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ID: 61417
Title: Traditional knowledge of medicinal plants in Narayanbagar Block, Chamoli district of Garhwal Himalaya, Uttarakhand, India.
Author: Jyoti Deoli, Vinod Kumar Yadav and P.K.Pande.
Editor: Kunal Satyarthi
Year: 2015
Publisher: Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: The Indian Forester Vol. 141 (4) 389-396 (2015)
Subject: The Indian Forester.
Keywords: Himalaya, Narayanbagar, Medicinal plants, Traditional knowledge.
Abstract: The present study carried out in Narayanbagar block in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand in Western Himalaya to explore traditional knowledge of medicinal plants. Most of the local people depend on the forest and agriculture produce for their livelihood and daily needs. Information ' s on medicinal plants were collected through questionnaire survey, formal and informal interviews. Total 136 formal interviews from 22 out of 70 randomly selected villages were carried out. A total of 146 medicinally important plant species belonging 65 families were reported. Majority of collected species were herbs (73%), followed by shrubs (14%), trees (7%) ferns (3.42%) and climbers (2%).The botanical name, family, local name, parts used, and medicinal properties of collected plants documented.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Bhat J.A., Kumar M. and Bussmann R.W. (2013).Ecological status and traditional knowledge of medicinal plants in Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary of Garhwal Himalaya, India Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 9:1. Champion H.G., Seth S.K. (1968).A revised survey of the forest types of India. Manager of Publication, Govt. of India, p.404.
Literature cited 2: Farooquee N.A., Majila B.S and Kala C.P. (2004).Indigenous knowledge systems and sustainable management of natural resources in a high altitude society in Kumaun Himalaya, India.J.Hum.Ecol., 16:33-42. Ghules ST.and Patil D.K. (2001).Kisan World, 28 (10): 33-34.

ID: 61416
Title: Performance of some Mangrove species planted under Sonneratia Apetala Buch.-Ham plantations in the coastal belt of Bangladesh.
Author: SK.Ahiul Islam, Md.Abdul Quddus Miah and Md.Ahsan Habib.
Editor: Kunal Satyarthi
Year: 2015
Publisher: Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: The Indian Forester Vol. 141 (4) 384-388 (2015)
Subject: The Indian Forester.
Keywords: Coastline, Mangrove plantation, Underplanting, Survival, Growth performance.
Abstract: An underplanting trial with eleven mangrove species were conducted in Sonneratia apetala plantations at Rangabali islands of Patuakhali district and Char kukri-Mukri island of Bhola district, Bangladesh to observe the site-suitability and growth performance of the species. The data on survival, height and diameter growth were recorded from 21 years old matured experimental stands. Some mangrove species showed promising growth performance in the coastal belt. The highest survival was found in Aegiceras corniculatum followed by Phoenix paludosa, Excoecaria agallocha, Heritiera fomes and Xylocarpus mekongensis at Rangabali, and the highest survival in E.agallocha followed by P.paludosa, A.corniculatum, H.fomes and X.mekongensis at Char Kukri-Mukri. According to height and diameter growth, the most promising species were E.agallocha and then X.mekongensis, A.corniculatum, H.fomes and P.paludosa in both islands. Therefore, these mangrove species are suitable for raising second rotation forest crops inside S.apetala plantations for sustainable management of coastal forests in Bangladesh.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Baksha M.W. (1996).Beehole borer infestation in coastal plantations in Bangladesh and possible management options. Wallacena, 77: 17-20. Das S.and Siddiqi N.A. (1985).The Mangroves and Mangrove Forests of Bangladesh. Mangrove Silviculture Division. Bulletin No.2. Bangladesh Forest Research Institute.142 pp.
Literature cited 2: Islam M.R.and Nandy P. (2001).Site suitability of different mangrove species and planting techniques for bean (Avicennia officinalis) in the coastal areas of Bangladesh.In: Mangrove Research and Development (N.A. Siddiqi and M.W. Baksha Eds.) Bangladesh Forest Research Institute, Chittagong, pp.39-48. Nandy P. (2010). Coastal Afforestation at a Glance with Particular Emphasis to Char Kukri-Mukri.Community Based Adaptation to Climate Change through Coastal Afforestation In Bangladesh Project in association with Bangladesh Forest Department, 2010.10 pp.

ID: 61415
Title: Effect of time of fruit collection on the seed germination of Fraxinus xanthoxyloides (wall.ex G.Don) Dc.
