In the recent years, Uttarakhand has emerged as one of the most attractive industrial destinations in India. The industrial sector of the Uttarakhand state is growing day-byday, and the industrial effluents, disposed by the industries, cause environmental pollution. The industrial effluents have many pollutants, including heavy metals. The major environmental problem is the pollution of heavy metals, and they cause serious diseases in animals, including human. In the present study, the streptomyces strain isolated from sludge contaminated with heavy metal was trained for heavy metal remediation and used for bioremediation activity for chromium, copper and lead in the waste. The metal chromium reduction ranged from 0.386 to 6.42 mg/L, which showed maximum reduction in chromium by Streptomyces sp., copper reduction ranged from 0.288 to 1.129 mg/L, and reduction in lead ranged from 0.063 to 0.286 mg/L. In future, the gram positive filamentous streptomyces strain can be used for chromium ion reduction as bioremediating agent.

Uttarakhand (28°43' N to 31°27' N Latitude and 77°34' E to 81°02' E Longitude) is bounded by the Himalayas in the north, Shivalik Hills in the south, Ganga in the east and Yamuna in the west. The total covered area of 53483 sq. km includes hill (46,035 sq. km) and plain (7,448 sq. km). The agricultural and waste land comprise 5,666,878 ha and 366,713 ha respectively. It has two divisions Garhwal and Kumaon; they are divided into 13 districts. The population density of Uttarakhand is 159 people per sq. km. The average rainfall is 1,606 mm, with maximum temperature in summers around 36 °C and minimum temperature 5 °C in winters. Summers lasts from April to July, while winter lasts from November to February. This is based on the data (2009-10) published by the Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Government of Uttarakhand.

In the recent years, Uttarakhand has emerged as one of the most attractive industrial destinations in India. The government is encouraging private participation in all industrial activities. The New Industrial Policy announced in 2003 by the State Government puts in place the regulatory framework for Uttarakhand’s industrialization. 727 Khadi Udhyog/ Gramodhyog Units, 34,084 Small Scale Industries (SSI) and 1,150 factories are registered. Due to industrialization, the great concern is the industrial effluent disposed by the industries. The industrial effluents have many pollutants, including heavy metals. The major environmental problem is the pollution of heavy metals which causes serious diseases in animals, including human. The main industries of Uttarakhand state are fertilizer, electroplating, cloth mills, pharmaceuticals, stone rolling, dye and dye intermediate, paper, rubber, fermentation, etc. (GMVN, 2010). The industrial effluents have many pollutants, including heavy metals.

Biotechnology Journal, Stress Adaptation of Bacteria, Extremophiles, Bacterial Adaptation, Cytosolic Components, Denature Cellular Proteins, Reactive Oxygen Species, Monounsaturated Fatty Acids, Ultraviolet Radiation, Environmental Stress, Stress Management, Biological Systems, Cellular Economy.