics teaching camps at school levels,

carrying out Science & Technology quizzes, regularly for

girls and encouraging them to take up science based

courses. Government should establ ish workable and

properly implementable pol icy to empower women in

i nnovative scientific activities integrated with Science &

Technology policy. Further, special efforts to develop

appropriate technologies suited to women's needs as

well as to reduce their drudgery have to be given a

special focus.

My lecture will a lso will include statistical data on various

aspects to high light the need for empowering women

through science education a nd related R&D activates.

"Where a man is educated an individual is educated,

when a women is educated a family and a country are

educated" - M K Gandhi - Father of the Nation.

99th I ndian Science Cong ress

Women Practicing

Science-Is there a glass

ceiling in India?

Dr. Padma Saxena D.A.\1. College, CSJM University, Kanpur, padmasaxenadav@gmail.com

Gender d isparity at a l l levels and its adverse impact on

women has become a fact of l ife. Among the various

professional spheres, women seem to miss out more in

science and technology, particularly physical sciences,

agriculture and engineering fields. Traditional ly girls and

young women have not been encouraged to pursue

science as a regular part of their personal and intellectual development. As a result the contribution of

women is not nearly as great as it could or should be for

the welfare of science and of society. There is no apparent professional gender discrimination in our

country. Creation of the 'glass cei l ing' is usual ly not

because of a single cause and is also not always a drastic

phenomenon. In fact, some of the causal factors are sometimes so trivial in themselves that professionals

often do not even realize that they face any barrier in

professional advancement. But unfortunately may be these situations might make an impact on efficiency and

productivity of women professionals such as the women

scientists. There is a growing realization that by not

a l lowing the creative talent of women from being

expressed through their involvement in research and

development, society is missing out, and something

needs to be done to make scientific research more gender friendly. Different types of glass cei l ing barriers

can exist, ranging from different pay for comparable

work; sexual, ethnic, racial, religious discrimination or

harassment in the workplace; lack of fami ly-friendly

workplace policies; to exclusion from informal networks;

stereotyping and preconceptions of women's roles and

abi l ities; fai lure of senior leadership to assume accountabil ity for women's advancement; lack of role

models, and lack of mentoring etc. In this article, I have

analyzed a l l the factors which create obstacles for women scientists pursuing careers in scientific research.

Science for Women

Dr. Charanjit Kaur Dean Science faculty, Sri Sathya Sai College For Women,Bhopai,Deptt. Of Chemistry, PO Habibganj Bhopal, M.P., INDIA, Email- ck2 7 62000@yahoo.co.in

Women constitute an i mportant section of the

workforce. However, the present situation of a large

number of well-qualified women scientists who due to

various circumstances have been left out of the S&T

activities needs to be addressed. The problems faced are

several but, significantly, most often the "break in their

careers" arises out of motherhood and fam ily

responsibilities. The option for revival of their profession

is presently unavailable due to restrictions in age and

qual ification and no system at present addresses these

issues.

A number of organizations have been set up to combat

the stereotyping that may encourage girls away from

careers in areas in science and technology.

AWlS is a national advocacy organization championing

the interests of women in science, technology,

engineering, and mathematics across a l l discipl ines and

employment sectors. By breaking down barriers and

creating opportunities, AWlS strives to ensure that

women in these fields can achieve their fu l l potential.

In the UK The WISE Campaign (Women into Science,

Engineering and Construction) & the UKRC (The U K

Resource Centre for Women in SET) are collaborating to

ensure industry, academia and education are a l l aware of

the importance of challenging the traditional

approaches to careers advice and recruitment that mean

some of the best brains in the country are lost to science.

The UKRC and other women's networks provide female

role models, resources and support for activities that

promote science to girls and women. One of the largest

44------------------------------------------------------------------

membership groups in the UK is Women's Engineering

Society which has been supporting women in

engineering and science since 1 9 1 9.

In the specific field of computing, the British Computer

Society specialist group BCS Women is active i n

encouraging girls t o consider computing careers, a n d in

supporting women in the computing workforce.

We should aim to reach out to the women in the poorly

l iterate as well as literary challenged sections of society

both in the urban a nd rural sectors across the country.

Through participatory programmes specially designed

with specific issues in focus and using the community

participatory form of radio-programming study how

best women can be encouraged to the benefits of

science in dai ly life.

As far as the vil lage l ife is concerned superstitions are sti l l

a dominating factor. Because of traditions, compulsions

of senior fami ly member's women are following these

which are affecting their key issues l ike health ...

Following steps may change the scenario

1 . Correct and sustained i nformation on environmental

issues especially health and other related problems

caused by mosquito menace is required.

2. The need to keep the surroundings clean and how

clean l iness is a health hazard needs to be

emphasized .

3. Understanding of child nutrition and pregnant

women healthcare issues.

4. lack of employment for women is also one of the

problems and people

5. it would also be useful if participatory format of

programming is used for programmes on agricu lture

to faci l itate better understanding of key issues.

There are number of schemes and scholarships which

women should be made aware of so that they may take

advantage and feel better equipped.

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Congress

Awards recognise support for women in

science

Moreover, it is the prime duty of the society to

encourage the girls so that they become women i n

science. Make them understand that this is their place to

connect, communicate, and advocate as the most d irect

and powerful way to create cultures of peace around the

world.

------------------------------------------------------------------ 45

99th I ndian Science Congress

ABSTRACTS

WOMEN IN SCIENCE SESSION Il l

46------------------------------------------

Environmental Release of

Persistence Organic

Pollutants - A Human

Concern

Dr. (Mrs.) Neeta Thacker Chief Scientist & Head, Analytical Instruments Division (AID), National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI}, NehruMarg.

Development activities such as intensive agriculture,

polluting industry and unplanned urbanization are

posing enormous environmental challenges to the

country and across the globe. Emerging technologies are

constantly giving rise to hitherto unknown pollutants.

