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Other name | DST-BSIP |
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Former names | Institute of Palaeobotany, Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany |
Type | An autonomous institute constituted under the Department of Science and Technology |
Established | 10 September 1946 |
Founder | Birbal Sahni, FRS |
Parent institution | Department of Science and Technology |
Affiliation | Department of Science and Technology |
Academic affiliation | Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR) |
Budget | 126 Crore (2022-23) |
Chairman | Prof. Hari Bahadur Srivastava |
Director | Prof. Mahesh G. Thakkar [1] |
Academic staff | 48 |
Administrative staff | 100 |
Total staff | 176 |
70 | |
Address | 53, University Road , , , 226007 , India 26°52′03″N80°56′20″E / 26.86750°N 80.93889°E |
Campus | Urban |
Language | Hindi, English |
Website | BSIP |
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BSIP’s new Rs100 cr leaf-structured building |
The Birbal Sahni institution of Palaeosciences (BSIP), formerly known as the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, [2] is an autonomous institution established by the Government of India under the Department of Science and Technology. The Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences is situated in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. [3] Its primary aim is to integrate the disciplines of plant and earth sciences to carry out palaeobotanical research. The area of Fusion-Science is given actual relevance by the use of modern equipment, computing technology, and well-equipped laboratories staffed by skilled specialists. This enables research on a broad variety of general themes, both practical and fundamental. The targeted goals are being achieved via collaboration at both national and international levels, as well as involvement in numerous research programs. [4]
The Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences is named after its esteemed founder, Professor Birbal Sahni, a distinguished figure in contemporary India. In September 1939, a group of palaeobotanists in India established a committee, led by Professor Sahni, to oversee and publish regular reports on palaeobotanical research. [5] The first publication named 'Palaeobotany in India' was released in 1940, while the last one was published in 1953. On 19 May 1946, a group of eight individuals, namely K.N. Kaul, R.N. Lakhanpal, B. Sahni, S.D. Saxena, R.V. Sitholey, K.R. Surange, B.S. Trivedi, and S. Venkatachary, who were all working in Lucknow at the time, officially established a Palaeobotanical Society by signing a Memorandum of Association. A trust, named on 3 June, was established under the Societies Registration Act (XXI of 1860). It was formed with initial private funds and immovable property, as well as a reference library and fossil collections donated by Professor Birbal Sahni and Mrs. Savitri Sahni. The trust's main objective is to support and encourage original research in the field of Palaeobotany. [5]
This trust was entrusted with the responsibility of establishing a Research Institute. The Society's Governing Body founded the 'Institute of Palaeobotany' and named Professor Sahni as its first Director on 10 September 1946, by a decision. The Institute conducted its work at the Department of Botany at Lucknow University, Lucknow, until a permanent location was acquired. In September 1948, the Institute relocated to its current site, which was generously donated by the Government of the erstwhile United Provinces. [5] The campus consists of a spacious bungalow situated on 3.50 acres of ground. Plans were promptly devised to construct a structure for the Institute. The inauguration of the new structure took place on 3 April 1949, with the laying of the Foundation Stone by Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Regrettably, on 10 April 1949, Professor Sahni expired, therefore leaving the task of establishing the Institute to his wife, Mrs. Savitri Sahni. The unwavering dedication and enthusiasm of Mrs. Savitri Sahni resulted in the successful construction of the new structure at the conclusion of 1952. On 2 January 1953, Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru inaugurated the building, specifically for scientific purposes, in the presence of several scientists from India and other countries. Prof. T.M. Harris from the University of Reading, England, acted as an Advisor to the Institute during the period of December 1949 to January 1950. In May 1950, Dr. R.V. Sitholey, who was the Assistant Director at the time, was assigned the role of Officer-in-charge to carry out the ongoing responsibilities of the Director. This was done under the supervision of Mrs. Savitri Sahni, who was the President. [5]
In 1951, the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences was added to UNESCO's Technical Assistance Programme. Professor O.A. Høeg from the University of Oslo, Norway, served as its Director from October 1951 to early August 1953. Shortly after Prof. Høeg left, Dr. K.R. Surange was appointed as the Officer-in-charge, with the President of the Governing Body of the Palaeobotanical Society overseeing their work. In October 1959, Mrs. Savitri Sahni assumed the dual role of President of the Society and President of the Institute, overseeing administrative matters. [5] Concurrently, Dr. Surange was named as Director, responsible for academic and research operations. By the end of 1967, it was recognized that the Palaeobotanical Society should operate only as a scientific entity, while the Institute should act as an independent institution. Prof. K.N. Kaul became the presidency of the Society in January 1968. During this period, a new constitution was created, resulting in the registration of the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences as an independent organization on 9 July 1969. In November 1969, the Palaeobotanical Society transferred the property of the Institute to a new entity, resulting in the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany being under the control of a new Governing entity. Since that time, the Institute operates as an independent research institution and receives funding from the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. [5]
The collection of fossil plants made by Professor Sahni from India and abroad, including those received by him as gift or in exchange, structured the beginning of Institute's museum. The repository of the museum has continuously been enriched through collections made by scientists of the Institute during their fieldwork all over the country, and also by the receipt in exchange of material from foreign countries. The Holotype specimens, slides and figured specimens are systematically stored by the museum that is readily available for the investigation to the research workers.
