July 31, 2025
Phone: +91-0565-2471178 (O)

INSTITUTIONAL BIOSAFETY COMMITTEE (IBSC)

THE INSTITUTIONAL BIOSAFETY COMMITTEE (IBSC):

Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBSC) of U.P. Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Pashu Chikitsa Vigyan Vishwavidyalaya Evam Go-Anusandhan Sansthan, Mathura (Uttar Pradesh), is a registered and accredited committee of Dept. of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Science and Technology, Govt. of India through vide order number BT/IBKP/867/2024 on dated 17-October-2024. Institutional Biosafety Committees (IBCs), mandated in India primarily through the Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM) under the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) Guidelines, are indispensable for organizations conducting research involving biohazardous materials like recombinant DNA, genetically modified organisms (GMOs), pathogens, and toxins. Their critical need arises from the inherent risks of modern biological research, stringent national biosafety regulations (including Environment Protection Act rules), and the ethical imperative to protect researchers, public health, agriculture, and India’s unique biodiversity.

 

FUNCTION

The Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBSC), DUVASU will play a critical localized oversight role. Its core function is to review, approve, and monitor research projects involving biohazardous materials (e.g., GMOs/LMOs, rDNA) requiring containment as per DBT guidelines. Specifically, the IBSC:

  • Conducts rigorous risk assessment and grants prior approval for protocols falling under restricted categories, acting as the essential first step in the regulatory chain.
  • Develops and oversees the institutional biosafety programme, including manuals, procedures, and emergency plans, ensuring proposed risk assessments and management strategies are sufficient.
  • Ensures compliancethrough onsite evaluation, monitoring, and assessment of research facilities, adherence to biosafety guidelines (BSL/ABSL standards), and personnel expertise.
  • Manages communication, informing Principal Investigators of project review outcomes (approval/modification/rejection) and providing biosafety guidance regarding genetic material use and personnel safety.
  • Reports regularly to the RCGM Member Secretary on all relevant activities involving GMOs/LMOs/rDNA, along with any guideline non-compliance or problems.

COMPOSITION

Sl No Composition Name Current Designation Present Affiliation
1.         Chairman Prof. Vikas Pathak Professor & Dean COVSc & AH, DUVASU
2.         Member Secretary Dr. Ajay Pratap Singh Associate Professor Department of Vet. Microbiology, COVSc & AH, DUVASU
3.         DBT Nominee Dr. Babloo Kumar Principal Scientist ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Bareilly, U.P.
4.         Biosafety Officer Dr. Bhoodev Singh Medical Officer CMO office Mathura
5.         Outside Expert Dr. Nitika Sharma Senior Scientist Divisison of Animal Health, ICAR-CIRG, Makhdoom
6.         Internal Member Dr. Desh Deepak Singh Professor Department of Vet. Pathology, COVSc & AH, DUVASU
7.         Internal Member Dr. Udit Jain Associate Professor Department of Vet. Public Health, COVSc & AH, DUVASU
8. Internal Member Dr. Ruchi Tiwari Assistant Professor Department of Vet. Microbiology, COVSc & AH, DUVASU

 

Guideline for application process

  1. IBSC meeting to be held twice in a year (proposed in November-December and May-June), 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).
  2. 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.
  3. While preparing the application, please note the following: it is the responsibility of the principal investigator (PI) to apprise the IBSC about experiments involving recombinant DNA (rDNA) technology, genetically modified organisms (GMOs), living modified organisms (LMOs), or any infectious organisms through the application as stated above.
  4. For experiments involving rDNA and infectious organisms, the PI must determine the biosafety level as well as the category that the experiments fall under based on the DBT guidelines. The assignment of the risk category of any microorganism(s) being handled, as part of the experimental protocol must be determined based on the DBT guidelines. Please go through the guidelines provided by DBT in the DBT Guidelines Handbook (2011 and 2017), available at https://ibkp.dbtindia.gov.in. Additionally, you may find comprehensive resources on IBSC procedures and regulations at the Indian Biosafety Knowledge Portal: https://ibkp.dbtindia.gov.in/.
  5. The IBSC and subject expert(s), if required will evaluate the application. The applicant may be asked to present his or her proposal to the committee and may be asked to furnish other documents as required. To carry out research and development in the areas of healthcare and industrial use, please use Form C1. For research and development in the area of agricultural and environmental application, please use Form D1.
  6. 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.

 QUICK LINK TO DOWLOAD APPLICATION FORMAT

IMPORTANT LINKS AT RCGM SECRETARIAT, DBT

  1. Indian Biosafety Knowledge Portal (IBKP): https://ibkp.dbtindia.gov.in/Login/Login
  2. IBSC Rules, Acts & Guidelines: https://ibkp.dbtindia.gov.in/Content/Rules
  3. IBSC related application formats: https://ibkp.dbtindia.gov.in/Content/ApplicationFormats
  4. For IBSC Related Queries: ibkp2019@dbt.nic.in
  5. For RCGM Related Queries: dbt@nic.in

 QUICK LINKS FOR IMPORTANT GUIDELINES/HANDBOOKS

  1. Handbook for Institutional Biosafety Committees (IBSCs), Third Revised Edition, September 2020 (Download)
  2. Guidelines for the Establishment of Containment Facilities: BSL2 and BSL3 and Certification of BSL3 facility 2020 (Download)
  3. Entry of microorganisms in “List of Infective Microorganisms corresponding to different Risk Groups, 2021″ superseding the Annexure I of “Regulations & GuideIines for Recombinant DNA Research and Biocontainment, 2017” vide DBT OM dated 07.05.2024 (Download)
  4. List of infective Microorganisms corresponding to different Risk Groups, 2021″ vide DBT OM dated 09.12.2021 (Download)
  5. Regulations & Guidelines for Recombinant DNA Research and Biocontainment, 2017 (Download)
  6. Guidelines for the Environmental Risk Assessment of Genetically Engineered Plants, 2016 (Download)

 

IBSC Proposal notice 30-07-2025