Dr. Atul Narayan Vaidya, Director, CSIR-NEERI, Nagpur
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CSIR-NEERI has completed 63 year glorious service to the society as leading national research institution and has significantly contributed to the growth of the industries and transforming lives of common man. As one of CSIR's premier Institute focussing on the environment, NEERI plays a very important role in defining Leadership in Environmental Science and Engineering for Sustainable Development. I have always believed that sustainable environment practices make a positive contribution to the environmental, social and economic sustainability of the communities they serve. |
....The journey started in 1958 when serious water pollution episode confronted Delhi, which led to creation of Central Public Health Research Institute (CPHERI) on April 08, 1958, to assess and counter issue in public health domain under the umbrella of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research CSIR, by the then Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Initially the environmental concerns were limited to human health with focus on water supply, sewage disposal and communicable diseases. Later, world-wide public awareness on the environmental degradation started getting attention and CPHERI was renamed as National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) in 1974, by the then Prime Minister and President CSIR, Smt. Indira Gandhi, to encompassed the entire vistas of R&D in the field of Environmental Science and Engineering. While the institute started its journey primarily to address issues related to water pollution control, later entries into the air and land environment made it encompass all the major domains of environment.
Currently, the Institute, in-line with the vision, mission and policy of CSIR, delineated trust areas for R&D comprising of Air Pollution Monitoring and Control, Water Technology and Management, Climate Change, Cleaner Technology and Modelling, Energy and Resource Management, Environmental Biotechnology and Genomics, Environmental Health, Environmental Virology, Environmental Impact and Risk Assessment, Environmental Materials, Solid & Hazardous Waste Management, Strategic Urban Management, Wastewater Treatment Technology. Presently, CSIR-NEERI is functioning with Headquarters at Nagpur and five Zonal Laboratories located at Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai and Hyderabad.
We believe it is our responsibility to continue be involved in providing sustainable solution to the challenging environmental pollutions problems and develop robust environmental solutions that target productive and sustainable use of natural resources. Our Honourable Prime Minister and Chairman, Shri Narendra Modi, said on the occasion of the CSIR Platinum Jubilee celebrations that, “History bears witness to the fact that no nation can develop, unless it has the benefit of science and technology” and CSIR-NEERI has always been a front-runner in developing cost-effective and need based and bio-inspired technological innovations suitable to socio-economic conditions prevailing in the country in a sustainable, inclusive and people centred manner. NEERI significantly contributes to policy making, environmental regulations,and implementation through active participation in various National and State level expert committees constituted by Ministries and Regulatory agencies.
The Institute will continue to reap even more fruitful achievements in coming year through untiring efforts of its dedicated team to promote Government and private sector initiatives and strengthen local, regional and national capabilities to address urban and industrial pollution, and implement pollution prevention and waste minimization programmes. CSIR-NEERI would continue to advance innovations in environmental science and engineering.
I hope that with the support of Government of India, State Government, CSIR, Industries, CPCB, SPCBs, valued Stakeholders and our society, the Institute will rise in defining the path to address emerging environmental challenges. The focus of the Institute will be for developing end to end environmental solutions and keep the focus of CSIR NEERI as a place for "Society driven Solution" through use of Science and Engineering.