Sengupta said: 'This initiative will help to train more than 1,000 people over the next three years in eastern India in a novel chemical-free arsenic removal method.

'Arsenic poisoning is behind many instances of ill-health in Asia, including a number of cancer cases. Developing a low cost method of decontaminating groundwater that is laced with high levels of arsenic is a key challenge for sustainable agriculture in the region.

'The training programme developed by Queen's is the only method which is eco-friendly, easy to use and deliverable to the rural community user at an affordable cost,' he added.

Satish Kumar, director of the India Initiative at Queen's, said: '...The best way to manage natural resources is for the local people to use their knowledge and technologies. The issue of deeply entrenched arsenic contamination of groundwater in Kolkata and indeed in large parts of West Bengal calls for an approach where the local population are empowered to engage with this new technology.'

The project is supported by the British Council under its Development Partnerships in Higher Education Programme (Delphe).