The regulated pollutants are a lso invading new locations.

The Stockholm and Rotterdam conventions have

targeted some of the emerging pollutants viz.

Persistence Organic Pollutants (POPs), pesticides and

other hazardous chemicals.

POPs a re the compounds that persist, bioaccumulative in

plants and a nimals, travel long distances in the

environment and highly toxic. They are also semi­

volatile, a property which permits these compounds

either to vaporize or to be adsorbed on atmospheric

particles. POPs have the abi l ity of long-range transport in

air and water from warmer to colder regions of the

world. They are detected in regions where they have

never been used or produced. Therefore, POPs are also

termed as Persistent Bioaccumulative and Toxic (PBTs)

-or Toxic Organic Micro Pollutants (TOMPs). Realizing

the trend of pollution in various environmental media,

el imination, production and releases ofthese chemicals

in the country is one of the important activities that

should be addressed.

The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic

Pollutants is an international treaty to protect human

1<t;achiYJ_J the unreachel First Women's Science Congress

health and the environment from chemicals that remain

intact in the environment for long periods, become

widely distributed geographical ly, accumulate in the

fatty tissue of humans and wildl ife, a nd have adverse

effects to human health or to the environment. In 1 995,

the Governing Council of the United Nations

Environment Programme (UNEP) called for global action

to be taken on POPs. They defined POPs as the chemical

substances that persist in the environment, bio­

accumulate through the food web and pose a risk of

causing adverse effects to human health and the

environment. The Stockholm convention entered into

force on 1 7 May 2004 with ratification by an initia l 1 28

parties a nd 1 5 1 signatories. India is also a party to two

other i nternational chemical-related conventions- the

Basel Convention and the Rotterdam Convention- which,

together with the Stockholm Convention, provide an

international framework governing the environmental ly

sound management of hazardous chemicals and wastes

throughout their l ife cycles.

In order to achieve the objectives of Stockholm

Convention there has been set up a system for tackling

chemicals which are identified as u nacceptably

hazardous. These chemicals are l isted as Annexure to the

Convention as, Annex A - chemicals to be el iminated;

Annex B - chemicals which have restricted use; and

Annex C- unintentionally produced chemicals.

The emission of POPs in the environment is either

occurring due to the direct appl ication of POPs for plant

protection or disease vector control or d i rect and

indirect emissions of POPs from various sources as POPs

are being used in u rban areas in different forms and

purposes. POPs have been intentional ly developed and

used in a wide range of products (e.g. pesticides,

insecticides, dielectric and hydraul ic fluids in industrial

machinery, capacitors and transformers). Unintentional

formation of POPs (Up Pops) in some processes,

especially combustion, is also an important source for

some of them. Humans are mainly exposed to POPs

indirectly via the food, but the direct exposure to some

of them may have been underestimated. By mid 1 990s,

the production and consumption of POPs were

99th I ndian Science Congress

forbidden, but as POPs had been produced and

consumed in a large quantity before 1 990s in India, the

production sites and stockpiles a l l over the country may

be significant pollutant sources. The major future

problems, however, is probably connected to the

continuous use of so far unregulated persistent and

bioaccumulation substances.

Mounting evidence of damage to human health and the

environment has focused the attention of the

international community on POPs. POPs are pesticides,

industrial chemicals, or unintentionally produced by­

products (UpPOPs) of industrial processes or

combustion. They are characterized by: a) persistence ­

the abi l ity to resist degradation in various media (a i r,

water, sediments, and organisms); b) bio-accumulation

- the abi l ity to accumulate in l iving tissues at levels

higher than those in the surrounding environment; and

c) potential for long range transport - the capacity to

travel great distances from the source of release through

various media (air, water, and migratory species).

Because of these properties, POPs are fou nd throughout

the world, including in areas far from their orig inal

source. These chemical substances can cause mood

alterations, diabetes, change in white blood cells, dental

defects, disruption of the endocrine system, suppression

of the immune system, causing reproductive

dysfunction, and fostering developmental abnormalities

in human and animals. The effect that has caused the

greatest public concern is cancer, and the International

Agency of Research on Cancer (IARC) has classified TCDD

as a human carcinogen

The estimation of 2,3,7,8 - TCDD, dioxin congener and

precursors contamination were carried out in pu lp and

paper mi l l s, chloral-organic, chlorine base industries,

plastic a nd PVC industries and other sites in India

(Thacker, N. P. et. a l . 2007). The study showed that the

pulp and paper mi l ls using chlorine for bleaching

showed the presence of 2,3,7,8 - TCDD compared to the

industries using chlorine dioxide.

The releases of Up POPs, polychlorinated d ibenzo-p­

dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) from waste

incinerators and thermal processes were investigated

(Thacker, N. P. et. al. 201 0). The characteristics of mean

PCDD/Fs 1-TEQ concentrations and congener profi les

were studied over the samples of water, soil, fly ash and

bottom ash of individual source. In a lmost all the

analyzed matrices the congener OCDD/OCDF was found

in high concentration raising the critical concerns over

the overal l PCDD/Fs emissions from incinerations and

thermal processes. There are Goi/MoEF/CPCB has

guidelines for the emission standards for the discharge

of such chemica ls in atmosphere. The following lecture

will cover distribution and level of POPs i n

environmental media.

48------------------------------------------------------------------

Development of

electrochemical biosensor

of horseradish peroxides

immobilized on polyaniline

for direct determination of

anticancer drug tamoxifen.

