new delhi

Hit parade: the Agni missile makes its New Delhi debut in last month'sRepublic Day celebrations. Credit: PTI

Sanctions imposed by the US government after India'snuclear tests in May 1998 have badly hit work at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), India'spremier institution for physical and mathematical research.

Some 45 of the institute'sscientists held an extraordinary meeting on 28 January. They said the situation was “serious” and that some projects may be abandoned if the sanctions were not lifted soon. They believe other research institutes in India have similar problems.

TIFR, funded by the Department of Atomic Energy, is one of 250 “entities” the US government claimed were helping India'snuclear and missile programmes. US government agencies were prevented from collaborating with these, and US firms require export licences to trade with them (see Nature 393, 197;1998 & 396, 206; 1998). Last month, the US government stopped seven scientists from the Fermi National Laboratory from attending an international conference on high-energy physics at TIFR.

Chemistry professor G. Krishnamoorthy, who organized the meeting, said that TIFR was suffering most from the denial of equipment and services from US firms. “The effects of sanctions began only after the publication of the entities list by the US Bureau of Export Administration in the middle of November,” he said. “We have received a large number of denials from companies because they apparently want to play it safe [with the US government]”.

A laser bought from Spectra-Physics at a cost of $250,000 in March 1998 for studying biomolecules has been idle for months because the company is refusing to ship any attachments or to service it, despite a one-year warranty. A $100,000 computer bought from Silicon Graphics “for solving complex problems in theoretical physics” is lying unused, as the company has refused to replace defective processors. Work stations and servers bought from Digital are not being serviced. Sorvall has refused to deliver high-speed ultracentrifuges. Malaria researcher Shobhona Sharma says that Sigma (India) has been instructed not to supply chemicals or biochemicals. Optical and electronic components from Thorn Labs have been denied and, says Krishnamoorthy, “this is only a sample”.

Scientists say that research using equipment supplied before the sanctions and not working properly has stopped. “Where new purchases of materials and equipment have been denied, the ongoing research projects have either had to be abandoned or toned down,” says Krishnamoorthy. Although some items can be obtained from other countries, he says, this is impossible in many cases. “Denial of products from the USA would place us in a situation where we will not be able to select the best approach in our research.”

TIFR scientists feel the sanctions have “gone far beyond the stated purpose of limiting India'snuclear, missile and military activity” and are hurting basic science. Some suspect that the heads of the country'sscientific agencies are downplaying the issue because of vested interests.

TIFR scientists fear that if this continues “we may not be able to attract bright students and scientists” — a serious problem since many of its scientists are due to retire in the next few years.