VZCZCXRO8440
RR RUEHAST RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHPB RUEHPOD RUEHTM
DE RUEHNE #2418/01 2531028
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 091028Z SEP 08
FM AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3312
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL KOLKATA 2709
RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI 3460
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 2521
RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC
RUCPDC/NOAA NMFS WASHINGTON DC
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHDC
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHDC
RUEHPH/CDC ATLANTA GA
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC
RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 NEW DELHI 002418 
 
STATE FOR OES/PCI, OES/STC, OES/SAT, OES/EGC, 
AND SCA/INS 
STATE FOR STAS 
STATE PASS TO NSF FOR INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS 
HHS PASS TO NIH 
STATE PASS TO USAID 
STATE FOR SCA, OES (STAS FEDOROFF), OES/PCI STEWART; OES/IHB MURPHY 
PASS TO HHS/OGHA (STEIGER/ABDOO/VALDEZ), CDC (BLOUNT/FARRELL), 
NIH/FIC (GLASS/MAMPILLY/HANDLEY), 
FDA (LUMPKIN/WELSCH, GENEVA FOR HOFMAN) 
PASS TO MAS/DAS/JESTRADA 
PASS TO MAC/DAS/HVINEYARD 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: TBIO SENV AMED CASC KSCA ECON ETRD BEXP EINV PGOV
TSPL, TRGY, TNGD, EIND, ENRG, KGHG, IN 
 
SUBJECT: NEW DELHI BI-WEEKLY ESTH REPORT: SEPTEMBER 2008 FIRST WEEK 
 
NEW DELHI 00002418  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1.  SUMMARY:  This edition of the New Delhi ESTH biweekly includes 
updates on the University Grants Commission's plans to open 735 new 
universities, a report on a workshop on nanotechnology, and problems 
that India will likely face in land acquisitions for large-scale 
solar power projects.  The section on environment has an update on 
the Government of India's ban on the use, manufacture, and 
distribution of diclofenac as a measure to protect vultures.  The 
health section includes updates on a recent encephalitis outbreak, 
FDA's Good Clinical Practice workshop for India's regulators, a 
Public Health Bill for emergency preparedness and combating 
bioterrorism, and an HHS/CDC Training of Trainers workshop on 
Instructional Design in Northeast India.  END SUMMARY 
 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
University Grants Commission Plans for 735 New Universities in India 
by 2012 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶2.  The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) has planned an 
allocation of nearly USD 20 billion (Rs. 850,000 million)) towards 
higher education in the eleventh five year plan (2007-2012).  This 
includes setting up new universities including Indian Institutes of 
Technologies (IIT) and Indian Institutes of Management (IIM). 
Towards this end, the University Grants Commission created a 
committee to investigate various modes of operation including 
potential private public partnerships.  The committee's report 
highlights the need for additional universities and mirrors the 
views of the National Knowledge Commission (NKC) which had last year 
said that India would need at least 1,500 universities if India 
truly aspired to be a knowledge based economy able to meet its 
growing shortage of skilled human resources. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
Workshop on Indian R&D and Scope for Nanotechnology 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶3.  The Federation of the Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industries 
(FICCI) along with the Department of Science and Technology (DST) 
organized a workshop on nanotechnology for industry on September 5, 
¶2008.  SciCouns and SciFSN participated in the workshop which was 
inaugurated by Professor CNR Rao, the Chairperson of the Scientific 
Advisory Committee to the Prime Minister of India.  Professor Rao 
who also heads the GOI Nanotechnology Mission.  He urged industry to 
take up large scale production of nano materials and appreciated the 
GOI initiative which allows academics and scientists to start new 
ventures based on original ideas.  The DST Secretary, Dr. Ramasamy, 
highlighted the various products being developed based on 
nanotechnology, including water purifiers and new textile 
technology.  He also noted Indian scientists were now eligible to 
receive up to USD 125,000 in funding from the GOI for starting new 
ventures in nanotechnology.  Approximately 250 people participated 
in the workshop with industry present mainly as observers rather 
than presenters. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
Large Solar Power Projects and Land Acquisition Issues 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶4.  The GOI has ambitious plans to harness solar energy but will 
face difficulty in acquiring the large tracts of land necessary for 
major solar installations.  US and European experience indicates 
that a 100 MW solar power generation facility requires approximately 
a 1000 acre contiguous tract.  GOI plans include very large 1000 MW 
 