The fossil specimens are also freely gifted to the university and college departments of botany and geology, for teaching and demonstration purposes. The present position of Type and figured specimens is as under. Type and figured specimens 6679 Type and figured Slides 12740 Negatives 17504 The museum is housed in spacious halls in which the exhibits are arranged and displayed in order to illustrate various aspects of palaeobotany, from a generalized and geological point of view. In the museum, the Foundation Stone of the Institute, cast by Professor Birbal Sahni himself, is unique. It comprises fossils of different geological ages and collected from several countries, embedded in a marble grit-cement block. A ‘Geological Time Clock’ is another and one of the special attractions of the museum, in which the geological time is contracted within 24 hours. The clock communicates the evolution of life on earth as the day progresses from mid-night, and depicts the gradual events of evolution up to the advent of man, within the stipulated time-scale of 24 hours.
The Library subscribes a wide variety of journals and is also a member of CSIR-DST consortia NKRC (National Knowledge Resource Consortium). The online access of many e-journals from Elsevier, Springer, Wiley, Taylor & Francis, Oxford University Press and databases like Scopus, Web of Sciences is available to users over the institute LAN. The access of software viz. iThenticate and Grammarly provides facility for plagiarism check.
Resource Type | Size |
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Books (in English) | 6419 |
Journals (Bound Volumes) | 18032 |
Reprints | 40179 |
Reference Books | 356 |
Books (in Hindi) | 902 |
PhD Thesis | 148 |
Reports | 46 |
Maps & Atlas | 61 |
Microfilm/Fisches | 294 |
Compact Disk | 74 |
In view of the advancements in the information technology in aid to scientific researches, the Institute advantageously established an Electronic Data Processing (EDP) unit over one and half decade ago. It is equipped with the state-of-art computing facilities, which is constantly upgraded. It renders services to the scientists, technical and administrative staff in their working. Initially the unit had 64KBPS leased line internet connection in the Institute, commissioned with the domain name "bsip.res.in". Local area Network (LAN) provides Internet access in the Institute with 150 nodes. Presently Proxy, Mail, DNS and Backup Servers have been successfully upgraded with new hardware.
Internet Connection with Radio link facility from Software Technology Park of India, Lucknow and NKN (National Knowledge Network) link provided by NIC through OFC are running up to 8 Mbit/s in the Institute. Proxy, Mail and DNS Servers are successfully configured on Redhat Linux ES 3.0 Operating System and Sun Solaris. This provides 24 hours Internet facility to the Institute Staff. At present 150 Computers are connected with the LAN. E-Mail accounts for Scientists, Units/Sections have been opened through Mail Server on Institute Domain Name (BSIP.RES.IN).
An Anti Virus Program Symentic End Point Ver 11.0 has been renewed with 150 user license to protect the system from viruses and worms.
Payroll, Form16 and Pension packages are also modified as per the requirements and also the Annual Accounts, Budget and Revised Estimates are prepared. Section is providing help to the scientists in preparing the Multimedia presentations, Charts, Graphs, Lithologs and other diagrams for their scientific publications and documentation.
The main objectives of the institute are set as: [6]
The institute has identified the thrust areas of activities on:
BSIP nurses a museum, [8] originally housing the fossil collections of Professor Sahni, but now holds later collections made by the scientists over the years. The collection includes holotype specimens, slides and figured specimens.
The museum, with its foundation stone, laid by Birbal Sahni, composed of fossils of various geological ages embedded in a marble-cement block, displays the specimens based on their general and geological relevance. The museum also maintains a Geological Time Clock.
The Institute library is an automated one with database services such as GEOREF, Web of Science, JCCC@INSTIRC and access to CSIR-DST consortium. It operates on a fully integrated multi-user LIBSYS 4 software package with addition of Web OPAC. The journals are made available online to the users.
The Herbarium functions with four different sections:
The fossil specimens such as leaves, cuticle, pollen, spores, fruits, seed and wood, numbering 51,472, are preserved according to their variation, local names, uses, distribution and ecology and include contributions from J. F. Duthie, R. R. Stewart, K. N. Kaul, Birbal Sahni, O. A. Hoeg and A. L. Takhtajan.
BSIP is well equipped with an advanced computer network with LAN, radio link facility from the Software Park of India, Lucknow and National Knowledge Network connection. The web site of the institute is also maintained by the Computer Centre.
Journal of Palaeosciences formally known as The Palaeobotanist is a widely acknowledged journal in the field of Palaeosciences and Palaeobotany, published by the institute. BSIP published the first volume in 1952 as an annual publication. However, the frequency has been increased over the time and, since 1962, is released three times a year. [9] The journal is now an online journal.
Glossopteris is the largest and best-known genus of the extinct Permian order of seed plants known as Glossopteridales. The name Glossopteris refers only to leaves, within the framework of form genera used in paleobotany.