Author: P.S.Negi and Sandeep Sharma
Editor: Kunal Satyarthi
Year: 2015
Publisher: Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: The Indian Forester Vol. 141 (4) 379-383 (2015)
Subject: The Indian Forester.
Keywords: Fraxinus xanthoxyloides, Germination per cent, moisture content, Samaras.
Abstract: An experimental trial was conducted to study the effect of time of fruit collection on the germination of Fraxinus xanthoxyloides were collected on 15 days interval (Fortnightly basis) starting from 1st September, 2007 to 15th December, 2007 and were subjected to germination testing without any pre-sowing treatments. Significant differences were observed in germination percentage, moisture content of samaras and seeds Fraxinus xanthoxyloides seeds collected during different collection period. Seed collected during second fortnight of October recorded maximum 26.67 per cent germination followed by 24.00 percent in seeds collected during first fortnight of November and 23.33 per cent germination in seeds collected during first fortnight of October. Seeds collected during first fortnight of December recorded minimum 6.67 per cent germination. Optimum time of seed collection in Fraxinus xanthoxyloides is found to be between first fortnight of October and first fortnight of November.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Anon (1956).The Wealth of India, Raw Materials, Vol, IV: F-G.Publication and Information Directorate, (CSIR), New Delhi pp.61-63. Bhardwaj S.D., Sharma S. and Panwar P. (2002) Standardization of date of collection and mother tree diameter class for harvesting Albiziachinensis seeds. Seed Research, 30 (1) 30-35.
Literature cited 2: ISTA (1985).International Rules for Seed Testing. Rules and Annexure. International Seed Testing Association. Seed Science and Tech., 13: 299-513. NegiP.S.and Sharma S. (2011).Study on effect of gibberellic acid treatments on germination behaviour of Fraxinus xanthoxyloides (Wall.ExG.Don) DC.Seeds.Indian Journal of Forestry, 34 (4): 409-413.

ID: 61414
Title: Assessment of Air pollution tolerance index of selected plants.
Author: Dileswar Nayak, D.P.Patel, H.S. Thakare, K.Satasiya and P.K.Shrivastava.
Editor: Kunal Satyarthi
Year: 2015
Publisher: Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: The Indian Forester Vol. 141 (4) 372-378 (2015)
Subject: The Indian Forester.
Keywords: Physiological, Biochemical characters, Tree species, Tolerance index.
Abstract: The present study was undertaken to evaluate air pollution tolerance index (APTI) of five different plant species around industrial area and Navsari Agricultural University campus. Four physiological and biochemical parameters like relative water content, ascorbic acid content, chlorophyll content and leaf pH were used to compute the APTI values. The findings revealed that Cassia fistula showed maximum APTI value as compared to other species in the industrial area. Saraca asoca, Syzgium cumini and Cassia fistula found to be tolerant as per the APTI value in the industrial area. However, Tectona grandis and Terminalia catappa found to have intermediate sensitivity for the polluted site. Hence, it is recommended to plant Saraca asoca, Syzigium cumini and Cassia fistula trees in industrial site to cope the environment problem. The study also suggests that performance index might be very useful in the selection of appropriate species which can be expected to perform well for the development of green environments.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Agarwal M., Singh S.K., Singh J.and Rao D.N. (1991).Biomonitoring of air pollution around urban and industrial sites.Environ.Biol. 1:211-222. Agarwal S.and Tiwari S.L. (1997).Susceptibility level of few plants on the basic of air pollution tolerance index. Indian Forester, 123 (4): 319-322.
Literature cited 2: Anthony P. (2001).Dust from walking tracks impact on rainforest on epiphylls. Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Rainforest Ecology and Management. Australia. Arnon D.I. (1949).Copper enzyme isolated chloroplasts polyphenol oxidase in Beta vulgaris physiology, 24 (1): 1-15.

ID: 61413
Title: Synergistic effect of inorganic and biofertilizers on nutrient uptake of Dalbergia sissoo seedlings.
Author: Rakesh Kumar Garg, Amanpreet Kaur, S.K.Gosal and I.M.Chhibba.
Editor: Kunal Satyarthi
Year: 2015
Publisher: Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: The Indian Forester Vol. 141 (4) 366-371 (2015)
Subject: The Indian Forester.
Keywords: Biofertilizers, Nutrient uptake, Dalbergia sissoo.
