Contact: All communications need to be addressed to ibscbitshyd@hyderabad.bits-pilani.ac.in. Member-Secretary is primarily responsible for all communications. Do not send emails to institutional email address of any IBSC member/Member-Secretary/Chairman and if you still do so, there may not be any response. All members have access to the IBSC email address and the concerned person will respond to you.

Meeting schedules: IBSC meets at least twice a calendar year, usually mid-April and mid-December. Additional meetings can be arranged if IBSC receives at least six Form C1 applications.

Forms: Applicants are advised to visit https://ibkp.dbtindia.gov.in for the Application Formats that are self-explanatory. In case of questions on how to fill the forms, you can consult any IBSC member by emailing to the address above. Incomplete or incorrect forms may be rejected and can be taken up only in the next scheduled meeting. To avoid delays, ensure that the application is filled correctly in all respects.

            Some forms may need copies of prior IBSC approvals. In these cases, a copy of the previous approval must be attached. A form submitted without a prior approval (if applicable) will not be considered for discussion in the IBSC meeting. Therefore, plan to submit the forms well ahead and take advantage of availing IBSC member’s advice.

             Forms can be submitted anytime but no later than two weeks prior to the scheduled meeting (By the end of March or the end of October in each calendar year).

            Forms involving import/export of biological samples that come under IBSC purview require a signed MTA to be executed between the sender and the receiver. This requirement is not applicable to imports from commercial entities. No approvals can be given if the material has already arrived at the airport/equivalent and is held up because of lack of IBSC clearance. Ensure that you have obtained a clearance before placing an order for receiving or sending any samples.

Approvals: We discourage applicants to ask for provisional letters from IBSC against approvals of projects by funding agencies. Completed Forms are needed for provisional approvals and these will be taken up in the next scheduled meeting. IBSC can’t meet short notice deadlines and needs time to completely examine the applications and the availability of internal IBSC members. Most funding agencies now ask preliminary work done as part of the proposal submission process and preliminary work, if carried out in the PI’s lab also requires an IBSC approval. IBSC may ask the PI to share the submitted proposal of the approved project for the same purpose.

              Final approvals are given only after verification of the revised forms (if applicable) and after the minutes are generated and signed by all IBSC members.