Sudan was in news headlines recently as it became the third Arab country after the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain to normalize ties and diplomatic relations with the Jewish state Israel. It occurred under a promise of Trump administration that Washington will remove the country from its list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Sudan also said that it has signed an agreement with the U.S. that could effectively stop any future compensation claims being filed against the African country in the U.S. courts.  The deal, signed with U.S., was meant to settle all lawsuits against Sudan in American courts, including those related to the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. The deal can be finalized only after U.S. Congress passes legislation needed to implement the agreement. This seems to be in doldrums with the change  of administration in Washington.  Sudan’s government has agreed to pay $335 million in compensation for victims of the attacks that were carried out reportedly by Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida network while the militant leader was living in Sudan. However Sudan says  the money would be held  till the U.S. finalized the restoration of Sudan’s sovereign immunity.

 Osama Bin Laden’s and mentor Abdullah Hasan Tarabi would also live in the Sudanese capital Khartoum.  Sudan came under radar of US as a state sponsor of terrorism in 1990s, when Al-Bashir government briefly hosted bin Laden and other wanted militants on the said condition that Osama Bin Laden  will heavily  invest  in agriculture and infrastructure in  the country.  According to an interview published in Asian Age on Oct 23, .2003: “Every one knew in Khartoum, especially taxi drivers about the location of the house of Abdullah Hasan Tarabi. He was close to the current government until three years ago, when he left to form his own National Congress Party. He came under US scrutiny when he spoke out in support of Osama bin Laden and has been imprisoned regularly. He was just released from house imprisonment by the Sudanese government on October 13 after 900 days and laughingly says that he has spent over nine years all told in jail or under house arrest”. In the same interview Tarabi denied close association with Osama bin Laden, insisting that he had met him only thrice. “Twice he came to meet me and once I returned his call,” he claimed. He insisted that the Al Qaeda leader was a media creation. 

Now a transitional government led jointly by military and civilian figures rules Sudan, after the overthrow of former leader Omar al-Bashir in April 2019. 

 After medieval invasions and colonial upheavals independent Sudan’s history  always  remained under turmoil over a long period. There was a vast division of ethnicity, culture, religion and language between north and south Sudan regions. North public is Islamic and speak Arabic while southern region people are Christians and speak a different language. For a long time, country faced heavy conflicts due to ethnic and economic reasons that resulted in giving an autonomous region to South Sudan. 

 In 1978, Sudan’s president Gaafar Nimeiry wanted to take control of the newly-discovered oil fields located on the border region between north and south Sudan.  In 1983, President Nimeiry imposed  Sharia Law across the nation and abolishing the mostly Christian Southern Sudan Autonomous Region.  Most South Sudanese people and other people who were non-Muslim living in the north were now punished by Sharia Law. The  rebels from South Sudan formed the Southern Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA) to fight the central government in Khartoum and thus a long civil war began. Nimery was ousted in a coup in 1985. Civil war like fighting went on between Khartoum central forces and rebel forces amidst many intermittent peace negotiations with atrocities and human rights abuses occurring on both sides. In January 2011, a referendum  was held to determine whether South Sudan should become an independent country and separate from Sudan. 98.83% of the population voted for independence .On July 9, 2011, South Sudan became the 54th independent country in Africa ending a long war and heavy loss of life.  

On July 14,2011, South Sudan became  the 193rd member of the United Nations.  Post independence South Sudan too faced a lot many armed  revolts from rebels within. In December 2013, a political power struggle broke out between President Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar , as the president accused Machar and ten others of attempting a coup  Fighting broke out, igniting the South  Sudan Ethnic civil war involving troops from neighboring Uganda for peace.

It was in October 2003 that I was part of the media delegation that accompanied our  President A P J Abdul Kalam on his visit to United Arab Emirate (UAE),Sudan and Bulgaria. This was President Kalam’s first foreign tour after assuming office. Unlike Prime Minister’s visits, Presidents foreign visits are not too taxing for journos as they get enough time to see around. But President Kalam was very active and he kept the media team on tenterhooks that covered the visit extensively. He had a very busy schedule in UAE, Khartoum and Sofia with giving lectures in parliaments ,schools , scientific establishments and meeting Indologists and local people.

