JOLLANG, 1 Mar: The zoology department of Himalayan University (HU) here celebrated the National Science Day recently, in collaboration with the Zoological Survey of India’s (ZSI) Arunachal Pradesh regional centre.
During the event, themed ‘Biodiversity of Arunachal Pradesh’, HU vice chancellor Kuldeep Krishan Sharma, who inaugurated the programme, spoke about the prominent scientists of India who excelled in scientific research, “including CV Raman and his research.”
Raising concern over the “destroying of floral and faunal ecosystems of Arunachal Pradesh,” he stressed on the need to “maintain healthy environments.”
HU research dean Prof Debaprasad Dev dwelt on CV Raman and the phenomenon of Raman scattering, while ZSI Scientist E Dr Shantabala Gurumayum made a presentation on the animal biodiversity in Arunachal, “with respect to vertebrate biodiversity.”
She apprised the participants of “endemic primates and pisces of the state and the measures to conserve them,” and shared her experiences in crab identification surveys.
ZSI Scientist D, Dr Temjenmongla, spoke about “millipede biodiversity, scientific methodology to catch them, and taxonomic keys for their identification.”
HU agriculture HoD Dr Raja Husain spoke on “the biodiversity of Arunachal’s soil and how the population of beneficial soil microbes can be improved to increase the soil fertility to get maximum crop yield by implementing soil management practices.”
HU botany HoD, Dr Hage Asha, presented a brief on the floral biodiversity of Arunachal, and highlighted some important plants of the state and their worth in the ecosystem, besides in the medicinal context.
The basic sciences faculty of Doimukh (Papum Pare)-based Rajiv Gandhi University (RGU) also celebrated the occasion with a two-day programme from 27-28 February.
More than 200 students from 20 different government, central and private schools of the district participated in events such as science quiz competition, extempore speech competition, science model competition, and poster-making competition.
“Tai Anjuna and Yatik Charu of Mallo Tarin Government Higher Secondary School, Itanagar, bagged the first prize in the quiz competition, while Padmini Priyanka and Takio Yagin of RGU’s physics department won the first prize in UG-PG category in the science quiz. Lungbe Bagang of government higher secondary school, Arunodaya, received the first prize in the extempore speech competition,” the university informed in a release.
“The team of Tamchi Meko, Kipa Anyi and Nabam Gumpi of Boum Kakir Mission School, Midpu, received the first prize in science model competition, while Dechin Pema and Ekila Tali of RGU’s zoology department bagged the first prize in the poster-making competition,” it added.