Keisham Radhapyari and Raju Khan Analytical Chemistry Division, NEIST (Formerly RRL) (R&D lnsitute of CSIR), Jorhat-785006, Assam

An amperometric biosensor was prepared by

immobil ization of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) enzyme

onto a polyani l ine (PAN I)-doped platinum disk electrode

after activation with g lutaraldehyde. The PAN I film was

electrochemically deposited on the platinum electrode

at scan rate 50 mvs·'; Ag-AgCI for 8 cycles. Cyclic

Voltammetric characterization of the PAN I film in 1 M HCI

showed two distinct redox peaks, which proved that the

PAN I fi lm was electro active and exhibited fast reversible

electrochemistry. HRP was immobil ized onto the surface

of the PANI fi lm by simple adsorption method and

voltammetry was used to monitor the electro catalytic

reduction oftamoxifen under diffusion control led

conditions. FT- IR, Cyclic voltammeter a nd

Electrochemica l Impedance Spectroscopy technique has

been uti l ized for characterization and for studying the

electrochemical interfacial properties of surface

modified electrodes. The current versus concentration

plot was l i near over the range 1 - 1 1 ng mL·' . The achieved

l imit of detection (LOD) and l imit of quantification (LOQ)

were 0.07 ng mL·' and 0.29 ng ml·' respectively. The

procedure was appl ied to the assay of the drug in bulk

and dosage form with mean percentage recoveries of

99.4%. Precision and accuracy were also checked and

were within the l imits.

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Congress

Effect of altered gravity

(hyper gravity) on

germination (growth) of

mungbean & chlorophyll

pigment.

Smita Karpe, S. M. Kamble, P. B.

Vidyasagar & S. C. Karle 7: PG Department of Physics; New Arts, Commerce and Science college, Ahmednagar.- 4 7 4 003, lndia.Email:karpesmita29@gmail.com, sambhaji.karle@gmail.com 2:Biophysics laboratory, Department of Physics, University ofPune, Pune-4 7 7 007,/ndia

Gravity is very important concept now a day-today l ife.

We choose the topic of altered gravity because it is very

necessary to see the effect of altered gravity on plants

because we are trying to search the planet which is

appreciate to earth where human can l ive, plants can

germinate because it is necessary for our survival. But for

every planet gravity is not same, on some planet it is

greater than earth or less.

In hyper gravity treatment (gravity greater than that of

the earth) we observed the seed germination. For this

we gave hyper gravity treatment to seeds (moonbeam)

by means of centrifuge machine. Then grow them on

agar gel for 5 days under the condition of appropriate

temperature, humidity. After 5 days to check chlorophyll

content, place the leaf in DMF solution for one day and

then take absorption spectra.

For calculating chlorophyll content and carotinoid,

choose appropriate wavelength and calcu late it from

Arno's formula.

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99th I ndian Science Congress

In this study we choose the different orientations of

seeds and the different gravitation va lue and check the

result.

In general, in hyper gravity the germination of plant is

s low as we increase the gravitation va lue l ike SOOg,

1 OOOg, and 1 500g.

At 90 angle orientation, the chlorophyll content,

carotenoid and growth is satisfactory for all gravitational

values. This impl ies orientation affect on germination.

Convergence of

Earthquakes, Atmospheric

anomalies and Neuro Fuzzy

Models: A Close Study

Dr. Mrs. A.Pethalakshmi, Mrs.R.Raja

Rajeswari, Miss. A.Anushya Department of Computer Science, M. V.M. Govt. Arts College (W), Dindigul. pethalakshmi@yahoo.com,ganesh_akash@yahoo.com Research Scholar,Department of Computer Science, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Tirunelveli., E-mail: anushya.alphonse@gmail.com

Earthquakes, the most devastating natural disasters,

occur a lmost in a l l parts of the world, in the present

decade. And they pose a major threat to human l ife,

nature and also nuclear plants, hence affecting the

global environment as we have seen in the case of

Japanese earthquake which occurred in March 201 1 . A

popular notion about earthquake is that it is

unpredictable.

But the increase in frequency of earthquakes all over the

globe has necessitated meaningful research in

earthquake prediction. Work done so far has bore fruits

in terms of finding significant earthquake precursors. The

promising earthquake precursors include atmospheric

anomalies and radon gas emission. After identifying

earthquake precursor's next step is to classify the

existing weather data inventory based on known

preseismic patterns and predict an earthquake. This

requires reliable computing methodologies, converging

on Neuro Fuzzy model, an emerging soft computing

tool.

This research paper intends to discuss atmospheric

anomalies as earthquake precursors, role of Neuro Fuzzy

50------------------------------------------------------------------

Model in prediction arena and final ly suggests an

amalgamation of Neuro Fuzzy Models with atmospheric

anomal ies to predict earthquake.

(Keywords: Earthquake Prediction, Neuro Fuzzy Model,

Thermal anomal ies, Relative humidity)

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Let Us Know the Chemicals

Present in Our Food

Prof. Jyotshna Mahapatra Cornig, New York, jyotshnam@yahoo.com

Abstract: The appetising colour of many a food item is

derived from toxic pigments. Ever wondered why home­

made tomato sauce is a brownish-red concoction while

the packaged variety is bright red? Or why gulab jamuns

bought from a sweet shop are a r ich brown while the

ones that mother makes are so m uch paler? And why

jalebis today are more vividly colored than the ones we

remember from childhood?

It's all because food manufacturers use colors to gloss up

their wares. Some are food grade and some, shockingly,

are just non-food grade dyes.

Rule 26 of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act

permits the use of colours such as beta-carotene, beta­

apo-8'carotenal, carotenoic acid, canthaxanthin,

chlorophyll, riboflavin, caramel and saffron in food.

However, sometimes manufacturers also use non­

permitted dyes to cut costs. The permitted colours are

often replaced with cheap, non-food grade dyes that

impart the same colour but have high levels of toxicity.

The rampant and i l legal use of poor qual ity toxic colours,

oil and flavours in sweets, snacks, biscuits, chips, pickles,

ice creams and soft drinks is not only cheating Indian

consumers but also leading to serious health problems.