Generally as a custom, PMs or Presidents meet the accompanying media group only once on board special flight during the visit. But President Kalam would come and interact with journos in all the intermittent flights between countries to share his experiences of the nations. Like a teacher, he would explain on how he chose those three countries for his first trip abroad. 

Before landing in Khartoum, we could see the single stories mud houses on the Sudanese soil. No high rise buildings were noticed. A question was pondering in everyone’s mind that why the President chose this country for his first foreign visit! What was his idea of Sudan which was virtually demolished   in a long civil war and US had listed the country in the state sponsored terror list. Omer Hassan Ahmed al Bashir  was in place as President at that time. .  

Dr Kalam said while landing in such a place one could see the landscape dotted with mud houses like in India. Let us see the poor and their lives and their zeal to survive in such a war like crisis here. He told accompanying scribes that you will have many chance to  see big cities with  sky scrapers in developed countries but not cities like this for a different experience. He described the Sudan visit as a learning trip. He mentioned the ancient relations between India and Sudan for trade in silk and other commodities.

He liked Sudan as its capital Khartoum is located at the confluence of Blue Nile and White Nile rivers converging into great Nile. Dr Kalam also said that First  Indian  Election Commissioner Sukumar Sen conducted first election in Sudan too in 1953. There had been many bilateral visits of Indian Presidents and Prime Ministers to Sudan and Sudanese  leader’s visit to India. India had good relations during British era too as steel for two bridges on River Nile was sent from India. He also mentioned that India’s  ONGC was venturing in oil exploration in Sudan under an agreement.    

As media persons, we went through the city and its markets and met the people. We  felt as if we were wandering in any small city of India. But the city located on the banks of  both the blue and white Nile rivers present Khartoum with a unique  scenario loaded with a glorious past and history. People speak only Arabic. You are lucky if you come across an English knowing man. Even we had to face such a situation when our driver could not understand to take us to airport to catch the Presidential flight. He took us to other places before arriving at the airport in the nick of time.     

In Sudan, President addressed their Parliament though there was a deep strife between north and south Sudan.  While we were cruising on great Nile, a Sudanese singer sang a song and its meaning was “O river flow slowly till I end song of my life”. We attended a gala banquet hosted by the then Sudanese President in the lawns of famous palace where British Generals Kitchener and Gordon lived during British rule there. 

In Bulgaria, the Reela Monastery of Bulgaria is a very popular pilgrimage surrounded by beautiful hills clothed with colorful forests. President Kalam visited the ancient monastery and took keen interest of its history. My Bulgarian interpreter Tswetanova told me that there is an ancient connection between India and Bulgaria as Alexander the Great was from Macedonia which was part of Bulgaria then.

 (The writer is a senior journalist and broadcaster.)

When passion turns into a profession, it often creates some magic and a revolution. Nowadays Rap and Hip Hop is dominating the music world and made a big place in audience’s hearts. At a time when a number of artists are getting involved in the Hip Hop singing, it has become a tough competition to survive.

However, meet one of the most powerful and influential Bengal-based Rapper Archiesman Kundu, popularly known as ‘Archies’. Kundu’s music is relatable and has a strong impact on music lovers. He launches his collections of songs on his Youtube channel ‘Archiesmusic’. Kundu got famous among Hip Hop lovers after he launched his three songs namely, ‘Urban Bengali’ produced by Rawhit, ‘Straight Outta Midnapore’ and ‘Don’t Talk’. “After getting a huge response and love from the audience, we decided to come up with a new song namely ‘Bad At It’ which is releasing on November 13. The song is produced by Rawhit.

