India will soon have a Rs 125 crore tsunami warning system in place. The system, which will be based in Hyderabad, includes strengthening of the existing network of seismic stations and placing instruments on the sea bed to detect a tsunami. Steps taken after the 2004 tsunami enable the Indian Meteorological Department to assess the possibility of a tsunami and issue a general alert within 30 minutes of an earthquake. After the new system is operational in 2007 a more specific warning can be sounded.

Irradiated food is free of pests and lasts longer. But is it also safe?

Nuclear technology is not only about atomic bombs and power stations. It is also helping preserve foodstocks and prolong the shelf life of a wide range of foods. The technique used is irradiation, which employs radioactive isotopes to produce controlled amounts of beta rays or X-rays on food. This kills the three biggest offenders-campylobacter, salmonella and E. coli-and prolongs the shelf life of fruits and vegetables without any change in the appearance or taste of food. It can also be used to destroy insects and parasites in foodgrains, dried beans, dry fruits, and vegetables, meat and seafood as also inhibit sprouting in crops such as potatoes and onions and delay ripening of fruits and vegetables.

The process, in vogue in over 50 countries, finally has takers in India. Vardaan Agrotech and the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre have joined hands to set up a food irradiation facility at Bahalgarh in Haryana. "Food can now be preserved without using harmful chemicals," explains Vardaan Agrotech Chairman Dwarka Nath. "The cost of treatment is 1 per cent of the value of the produce, but the value addition is more than 25 per cent."

However, there are apprehensions that irradiated food is radioactive and that its nutritional quality gets impaired. The mist has not cleared fully on this.

-Compiled by Amarnath K. Menon