After engaging in research and development of technologies for civilian purpose, especially focussing on rubber farmers, the Rubber Research Institute of India (RRII) under the Rubber Board has taken a major step in the direction of research and development for defence purpose, on a commercial basis.
According to James Jacob, Director, RRII, three projects are in the pipeline and the MoU for one has already been signed.
The agreement signed between the Rubber Board and the National Institute for Research and Development in Defence Ship Building (NIRDESH), Kozhikode, is for developing rubber-based mountings for use in indigenously built submarines at Mazagon Dock Ltd., Mumbai. The institute has handed over prototypes of the products to the navy.
“This project is being taken up as part of the ongoing efforts of the RRII to take its rubber technology research findings to the Indian rubber industry,” Dr. Jacob said.
Talks are on for research, development and transfer of technology to the Cochin shipyard, for use in naval vessels being constructed there. The third project being taken up is in tie-up with the Boarder Security Force.
According to Dr. Jacob, the project is development of rubber bullets as ammunition for crowd control.
The RRII has a history of developing technologies for industrial purposes and had tie-ups with flagship establishments such as ISRO earlier but this is for the first time that the institute is making a focussed effort in this direction, Dr. Jacob said.
According to him, the initiative of the board has come at a favourable moment as the nation is seriously going in for indigenisation of technology and product development for defence purpose.
Dr. Jacob pointed out that many of the technologies for spare parts being used in the maintenance of products, now being imported, were already available indigenously.
The RRII was capable of research and development of technologies for products used in the locomotive and aircraft industries, he said.
He said the area provided tremendous scope since the rubber industry today produced more than 50,000 different products.
The RRII had developed and transferred technologies to the farmers free of cost, however, the research, development and transfer of technologies for industrial purpose would be taken up on a commercial basis, Dr. Jacob added.
Genome project
Meanwhile, the other major initiative announced by the Rubber Board chairman Sheela Thomas is for de novo sequencing, assembly and annotation of the whole genome of rubber.
The major objective of this project is to develop a database of genes and molecular markers linked to high latex yield, disease resistance, timber yield and resilience to adverse climatic conditions.
The RRII has initiated this programme with a tie-up with an external agency which will undertake nucleotide sequencing work for which a non-disclosure agreement has been signed.
The assembly and annotations will be done in association with RRII scientists.
The genome of rubber. which contains the entire genetic information about the species. is large and complex and the same is expected to contain about three billion nucleotide base pairs which constitute the genes, regulatory elements and non-coding sequences in this species.
