Founder's Day Infrastructural Facilities
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ISSN No. 0972-2718 June 2001 www.bsip-india.org About us Foundation Day The Birbal Sahni Institute of The Institute celebrated its 54th Foundation Day on September 10, 2000. On this occasion 'Fourth Jubilee Commemoration Lecture' Palaeobotany, Lucknow was on 'Research in the Universities and linkages with Natiol1al Institutions' established in the year 1946by the eminent ScientistProf.BirbalSahni. was delivered by Prof. K.B. Powar, Secretary General, Since then the Institute has made a Association of Indian Universities, New Delhi. He emphasized mark ofits own and grown to newer use of state-of-the-art technology to give a new impetus to heights. It has a commitment to scientific research. Prof. Ashok Sahni, Chairman, Governing Body disseminate palaeobotanical of the Institute presided over the function and reiterated close knowledge. Botanical and collaboration among centres of learning. Many guests and geological aspects of scientists from and outside the Institute graced the occasion. Palaeobotanical researches are being pursued through .new Founder's Day infrastructural facilities. The Pushpanjali on the Samadhi of Founder Prof. Birbal Sahni was Institute has many publications in offered by the Institute's staff and distinguished guests from the form of Journal, Monographs, other organisations on November 14, 2000 - the Founder's Day Thematic issues, Catalogues and of the Institute. On this day, two memorial lectures were also offerscontractand consultancy services. Keeping pace with organised- '30th Birbal Sahni Memorial Lecture' was delivered by developments in the new Shri B.C. Bora, Chairman-cum-Managing Director, Oil and millennium, computational Natural Gas Corporation Limited, New Delhi on the topic 'Fossil facilities and investigations of fuels and energy security'. The speaker emphasised need for finding global climatic change have alternative sources of energy through augmentation of applied provided new impetus to Palaeobotany. Researches on identified Thrust Areas pertaining to Antiquity of Life, Gondwana Supercontinent,Coal Bed Methane, Petroliferous basins and Climatic/ Monsoonal Changes have yielded interesting results. Science popularization activities through lectures, exhibitions and reiated activities have attracted many students and public. The Institute is in the process of formulating newer frontlineresearchprojectsfor Xth Five-Year Plan. The present Newsletter contains some of the activities collectively participated by the staff. A view of Founder's Day Function Distinguished Speakers Prof. K.B. Powar A view of exhibition on Earthquake in Gujarat Fourth Golden Jubilee Commemoration Lecture researches on hydrocarbon and Publications Released other potential sources. '46th 1. A thematic volume of Sir Albert Charles Seward Memorial Lecture on 'Some The Palaeobotanist 49(2) on North-East India. front line areas in Biology' was delivered by Prof. S.s. 2. The Palaeobotanist. 49(3) Raghuvanshi, Ex-Prof. of compnsmg vanous Botany, Lucknow University, research papers. Lucknow. He highlighted 3. Bilingual Annual recent trends in modern Report 1999-2000. biological researches and their 4. Newsletter 2000. implications on societal needs. Prof. Ashok Sahni, Chairman, 5. Current Awareness Service Bulletin of BSIP Governing Body of the Institute presided over the Shri B.C. Bora Library. function. 30th Birbal Sahni Memorial Lecture (Late) Dr. 55. Raghuvanshi 46th Sir Albert Charles Seward Memorial Lecture Staff offering floral tributes on Founder's Day 2 Exhibitions observing the day as an open On the occasion of Mahakumbh House. Shri C.V. at Allahabad, largest religious Singh, General congregation of humanity on Manager, Tata earth, the Institute took part in Engineering and an exhibition on Vigyan Locomotive Darshnam from 15th January to Company 31st January 2001 which was Limited, organised by Department of Lucknow Science and Technology, New delivered a Delhi and participated by other lecture on 'Six Scientific Institutions. Many Sigma and devotees and visitors took innovation for keen interest in our exhibition Global and educated themselves. competitiveness'. Students visiting exhibition stall during the Kumbh Mela, An exhibition was also held at Allahabad. Lucknow University in the National month of December 2000, on citizens of Lucknow visited the the occasion of Lucknow Vishva Science Day Institute. Vidyalaya Mahotsav. Plant fossils The Institute organised an were displayed which attracted exhibition on earthquake in large number of students and Gujarat on the occasion of National general public. National Science Day on Technology Day February 28, 2001. Posters Engineer's Day were erected depicting BSIP celebrated National Institute joined the Nation in