Sharing about how he developed his interest in the music, Archiesman Kundu said, “When I was a kid, my father brought me an I-pod. I started listening to music round the clock. Meanwhile, I started observing renowned musicians such as Eminem, Lil Wayne and Chris Brown and begin singing. Meanwhile, I got inspired from Rappers Raftaar, Ikka, Raga and Badshaah and started my journey as a singer and Hip Hop artist.

To describe him in the best possible way, one can call him the guy with smart looks, raw talent, and sheer hard work. The millennial and youth, in particular, form a major chunk of his fan base. He makes them groove to the tunes of his music.

It is difficult to believe that Archiesman Kundu, one of the most recognised faces in the Hip Hop world of West Bengal, was once a directionless, who faced problems while balancing his singing and college life. However, later he proved himself as a successful musician and learned to manage things.

His upcoming song ‘Bad At It’ would prove to be another feather in his cap.

Their are generally no shortcuts to any place worth going. “Agar itna asaan hota to sab manzil par pahonchte, safar poora krna apne aap mai ek suffer h” – The saying applies not just to travel but in our life as well and those who travel to their destination are polished by hard work and sheer dedication. Team Last Page – A production house that is curated by Shubham Kumar has come a long way and there have been absolutely no short cuts in the journey. 

“Ever since the first day of establishment my only goal was to produce content and videos that would touch people’s heart.I actually gave this project my blood and sweat as fuel and when I look back now I realise that we have come a long way.” Shubham Kumar owner of Team Last Page tells about his journey. 

But Shubham also realises that he has a long way to go and now is not the time to stop. Having shot and directed over 130 music videos now along with a short film and a web series. Shubham now wants to scale up the efforts and now try his hands in feature film making which is anyways going to be a reality soon as he has a project in hand.  While it might be new to him, Team Last Page is not afraid of the challenges and ready to roll over with some new hiring’s and a bigger team all these new ventures are going to be more exciting and fun.

As per Shubham, “Anurag Kashyap is my idol. Just like he breathes life into characters of his cinema without the help of a known face or a superstar, similarly I require a good story and the star cast doesn’t matter.” The aspirations are at right place and Shubham knows that once he gets the opportunity of making a movie it will be a challenge. But this is a challenge he will readily accept because he is waiting for that moment when he would have the canvas of filmmaking to his name and he will paint at his will. Looking at the eagerness of Shubham and his eager to be successful in this field, one can easily guess that this painting of his is going to be worth staring at. 

You can contact Team Last Page on their Facebook and Instagram profiles. 

Covid-19 has disrupted lives on a global level. However, for the underprivileged children, belonging to rural pockets of the country, the pandemic almost halted their lives. Not only did their learning stop due to the pandemic, poor internet connectivity, and unavailability of smartphones, but these children also found it hard to get proper meals.

Therefore, to provide ease to these people during the tough time of the global pandemic, Masumiyat charity is relentlessly working towards their upliftment.

Founded by Mr Ashish Jha and Mr Subhash Jha, the foundation has successfully served more than 25lakh people across various parts of the country. The foundation has also sponsored school fees of more than 1000 students so far.

Mr Ashish Jha and Subhash Jha envisions to make Bihar a hunger-free state for the upcoming generations and to provide education to every single child of Bihar. Driven towards making Bihar a developed state, they wish to serve each and every person by providing them with better education and health facilities.

During the lockdown, the NGO has been ensuring the underprivileged sections and displaced migrant labourers are provided with ration kits and meals through its partnerships with PepsiCo, KFC India, and others.

To tackle the hardships brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, the NGO has been ensuring that the underprivileged sections and displaced migrant labourers are provided with ration kits and adequate health benefits. The NGO has delivered more than 50k raw ration kits to every household and the local natives of Bihar.

Since 1.5 years of its inception, the NGO has been toiling tirelessly to help people in need. It has been successful in improving the lives of hundreds of children by working towards their upliftment and bringing the innocence of childhood back in their lives.

