Two new centres for alternatives to animal testing
Chennai : India will soon have two research institutions that will provide alternatives to experimentation on live animals.
A National Cell Science Centre would be set up during the 11th Five-Year Plan 2007-12 as part of an institute of alternatives to animal research, officials said here Monday.
Moreover, a National Breeding Facility would be set up during the period to develop animals with specific qualities for scientific research since such animals were becoming scarce in India.
Use of few animals with necessary qualities would reduce the number of unsuccessful random experiments that require a large number of animals, experts said.
"The Andhra Pradesh government has given 100 acres of land to ICMR to start this breeding facility," Vasantha Muthuswamy, senior deputy director general of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said during the opening session of the first Indian Congress on Alternatives to the Use of Animals in Research, Testing and Education.
Said T. Ramasamy, secretary of the Department of Science and Technology: "The ultimate goal should be to completely stop use of animals in experiment.
"At least, attempts can be made to reduce tests on animals and stop dissection and other experiments in education even as alternatives are being developed," he suggested.