The results thrown up by recent research by the zoology

department of the University of Jaipur on the effects of

Tomato Red - a dye common in red coloured sweets

and sauce - on mice are scary. Studies revealed severe

degenerative changes in the l iver, kidney and testes of

the rodents. Experts concluded that the use of this dye in

food could have a toxic effect on vital organs in humans,

too.

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99th I ndian Science Congress

But if you think that by avoiding sweets and processed

food, you can stay away from toxic dyes or other

additives, think again. Things as diverse and necessary as

table salt and baking powder may be brightened up

with a luminium. Even fresh fruits and vegetables may be

coloured to make them look more appetising. Coal tar is

often added to powdered spices to give them the right

hue. The effects of all these chemicals can be l ife

threatening.

Survival strategies

Read the fine print on packaged food to make sure

that only permitted colours have been used

Wash fresh fruits and vegetables in water to which

potassium permanganate has been added. Fish, rice

and pulses should be washed repeatedly to remove

the urea used to whiten them

Chi ldren should not be given coloured food, even if

it conta ins permitted colour. Encourage them to

have colourless sweets and snacks. Avoid colas and

ice creams that are not branded.Chemical dyes such

as auramine causes dysfunction of the l iver and

kidney; another dye, rhodamine B, leads to growth

retardation, apart from degeneration of the liver and

kidney. Malachite Green causes a decrease in

appetite, growth and ferti l ity, Yellow G provokes

asthma and AI lura Red can lead to stomach cancer.

Some of the common side effects of prolonged

consumption of these colours are hyper acid ity, thyroid

tumours, urticaria, dermatitis, asthma, nasal congestion,

abdominal pain, nausea, eczema, liver and kidney

damage and even cancer.

The worst sufferers are chi ldren. Studies show that the

concentration level of chi ldren is going down owing to

excessive consumption of coloured foodstuff and soft

drinks. Many chi ldren are a lso allergic to artificial

colours. Heavy metals l ike lead, mercury and arsenic,

which are found in sweets and snacks coloured with

non-food grade dyes, are worse as they are not excreted.

Instead, they are deposited in the body and causes

harmful diseases.

Avoid buying food that is artificially coloured and ensure

that the package mentions the use of permitted colours.

We must not be fooled by bright colours a nd fresh

textures.

It's impossible for a consumer to understand and verify

which colouring agents are used in which food. When it

comes to packaged food, a retailer's job is to ensure that

he buys from the right source.

Still, consumers can also exercise caution. It is suggested

that consumers check packaged and tinned food to find

out if the colours used are permitted. One should also

wash fruits and vegetables with water tinged with

potassium permanganate before cooking, she adds.

Some suggest that there could be a way out of this

problem if manufacturers resorted to natural dyes

instead of artificial food colouring. Several natural dyes

possess bio-active properties and can be used both as

colouring agents and for therapeutic purposes.

For example, turmeric, which gives food a vibrant yellow

colour, is also a digestive aid as well as a potential

biomolecule for the treatment of cancer. Carotenoids

(found in carrots, mango and papaya) have a natural

orange colour and strong antioxidant properties.

Simi larly, anthocyanins (red grapes, red cabbage and

sweet potatoes) and betacyanins (red potatoes, beetroot

and amaranth), which are good for health, can also

impart a nice red colour to a dish. One could opt for

these natural food colours and completely stop the use

of chemical colours.

That may not come about in a while. But as long as

artificial colours are being used, the consumer can't be

too careful about making sure that he or she buys a

product that only uses "permitted" colours.

52------------------------------------------------------------------

Advanced Technology

Development in High Power

Lasers at B.A.R.C

Paramita Deb. Physics Group, BARC,Mumbai-400085.

The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, where research

reactors have been built since its inception, spans a large

cross section of science and technology that is required

and will be needed for reactor science itself. Therefore a

multi-disciplinary research organization has grown. I t

includes nuclear research, materials research, chemical

technology research, accelerator physics, laser physics ,

fuel chemistry, spectroscopy and many many more

branches of Science and technology. The emphasis has

always been on in-house technology development in

order to be self reliant. Women have been active

contributing members in a l l these challenging areas of

science. A paper will be presented at this Science

Congress, that gives a flavor of the contribution by

women scientists for the development of B.A.R.C.

One section of this multi-discipl inary research is the

physics and technology of laser systems, that has been

pursued for quite a few decades. The research in this area

includes a wide spectrum, ranging from tunable lasers in

the visible to free electron lasers in the X-ray band. In

addition lasers with high powers have been built . The

technique of producing high peak powers is to make an

oscil lator (operating in the pulsed mode) followed by

chain of ampl ifiers that lead to energy of the pulse being

in the hundred Joule range. At B.A.R.C the technology of

a carbon dioxide laser chain and an Nd:glass laser chain

has been established. The driving force for this

development was, inertial confinement fusion (ICF). An

extension of this method, for an ultra short pulse , high

peak power laser chain, has also been developed

recently at B.A.R.C. This is the chirped pulse amplification

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

technique, where the oscil lator pulse is stretched in time

before being amplified in the chain of amplifiers, and

then compressed in time to obtain high peak powers.

The driving force for this development was the fast

ignition path to ICF. This work too has a large

contribution from woman scientists at B.A.R.C, and will

be presented at this Science Congress.

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99th I ndian Science Congress

ABSTRACTS

POSTER SESSION

54----------------------------------------------------------------

Rural Livelihood Security­

Role of Women

Organizations

Smt. R. Annapurna Ramamurthy, Smt.

T. Rajya Lakshmi Prabhu, J .President, Sri Padmavathi Prarhdana Mahila Mandali,

Narasimha Theertham Road, Tirupati. 2. Associate Professor (Retired), S.V.Univeristy, Tirupati.