Abstract: With the aim to determine the effect of inorganic and biofertilizrs, alone and in combination, on nutrient uptake of Dalbergia sissoo seedlings, an experiment was conducted comprising all possible thirty-six combinations of three levels of nitrogen, three levels of phosphorus and four biofertilizers levels. Dual inoculation with Rhizobium and VAM resulted in significantly higher N and P uptake by shoot and root components as against single inoculation of Rhizobium or VAM and uninoculated control. Inoculation with Rhizobium or VAM alone resulted in higher nutrient uptake as compared to control. Uptake increased with application of nitrogen and phosphorus. Dual inoculation of Rhizobium + VAM combined with application of 30 kg ha-1 and 75 kg P2O5 ha-1 was found the best treatment combination.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Anonymous (2006).Report or inventory of trees outside forests (TOP) in Punjab. Forest Survey of India, Dehradun, p 142. Aseri G.K. and Ro A.V. (2005).Interaction of bio-inoculants and chemical fertilizers on biomass production, rhizosphere activity and nutrient uptake of ber (Zizyphus mauritiana) var.Rotundiflora LAM.Indian J.For., 28 (4): 401-05.
Literature cited 2: Awodola A.M. (1993).Nursery operations in semi arid north of Nigeria: The Sokoto experience. In: Nursery technology for agroforestry.Application in arid and semi arid regions. (Eds.S.Puri and P.K.Khosla) pp 33. Banyal R.and Bhardwaj R.Bhardwaj S.D. (2003).Effect of Rhizobium inoculation on growth, biomass and nutrient dynamics of Acacia catechu and Acacia mollissimia seedlings.J.Tree Sci., 22 (1&2): 28-33.

ID: 61412
Title: Can Prosopis juliflora (Swartz) DC. Withstand climatic aberration in semiarid regions of Central India?-An observation from Bundelkhand.
Author: Can Prosopis juliflora (Swartz) DC. Withstand climatic aberration in semiarid regions of Central India?-An observation from Bundelkhand.
Editor: Kunal Satyarthi
Year: 2015
Publisher: Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: The Indian Forester Vol. 141 (4) 361-365 (2015)
Subject: The Indian Forester.
Keywords: Climatic aberration, Die-back, Prosopis juliflora.
Abstract: This paper discusses the influence of extreme cold on Prosopis juliflora, recorded in Bundelkhand region at Datia, Madhya Pradesh, in the year 2011.P.juliflora more akin to Australian form has colonized on the parched tank bed since 2004 and it has grown lavishly.P.juliflora die-back was observed in low lying area of about Sha on the parched tank bed. Complete die-back (up to 93 % of stems over almost five hectare) was observed in second fort night of January 2011.Its die-back has been attributed to extreme low temperature recorded as-1.5? C to 3?C during first12 days of January 2011. Low lying areas with high soil moisture content coupled with high stand density and low temperature prevailing for a considerable period might be the reason for freezing of available soil moisture to the plants and causing die-back. Plants have started recuperating by sprouting new shoots in main stem and at base since first week of March 2011. No die-back symptoms were observed in plants grown at higher elevation in the adjoining area.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Chaturvedi, R.K., Gopalkrishnan R.Jayaram M., Bala G., Joshi N.V., Sukumar R. and Ravindranath N.H. (2010). Impact of climate on Indian forests: a dynamic vegetation modeling approach.Mitigat.Adapt.Strateg.Glob.Change. 16: 119-142. F.A.O. (2006).Global Forest Resources Assessment 2005: Progress towards sustainable forest management.FAO Forestry Paper 147.FAO, Rome.
Literature cited 2: F.S.I. (2009).State of forest report. Forest Survey of India (Ministry of Environment and Forest).Dehradun.199pp. Felker, P., Clark P.R., Nash P., Osborn J.F. and Cannell G.H. (1982). Screening Prosopis (mesquite) for cold tolerance.For.Sci. 28: 556-562.

ID: 61411
Title: Effect of forest fire on soil nutrients in blue pine (Pinus wallichiana A.B.Jackson) Ecosystems.
Author: Bilal.A.Khaki, V.R.R.Singh, Akhlaq A.Wani and Raj.K.Thakur.
Editor: Kunal Satyarthi
Year: 2015
Publisher: Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: The Indian Forester Vol. 141 (4) 355-360 (2015)
Subject: The Indian Forester.
Keywords: Fire, Soil nutrients, Blue pine, Organic carbon, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium.
