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The National
Botanical Research Institute (NBRI)
- is
amongst
one of
the
constituent national research
laboratories and institutes of the Council of Scientific and Industrial
Research (CSIR), New Delhi. Originally set up as the National Botanic
Gardens (NBG) by the State Government of Uttar Pradesh (U.P.), it was taken
over by the CSIR in 1953. Though, initially engaged in research work in the
classical botanical disciplines, the NBG went on laying an increasing emphasis,
in keeping with the national needs and priorities in the field of plant
sciences, on its applied and developmental research activities. A time came
when it was felt that the name NBG no longer projected the correct nature and
extent of its aims and objectives, functions and R & D activities.
Consequently, the NBG was renamed as the NBRI, i.e., The National Botanical
Research Institute in 1978. This name has since correctly reflected the
distinctive character and the R & D activities of this only applied botanical
institution of its type in the country. However, the origin and development of
the NBRI to its present-day status and size, with a 25-hectare botanical
garden, two laboratories complexes, a rich herbarium, a voluminous library, an
85-hectare experimental-cum-extension Banthra Research Station and an
extensive Betelvine Cultivation project at Mahoba make a fascinating story, set
off against a colourful historical back ground, spanning three distinct eras
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The
Nawabi Era,
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British/State Government Era and
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CSIR
Era.
The Nawabi
Era
The garden part
of the NBRI encompasses within its limits the historical 'Sikandar Bagh', which
was laid out around 1800 A.D., as a royal garden, by Nawab Saadat Ali Khan and
was later improved upon by Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, the last king of Avadh, during
the first half of the 19th century. It was, in fact, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah who
named the garden as "Sikandar Bagh", after one of his favourite queens,
Sikander Mahal Begum. Measuring about 150 square metre and having a small
pavilion in the middle, the garden must have been the venue of innumerable
performances of the famous 'Ras-lilas', 'Kathak' dance, music and poetic 'mehfils'
and other cultural activities for which the last Nawab was very well known!
The Sikander
Bagh was, later, also the venue for a fierce battle during the uprising of
1857, when about 2000 freedom fighters, who had barricaded themselves in the
garden, were killed in a vicious British attack. Articles like cannon balls,
swords and shields, pieces of muskets and rifles, etc., accidentally dug out of
the garden over the years and now displayed in the NBRI Exposition and scars of
cannon balls on the old walls of the garden, still remind one of that historic
event. A still greater and more visible reminder of that battle is the statue,
erected some years ago in the old campus of the garden, of Uda Devi, a brave
passi lady, who fought side by side with the besieged soldiers. Attired in
a male battle dress, she had perched herself atop a tree in the garden, with
some ammunition and a gun in hand, and kept the British attackers at bay till
her ammunition was exhausted and she dropped dead on the ground, her body
riddled with bullets.
The British/State Government Era
After the
establishment of the British rule in 1858, some additional land around the
Sikander Bagh was also attached to it, a road cut through it and it was
officially renamed as the Government Horticultural Garden. Several well known
British horticulturists, namely, Dr. J. Cameron, Dr. E. Bonavia, who wrote one
of the early authoritative monographs on Citrus spp. and Mr. M. Ridley,
successively occupied the position of the Superintendent of this Garden, which
gradually became a centre of horticultural activities, such as, the
establishment of the Oudh AgriHorticultural society, organization of flower
shows, supply and exchange of plants, setting up of flower nurseries, etc., in
North India. Several fruit orchards, a flower nursery and lawns were added to
the Garden, which was also maintained as a public park.
In 1946, a
proposal was submitted to the Government of U.P., for the reorganization of
this Garden to a botanical garden in order to serve as a centre for botanical
and horticultural research. The proposal was accepted in 1948 and some funds
and small staff were sanctioned for the reorganization. The Garden was
rechristened as the National Botanic Gardens and Prof. K.N. Kaul, the then
Professor of Botany, Government Agricultural College, Kanpur, was appointed
Honorary Director. Five years later, on April 13, 1953, the NBG was taken over
by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi and the real
re-organizational work could commence only then.
The CSIR Era
From the very
time it was taken over by the CSIR, the NBG was envisaged to be a combination
of a botanic garden and an applied botanical research laboratory. However, the
course of events over the years has totally changed the very complexion of the
organization. It was renamed as the National Botanical Research Institute
(NBRI) in October 1978. The R & D effort of the NBRI is now geared to the
exploration, introduction, conservation, propagation, protection, genetic
upgrading and utilization of native and exotic plant wealth of India, with
particular reference to non-traditional economic plants and ornamentals,
leading to identification and development of production technologies for new
plant resources of commercial value.
