Pollution Control Research Institute in India
PCRI air qualify mniloring van, Agra. India; TajMa-. _._ distam
By Michael Graber
The government of India, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), decided in 1984 to establish a research institute dedicated to industrial pollution control. The institute is sponsored by the Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. (BHEL) at Hardwar, Uttar Pradesh, about 100 mi northeast of Dew, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)was chosen to act as the executing agency for this project. The objective of creating this Pollution Control Research Institute (PCRl) was to assist India in achieving selfreliance in the a m of industd pollution control rechnologies with respect to air, water, noise, and solid waste pollution. It was envisioned that research at the F’CN would be directed towards the development of methods for recovery and reuse of industrial wastes and the evolution of processes and control procedures concerned with minimization of waste generation. PCRI was also intended to provide industry in India with expert advice on industrial pollution control and serve as a local reservoir of technical and scientific knowledge. To achieve this objective, about 30 scientists and engineers, graduates of the 12W Envimn. Sci. Technol.. Vol. 24. NO.9. 1990
buildings of the institute were constrncted with funds from the Indian government on grounds at Hardwar provided by BHEL. The necessary equipment for these laboratories, including a state-ofthe-art mobile air quality monitoring station, was purchased through UNIDO with funds from UNDP. One of the Fist consulting projects that PCRI took was to provide the Agra Foundry Association with field data on the air pollutant emissions from the numerous small iron foundries operating in Agra in the vicinity of the Taj Mahal,as well as air quality monitoring data ( I ) . These data may help determine the impact of such emissions on the Taj Mahal and other monuments in India. Michael Graber
best academic institutions in India, were selected for the PCIU staff, and an indepth training program in the United States and Europe on pollution control technologies was organized for them. As part of the mining program, UNIDO also sent to PCRI experts on industrial pollution control from the United States, the United Kingdom, Poland, France, Austria, and Israel. Well-equipped laboratories in the areas of air, water, noise, and solid wastes were established at PCRI. The
Reference (I)
“Emissions from Cas1 Imn Foundries and Their Impact on the Taj Mahal and othrr Historic Monuments m A m ” : Pollution Control Research Institute Report No. PCRIA-7003; Hardwar, India, MarchApril 1987.
Michael Graber is head of the air quality division for the State of Israel Ministry of the Environment and consultant to UNIDO and UNEP on air quality. He studied physics and atmospheric sciences at the Hebrew UniversityinJeruralem, where he received his PhD.
0013-936w90/0924-1290$02.~0@ 1990 American Chemical Society
