The JU school has been made the nodal centre to carry out research and development for these small and medium industries. In Howrah alone there are 173 foundries but their condition has been steadily deteriorating.

“For the last few years, the foundries in Howrah have been unable to match up to the stringent pollution norms. These units lack resources, use outdated technology and are uncompetitive,” said P K Bose, Director, School of Automotive Engineering.

“From 400, the number of foundry entrepreneurs has come down to 173 in Howrah which is a bad sign,” Bose added.

The latest initiative by the Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) of the Central government’s Department of Science and Technology will help these entrepreneurs to overcome such problems. The Centre has sanctioned around Rs 3 crore for the project, which is due to start in July.

The school plans to create a mobile van-casting clinic, which would provide a hands-on experience and in-house manpower training to labourers and entrepreneurs.

“The mobile van will offer clean and new technology to the foundries,” said Bose.

Sundeep Dutta, president of Howrah Foundry Association, has welcomed the step taken by the Centre to provide training to them

“Foundries in Howrah, which deal with melting of cast iron, aluminium and others, also pollutes the environment and need assistance. We are glad that JU is aiding us,” said Dutta, adding “but we still need better infrastructure like proper drainage system to survive.”