The department of mining engineering, National Institute of Technology - Karnataka, is organising a two-day national seminar on explosives and blasting techniques for mining, quarrying and infrastructure at its Srinivasnagar campus near here, from February 18. The department is organizing the event for the second time -- the first time it did so was way back in October 1993, when NIT-K was then KREC.
V R Sastry, convener of the national seminar, told reporters here on Wednesday that more than 150 delegates from industries, statutory bodies and research institutions from across the country will deliberate on various aspects of explosives and blasting techniques. K Ranganath, CMD, KIOCL Ltd, will inaugurate the seminar. S Machendranathan, additional secretary, Union ministry of steel, will release the official proceedings.
Sastry said India is developing at a faster pace in the last two decades. Many strategic infrastructure facilities are being developed to cater to the needs of the country, such as laying of pipelines for petroleum products, creating storage facilities by making large underground caverns, establishing hydel projects and so on. Creating such facilities needs removal of hard rock using drilling and blasting, and thereby, expertise in blasting.
The seminar and the sessions planned provides an opportunity for project managers, blasting engineers, regulating bodies, executing agencies, excavation contractors, explosive manufacturers and manufacturers of instruments, academicians and researchers to share and gain experiences and expertise. This will also help them formulate strategies to improve blasting technology in Indian industry, Sastry explained.
The highlight of the seminar, he said, would be an exhibition that showcases some of the latest technology in the field of blasting. "One can see the latest electronic delay system and shock tube system, that are used by advanced mining nations," he said, adding that the Indian mining industry is reluctant to adopt the same due to the cost factor involved. Such technology will hopefully grow on the Indian mining industry, he added.