Follow Masumiyat Charity on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/masumiyat_charity/?igshid=1kud105nuii88

Arun Nagar teams up with Desi Crew, the leading Punjabi music duo comprising of Goldy Kahlon and Satpal Malhi, who are best known for crediting Punjab Music Industry with several super-hit tracks & notable movies.

Desi Crew started their career in the year 2012 and have independent albums such as Chhadke Jawi Na, Sardarni, Solid, Rakhwan Kota, To Be Continued, and Solid II to their credit. They haven’t restricted themselves to just independent albums, and have composed music for movies as well. In 2015, they made their movie debut with the Punjabi drama Mitti Na Pharol Jogiya, following which they composed music for movies such as Once Upon A Time In Amritsar, Great Sardaar, and Rocky Mental. The Duo has given top chart busters with artists like Diljit Dosanjh, Karan Aujla, Jassie Gill, Parmish Verma, Ranjit Bawa, Nimrat Khaira, Dilpreet Dhillon and their songs like Kya Baat Aa, Gaal Ni Kadni, Jhanjar, Born to Shine, Ajjkal, Att Karti have set new trends and records.

Arun Nagar shares, “We are so excited to be working with Desi Crew. This deal will enable us to ramp up our presence exponentially in Punjabi music industry and add an exciting new dimension to our repertoire. The appetite for Punjabi music is huge, not just across India, but also around the world. We expect to get a chance to connect with Punjabi audience more with this deal.”

Talking ahead he said about launching new talents. “The channel will have tracks by all the leading artists of the Punjabi Music industry – Jassie Gill, Parmish Verma, Korala Mann, Kaur B, Nimrat Khaira, Khan Bhaini, and will also see the launch of new and upcoming talent from Punjab. Along with that, the duo will also be working on a fresh album with the leading and new singers of Punjab. Our music specializes in the Punjabi music scene, with a distribution roster that includes regional favorites such as Dilpreet Dhillon, Joban Sandhu, J Star among others. We have developed a loyal fan base, both locally and online, with 110 subchannels on YouTube that have attracted more than 15 million subscribers in India alone. Giving many viral hits like ‘Na Na Na’, ’Hulara’ by J Star; World Cup Humara Hai by Daler Mehndi, ‘Aelaan’, by Muhfaad among others,” he added.

Goldy Kahlon and Satpal Malhi of Desi Crew, said, “We are super excited to bring new music for our fans and we are confident that this partnership with Ziiki Media will help us in expanding our audiences exponentially and bringing our best of Punjabi music.”

A DJ is the master of the music that he belts out to swing the people to forget their stress. The DJ is focused and selective about the music to cater to the different tastes of the audience. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea to be a DJ, but the music runs in the blood of Abhishek Dey. He has proven to be DJ par excellence. He has also collaborated with the record label “Speed records”. The label has garnered over 31.3 million subscribers for the track “Sohnea” by Miss Pooja and Milind Gaba. 

Abhishek is the first DJ and Music Producer from Assam to work with the renowned Record Label. He was 16 when he discovered the talent for music mixing, and his passion for music.with the passage of the time along with love only grew. He has since by dint of hard work in the profession managed to achieve the high platform he always dreamt of. Back in his hometown, he is a renowned name in the DJ industry.  He is flourishing day by day and is putting all his hard work in the career he wanted to pursue. Djing tends to be about rock music. But Abhishek produces music full of harmony and tunes to soothe the audience. His music carries the power to affect the audience from inside, stirring their soul, as his music is enjoyed by the people from different age groups.

We all have heard about the story of Tansen, the legend who is immortalized with his Raag Megh Malhar, which brought rains, and lighted lamps by singing Raga Deepak. Abhishek wants such power in his music. He also believes in the famed quote of William Shakespeare, who had said: “If music is the food of love, play on, Give me excess of it; that surfeiting, The appetite may sicken, and so die.”