Abstract: Forest fire is recognized as one of the major natural disaster, damaging huge forest and grassland areas worldwide. Fire can change plant composition, devastate biomass, alter soil physical and chemical properties and decrease nutrient pools. In recent years, Blue Pine, (Pinus wallichiana) forests in South Kashmir are experiencing a heavy loss due to fire with respect to damage to undergrowth and disturbance in soil nutrient status. An assessment of damage in terms of ecological and economic attributes due to fire is deemed to be much. The frequency of fire is rising as biotic pressure on forest resources. This study demonstrates assessment of soil macro-nutrient alteration on sites on burnt with unburnt sites. The study sites are in South circle of Kashmir division in Jammu and Kashmir State of India. Our samples show 60 % less soil carbon at 0-30 cm depth in burnt sites against their respective unburnt sites, Available soil nitrogen concentration was 35.28 % lower on burnt sites, Available soil phosphorus was 38.89 % higher in burnt than unburnt sites and available soil potassium was 29.66 % higher on burnt sites in comparison to unburnt sites. Some implications of these results for forest managers are discussed. Organic carbon and nitrogen decreased in burnt areas while as potassium and phosphorus concentration witnesses an increase in burnt sites.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Austin R.C. and Baisinger D.H. (1955).Some effects of burning on forest soils of western Oregon and Washington.Jour.Forestry, 53 (4): 275-280. Binkley D.and Giardina C. (1998).Why do tree species affect soils? The wrap and woof of tree-soil interactions. Biogeochemistry, 42: 89-106.
Literature cited 2: Blakemore L.C., Searle P.L. and Daly B.K. (1987).Methods for Chemical Analysis of Soils. New Zealand Soil Bureau Scientific Report, 80:103 Cade-Menun B.J.Berch S.M., Preston C.M.and Lavkulich L.M. (2000).Phosphorus forms and related soil chemistry of Podzolic soils on northern Vancouver island.II.The effects of clear-cutting and burning.CanadianJ.For.Res. 30: 1726-1741.

ID: 61410
Title: Salbardi-Belkher inland basin: a new site of Lameta sedimentation at the border of districts Amaravati, Maharashtra and Betul, Madhya Pradesh, Central India.
Author: Rupesh S.Mankar and Ashok K.Srivastava.
Editor: R. Srinivasan.
Year: 2015
Publisher: Current Science Association and Indian Academy of Sciences.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Current Science Vol. 109 (7) 1337-1344 (2015)
Subject: Current Science.
Keywords: Dinosaurian remains, fluvio-lacustrine succession, infratrappean sediments, inland basins.
Abstract: The Late Cretaceous infratrappean Lameta sediments in central and western India are known from five inland basins, viz. (i) Nand-Dongargaon, (ii) Jabalpur, (iii) Balasinor-Jhabua, (iv) Ambikapur-Amarkantak and (v) Sagar. Among these, the successions in the first three basins are well studied. The dinosaurian remains from the formations of these inland basins serve as a significant tool for regional reconstructions of palaeogeographic and palaeoenvironmental conditions during Lameta sedimentation. Here, a new inland basin with good outcrops of Lameta sediments having dinosaurian skeletal remains egg nests and eggs is documented. Considering the lithofacies and dinosaurian from this new inland basin, it is evident that Lameta sedimentation during the Late Cretaceous was not restricted to only five inland basins documented earlier, but was taking place contemporaneously in an additional inland basin in between Balasinor-Jhabua in the west and Nand-Dongargaon basin in the east. We propose the name of this new site as Salbardi-Belkher inland basin. This newly identified basin lying at the border of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh also redefines the existing palaeographic limits of Lameta sedimentation, including dinosaur inhabitation.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Chanda, S.K., Cementation and diagnosis of the Lameta beds, Lametaghat, MP, India.J.Sed.Res. 1963, 33 (3), 728-738. Kumar, S. and Tandon, S.K., A note on bioturbation in the Lameta beds, Jabalpur area, MP.Geophytology, 1977, 7 (2), 135-138.
Literature cited 2: Shukla, U.K. and Srivastava, R., Lizard eggs from Upper Cretaceous Lameta Formation of Jabalpur, Central India, with interpretation of depositional environments of the nest-bearing horizon.Cret.Res., 2008, 29 (4), 674-686. Saha, O., Shukla, U.K.and Rani, R., Trace fossils from the Late Cretaceous Lameta Formation, Jabalpur area, Madhya Pradesh: paleoenvironmental implications.J.Geol.Soc.India, 2010. 76 (6), 607-620.