Science and Technology for inclusive innovation: Role of

Women: (Women Organizations, A.P.Tirupati

(Rural/Urban)

The above mentioned topic can be dealt as two parts i.e.

conventional methods and Modern scientific a nd

Technological methods.

In the Temple Town ofTirupati one of the Voluntary

Women Organization by name Sri Padmavathi Prardhana

Mahi la Mandali has been established in the year 1 963

and in the first Mahila Mandali in the District. Almost

forty five years, this organization has been working to

wards achieving the goal of poverty eradication

programmes for the poor and downtrodden women folk.

Since socially excluded groups are highly heterogeneous

a uniform package of programme would he highly

u nethical. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru remarked "The

advancement of a Nation can be judged by the status

women enjoy" Even the mi l lennium goals identified by

U.N.Centre around women. During the tenure of Sri Rajiv

Gandhi Women's movement gained much vibrancy

livelihood systems of the poor can never he understood

in any one track logic as mentioned earlier.

This presentation focuses on the role of voluntary

Women organizations towards this endeavor. Certa in

issues are Common to both Rural and Urban areas.

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Our Mandai President Smt. Annapuran Ramamurthy is

not only one of the founder members but also

contributed a lot towards this goal i n severa l ways which

is a non profitable organization. But the site and Bui lding

has been funded by Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams.

The total porgramme i ncludes mostly poor women folk

and their livelihood patterns.

The following are some of the main activities of the

Mandai.

Women working in Agricultural on daily wages,

growing Vegetables and Fruits.

Women who work in Cottage industries.

Vocational course involving silk reel ing sewing,

typewriting, tailoring, Computer Courses.

Provision of Bank Loans for small scale business.

Learning Embroidery, Knitting Painting, Cooking.

Educating Auto Drivers chi ldren.

Placement for Physically Handicapped Chi ldren.

Food and Nutrition camps.

Explaining Women employee's legal rights.

Adult education camps.

Providing Free Medical Checkups.

The total programme included all types of categories of

occupation Agriculture, Horticu lture, Cottage industries,

healic came and Hygienic, Literary; programmes etc.

Mostly unrecognized poor women fold and their

livelihood patterns will be discussed.

OTHER ACTIVITIES :

Cottage Industries :

1 . Fruit Ju ice making

99th I ndian Science Congress

FLOW CHART I

RURAL LIVELIHOOD SECURITY

Conventional Methods

Agricultural Occupations

Govt. or NGO Programmes (Rural /Urban)

1 . Awareness programme by Manda Is,

Counseling about their legal rights, wages.

3. Lecturers by Scientists and Sociologists

4.Distribution of Selfmade Handcrafts Articles

5. Literary Programmes (3Rs)

2. Weaving Baskets

3. Horticulture

4. Vocational course involving Silk reel ing, Sewing and

Embroidery, Tailoring.

5 . Preparation ofToys and Puppets.

6. Preparation of Masala Powders

7. Preparation leaf plates and bouls.

8. Seeking Bank Loans

9. Tra ining in Time Management.

1 0. Learning to mainta in Accounts etc.,

Other types of Activities : -

1 . Education to Rickshaw Pul ler's Chi ldren.

2. Conducting Health Camps - Child Care, Hygienic etc.

3. Environment - Its importance

4. Looking after Physica l ly handicapped children ­

Counseling to parents.

5 . Adult education programmes (Minimum levels of

learning help them to participate in meetings which

d irectors about man-eating, maintaining accounts).

Modern Scientific & Technological Methods

New Tools New Livelihood

New Technologies field trips

for new Technologies Exhibition 2.

on global awareness

Type Writing Usage of Machinery

6. Food and Nutrition - How it is important for

effective functioning.

Results and Recommendations :

1 . Awareness programmes and counseling in groups at

door slep helped many women.

2 . Bank Loans faci l itated many women folk to meet

their live hood routine.

3 . Youth and Chi ldren (Handicapped) got placements.

4. Small scale industries has been established by the

members for making and sell ing hand made articles,

Masala Powder Packets.

5. Created awareness on health and Hygiene ­

maintaining clean environment in the Surroundings.

6. Adult Education Programmes brought the desired

livel ihood changes. It also developed self confidence

among poor women.

7. Women empowerment is achieved.

56------------------------------------------------------------------

A study of self-concept and

achievement motivation of

female adults towards

literacy.

M. Narayana Swamy Department of Education, Bangalore University, mnarayana 7 @gmail.com

Women's i l l iteracy is one of the major issue faced by the

planners, educationists and administrators of I ndia since

the dawn of I ndependence. Lack of universal literacy has

thwarted total development in the country. Women

constitute almost half of the population, and hence

should play a major role in the social and economic

development of the Nation. It is a generally accepted

fact that "if a man is educated only a single person is

educated; if a woman is educated a whole family is

educated': The Report of the University Education

Commission ( 1 949) states:

"If general education has to be l imited to men or

women, that opportunity should be given to women,

from them it would most surely be passed on to the next

generation"

Similarly, in the Report of the Education Commission

( 1 966) it has been stated "for full development of our

human resources, for the improvement of homes and for

molding the character of chi ldren during most

impressionable years of infancy, the education of

women is of even greater importance than that of men:'

The National Policy of Education (NPE, 1 986) has

emphatically stated that Education wil l be used as an

agent of basic change in the status of women. In order to

neutralize the accumulated distortions of the past, there

will be a well-conceived edge in favour of women. l n a

very strong and forthright statement, NPE says: This wil l

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

be an act of faith and social engineering. According to

the Programme of Action ( 1 992), education for women's

equality is too important to be left to the individual

commitments or proclivities of persons i n charge of

implementing the programmes.

