Technological innovations have led to the emergence of nanotechnology and due to large scale use of nanomaterials globally, the dimension of exposure to flora and fauna will be unrestricted as the nanomaterials have the ability to cross the cellular barriers. The biological interaction of the nanomaterials (NPs) when compared to their bulk counter parts is largely different due to their extremely small size and they can interact directly with macromolecules such as DNA. To assess the safety/toxicity of nanomaterials, some of the most critical issues that need to be addressed include: i) effect of shape and size; ii) dosimetry; iii) route of delivery and tracking; iv) development and validation of test models; v) in vitro vs. in vivo extrapolation; vi) ecotoxicity; vii) environmental monitoring and viii) life cycle analysis. In this context, scientists of the Nanomaterial Toxicology Group have recently completed a CSIR Network project under the 12th Five Year Plan Network Project-NanoSHE (Nanomaterials: Applications and Impact on Safety, Health and Environment) with 12 other CSIR laboratories on health and environmental effects of nanomaterials to delineate their toxicity and assure safe usage in consumer products and therapeutics. The project was an interface between chemical, biological and engineering clusters to use domain knowledge and expertise available in CSIR laboratories for significant presence in the emerging area of nanotechnology.