ID: 61409
Title: Interventions to reduce drudgery of workers in the traditional method of harvesting Makhana (Euryale ferox salisb.) seeds from ponds.
Author: Abhijit Khadatkar, L.P.Gite and V.K.Gupta.
Editor: R. Srinivasan.
Year: 2015
Publisher: Current Science Association and Indian Academy of Sciences.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Current Science Vol. 109 (7) 1332-1337 (2015)
Subject: Current Science.
Keywords: Drudgery, harvesting, Makhana seeds, traditional system.
Abstract: Makhana (Euryale ferox salisb.) is a seed produced from an aquatic crop, which normally grows in water bodies like ponds. In the traditional way of harvesting, a worker goes deep into the ponds, lies down, holds his breadth and drags the mud with both hands towards a bamboo pole called ' Kaara ' , which is later sieved using a bamboo screen called ' ganjaa ' . During this operation mud enters in to the ears, eyes, nose and mouth of the worker. Also, the workers are affected by skin related diseases due to unhygienic working environment. Therefore, an intervention was made and an improved system was developed which consists of a floating platform providing support to a 10 1 cylinder having compressed air, 10 m hose pipe with regulator and a mini diving kit having suit with cap, mask and content gauge. A comparative study was conducted using both traditional system (TI) as well as improved system (T2) of harvesting Makhana seeds from ponds. The results indicate that the average output is only 3.8 kg/h with T1 system, whereas it is 11.3 kg/h with T2system. The overall discomfort rate is 8.3 in case of T1 system, whereas it is 4.2in case of T2system. Also, the body parts discomfort score is higher (78.8) with T1 system compared to T2 system (48.2).The harvesting of Makhana seeds using the improved system involves less drudgery in comparison to traditional system with significantly higher work output.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Kumar, L., Gupta, V.K., Jha, B.K., Singh, I.S., Bhatt, B.P. and Singh, A.K., Status of Makhana (Euryale ferox Salisb.) cultivation in India, Technical Bulletin N0.R-32/PAT-21, ICAR-RC-ER, Patna, 2011. Dutta, R.N., Comparative ecological study of Euryale ferox Salisbery in Darbhanga area, Ph D thesis, Ranchi University, Ranchi, 1984.
Literature cited 2: Mandal, R.N., Saha, G.S. and Saragi, N., Harvest and processing of Makhana (Euryale ferox Salisb.) - an unique assemblage of traditional knowledge. Indian J. Traditional Knowledge, 2010, 4, 684-688. Shankar, M., Chaudhary, N.and Singh, D., A review on gorgon nut.Int.J.Pharm.Biol.Arch. 2010, 1 (2), 101-107.

ID: 61408
Title: Combined effect of hydroethanolic extracts of Murraya koenigii and Phyllanthus niruri leaves on paracetamol and ethanol-induced toxicity in HEPG2 cell line.
Author: Pallavi Shah, S.P.Singh and Anil Kumar
Editor: R. Srinivasan.
Year: 2015
Publisher: Current Science Association and Indian Academy of Sciences.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Current Science Vol. 109 (7) 1320-1326 (2015)
Subject: Current Science.
Keywords: Ethanol, hepatoprotection, HepG2 cell line, Murraya koenigii, paracetamol, Phyllanthus niruri.
Abstract: The present study is an attempt to determine the combined hepatoprotective potential of hydroethanolic leaf extracts of Murraya koenigii and Phyllanthus niruri against paracetamol (PCM) and ethanol-induced toxicity in human hepatoma HepG2 cell line. Toxicity in cell as was induced by treatment with 15 mM PCM and 50 mM ethanol for 24 h as manifested by a significant (P<0.05) decrease in cell viability, increase in the leakage of serum glutamate pyruvate in culture medium, increase in the leakage of serum glutamate pyruvate in culture medium, increase in lipid peroxidation and reduction in reduced glutathione in cell lysate. These alterations were significantly ameliorated when cells were treated with a combination of hydroethanolic leaf extracts of M.koenigii and P.niruri, and silly-marin during both prophylactic and curative studies. Both post-treatment (curative) and pre-treatment (prophylactic) with the combination of plant extracts were able show effective hepatoprotection. This was also evident during morphological studies. The combination of plant extracts thus holds immense potential for future use as hepatoprotectant.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Pareek, A., Godavarthi, A., Issarani, R. and Nagori, B.P., Antioxidant and hepatoprotective activity of Fagonia schweinfurthii (Hadidi) Hadidi extract in carbon tetrachloride induced hepatotoxicit inHepG2 cell line and rats.J.Ethnopharmacol. 2013,150, 973-981. Prajapati, N.D., Purohit, S.S., Sharma, A.K. and Kumar, T.A., Handbook of Medicinal Plants, Agrobios, Jodhpur, 2003, pp.352-353.