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99th I ndian Science Congress

Importance of Women's

for protecting the

environment

Huma Naz, Asma Naz Department Of Plant Protection, FlO Agricultural Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh-202002, U.P. India, E-Mail:- Huma_Ddn@Yahoo.Com

"Involving women in protecting the environment

would help societies develop the sense of

responsibility needed to maintain a good balance

between humans and the earth's resources"

To begin with, it is relevant to ask the question what is

environment? And does it not seem presumptuous on

the part of human beings to use the world

'management' in this context? For what we have

succeeded in doing is not only damaging the

environment, but damaging it irretrievably. This is

apparent across the planet, making restoration of the

environment the very basis of global concern. Instead of

managing the environment, we should act to conserve

and protect it, so that it is treated not only wisely, but

with Humi l ity. For it is man that is destroying this

essential l ife support system, and yet it is man that is a

part of this tota lity called environment. The challenge

facing the development of women in India is not merely

a problem of finance but also one of motivating and

mobilizing them. This in turn is l inked to the

developmental programmes in a society which expects a

change in the perception and values characteristic of

Indian culture. This is adequately emphasized for

example in the National Forestry Policy 1 988 rega rding

the role of women I n forestry development, 'creating a

massive people's movement with the involvement of

women for achieving this objective and to minimize

pressure on existing forests".

A woman biased development process.

Investment in women's education, health and

welfare to ensure poverty al leviation. Most

especia l ly in the hi l l and tribal areas.

Creating respect for women by an aware and

dynamic leadership-with adequate representation

by qual ified women-which will address crucia l

issues arising from time to time.

Traditionally, women have dealt with non­

monetised biomass based subsistence economy of

the household i.e. firewood, cowdung, crop wastes,

organic manure, etc. In comparison. men tend to

destroy nature to earn cash even if it means creating

hardship in their own fami l ies for their womenfolk

to collect fuel and fodder e.g. sa le of herbs and

wood. The upshot is that women work as unpaid

labourers on family farms with a greater role than

men in operational decision making.

Fuel, fodder and water collections are the accepted

responsibilities of women. As the environment

degrades, these basic necessities become difficult

to collect. The time a woman spends on gathering

fuel, fodder and water, as well as attending to

household work, agricultural work and anima l care,

reduces her efficiency and inputs. Dr. M. S.

Swaminathan, former member of the planning

Commission stated, "if men had to fetch drinking

water the 230,000 vi l lages would not have remained

without provision of drinking water after several

years of planned development". The workload

differs in different parts of the country .In the hi l l

areas, the time devoted to these activities far

exceeds the time spent on the same activities.

The population pressure has increased male

migration, which in turn adds to the women's work

load. In effect this means that women's

responsibilities extend from the household duties

to working in the fields as well. A destructive chain

reaction emerges. As the time required for fuel and

fodder collection grows and fi rewood becomes

scarce, cow-dung previously spread on the fields, is

53----------------------------------------------------------------

used in the kitchen, thereby depleting soi l resources

and causing a negative effect on the livel ihood of

local people and environment. The absence of the

male fami ly member(s) adversely affects

production.

Skills are handed down from mothers to daughters

to help strengthen the bond between man and the

environment. This is sustainable development.

Women mobilize conserve and preserve resources

in their roles as housewives, mothers, wives,

daughters and farmers.

"When there is no water in the villages, no crops

grow. Men migrate to the cities for work and women

are left to fend for themselves, their children, old

members of the family and their cattle;•

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Journey through the gender

prejudices: Women in

Engineering

Dr. Sucheta Priyabadini Joint Registrar, KilT University, sucheta@kiit.ac.in

Post l iberal ization era caused a spurt in the pace of

industrial ization, urbanization and globalization. This

growth created the need for a greater pool oftechnical

manpower to form a support base. Students cutting

across the various divides got attracted to technical

education. Engineering education hitherto considered a

domain of the male, gradual ly saw the advent of women.

However, the entry of girl students in technical

education was never a quantum jump, given the

phenomena of conservative mind sets in operation.

Although women represent half of the population,

presence of women at all level of education is low.

Women especially in the technical education are grossly

underrepresented. The scenario of women in technical

education all over the world is the same. Based on

qual itative and quantitative study with interviews

conducted on 250 women students of B.Tech courses of

various reputed Engineering Colleges at Bhubaneswar,

the capital city of Orissa, the present study intends to

explore and analyse the nature of enrol lment,

susta inabil ity and socialization of women students in

technical education. It is hoped that this study would

lead to appropriate recommendation for overcoming the

proverbial "glass ceiling" and work towards achieving a

balanced representation. Our study proposed that

gender representation is only one dimension of

gendered disadvantage in engineering, as complex

forms of gendered disadvantages reside at social,

cultural, psychological and economic layers of l ife.

99th I ndian Science Congress

Fertility and ageing:

Awareness and perceptions

of female students to

leading universities of

Odisha.

1Gayatri Mohanty, 1 Deepika Muduli,

28ijayalaxmi Pradhan and 1Luna

Sa manta Address: 'Department of Zoology, Ravenshaw University, Cuttack, 'Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, gayatri_mohanty32@yahoo.com

In recent times there has been a noticeable trend among

young women i n many parts of the developed world to

delay chi ldbearing to achieve career goals. However due

to lack of knowledge about the decline in fertility with

age suffer from infertility in later part of l ife. This study

was designed to assess the female students' perceptions

regarding female reproductive ageing in two oldest and

prestigious Universities of Odisha: Ravens haw and Utkal.

In this study, most women overesti mated the chance of

pregnancy at a l l ages and were not conscious of the

steep rate of fertility decline as well wrong notions about

the use of contraceptives.