Birbal Sahni FRS was an Indian paleobotanist who studied the fossils of the Indian subcontinent. He also took an interest in geology and archaeology. He founded what is now the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany at Lucknow in 1946. His major contributions were in the study of the fossil plants of India and in plant evolution. He was also involved in the establishment of Indian science education and served as the president of the National Academy of Sciences, India and as an honorary president of the International Botanical Congress, Stockholm.
Droseridites is a genus of extinct plants of possible droseracean or nepenthacean affinity. It is a form taxon known only from fossil pollen. Species assigned to this genus originate from numerous regions of the world, including Europe, India, Egypt, the Arabian Peninsula, and the Kerguelen Islands.
Droserapollis is a genus of extinct plants in the family Droseraceae. It is a form taxon known only from fossil pollen.
William Brian Keith Holmes is an Australian palaeobotanist, best known for his work "Fructifications of Glossopteris" (1974), published in the Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales. Despite having received no formal training in palaeontology, he has become an important contributor in the field and has described some 80 new species, mostly from 2 quarries at Nymboida in northern New South Wales, and situated on the Triassic.
The Rajmahal Hills are located in the Santhal Pargana division of Jharkhand, India. They were located on the northern margin of the Gondwana supercontinent, and its hills are today inhabited by the Sauria Paharia people whilst its valleys are dominated by the Santhal people. The hills span over an area of 2,600 km2 (1,000 sq mi).
The Department of Science and Technology (DST) is a department within the Ministry of Science and Technology in India. It was established in May 1971 to promote new areas of science and technology and to play the role of a nodal department for organising, coordinating and promoting scientific and technological activities in the country. It gives funds to various approved scientific projects in India. It also supports various researchers in India to attend conferences abroad and to go for experimental works.
Chester Arthur Arnold was an American paleobotanist, born June 25, 1901, in Leeton, Missouri, and died on November 19, 1977.
Pathakhera is a town in the municipal council of Sarni in the Betul District, Madhya Pradesh, India. The town is also known as Coal Nagari and also locally as NCDC, an acronym for National Coal Development Corporation.
Prostylotermes is an extinct genus of termite in the isopteran family Stylotermitidae known from two Eocene fossils found in India. The genus contains a single described species, Prostylotermes kamboja.
Zophotermes is an extinct genus of termite in the Isoptera family Rhinotermitidae known from two Eocene fossils found in India. The genus contains a single described species, Zophotermes ashoki placed in the subfamily Prorhinotermitinae.
Ruchi Ram Sahni was an Indian scientist and educationist active during the pre-partition era in Punjab. A pioneer meteorologist and physicist, he was the father of renowned paleobotanist Birbal Sahni.
Shyamala "Shya" Chitaley was an Indian American Paleobotanist who had a nearly 60-year career of teaching and research in both the United States and India. She was the founder and first curator of the paleobotany department at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, winner of the 2010 Botanical Society of America Award for Contributions to Paleobotany, and author of approximately 150 publications.
Toppur Seethapathy Sadasivan was an Indian plant pathologist, academic and the director of the Centre for Advanced Studies in Botany of the University of Madras. He was the founder of the School of Physiological Plant Pathology at Madras University and was a recipient of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, the highest Indian award in the science category. He was an elected fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences, Indian National Science Academy and Indian Botanical Society and an elected member of the Academy of Sciences Leopoldina. The Government of India awarded him the third highest civilian honour of the Padma Bhushan, in 1974, for his contributions to science.
Sampat Kumar Tandon is an Indian geologist and a professor emeritus of geology at the University of Delhi. He is a former pro-vice chancellor of Delhi University, Sir J. C. Bose Chair Professor of the department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Bhopal and a D. N. Wadia Chair Professor of the department of Earth Sciences at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur.
Guntupalli Veera Raghavendra Prasad is an Indian paleontologist and former head of the department of geology at the University of Delhi. He is known for his studies on the Mesozoic vertebrate groups of India and is an elected fellow of all the three major Indian science academies viz. Indian Academy of Sciences, Indian National Science Academy and the National Academy of Sciences, India as well as The World Academy of Sciences. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, the apex agency of the Government of India for scientific research, awarded him the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology, one of the highest Indian science awards for his contributions to Earth, Atmosphere, Ocean and Planetary Sciences in 2003.
Vishnu-Mittre or Vishnu Mittre was an Indian paleobotanist who worked at the Birbal Sahni Institute and wrote numerous influential papers and popular books on earth history, particularly with reference to the Indian region. He worked along with archaeologists in pioneering studies of agricultural crops in early human settlements on the Indian Subcontinent.
Savitri Sahni, born Savitri Suri, was president of the Birbal Sahni Institute of Paleosciences from 1949 to 1969.
Rajendra Nath Lakhanpal was an Indian paleobotanist. He was a specialist on palaeo-ecology and the identification of plants from pollen microfossils.
Raghavendra P. Tiwari is the Vice Chancellor of Central University of Punjab, Bathinda. He has also served as the Vice-Chancellor in Dr. Hari Singh Gour University, Sagar M.P.
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