Literature cited 2: Yusuf, M., Chowdhury, J.U., Wahab, M.A. and Begum, J., Medicinal Plants of Bangladesh, BCSIR Laboratories, Chittagong, Bangladesh, 1994. Ningappa, M.B., Dinesha, R.and Srinivas, L., Antioxidant and free radical scavenging activities of polyphenol-enriched curry leaf (Murraya koenigii L) extracts. Food Chem., 2008, 106, 720-728.

ID: 61407
Title: Distribution of zeolitic soils in India.
Author: T.Bhattacharyya, P.Chandran, S.K.Ray, D.K.Pal, C.Mandal and D.K.Mandal.
Editor: R. Srinivasan.
Year: 2015
Publisher: Current Science Association and Indian Academy of Sciences.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Current Science Vol. 109 (7) 1305-1312 (2015)
Subject: Current Science.
Keywords: Black soils, calcium-rich zeolites, mineralogical information, soil map.
Abstract: Calcium-rich zeolites control naturally occurring chemical degradation in the black soils (Vertisols and their intergrades).With the help of modern tools such as remote sensing, geographic information system, soil database, geological information, topography and other related datasets, an attempt was made to update the distribution of zeolitic soils in India. To ascertain the presence of Ca-rich zeolites in soils, mineralogical information was generated using X-ray diffraction techniques for the selected soils from the Indo-Gangetic Plains and the black soil region (BSR).The zeolitic soils are mostly confined in the pediments (sloping regions of the upland) of the Deccan plateau in BSR, although a few are also found along the valley floor. The IGP, on the other hand, hosts the zeolitic black soils along the drainage channels in the valley floor where the basaltic alluvium deposited the smectite and clay-rich sediments. The study indicates Ca-rich zeolitic soils in India to occupy an area of ~ 2.8 m ha, of which BSR and IGP constitute ~92 % an ~8 % respectively. The zeolites are mostly concentrated in the drier tracts of the country and help in maintaining soil health against natural soil degradation. While the occurrence of Ca-rich black soils in BSR was known, those in the GDP are new findings. With the help of the available information, we have generated state of-art information, we have generated state-of-art information approximation map on the distribution of Ca-rich zeolites in Indian soils.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Pal, D.K., Bhattacharyya, T., Ray, S.K., Chandran, P., Srivastava, P., Durge, S.L.and Bhuse, S.R., Significance of soil modifiers (Ca-zeolites an gypsum) in naturally-degraded Vertisols of the peninsular India in redefining the sodic soils. Geoderma, 2006, 136, 210-228. Pal, D.K., Dasog, G.S., Vadivelu, S., Ahuja, R.L.and Bhattacharyya, T., Secondary calcium carbonate in soils of arid and semi-arid regions of India. In Global Climate Change and Pedogenic Carbonates (eds Rattan Lal et al)., Published by Lewis Publishers, Boca Raton, Florida, USA, 2000, pp.149-185.
Literature cited 2: Bhattacharyya, T., Pal, D.K., Chandran, P., Ray, S.K., Mandal, C. and Talpande, B., Soil carbon sequestration.Curr.Sci. 2008, 95, 482-494. Bhattacharya, T. et al., Soils of India: their historical perspective, classification and recent advances in knowledge: a review.Curr.Sci. 2013, 104, 1308-1323.

ID: 61406
Title: On the botanical findings from excavations at Ahichchatra: a multicultural site in Upper Ganga Plain, Uttar Pradesh.
Author: Anil K.Pokharia, Chanchala Srivastava, Bhuvan Vikram, D.N.Dimri, Chandra Mohan Nautiyal and Shalini Sharma.
Editor: R. Srinivasan.
Year: 2015
Publisher: Current Science Association and Indian Academy of Sciences.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Current Science Vol. 109 (7) 1293-1304 (2015)
Subject: Current Science.
