New Delhi: Taking serious note of increasing levels of carbon-dioxide emission, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has teamed up with the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IIT-B) and the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd. to find ways of using bacteria for a clean-coal technology.

Although, several international laboratories have reported strains of bacteria that have the ability to decompose toxic sulphur into coal that actually produces clean coal in the process; no breakthrough in locating a bacterium to sequester carbon has been achieved as yet.

"There have been reports by research teams in Norway that certain marine bacteria may use carbon-dioxide and release oxygen; similar to algae," pointed a scientist at CSIR.

A recent study by the Netherland Environment Assessment Agency ranked India, with 8 percent, as the fourth highest contributor to global carbon dioxide emission levels.

Another independent think-tank, Center for Global Development (Washington DC), has recently listed India's NTPC as the third largest polluter among all the power generation companies in the world.

Mr. Jairam Ramesh, Minister of State for Power & Commerce pointed out, "These efforts are a part of the Government's roadmap for clean coal technology. 50 percent of the carbon-dioxide emissions are from power projects. We plan to create a national programme for clean-coal technology."