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New Delhi, January 6 (IANS): The world's second "National Environmental Standard Laboratory" and the world's fifth "National Primary Standard Facility for Solar Cell Calibration" at the CSIR-National Physical Laboratory (NPL) will strengthen India’s environment and renewable energy ecosystem, said Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology.
The Minister inaugurated the apex national facilities during the 80th Foundation Day celebrations of CSIR-NPL here.
Singh described the National Environmental Standard Laboratory, as a critical step towards strengthening India’s environmental governance framework.
“Reliable, India-specific calibration and certification of air pollution monitoring systems was long overdue and would now enable transparent, traceable, and accurate environmental data. The facility will support regulatory bodies, industries, and startups by ensuring that monitoring instruments are tested under Indian climatic conditions, thereby improving policy enforcement under programmes such as the National Clean Air Programme,” Singh said.
The Minister termed the Solar Energy Complex a “future-ready facility that places India among a select group of global leaders in photovoltaic measurement standards”.
Developed in collaboration with PTB, Germany, the laser-based Differential Spectral Responsivity (L-DSR) system achieves the lowest uncertainty globally at 0.35 per cent (k=2) for reference solar cell calibration.
Singh noted that the facility would reduce India’s dependence on foreign certification agencies, save foreign exchange, shorten turnaround time for calibration, and enhance investor confidence in the country’s rapidly expanding solar sector.
The Minister said that science and technology reforms will be the key drivers shaping India’s socio-economic future.
Describing India’s premier scientific institutions as “monuments of 20th and 21st century India,” Singh said that laboratories like the CSIR-NPL embody India’s scientific journey from pre-Independence foundations to global technological leadership.
The MoS said that the laboratory was already operational before Independence and later became an integral pillar of India’s post-Independence scientific architecture.
He said CSIR itself is older than independent India, making NPL one of the earliest “siblings” among the 37 CSIR laboratories.
Speaking to reporters, the Minister said that the laboratory was mentored by eminent national leaders including Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, calling NPL a rare institution where history and science intersect.
“For decades, half the nation synchronised its watches with the atomic clock housed at NPL,” the Minister said, underscoring the laboratory’s role in establishing Indian Standard Time (IST).
Singh said that Indian scientists are no longer working in isolation within laboratories but are central to national expectations and aspirations.