Keywords: Archaeobotany, carbonized remains, excavations, multicultural site.
Abstract: This article embodies an impressive array of data on the carbonized remains of crop plants, weeds and wild taxa recovered from archaeological excavations at Ahichchhatra, a multicultural site in Bareilly district, Uttar Pradesh. The crop-remains are represented by the grains and seeds of Oryza sativa (rice), Hordeum vulgare (barley), Triticum aestivum (bread wheat), Triticum sphaerococcum (dwarf wheat), Pisum arvense (field pea) Lens culinaris (lentil), Lathyrus sativus (grass pea), Vigna sp. (green/black gram), Macrotyloma uniflorum (horse gram), Sesamum indicum (sesame), Linum usitatissimum (linseed) and Gossypium arboreum/herbaceum (cotton) dating back to 1500-100 BC. In addition, a large number of weeds and wild taxa which may be indicative of surrounding ground vegetation and cultivated fields have also been recorded as an admixture in the crop assemblage. The study of the ancient plant remains has been discussed and compared with the information on agriculture remains from other sites in the Ganga Plain.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Cunningham, Archaeological Survey of India. Annual Report-I, 1862-63, pp.255-263. Ghosh, A., Explorations and excavations. In Indian Archaeology 1964-65-A Review, Archaeological Survey of India, New Delhi, 1969, pp.39-42.
Literature cited 2: Dikshit, M.G., Beads from Ahichchhatra. Ancient India, 1952, 8, 33-63. Chanchala, S., Wood remains from Ahichchhatra, District Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh (ca.475 BC to AD 1280).Palaeobotanist, 2004, 53, 161-168.

ID: 61405
Title: Sporulation-associated mother cell lysis in Bacillus displays markers of programmed cell death.
Author: Swati V.Roy, Sachin N.Hajare, Satyendra Gautam, Deepti Deobagkar and Arun Sharma.
Editor: R. Srinivasan.
Year: 2015
Publisher: Current Science Association and Indian Academy of Sciences.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Current Science Vol. 109 (7) 1283-1292 (2015)
Subject: Current Science.
Keywords: Bacillus species, mother cell lysis, programmed cell death, sporulation.
Abstract: Sporulation-associated mother cell lysis in Bacillus sp. requires the death of spore mother cell that has been hypothesized to be genetically programmed. However, there is lack of conclusive evidence supporting this hypothesis. The present study provides evidence showing expression of programmed cell death (PCD)-specific markers such as activation of caspase-3, externalization of phosphatidylserine (PS) detected by annexin V-FITC binding through flow cytometry, and damage to DNA evaluated by TUNEL assay during sporulation in B.subtillis and B.megaterium.Addition of cell-permeable irreversible inhibitor of caspase-3 was found to inhibit the sporulation process as also the caspase-3 activity and PS externalization. These findings were further revalidated using sporulation-deficient-mutants of B.subtilis, created using chemical mutagenesis. These mutants were found to be deficient in caspase-3 activity as well as the extent of PS externalization. Wild-type B.subtilis cells were found to have extracellular metal-dependent DNAase activity, which decreased in sporulation-deficient mutants. These findings provide evidence for the existence and association of markers of PCD during sporulation-associated mother cell lysis in Bacillus sp.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Gerdes, K. et al., Prokaryotic toxin-antitoxin stress response loci. Nature Rev.Microbiol. 2005, 3, 371-382. Gautam, S.and Sharma, A., Involvement of caspase-3-like protein in rapid cell death of Xanthomonas.Mol.Microbiol. 2002, 44, 393-401.
Literature cited 2: Bayles, K.W., Are the molecular strategies that control apoptosis conserved in bacteria? Trends Microbiol, 2003, 11, 306-311. Raju, K.K. et al., Molecules involved in the modulation of rapid cell death in Xanthomonas.J.Bacteriol, 2006, 188, 5408-5416.

ID: 61404
Title: Genetic diversity assessment of Valeriana Jatamansi Jones using microsatellites markers.
Author: Arun Kumar Jugran, Indra D.Bhatt, Suvendu Mondal, Ranbeer S.Rawal and Shyamal K.Nandi.
Editor: R. Srinivasan.
Year: 2015
Publisher: Current Science Association and Indian Academy of Sciences.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Current Science Vol. 109 (7) 1279-1282 (2015)
Subject: Current Science.
