Projects

CSIR Aroma Mission (Phase III) 

Catalyzing rural empowerment and entrepreneurship development through cultivation, processing, value addition and marketing of aromatic plants

Objectives

  • Development of sustainable models for cultivation of aroma crops
  • Value addition and waste utilization
  • Knowledge/technology generation and utilization
  • Skilling, entrepreneurship development and market linkages
  • Promotion of aroma crops for reducing import burdens or having great export potential

Deliverables

  • Aroma villages/clusters following sustainable cultivation and processing technologies for the production of quality raw materials on a sustainable basis while protecting the ecosystem
  • High-value molecules from deoiled herb; Safe essential oil-based products for human and veterinary use; High value aroma chemicals through transformations; Techniques of fractionation of essential oils for value addition
  • Genomic resources data for important crops which could be exploited for developing improved genotypes/varieties; Molecular markers for authentication and identification of improved varieties; Library/database of pure reference materials of aroma molecules; Technologies for higher productivity with maximum resource use efficiency; Resource-efficient and climate resilient varieties
  • Trained human resources skilled in aroma crops cultivation, processing and value addition; Entrepreneurs/start-ups in aroma sector
  • Cultivation of crops providing higher benefits to the farmers; Reducing dependence of several essential oils from other countries and promoting exports of some; Increasing the area under cultivation of selected aromatic crops (CSIR-IHBT target is to extend cultivation over 1500 ha area)

CSIR Floriculture Mission (Phase II) 

Objectives

  • Enhancing farmers’ income and entrepreneurship development through high value floriculture utilizing CSIR technologies /li>

Deliverables

  • Production of quality planting material (1.56 Cr)
  • Expansion of area under floriculture (500 ha)
  • Training programs to be organized (93 Nos.)
  • Number of gardens in school and colleges (150 Nos.)
  • Number of vertical gardens (30 Nos.)
  • Development of post-harvest and value addition technologies (26 Nos.)
  • Number of Pushp Krishi Mela/Workshop/training programme/skill development/Meets (15 Nos.)

CSIR-Phytopharmaceutical Mission - Phase III

Captive cultivation and mass production of quality planting materials (QPM) of selected medicinal plants.

Objectives

  • Generation of large-scale quality planting materials (QPM) of targeted medicinal plant species
  • Expansion of the area of targeted medicinal plant species under captive cultivation

Deliverables

  • Availability of QPM in a sustainable manner
  • Availability of authentic botanical raw drug (BRD) for the phytopharmaceutical industries
  • Reduction of the import size of botanical raw drug
  • An additional area of about 70 hectares will be brought under cultivation by the interventions of CSIR-IHBT
  • Under this mission, about 10.7 lakh of quality planting materials and 75 kg seeds of targeted medicinal plants will be generated and distributed to the farmers/growers
  • More than 200 farming families will be benefitted

CSIR Mission on Bioresource Conservation and Prospection (BioCAP)

Objectives

  • Biodiversity characterization & resource mapping in the target areas
  • Genetic characterization of selected/prioritized species
  • Chemical characterization & value addition of selected/prioritized species
  • Conservation, management and outreach

Deliverables

  • Floras of unexplored regions
  • Conspectus on Indian Coasts
  • Barcodes for authentication
  • Monographs on wild edible plants
  • Microbial database & novel formulations
  • Conservation protocols
  • Value added products, processes & technologies
  • Publications & Patents
  • Human Resource Development

Smart Village Mission

The Smart Village Mission aims to drive sustainable development by transforming rural India through technological, social, and economic advancements.

Objectives

  • Develop a risk and needs assessment framework for smart villages, addressing socio-economic and environmental factors.
  • Deploy climate-responsive technologies to enhance sustainability, energy efficiency, and resilience in rural areas
  • Foster a self-sustained ecosystem through collaborative participation of communities, technologists, and stakeholders
  • Formulate a strategic roadmap for smart village development in the Indian context, addressing key challenges with innovative solutions

Deliverables

  • Deployment of technologies such as smart grids, water and waste water management systems, rural electrification, and modern farming tools in selected villages.
  • Development of infrastructure including roads, housing, and sanitation
  • Creation of skill development programs and digital literacy training for rural populations
  • Establishment of eco-friendly and self-sustaining village systems
  • Continuous monitoring and evaluation of progress and outcomes

Specialty Chemicals for Industrial Applications

Objectives

  • Identification of plant with maximum tannin content
  • Development of an efficient lab-scale process for the tannin extraction from targeted plants
  • Characterization of tannins using modern spectroscopic techniques
  • Assessment of extracted tannins in the tanning process
  • Pilot scale process for tannin extraction

Deliverables

  • Institutional knowledge of plant resources that are rich in tannin
  • Societal replacement of toxic chromium-based leather tanning process with environment-friendly tannin based tanning process
  • Industrial process for tannin extraction from plant sources

Process for substituted cyclohexane-1-3-diones synthesis ((Fast Track Translational Project supported by CSIR)

Project Investigator- Dr. Pralay Das

The cyclohexane-1,3-dione derivatives are important intermediates for several bioactive  molecules synthesis. The cyclohexane-1,3-dione is a basic unit present in triketones such as mesotrione having herbicidal activity. Due to high cost of cyclohexane-1,3-dions as a base material, the cost of final products of herbicides are very high and  difficult for farmers  to afford.

 Through process innovation, CSIR-IHBT has developed a simple cost effective method for preparation of substituted cyclohexane-1-3-diones. Efforts are underway for its upscaled production. Apart from herbicides, this molecule has application as a potent drug against Tyrosinemia type-I metabolic disorder disease. Looking into the commercial implications a Patent has been filed for the invention.