earthquake genesis and Technology Day on 11th May celebrating Engineer's Day on precautionary measures. A 2001 by organising lectures 15th September, 2000 by number of students and from Institute Scientists. Science Motivation Camp A ScienceMotivation other labs of the Institute. Camp for talented Lectureswere also arranged for students was jointly them. organisedby the Director Prof. A. K. Sinha Institute and the gave away the prizes to the Institute for Integrated winners. The aim of holding Society Development, such camps is to create interest Lucknow. The students in young students towards were taken around the science. Museum, Herbarium and The student of science lives in a world of fragments. Nothing in that vast array of visible things that we call Nature appears to our restricted vision as a complete picture. True Artist that He is, the Creator never reveals the whole of His design at once. Like a child with a jigsaw puzzle we try to piece together the fragments of the picture. - Birbal Sahni 3 Research Findings The find of a lichen (Everniastrum cirrhatum), from Thanetian- Early the cultural stratum datable Ypresian), Tal between 1300 and 800 B.C. at Valley area of Uttaranchal. Imlidih-Khurd, Gorakhpur District (UP.), is significant to Two types of decipher its use as an cyanobacteria are identified as ingredient of spices and filamentous medicine. Vernacularly known as 'Chharila', it occurs on the Palaeoscytonema bark of trees in the temperate sp. and coccoid Gloeocapsomorpha prism Zalessky 1917. It is .3 ::3 postulated Cyanobacterial mats basal horizon of the Subathu .'3 that these cyanobacterial mats were laid down in a low relief pr~tecte.d intertidal-supratidal zones of slowly rising Subathu epIcontmental sea during transgression. (Vandana Prasad & Samir Sarkar) 'Plitranjeeva' (Drypetes roxbllrghii) with holes made across them from Announcement Imlidih-Klmrd, Gorakhpur (Ca 1300• 800 B.c.) strW1g up in a necklace Contact Course on form (scale in mm) Advanced Training in Palaeobotany, October 2001 forests of Himalayas, at elevations of 1000-4000m. The Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany is organising a Contact use of 'Putranjeeva' (Drypetes Course on Advanced Training in Palaeobotany from October 3rd to roxburghii) nuts is also evidenced in the cultural 19th 2001. The course will cover 7 days (October 3-10) teaching lexicon at the same site and the and practical demonstration at Lucknow, one day (October 12) Field Workshop at Jabalpur (M.P.), and 6 days (October 13-18) name signifies the life of the child referring to the stones of teaching around Jabalpur to cover Gondwana and Tert~ary the fruit being worn as sequences. Experienced and eminent palaeob?tams~s, palynologists, palaeontologists, botanists and geologIsts ":111 necklaces by children to ward deliver talk on various disciplines of Palaeobotany and allIed off any harm. A few nuts with subjects. The participants will be acquainted with t~e late.st holes made in them suggest knowledge of Palaeobotany in Indian context. In the fIeld tnp that they had been strung up as they will be provided geological information and will also be a necklace. It is a unique entitled to collect fossils/samples from different sites. Interested evidence of a definite aspect of human occult belief and candidates are required to send (before June 30th, 2001) application with full bio-data and area of specialisation along with activity. a bank draft of Rs. 4,0001- (Registra tion fee - Rs. 10001- (US$ (KS. Saraswat) 500) + Field Training Programme - Rs. 3,0001-(US$ 1500)) through Well preserved fossil proper channel to: Prof. AK. Sinha, Director, Birbal Sa.hruInstitute cyanobacterial mats were of Palaeobotany, 53 University Road, Lucknow 226 007; recorded for the first time Phone : 0522-381948/333620; Fax: -0522-381948/374528; from the basal horizon of the Email: [email protected]/[email protected] Subathu Formation (Late 4 Deputation Reports XXth Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica (2000-01) The main objective of the area of about 30 sq km. The collected by trenching from second consecutive polymetamorphic rock dry lake areas 4 km east of participation in the visit to the sequence consisting dominantly . Maitri for palynostratigraphical Antarctica Expedition by BSIP of biotite-garnet gneiss and work. Two exposed clay during XXth Indian Scientific pyroxene bearing granulites sequences within thick moraine Expedition was to explore with minor intercalation of bed were recovered from more areas in order to procure marbles and calc-silicate rocks, eastern as well as western large number of palynological ultramafics, amphibolites and flank of Zub Lake. Sediment samples in and around other metabasites is traversed profile samples were collected Schirmacher Oasis, East by a number of distinctly in the