Chidambaram urges states focus on combustion research

Shillong, Nov 6 : Principal Scientific Adviser to the Prime Minister Dr R Chidambaram today asked the state governments to focus on combustion research and look into the possibilities of producing power for every ton of carbon dioxide.

'We (India) are pursuing for cleaner carbon technologies producing more power for every ton of carbon-dioxide emitted like supercritical and ultra-supercritical coal-based technologies, ' he said while addressing the 18th convocation of North East Hill University (NEHU) today.

Dr Chidambaram also urged the state governments to focus on combustion research and look into possibilities of carbon-dioxide capture and conversion of flue gases into useful products at economical cast.

He said the two measures of development for a country like India are per capita electricity consumption and female literacy.

According to Dr Chidambaram, improvement in electricity consumption and female literacy are better measures than the three parameters of per capita, Gross National Product (GNP), life expectancy at birth and adult literacy-used by the United Nations to define the Human Development Index.

' If India wants to become an economically developed country, it should become near 100 per cent literate without gender discrimination and there should be a manifold increase in its electricity production, ' the Scientific Advisor said.

Earlier, the NEHU conferred the honorary doctor of Science to the former Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation Dr G Madhavan Nair for the contribution in the field of science and technology and the Chairman of INFOSYS Dr N R Narayana Murthy for his efforts to improve the field of science and technology.

The University also conferred honorary Doctor of Letters to former Chief Election Commissioner of India JM Lyngdoh (public administration) and renowned Sarod Maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan (music).

Mr Murthy and Amjad Ali were conferred the degrees in absentia, Mr Lyngdoh and Mr Nair were present on the occasion to accept the honorary cosia.

Earlier, in his welcome address, the NEHU Vice-Chancellor Pramod Tandon said that in order to meet the growing demands to provide quality education at affordable cost; the NEHU had decided to increase the intake capacity of students by 27 per cent in the past two years.

He said the University had also introduced several changes in the academic framework.

NEHU Chancellor Prof MGK Menon and Chief Rector, NEHU, Meghalaya Governor R S Mooshahary also highlighted the contribution of NEHU to the uplift of the entire Northeast region.

--UNI

(c) 2009 Published with permission from United News of India.
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