Currently, Abhishek’s focus is on honing skills, as 80 percent of his time is spent in creating new music for his fans. In the future, he aims to work with “T-series”, while planning to come up with original music with remixes. Young talents are rising from every stratum and geographical areas, and age is no more a factor anymore in gaining skills. Abhishek is the living proof of success.

Connect on Instagram: http://- https://www.instagram.com/dj_ad_reloaded/

Popular singer Aditya Saraswat is making waves among the music lovers with his soulful rendition of the melodious ‘Ishq Ka Bojh’. With hummable music produced by renowned Bollywood producer Aditya Dev, the song touches all the right chords with lyrics composed by Filmfare Award-winning lyricist A. M Turaz.

Remarkable mixing by “Aashiqui 2” fame sound engineer Eric Pillai has taken the song to the creative vest, as ‘Ishq Ka Bojh’, a true original, has been well received. It has gained rave reviews after its launch on October 24. The song is produced by V.P Gupta and the video of the track is shot in the beautiful city of Varanasi, which is also Saraswat’s hometown.

Often cited as the young rising star in the world of Ghazal singing, Saraswat gave his first stage performance at a tender age of six and has since been making a mark. With support from his parents, Saraswat at the age of nine began his formal classical singing training with his Guru Dr Vijay Kapoor of ‘Gwalior Gharana’.

He graduated in classical music from Banaras Hindu University. He is also skilled in playing the harmonium, which he learnt from the legendary Guru Ustad Akhlak Hussain Warsi.

A two-time national prize recipient, Saraswat has shared the big stage with Ghazal maestros and legendary singers over the years, garnering support and appreciation for his talents.

Many celebrated singers such as Hariharan, Shankar Mahadevan, Anup Jalota, Chandan Das, Talat Aziz, Roop Kumar Rathod and likes, have well admired and encouraged Saraswat in his musical journey.

In this age of remix, Saraswat has brought a distinct and expressive melody to his audience, proving that he has much more to offer besides Ghazal. He evokes emotions, longing and romance with his soothing and passionate voice. It is his genius that the track connects with listeners of all ages.

The track is currently playing on major multimedia platforms collaboration with O Positive Entertainment as a Digital Partner.

Watch the official ‘Ishq Ka Bojh’ video HERE (https://youtu.be/KcDh-lzh7-4)

In its third year of the initiative, Ziqitza Healthcare Limited awarded INR 50,000 scholarships to the top three children.

Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd management believes that in these pandemic-stricken times, 108 ambulance services have helped over thousands of patients.  The Ambulance Crew not only during the pandemic, but 365 days serves patients, risking their own lives to save others. Forgetting their own worries and problems, the EMT staff and ambulance pilots often risk their lives while on duty and give their patients the gift of new life. To express gratitude for these warriors and to secure a bright future for their children Ziqitza Healthcare Limited every year conducts Scholarship Programme for Ambulance Team’s to pursue secondary education without having to worry about finances.

Ziqitza had initiated this program to motivate its staff members and to ensure a bright future for their children in the states they operate 108 Ambulances in 2018. This year in phase 1 the program has been announced in Madhya Pradesh where the competition was held in all 51 districts of the state and one topper from each district will be awarded a scholarship. The topper from each district will be offered a scholarship of Rs. 10,000 each, whereas, three toppers from across the state would be chosen for a special scholarship worth Rs. 50,000 each. 

Ziqitza Healthcarepost announcement of the scholarship program across the 51 districts of Madhya Pradesh for the year 2020, under which 34 entries were received. The felicitation ceremony for the winners of the scholarship was held at Motel Shiraz  where the children were awarded the scholarship.

The winners were identified after a month-long process and following strict transparent process and due diligence. The Human Resource team screens each applicant and validates the results and candidates’ proof. This year the winners were from Rewa district, Swati Singh, the daughter of ambulance pilot Sardar Singh, had achieved 99%, whereas from Guna district, Arpit Singh Kushwah, and son of EMT Staff member Balendra Singh Kushwah, had achieved 96% in class X. From Sagar district, Kajal Bardiya, daughter of an ambulance pilot Durgesh Kumar Prajapati, had achieved 95.75% by securing 383 marks out of 400 in her class X exam. All these three toppers were awarded a scholarship of Rs. 50,000 each along with a trophy. Other meritorious children from different districts were also awarded a scholarship worth Rs. 10,000 each. On this occasion, the company’s project head Mr Jitendra Sharma and operation head along with many other senior company officials were present.

