By OUR STAFF REPORTER
DEHRADUN, 26 Nov: A Workshop-Cum-Symposium on Animal Taxonomy and IPR issues began at the Dolphin (PG) Institute of Biomedical and Natural Sciences (DIBNS) in collaboration with the ICAR- Indian Institute of Soil and Water Conservation (ICAR- IISWC), and the Zoological Survey of India (Northern Zone), Dehradun, on 25 November. The programme is scheduled for 5 days upto 29 November, covering 10 sessions, besides field and lab visits to nearby locations and institutions. Dhananjai Mohan, Chairman, Uttarakhand Biodiversity Board, was the Chief Guest at the inaugural session, and Dr Jagbir Singh Kirti, Professor, Punjabi University, Patiala, was the key- note speaker. Dr M Muruganandam, Principal Scientist, ICAR-IISWC, and Dr Anil Kumar, Officer-in-Charge, ZSI, were the Guests of Honour. Dhananjai, in his address, spoke on the importance of taxonomic inputs necessary to manage the biodiversity of the country. Dr Jagbir narrated the status of taxonomy and the increasing need for sensitising the present generation to protect biodiversity and inculcate the scientific flair for taxonomic studies. Dr Muruganandam, the Technical Coordinator of the Programme, highlighted the dichotomous situation prevailing while losing focus on the taxonomic interests among professionals and scholars. He added that the programme was conceived in collaboration with the relevant national institutions and covered contextual topics of interest on taxonomy and IPR issues. Dr Anil Kumar spoke on the diversity of birds and role of acoustics in identifying birds, besides the focus of ZSI. Dr Jagbir received a Life-Time Achievement Award on the occasion. An Abstract-cum Souvenir was released during the inaugural function. This programme is expected to sensitise the scholars and professionals to take up taxonomic studies actively as a career option and to help conserve biodiversity. Arvind Gupta, Chairman, Dolphin Institute, felicitated the guests and welcomed the participants. Principal Dr Shailja Pant highlighted the Institute’s achievements and the expectations out of the programme. Earlier, Dr Arun Kumar, Director, Dolphin Institute, welcomed the guests and participants and spoke about the relevance of taxonomy in today’s context. Dr Been Joshi Bhatt, Head of Zoology Department, Dolphin Institute, and the Organising Secretary of the workshop- symposium, earlier, welcomed the guests and the participants. Dr DK Bharadwaj, Dr Shalini Anand and Deepali Rana, Assistant Professors, were involved in coordinating the programme. The programme has been designed to be a mix of, both, interactive workshop and symposium to address the needs of taxonomy. Around 15 invited presentations on taxonomy and IPR on various topics besides 50 presentations by participants and discussion was included in the programme. Around 100 professors, scholars, students and professionals participated. Dr Sharda Kosankar, Sr Scientist from CSIR-NEERI, Nagpur, and many Professors from various colleges and universities are taking active part.
