THE Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) has several autonomous and aided institutions under it, but none is more important than the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) in Mumbai when it comes to stretching the frontiers of basic science. Similarly, the Institute of Mathematical Sciences in Chennai and the Harish-Chandra Research Institute in Allahabad do world-class work in mathematics.
Plasma technology, which has applications in everyday life too, is the focus of basic and applied research at the Institute for Plasma Research in Ahmedabad. According to Swapnesh Kumar Malhotra, head of the Public Awareness Division of the DAE, the Institute is working on the creation of plasma for sustained fusion in electricity generation. It has developed a plasma pyroliser for the incineration of hospital medical waste, he said.
The Tata Memorial Centre, a premier autonomous institution in cancer research and treatment, is fully funded by the DAE. The TMC has set up a new facility called the Advanced Centre for Treatment, Research and Education in Cancer (ACTREC) at Navi Mumbai. The ACTREC has two wings - one for basic research in gene therapy, molecular genetics, immunotherapy and molecular epidemiology and another for clinical research.