Project head- Ziqitza Healthcare Limited Mr Jitendra Sharma said, “On this joyous occasion today and I would like to extend my best wishes and congratulations to all those children who have made their parents, their society and their city proud. The company has made this effort in order to encourage and motivate the 108 ambulance staff and to secure a bright future for their children. In this program children of ambulance staff from across 51 districts of the state were given scholarships who have performed brilliantly in Class X examinations. Toppers from each district were awarded scholarships and three children who secured the highest marks among all toppers were also selected as state toppers. 34 students from different districts sent in their entries this year out of which 18 were shortlisted for the scholarship and three were awarded the highest scholarship. The toppers from each district were awarded a scholarship of Rs. 10,000 each whereas the top three students were awarded a scholarship of Rs. 50,000 each.” He also added “In the year 2018 and 2019 as well, scholarships had been awarded to the children of ambulance service staff. Looking at the success and warm reception of the past scholarship programs, we decided to roll out the scholarship program for 2020 as well.

Sharing his thoughts, Mr. Manish Sacheti, CFO, Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd said, “Employees are the heart and strength of our organization. We understand that our employees work under extremely challenging and demanding circumstances and we value their relentless commitment. This is a small yet significant way to showcase our support for the employees and help their children have a bright future through better education. Ziqitza continuously endeavours to introduce more such employee engagement program to recognize and value their perseverance. All this is directed to build a strong pillar in offering the best emergency medical service to the people of the states which we serve.”

Ziqitza Healthcare before pandemic in 2019 had also launched the first season of Ziqitza Cricket League in different states. This initiative was taken by the company for the recreation of its employees where different departments competed against each other. Ziqitza recognizes the intensity and commitment required by the job of its employees and believes in providing them with an environment where they can unwind and de-stress. Ziqitza Rajasthan too agrees that such employee welfare programs are great initiatives by the company.

 About Ziqitza Healthcare Limited

Ziqitza had been set up with a vision to assist in saving human lives by providing a leading network of fully equipped Advanced and Basic Life Support Ambulances across the developing world. Ziqitza had been set up with a vision to assist in saving human lives by providing a leading network of fully equipped Advanced and Basic Life Support Ambulances across the developing world.

Ziqitza Health Care Limited (ZHL), has been one of the leading players in India’s Emergency Medical Services industry since 2005. Ziqitza Limited was setup by a group of young professionals, who recognized the need for an organized and networked ambulance service system in India to respond effectively to all kinds of medical emergencies. Over the span of 15 years, the company has grown exponentially from being a start-up with 10 ambulances to become a well-established corporate entity with a fleet of 3,300 ambulances and almost 10,000 employees across the country. The company has operations in 16 states across India and has served over 28 million people till date.

In another booster to the firepower of the Air Force, three more Rafale fighter jets have flown to India from France. They would join the base station Ambala.

The next-generation fighter jets equipped with firepower flew from France Jamnagar airbase in Gujarat on Wednesday, officials familiar with developments informed.

The jets landed in Jamnagar last night without a stopover on the way, with refuelling support provided by the Indian and French tankers.

“Welcome home ‘Golden Arrows’. Blue skies always,” the Indian Air Force tweeted with a photo of the Rafales in the “Arrow formation”. The IAF had also tweeted an audio clip of the Rafale fleet’s exchange with a naval warship as they crossed the Indian Ocean.

Earlier, the first batch of five Rafale jets of the 36 ordered by the IAF had reached the Ambala Airbase on July 29 after a stopover at the Al Dhafra Airbase near Abu Dhabi, although a formal induction ceremony took place later on September 10.

