India has committed over 7 million Euros as a co-partner in the redevelopment of research beamlines at Italy's Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste under the Elettra 2.0 programme. The investment will be deployed over five years beginning from 2026-27 and will support the development of research infrastructure and human resource capacity, marking a significant new phase in the longstanding scientific partnership between India and Italy.
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Dr. Jitendra Singh, made the announcement during his visit to Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste on November 13, 2026. The upgraded facilities will open new research avenues in Chemistry, Physics, Advanced Materials, Structural Biology and other scientific areas, benefiting researchers from India and other countries.
This collaboration builds on more than 25 years of scientific partnership, with Indian scientists conducting research experiments at Elettra since 1998. India is currently the second-largest user of Elettra after Italy, with over 1,100 experimental proposals received from Indian research groups. Italy submitted 54,140 proposals while France submitted 1,098 proposals.
Under Elettra 2.0, the existing India-centric XRD2 and Xpress beamlines will be decommissioned and replaced by two new beamlines with enhanced capabilities: a microfocus beamline for macromolecular crystallography (micro-XRD or μXRD) and a beamline for high-pressure diffraction (Xpress Superbend or Xpress-SB).
The Department of Science and Technology (DST) had previously jointly supported the construction of the two existing diffraction beamlines, XRD2 and XPRESS, with a contribution of approximately Rs. 22 crore alongside the Italian side. Both beamlines were jointly inaugurated on October 20, 2016, during the visit of the Secretary, DST, to Italy. Since commissioning, approximately 50-60 Indian scientists visit Trieste annually to conduct research experiments.
DST also supports Indian researchers' access through the Indo-Italian Executive Programme of Cooperation (EPOC). Under EPOC 2022-2024, DST sanctioned Rs. 2 crores over three years to support visits by 50 Indian researchers annually (25 visits each semester) for conducting experiments. EPOC 2025-2027 includes a proposal to support Indian researchers with a proposed allocation of Rs. 1.5 crore over three years.
DST had already conveyed its agreement to participate in the redevelopment and a Letter of Intent (LoI) had been signed. The recent announcement reaffirms India's commitment to the Elettra 2.0 initiative, building upon the experience gained through the successful development and utilization of existing beamlines.