Women's role in

conservation of natural

resources

Prabha Shastri Ranade lcfai Business School, Ahmedabad, ps_ranade@yahoo.com

This contribution for Women's Science Congress

highl ights the role of women NGOs in conservation of

natural resources. Women are responsible for feeding

their fami l ies and providing the famil ies with basic

nutrition. Poverty hits women the hardest. Women are

more dependent on natural resources such as land,

wood and water. These a re facing the adverse i mpact of

climate change and women's access to these resources

is l imited. Women in developing countries are more

vulnerable than men to the consequences of cl imate

change, When an NGO is formed, women are able to

raise voices and achieve their desired objectives

collectively. Women have extensive theoretical and

practical knowledge of the environment and resource

conservation, which is util ized by women NGOs. They

have taken a lead in promoting sound environmental

practices. Women NGOs world over are doing

commendable work in development sector. They are at

the forefront of t he conservation of forests and water

resources. Women are playing a key role in reforestation

and afforestation of cleared land. Women have always

been the principal conservers of bio-diversity. They

perform duties such as seed selection, multipl ication and

conservation.

There has been a rapid increase in the number a nd

visibil ity of women's NGOs working on environment and

resource conservation issues. The Samudram Women's

Federation in Orissa through a sustained campaign

monitors breeding, restore habitats, protects beaches

for conservation of Olive Ridley turtles, promotes

responsible fishing practices a nd protects the

60-----------------------------------------------------------

livelihoods of coastal communities. Samudram is crucial

force in efforts to protect Orissa's coastal biodiversity

and to mobil ize local communities to conserve natural

resources. Green Belt movement is a Kenyan Women's

NGO, which started planting trees in 1 977 to tackle the

problems of deforestation, soil erosion and water

scarcity. I nnovative Farmers Programme is a Tanzanian

NGO. It works to secure and achieve higher crop yields.

The members learn to convert agricultural waste into

organic fertilizer, conserve seeds, counter soil erosion,

and improve rainwater storage in the ground. Several

such smal l movements led by a handful of women a few

years back have become state-wide campaigns that hold

important lessons for conservation in itiatives. While

raising awareness and catalyze solutions, their efforts are

helping to build sustainable livelihoods a nd in poverty

a l leviation.

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Women's Technology Park­

Road to Empowerment of

rural women

Dr. S.A.Kazi, Dr. 0. Kakade,

Dr. P.G. Tadsad, Smt. Shanta Devi Dr. S.R. Ghanti, S.R. Soudagar &

Dr. G.R. Naik Kama taka State Women's University, Bijapur.

The University has established a women's technology

park one of its kind in the state providing a variety of ski l l

tra in ing programmes to women especially from

backward areas. The park includes a software technology

park, a food processing training centre, vermi­

composting training centre, tissue culture tra ini ng

centre, bio-diesel training centre, media centre and

fashion designing.

Ananya: Food Processing Training Center and

Incubator: In association with Association of Women

Entrepreneurs of Karnataka (AWAKE), a non­

governmental organization, 'Annanya' a food-processing

tra in ing center and Incubator, has been set up on the

university campus, as part of the university's women

empowerment programme. The centre conducts

tra in ing programmes for women in processing of fruits,

vegetables and pulses, packaging and marketing. The

centre also serves as an incubator and encourages

women in becoming entrepreneurs and facil itates the

same. A number of students studying in the campus also

avail the training programme.

Bio-diesel Technology Centre: This centre

established with funding from Government of Karnataka

works in col laboration with Bio-Fuel Task Force,

Government of Karnataka a nd Bio diesel Society of India,

Bangalore. The centre i ncludes a Bio Fuel tra in ing and

------------------------------------------------------------------ 61

99th I ndian Science Congress

demonstration centre, Bio diesel research centre and Bio

diesel information dissemination centre. Bio diesel

plantation is being established in the Jnanashakti

campus.

Computer Centre and Software Technology

Park: A Computer Centre is established with funding

from UGC. The Centre is equipped with 44 computers,

high end servers, Internet and uninterrupted power

supply with dedicated personnel including system

analyst and computer software experts. It provides

regular tra in ing for teaching, non-teaching staff and

students and is also open for women who wish to hone

their ski l l s in developing software.

Vermi-composting Centre: A vermi-composting

unit has been established in Jnanashakti campus. Short

term training programmes are offered to women in

vermi com posting.

Multi-Media Training Centre: A well-equipped

studio and mu lti-media centre with qual ified staff

provides short term training in facing interviews,

interviewing, news reading on electronic media, camera

techniques, editing etc.

Tissue Culture Centre: A plant tissue culture centre

is being established in Jnanashakti campus. Short term

training courses in tissue culture are being designed.

Fashion Technology: The University has signed an

MOU with the I ndian Institute of fashion Technology and

is facil itating providing tra in ing to rural women in

fashion technology. A modern faci l ity with latest

machinery has been established by l i FT which is made

available for tra in ing women students of the university.

The University is also offering a number of Certificate,

Diploma, Degree and Post-graduate Degree

programmes in Fashion Management.

Bio-informatics Facility Centre: Bio-informatics

Facility Centre has been established with funding from

the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India.

This centre has necessary infrastructure including

computers, servers, UPS and necessary software for

training women in Bio-informatics. The centre

undertakes tra in ing of students from Karnataka State

Women's University as well as students of Biology - UG

and PG as well as researchers a l l over the state.

Biotechnology Research and training Centre: The centre has been established with grant from DST to

implement advanced research in Biotechnology a nd

provide practical training to students from a l l over the

state.

Paper Recycling Technology Center: A well

equipped Paper Recycling Technology Center is

established in J nanashakti campus to provide vocational

training to our students, rural women and women from

poor socio-economic background of this region. The

center produces files, folders, visiting cards, carry bags,

food packaging etc from the waste papers through value

addition.

62-------------------------------------------------------------

Embelin augments

apoptotic cell death in

estrogen receptor positive

human breast

adenocarcinoma cell line

MCF-7. A positive

correlation between its

antiestrogenic and

anti pro I iterative effects.