The delivery began nearly four years after India signed an inter-governmental agreement with France to procure 36 aircraft at a cost of ? 59,000 crores.

The induction of all 36 jets will be completed by 2023, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria has said.

The arrival of more fighters will further boost the IAF’s capability to rapidly deploy the advanced jets amid military tensions with China in the Ladakh theatre, the officials said.

The IAF is expecting three to four Rafale jets being delivered every two months, while all the 36 planes are likely to join the combat fleet of the Air Force by the year-end.

The Rafale fighters are the first imported jets to join the IAF in 23 years after the Russian Sukhoi-30 jets entered service in June 1997.

The IAF is operating the Rafale fighter jets in the Ladakh theatre where the military is on high alert to deal with any provocation by China.

IAF chief air chief marshal RKS Bhadauria last month had said that the integration of Rafale fighter jets brought in a platform armed with advanced weapons, sensors and technologies, giving operational and technological edge to the IAF.

A five-member team of researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Roorkee has developed the world’s first specific reliable bacterial biosensor to detect the presence of common environmental pollutant- Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate /Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SDS).

Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate is extensively used in soaps, toothpaste, creams, shampoos, laundry detergents in households, agricultural operations, laboratories, and industries. Its subsequent disposal in waterways causes harmful effects on aquatic organisms, environmental microcosms, and associated living organisms besides deteriorating the quality of drinking water.

A statement issued by IIT, Roorkee said until now, there were no specific biosensors developed for the detection of SDS with high precision. The IIT Roorkee team has developed a whole-cell biosensor using Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 strain as a framework involving a highly specific regulator along with a fluorescent protein that is produced only when SDS is present in the sample. The system can even detect 0.1 ppm of SDS in aquatic samples. This biosensor is highly specific for SDS and has minimal interference from other detergents, metals, and inorganic ions present in the environment. Unlike conventional methods, it can easily distinguish between closely- related detergents-SDS and SDBS (Sodium Dodecylbenzenesulfonate).

“Pseudomonads have an inherent capability to be used as an optimal destination framework for synthetic biology applications. The selected species of Pseudomonas can be engineered to detect various chemicals owing to their resilient nature to survive and adapt to harsh environmental conditions. The highlight of this research is the development of the world’s first whole-cell bacterial biosensor for the direct, specific and efficient detection of SDS without involving sample preparation steps, toxic chemicals, sophisticated polymers and sensor development steps” said Sourik Dey, Final year MSc student at the Institute.

“SDS, if untreated, can harm the marine biodiversity and cause pollution of land and water-bodies. The highlight of this biosensor is its sensitivity to even minute quantities of SDS in the environment and its ability to distinguish between SDS and SDBS” said Prof. Naveen Kumar Navani, Department of Biotechnology.

 The biosensor showed a satisfactory and reproducible recovery rate for the detection of SDS in real samples of sewage water, river water, and pond water. Overall, this is a selective and reliable biosensor for monitoring SDS in the environment.

The lead author of the study is Sourik Dey who was supported by the Department of Biotechnology. The other members of the team are Shahnawaz Ahmad Baba, Ankita Bhatt, and Rajat Dhyani.

SDS has diverse applications in the industrial sector as an emulsifier, food processing agent, stabilizer, leather softening, foaming, flocculating, and cleaning agent. It is the key pollutant in the domestic discharges and industrial effluents. The constant deterioration of the quality of drinking water and the harm caused to marine life are some of the major concerns. SDS has harmful effects on the survival and breeding of organisms in the aquatic ecosystem as it hampers their biological processes such as solubilization of phosphate, reduction of ammonia, nitrogen fixation and photosynthesis.   It can cause dermal and ocular irritation, cardiac anomaly, hemolysis, tachycardia, kidney failure, and even death. SDS can also disrupt biological wastewater treatment processes and cause problems in sewage aeration and treatment facilities owing to its high foaming capacity.