CSIR-National Physical Laboratory (CSIR-NPL), New Delhi, is the custodian of national measurement standards through an act of Parliament and provides traceability to SI units in India. CSIR-NPL in association with Metrology Society of India (MSI) organised "World Metrology Day" on 20 May 2022 to commemorate the anniversary of the signing of the historic "Metre Convention" on 20 May 1875.
The theme for World Metrology Day-2022 is “Metrology in the Digital Era”, which was announced jointly by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM) and the International Organisation of Legal Metrology (OIML). This theme was chosen for introducing digital measurement frameworks and requirements for an open and transparent exchange of digital information technology for revolutionising the scientific community, improving processes and providing the way for new opportunities through new digital initiatives in metrology.
The event was inaugurated by Dr D. K. Aswal, Director of Health, Safety & Environment at Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) along with Prof A. K. Grover, Chairman, Research Council of CSIR-NPL, Prof. Venugopal Achanta, Director CSIR-NPL and Dr Sanjay Yadav, Vice-President, MSI. The event began with the welcome address by Prof. Venugopal Achanta. Prof. A. K. Grover addressed the gathering and highlighted the importance of metrology and the role of NPL as a National Metrological Institute (NMI) in this direction. Dr Sanjay Yadav Introduced the vision and mission of MSI and its activities held over the last year. The keynote address was delivered by Dr D. K. Aswal, he emphasized the digital transformation in metrology and its impact on Quality Infrastructure in India. He also stressed that NPL should work on certified time dissemination to the users as cyber secure functionality of the entire digital infrastructure depends on accurate time stamping.
On this occasion, the World Metrology Day poster was released by the dignitaries. Three Bharatiya Nirdeshak Dravyas (BNDs®) namely, BND 6019 for gas, BND 4203, and BND 4204 for gold alloys, respectively, were also released.
India’s first Robotic Mass Comparator was also inaugurated during this event. The robotic mass comparator is a unique and state-of-art facility that serves both the fundamental research and highly accurate automatic measurements in the field of mass. The automation will help in the significant reduction and potential elimination of manual handling risks and ensure the highest accuracy in weight calibration. It brings many benefits to scientists, metrologists, industries, and all the stakeholders throughout the country.
A technical session was chaired by Dr Ranjana Mehrotra, Vice-President, MSI. The first talk was delivered by Dr Daniel Hutzschenreuter from PTB, Braunschweig, Germany on the topic “Metrology for Digital Transformation”. The second talk of the session was delivered by Prof. C.J. Tsai from the Institute of Environmental Engineering, NYMCT University, Taiwan on the topic “QA/QC of standard PM monitors and smart air sensors”.
The event was concluded with a vote of thanks by Dr S. K. Jaiswal, convener and Sr. Pr. Scientist, CSIR-NPL.
