EXTRANCHECK: POST-SHIPMENT VERIFICATION: INTERNATIONAL

UNCLAS NEW DELHI 000728 SIPDIS SIPDIS USDOC FOR 532/OEA/M. NICKSON-D/KGAINS/JHATFIELD USDOC FOR 3131/USFCS/OIO/ANESA/KREISSL USDOC FOR 4530/MAC/ANESA/OSA ICE HQ FOR STRATEGIC INVESTIGATIONS STATE FOR EB/ESP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ETTC ETRD BEXP IN SUBJECT: EXTRANCHECK: POST-SHIPMENT VERIFICATION: INTERNATIONAL CROPS RESEARCH INSTITUTE FOR THE SEMI-ARID TROPICS, HYDERABAD, LICENSE NO. D351730 REF: USDOC 07930 ¶1. Unauthorized disclosure of the information provided below is prohibited by Section 12(c) of the Export Administration Act. ¶2. On November 29, 2007, Export Control Officer (ECO) Paul Cushman and BIS FSN Prem Narayan conducted a Post-shipment Verification (PSV) at International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT),Patancheru, near Hyderabad. ¶3. BIS requested a PSV at ICRISAT, an international Non-Governmental Organization (NGO),located at: Patancheru, Andhra Pradesh 502324, Tel: 91-40-3071-3327, Fax: 91-40-3071-3074, email: p.mallikarjuna@cgiar.org. ICRISAT was listed as the ultimate consignee for one IR-Flexcam S infrared imaging camera controlled under ECCN 6A003. The license applicant was Infrared Solutions International (ISI),Minneapolis, Minnesota. ¶4. ECO and FSN Narayan met with Dr. J. Kashiwagi, Associate Scientist, Crop Physiology, P.N. Mallikarjuna, Head, Purchase, Supplies and Disposal Services, and V.N. Somayajulu, Purchase & Stores Officer, ICRISAT. ¶5. ICRISAT officials were not aware of any BIS regulations. This was the first visit of BIS officials to ICRISAT. ISI provided license conditions to ICRISAT prior to shipment by providing a copy the BIS export license. Mallikarjuna provided copies of documents relating to this importation, which included ICRISAT Purchase Order, ISI Invoice, Air Waybill, ICRISAT note of Acceptance of Export License Conditions, GOI Import Certificate, Form BIS-711 and ICRISAT Receiving Report confirming receipt of the camera. ¶6. Kashiwagi, a Japanese scientist posted at ICRISAT for the last seven years, is the custodian of the camera. He stated that ICRISAT scientists conduct research on the following crops: sorghum, millet, pigeon pea, groundnut and chickpea. He confirmed the stated end-use of the camera. The camera is used to measure plant transpiration activity. Specifically, the camera measures the temperature of the leaves of various plants in different drought conditions. Changes in leaf temperature indicate changes in the moisture content of that leaf. ¶7. The BIS Team was given a tour of the ICRISAT Crop Physiology Laboratory where Kashiwagi demonstrated the use of the camera. ECO noted the serial number of the camera as FLXS-051239 and model number as 104879. The BIS Team also toured different crop fields where all five crops mentioned above were being grown. ¶8. Established in 1972, ICRISAT is a nonprofit, non-political, international organization for science-based agricultural research and development. It is one of 15 centers supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). ICRISAT is headquartered in Patancheru approximately 25 kilometers from the city of Hyderabad. The campus covers an area of approximately 3,000 acres. ICRISAT employs approximately 650 personnel. ¶9. Recommendation: At the time of this visit, the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics appeared to be a suitable recipient of the licensed commodities. The item on check was physically verified and was apparently being used in accordance with the license conditions. MULFORD