Sumalatha K.R1, Sreepriya M1 and

Sheela Praveen3

7. Department of Microbiology and Biotechnology Bangalore University, Jnana Bharathi Campus Bangalore - 560 056, Kama taka, India 2. Department of Pathology Clumax Diagnostics, Jayanagar 3rd Block Bangalore - 560 0 7 7, Kama taka, India

Abstract: The benzoquinone embelin is an apoptosis

activator a nd a potent inhibitor of X lAP. Several studies

report the strong antiestrogenic effects of em bel in in

animal models. I n the current study we investigated the

influence of em bel in in attenuating the proliferation and

augment apoptotic cel l death in estrogen receptor

positive human breast adenocarcinoma cel l l ine MCF-7.

Cell prol iferation was assessed by MTT assay, Clonogenic

potential by colony formi ng assays in soft agar, induction

of apoptosis was confirmed by characteristic DNA

fragmentation and quantification of fragmented DNA by

DPA method. Cell morphology was studied by l ight

m icroscopy (Hematoxylin/eosin staining) and by

fluorescence microscopy analysis (Acridine

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

orange/Ethidium bromide staining and Hoechst

staining). I nfluence of em bel in on the expression of

caspase-3 and Bcl2 was investigated by reverse

transcription PCR. Results revealed the embelin

exhibited strong inhibitory effects on the growth of

estrogen receptor positive MCF-7 cells. This opens up

avenues for exploring the benefits of em bel in in the

therapy of estrogen receptor positive breast cancer in

humans.

------------------------------------------------------------------ 63

99th I ndian Science Congress

Rural Technology/

Agriculture

Sustainable Entrepreneurial

Activity through Nutri Soya

Products

Sunanda Sharan and Veena B Department of Food Science and Nutrition, UAS, GKVK, Bangalore

Value added soya products being an excellent source of

nutrition needs to be promoted through entrepreneurial

activity for women, Hence, the study was undertaken

with the objective of development of va lue added

products, training on ski l l development and evaluating

the impact on income generation. Value added products

developed were soya papad, soya chutney powder, soya

multi mix, soya noodles, soya vermicelli and evaluated

for different parameters.About 338 women were trained

both at on-campus and off-campus level for a period of 2

- 3 days of 20-30 years belonging to small and marginal

and few were big farmers of Mandya . Training was

imparted on these products as indicated in the

objectives.The results of the study revealed that a total

of 338 women trained, out of which 83 women (24.5%)

were able to become entrepreneurs and earned about

Rs. 1 00 to 800/- /month. However, continued follow up is

essential for sustainabi l ity as well as for successful

establishment on a commercial scale.

Agriculture and Forestry

Sciences

Low Cost Appropriate

Technology for Rural

Women - Dehulling and

Value Addition of

Sunflower Seeds

Neena Joshi, Lata Kulkarni and

Gopika Muttagi Department of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore nj_pande@yahoo.com

Key words: sunflower kernels; dehull ing sunflower

seeds; food uses of sunflower kernels.

Karnataka ranks first in the production of sunflower in

I ndia where it has replaced a large part of the traditional

food crops. A newly introduced crop can aggravate

nutritional insecurity because the communities lack the

tradition of incorporating it into their dietaries. Shifts in

cropping patterns must always be associated with

serious efforts at developing low cost appropriate

technologies which will enable the farming community

to benefit from new crops not only to enjoy the cash but

also the nutritional returns. Thus, a methodology for

primary processing (household dehull ing) and

secondary processing ( indigenous products) were

developed and transferred to the farming community.

Variety KHSB 44 was used in the experiment. The trials

on dehull ing involving severa l chemica l and mechanical

methods revealed that mechanical method of dehul l ing

was more effective. A simple household method which

64------------------------------------------------------------------

could easily be adopted by the farm women was

standardized. This method consistently resulted in 60 %

kernel recovery. Two heritage products chikki and

hurigalu were standardized using sunflower seeds and

compared with groundnuts and subjected to sensory

evaluation. While there were no significant differences in

the taste in case of the product chikki; product hurigalu

prepared from sunflower kernels were better l iked by the

taste panel. The nutritional va lue of the products

prepared from sunflower can be rated as good. These

products had the potential to contribute significant

quantities of protein, energy, PUFA, calcium, iron, zinc

and vitamin E. The products were i ntroduced in two

vi l lages where sunflower is grown through extension

efforts i nvolving KVK, Hiriyur and SHGs. Dehul l ing the

seeds at the household level and lack of awareness

about its food value were the main reasons for the

kernels not being use. The responses with respect to

sunflower seeds as food after the extension efforts were

positive.

ROLE O F WO M E N I N SCI E NCE

Dr. Hemlata J . Wankhede

�achiYJ_J the unreachel Fi rst Women's Science Cong ress

Director, Pre I.A.S. Traning Centre and Institute of Science {PG & Research}

Govt. Science College Campus, Kille Arch,

Near Subhedari Guest House, Aurangabad (M.S) India

E-mail:hjwankhjede@gamil.com

Women in science have made contribution and

sacrifices from earl iest ti mes; however they, l i ke

many men i n science, have in large pa rt received l ittle

or no approbation nor d isti nction for their work

d u ring thei r l ifeti mes. Science is genera l ly and

h istorica l ly a male domi nated fie ld and evidence

suggest that th is is due to stereotype as wel l as self

fulfi l l ing prophecies. H i storian with a n interest in

gender and science have i l l u m i nated the scientific

endeavours and accompl ishment of women, the

ba rrier they have faced, and the strategies

implemented to their works peer-reviewed and

accepted. ------------------------------------------------------------------ 65

3-7 January, 201 2, Bhubaneswar