Central forensic lab to come up at Rajarhat

The Centre has already sanctioned Rs 25 crore — Rs 10 crore for land and Rs 15 crore for constructing the eight storeyed building — as the initial cost of the project.

“The rapid change in the pattern of crime requires more sophisticated and specialised units. We are setting up more equipped and specialised units at the Rajarhat lab,” said C N Bhattacharya,director,CFSL-Kolkata.

“We have paid for the land and are waiting for the HIDCO to take over the property. Work would start right after that,” Bhattacharya added.

The laboratory will help in reducing the pressure from the existing CFSL facility at Kolkata,which receives around 1,200 to 1,500 cases every year from West Bengal,Orissa,Bihar and North East.

Besides setting up an indoor laboratory (approximately 75,000 to 80,000 sq feet),the new complex is expected to have an outdoor laboratory facility.

“Forensic science is not only about indoor laboratory. On many occasions we require outdoor testing,” said Bhattacharya. (See box)

Departments like forensic psychology,shooter identification,integrated ballistic information system,narcotics,along with the existing units in the current facility will be set up at Rajarhat.

The CFSL recently bought Integrated Ballistic Information System equipment from Canada worth Rs 4 crore. The laboratory hopes to collect data and mark each kind of cartridges used by particular firearms. “We also got equipment from UK worth Rs 1.5 crore,which will identify minute gaseous particles on suspected shooters,” Bhattacharya added.

This project is a part of the Rs 300 crore allocated by the Centre during the 10th Five-Year Plan for upgrading existing CFSL facilities in Kolkata,Chandigarh and Hyderabad. The Centre will set up three more CFSLs in Guwahati,Bhopal and Pune.

Snapshots
* 600-700 feet long underground firing range to study the trajectory parameter of bullets fired during a shooting crime
* 600 feet long and 10-15 feet wide track for testing vehicle movements and skid marks
* 75 feet long foot print track to note the marks on soil
*n Bomb hut of size 25×30 sq feet area to store explosives
* 40×60 sq feet open zone for simulation of fire scene and arson-related crime cases
* Nuclear-biological-chemical testing lab of size 20×20 sq feet
* 20×20 sq feet area for simulating bodies falling under gravity
* 10×10 sq feet area to burn biological fluids and body parts

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