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HomePosts Tagged "Department of Science and Technology (DST)"
Agrotech, Sustainability, Water

River Bank Filtration (RBF) technology operates by extracting water from wells located near rivers or lakes

A sensor-based irrigation system using bank filtration technology and controlled via web/mobile app installed at Sal River near Navelim and Nauta lake at Cortalim, Goa, has prevented wastage of water in the area and also made it easy for farmers to monitor the irrigation remotely.

The moisture values are provided by the sensors starting the water motor only when there is an actual need for water and turning it off when the moisture level reaches the maximum value. This process prevents water erosion and maintains the soil quality throughout the field. The system has saved time, especially for the daily wage farmers giving them freedom and flexibility to sell their harvest in the market. It has reduced their labour work and helped the farmers financially as well.

The irrigation system was implemented by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), in collaboration with the National Institute of Technology (NIT), Goa, and supported by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, under the umbrella of Demand Driven Mission – Water Technology Initiative.

It provides clean water to farmers for irrigation through River Bank Filtration (RBF) technology coupled with a sensor-controlled irrigation system, which is the first of its kind in the region. RBF operates by extracting water from wells located near rivers or lakes. As the river water infiltrates into and passes through the riverbed sediments, contaminants like bacteria and toxic metals are removed by overlapping biological, physical, and chemical processes. Affordable RBF wells have been installed for the treatment of polluted water from the Sal River near Navelim and Nauta lake at Cortalim, Goa, powered by renewable energy resources (solar-powered pumps) to provide clean water to farmers in off-the-grid areas. Water, with improved quality parameters such as reduced turbidity and bacterial load supplied through a systematic pipeline system, helped farmers to obtain better crop production.

The project presents a model of sustainability for educating farming communities with small landholdings which are unique to Goa. The technology of RBF offers an inexpensive means to remove large amounts of contaminants, including suspended particles and attenuation of microbes, and essentially provide improved water quality to the farmer’s community to fulfil their irrigation requirements.

A dissemination workshop was also organised in which relevant stakeholders, researchers, policymakers, and farmers were handed over the information and technology to the local ownership, and the initiative has opened up new collaborations for future developments.

River Bank Filtration (RBF) technology operates by

Agro Universities, R&D

The first instalment of Rs 40 lakh has been given for the procurement of equipment

The Department of Food Science and Technology, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), has been granted an amount of Rs 58 lakh, under the scheme ‘Fund for Improvement of S&T Infrastructure (FIST)’ funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), New Delhi, to strengthen the research facilities in the Department of Food Science and Technology, PAU.

Dr Poonam A Sachdev, Principal Food Technologist (Vegetable) informed that they have received the first instalment of Rs 40 lakh for the procurement of equipment.

The first instalment of Rs 40 lakh

Acquaculture, Agrotech, R&D

The peptide-based diagnostic tool has been developed by scientists of Agharkar Research Institute (ARI), an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST)

Scientists have developed a handy diagnostic tool that detects an aquaculture pathogen known as the White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV). The peptide-based diagnostic tool by scientists of Agharkar Research Institute (ARI), an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) has been granted a patent on March 31, 2022, as an alternative biorecognition element.

Infection caused by the WSSV to the shrimp Penaeus vannamei results in a huge loss of crop. This high-value super-food is susceptible to a wide range of viral and bacterial pathogens and the probability of occurrence of infections is rather high. Improved nutrition, probiotics, disease resistance, quality control of water, seed and feed, immuno-stimulants and affordable vaccines play an important role in enhancing the production. Technologies for early and rapid detection of pathogens on the field will help fish and shell-fish farming which provides significant export revenue to the country which is a leading supplier of shrimp to the US. 

Dr Prabir Kulabhusan, Dr Jyutika Rajwade and Dr Kishore Paknikar developed a lateral flow assay using gold nanoparticles for easy visualisation of the results. Instead of using poly-/mono-clonal antibodies in assay development, the ARI scientists selected twelve amino acid-containing peptides from a phage display library by biopanning. This was a time- and cost-saving approach, eliminating the need for immunization of laboratory animals to obtain the antisera. With the use of peptides, cold-chain requirements for storage are reduced and the assay becomes production-friendly. 

The inventors have published this research in Applied Microbiology & Biotechnology and the Journal of Molecular Modelling. ARI PhD student Snehal Jamalpure-Lakka presented this idea at the National Bio-Entrepreneurship Conclave (NBEC)-2021 and was awarded. 

The peptide-based diagnostic tool has been developed