Indian Institute of Technology - Kanpur

Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBSC)

for Research Involving Hazardous Microorganisms/Genetically Engineered Organisms or Cells

(IBSC Reference No.: BT/BS/17/137/2004-PID)

Member Secretary: Dr. Saravanan Matheswaran, Dept. of Biological Sciences & Bioengineering [Email: saran@ / Tel: 4066]

Guidelines for submitting application for ethical clearance by the IBSC

Step 1: Submit a hard copy of the application to the office of the Member Secretary, IAEC. A soft copy of the application should also be submitted via email.

The application form can be downloaded from this link: <<IBSC Protocol Form>>

Please note that the IBSC normally meets twice in a year (November and May), therefore the application should be submitted at least 30 days in advance (i.e., by September 30 for the November meeting, and by March 31 for the May meeting).

It is the duty of the primary investigator (PI) to apprise the IBSC about experiments involving recombinant DNA (rDNA) technology, genetically modified organisms (GMOs) or living modified organisms (LMOs) through the application as stated above. This should be done prior to submission of a grant application to a funding agency.

While preparing the application please note the following:

· For experiments involving rDNA The PI must determine the biosafety level as well as the category that the experiments fall under based on the guidelines provided on page 187 in the following document <<Recombinant DNA Safety Guidelines of DBT>>.

· The assignment of the risk category of any microorganism(s) being handled as part of the experimental protocol must be determined based on the information provided in the pages 208-220 of the following document <<Recombinant DNA Safety Guidelines of DBT>>.

· Please go through the guidelines provided by DBT in the following document to understand the responsibilities of the PI <<DBT Guidelines Handbook - 2011>>.

The application will be evaluated by the committee (and subject expert if required) and the applicant may be asked to furnish other documents if required.

Step 2: A meeting of IBSC will be scheduled and the date will be communicate to the applicant at least 20 days in advance. The applicant may be asked to present his/her proposal to the committee and a decision will be communicated to applicant within a week.

All applicants are advised to go through the Indian Biosafety Rules & Regulations.