Keywords: Conservation, gene flow, genetic diversity, microsatellites, Valeriana jatamansi.
Abstract: Valeriana jatamansi (family Valerianaceae) is a high-value medicinal plant used in traditional and modern medicine. In the present study, 25 populations (151 genotypes) of V. jatamansi were collected from uttarakhand, India and investigated using nuclear and chloroplast SSR markers. Six nuclear and seven chloroplast polymorphic SSR prime pairs were used to evaluate genetic variability and population relatedness. These primer pairs have generated 59 fragments (26 nuclear, 33 chloroplast) the number of alleles per locus ranged from 3 to 7. Expected heterozygosity of the 25 V. Jatamansi populations was 0.108-0.222 with a mean of 0.165 for nuclear SSR markers and 0.147-0.265 with a mean of 0.215 for chloroplast SSR markers. Based on AMOVA analysis, 6.0% (P = < 0.001) of total genetic variation was found among populations. Nuclear SSR markers exhibited highest genetic diversity in samples collected from 1501 to 1800 m amsl altitudinal range and from pine forest habitat. In case of cpSSR, samples collected from 2101 to 2400 m amsl and grassland habitat exhibited highest diversity. These markers could be helpful in the identification and prioritization of genetically diverse populations/individuals for conservation and utilizing them in genetic improvement of V.jatamansi.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Nag, A., Chanda, S.and Rajkumar, S.,Estimation of nuclear genome size of important medicinal plant species from western Himalaya using flow cytometry.J Cell Plant Sci., 2011, 2, 19-23. Prakash, V., Indian Valerianaceae: A Monograph on Medicinally Important Family, Scientific Publishers, Jodhpur, India, 1999, pp.1-74.
Literature cited 2: Khajuria, A., Verma, S.and Sharma, P., Stylar movement in Valeriana wallichii DC.-a contrivance for reproductive assurance and species survival.Curr.Sci. 2011, 100, 1143-1144. Jugran, A.K., Bhatt, I.D., Rawal, R.S., Nandi, S.K. and Pande, V., Patterns of morphological and genetic diversity of Valeriana jatamansi Jones in different habitats and altitudinal range of West Himalaya, India. Flora, 2013, 208, 13-21.

ID: 61403
Title: Design and administration of activity-travel diaries: a case study from Bengaluru city in India.
Author: M.Manoj and Ashish Verma.
Editor: R. Srinivasan.
Year: 2015
Publisher: Current Science Association and Indian Academy of Sciences.
Source: Centre for Ecological Sciences
Reference: Current Science Vol. 109 (7) 1264-1272 (2015)
Subject: Current Science.
Keywords: Activity-travel survey, combined diary format, design and administration, transportation systems.
Abstract: Studies on travel survey instrument design and administration in the context of Indian cities are limited despite the fact that these aspects of travel survey face unique challenges here when compared to the cities in the developed world. Here we report results of a pilot survey conducted for evaluating the performances, alternative diary formats and survey administration techniques in Bengaluru city, India. The study proposes two diary formats. ' Diary-1 ' is in day-planner format and is a variant of the one day-planner format and is a variant of the one reported earlier in the literature. ' Diary-2 ' is derived as a combination of ' Diary-1 ' and the trip-based diaries widely applied in Indian cities. ' Face-to-face ' , and ' drop-off and pick-up ' methods of survey administration are considered for retrieving the activity travel information o individuals. Evidence appears to be strong that diary-2 is preferable to diary-1 for collecting the travel details of individuals. The comparison of the retrieval methods suggests that the face-to-face method of instrument administration is superior to the drop-off and pick-up method in terms of higher response rates and minimum recording errors.
Location: T E 15 New Biology Building.
Literature cited 1: Bhat, C.R. and Koppelman, F.S., Activity-based modeling of travel demands. In Handbook of Transportation Science, Springer US, 1999, pp 35-62. Arentze, T., Dijst, M., Dugundji, E., Joh, C.H., Kapoen, L., design and limited empirical evidence.Transp.Res.Rec. 2001, 1768 (1), 79-88.
Literature cited 2: Rastogi, R.and Rao, K.K., Survey design for studying transit access behaviour in Mumbai City, India.J.Transp.Eng., 2002, 128 (1), 68-79. Stopher, P.R., Use of an activity-based diary to collect household travel data. Transport, 1992, 19 (2), 159-176.