Aims & Objectives
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Basic and Applied
Botanical, Horticultural and related Phyto-chemical Researches on Plants and
Plant Products;
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Development of
Production Technologies for New Plant Sources of commercial importance;
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Building up Germ
Plasm Collections of Economic Plants;
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Providing
Expertise and Assistance for Identification, Supply and Exchange of Plants
and Propagules, Garden Layout and Landscaping;
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Collection and
Dissemination of Scientific and Technical Information on Economic Plants as
well as on the R & D Activities of the Institute, through publication of
scientific and popular literature.
Areas Of R & D and Infrastructure
All the aims and
objectives of the Institute are pursued through various projects distributed
among the following seven broad areas of R & D and their respective activities:
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Plant Biodiversity and Conservation Biology
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Botanic Garden and Floriculture
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Biotechnology and Plant Physiology
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Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering
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Biomass Biology and Environmental Sciences
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Genetics,
Plant Breeding and Agro-technology
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Natural Products Development
Experimental Research Stations/Centres
NBRI has four
Experimental Research Stations - the Banthra Research Station, the Biomass
Research Centre, the Aurawan Research Centre and the Betelvine Research Centre,
Mahoba. While the first three are situated at and near village Banthra, about
22 km away from Lucknow, on Lucknow Kanpur Road, the fourth one is working at
Mahoba town, district Mahoba, about 220 km away from Lucknow. All the four
centres mostly serve as extension centres for the demonstration of
agro-technologies developed by the institute as well as for raising
large-scale, but, experimental cultivations of different types of economic
plants.
Specialized Services And Facilities
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Economic Botany Information Service (EBIS):
Set up
in 1978 as a National Facility, the EBIS caters to the information needs of
the scientist, the industrialist, the planner and the administrator in
certain selected areas of economic botany. It runs four regular services,
viz., Selective Dissemination of Information through "Applied Botany
abstracts", a quarterly abstracting journal, Technical Enquiry Service,
Bibliography Service and Reprography Service. EBIS is also the main
publishing agency of the Institute for bringing out publications on the
Technologies, Processes and Products developed by the latter as well as
bulletins, monographs, books, directories, bibliographies, proceedings of
seminars and symposia, brochures, folders, etc.
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Bioinformatics:
It is a DST-sponsored
Centre for setting up a bioinformation network of data bases on plant
diversity, legumes and South Asia Plant Systematics Index. It also maintains
the NBRI Website.
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Herbarium:
One of the
richest botanical herbaria of the country, it possesses over 115000 plant
specimens, properly identified, classified and incorporated. Though it
follows the Bentham and Hooker's System of plant classification, its holdings
are also classified according to various States of the Indian Union. The
herbarium regularly carries out supply and exchange of plants with the major
herbaria of the world and undertakes identification of plants at request,
besides being open for consultation and matching of plants.
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Library:
The
Institute's library is among the finest botanical libraries of the country.
It possesses over 55000 volumes, subscribes to about 350 Indian and foreign
periodicals, including the Biology Abstracts and the Current Contents on
diskettes. It is equipped with an Internet facility and the usual microfilm
and micro fische readers.
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Electron Microscopy:
This facility
comprises Scanning and Transmission electron microscopes, an ultramicrotome,
a 'Polaron' E 6000 Modular Vacuum Coater and 'Edwards' E 306-A Shadow Casting
units.
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Eco-Education Centre and Out-Reach Programme:
An
Eco-education Centre, with an exhaustive out reach programme as an integral
constituent of its organization and functioning, has been recently set up at
the Institute. The Centre comprises four major components:
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A Special
Garden for the physically handicapped, including the visually impaired, laid
out around the theme 'touch, feel and smell'. Every plant in this garden has
alongside it a small descriptive plate, bearing all the necessary information
about it engraved in Braille script. A special effort has been made to grow
aromatic and thorn-less varieties of plants in this garden.
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Children
Laboratory
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Model Home
Garden
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Out Reach
Programme, under which popular educational lectures and demonstrations are
organized on the subjects of environmental pollution and protection, plant
conservation, nutrition, public health and hygiene, etc. for the visiting
teams of women and children as well as for the rural population in the nearby
hutments and villages.
This write-up is
courtesy Mr. B. R. Juneja, Ex Scientist, NBRI, Lucknow.
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