NEW DELHI 00002418  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
facilities requiring upwards of 10,000 acres.  In overpopulated and 
hence land-starved India, creating large contiguous tracts requires 
relocating population settlements which usually proves highly 
problematic.  The TATA group recently faced this issue in West 
Bengal when villagers demonstratQd over land given to the company to 
set-up a factory for the upcoming Nano car.  The GOI has yet to 
articulate how it plans to acquire sufficient land for its large 
grid connected solar power generation projects although states such 
as Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana have enabled power 
companies to acquire large tracts of land through the use of Special 
Economic Zones. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
Government of India Bans Veterinary Use of Diclofenac 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶5.  After five years of advocacy by conservationists from the Bombay 
Natural History Society (BNHS), the Government of India has finally 
banned, via an amendment to section 26A of the Indian Drugs and 
Cosmetics Act, the manufacture, sale, and use of Diclofenac for 
veterinary use.  Diclofenac, an anti-inflammatory and analgesic 
widely used on cattle, was identified in 2003 as the cause of a 
staggering 99 percent decline in the population of three species of 
Indian vulture which suffer renal failure after ingesting dead cows 
treated with Diclofenac.  Despite a phase out announced in 2005, the 
drug remains in widespread use throughout India due to its efficacy, 
availability, and low-cost.  The newly announced ban does not affect 
the manufacture or sale of Diclofenac for human use, which is widely 
substituted for use on animals, but is expected to have a positive 
impact on vulture populations and has been welcomed by 
conservationists. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
CDC Team Investigates U.P.'s Recent Encephalitis Outbreak 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶6.  At the invitation of the National Institute of Virology (NIV), 
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) team of Thomas 
Ksiazek and Stuart T. Nichol visited Gorakhpur in eastern Uttar 
Pradesh from 27 - 31 August, 2008 to work with NIV professionals on 
the investigation of an acute encephalitis syndrome outbreak.  The 
NIV-CDC team has come to the conclusion that the outbreak is not due 
to Japanese Encephalitis, which has been reported in this region 
from past years.  The team is of the view that the outbreak may be 
due to Enterovirus.  NIV has requested Enterovirus experts to visit 
India and help them in the investigation. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
FDA's Good Clinical Practice (GCP) Workshop for India's Regulators - 
A Huge Success 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶7.  The first in a series of three workshops, the "Workshop on Good 
Clinical Practice/Clinical Research Inspection" held September 2-5, 
2008 in New Delhi and organized jointly by the Ministry of Health's 
Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) office and the U.S. Food 
and Drug Administration, focused on training 24 trainers from the 
DCGI office, state drug control offices, and from academia. 
According to DCGI Dr. Surinder Singh, the workshop marked the first 
time any of his regulators had an opportunity to participate in a 
GCP workshop or visit a clinical trial site as part of an 
educational exercise.  The FDA team included Dr. David Lepay, Dr. 
Jean Toth-Allen and Dr. Beverly Corey.  The workshop comes at a time 
 
NEW DELHI 00002418  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
when India is attempting to not only put in place legislation for 
clinical trial regulation and inspections by the end of 2009, but 
also train their regulators at both the federal and state level. 
The second workshop is planned for May-June 2009. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
Draft Public Health Bill for Emergency Preparedness and Combating 
Bioterrorism 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶8.  India is awaiting Cabinet approval for its newly-drafted Public 
Health (Prevention, Control and Management of Epidemics, 
Bioterrorism and Disasters) Bill which, when enacted, will replace 
the century-old Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897 and provide for better 
epidemic and disaster management.  India, realizing the threat of 
potential terrorist attacks, has named bioterrorism as a major 
public health challenge along with emerging diseases such as Avian 
Influenza.  The draft Act lists 32 epidemic prone diseases and 34 
potential bioterrorism agents with enhanced penalties for 
deliberately engaging in the spread of disease.  The draft Act will 
also enable the GOI to direct states on the implementation and 
execution of the Act. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
HHS/CDC Training Of Trainers on Instructional Design for North 
Eastern States 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶9.  At the request of the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO), 
HHS/CDC GAP India conducted a Training of Trainers workshop on 
Instructional design at the NACO sub-office in Guwahati, Assam. The 
training, one of the first of its kind in that region, furthered the 
concept of linking capacity building initiatives to performance on 
the ground.  This workshop was attended by 30 selected participants 
from diverse backgrounds ranging from medical professionals to peer 
workers representing governmental agencies, NGOs and UN agencies 
focused on HIV.  The workshop proved highly successful and NACO is 
planning to replicate it throughout India with CDC's support. 
 
MULFORD