Weapons inspector turns saviour in Vadodara

VADODARA: A chemical engineer, who has worked for Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), now spends his retired life by educating slum children in the city.
Krishna Luhar (60), who once served as a chemical weapons inspector in OPCW in The Netherlands, now wants to bring in social change.
"Education and health are the areas where I want to contribute my time and do something meaningful for the society.I came in contact with some people who are working for social causes and their work has inspired me," said Luhar, who has become a trustee of NGO Koshish Milap.
Luhar during his 11-year service was inspector, senior industry verification officer and inspection team leader at the Netherland-based organization, which won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2013 for its work towards eliminating chemical weapons from the world. The OPCW, which has around 190 countries as members, is an autonomous organization with structural similarities to the United Nations.
"Work was extremely challenging in the OPCW as you are exposed to highly toxic substances. Moreover, chemical weapons were a techno-political issue and political sensitivities had to be taken care of," added Luhar, who was allowed to continue work at the OPCW for 11 years as against the set norm of seven. Luhar, who graduated in chemistry from MS University's department of science in 1975, has worked and travelled across 50 countries during his career.
Apart from the OPCW, Luhar has also worked at Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Limited for around 20 years. "I cracked the interview for the OPCW in 1998. The experience of handling highly toxic Sodium Cyanide at the GACL helped me greatly," he added. Apart from working for the education of slum children, Luhar also shares his experience with university students through seminars and lectures. Luhar's elder son Rushi Luhar works with Royal Bank of Canada and younger Mitul Luhar is an assistant professor at the University of Southern California.