Designation: |
Principal Scientist
|
Email Id: | lalsingh[at]neeri[dot]res[dot]in |
Qualification: |
M.Sc., PGD ( Biodiversity Conservation), Ph.D. (Ecology) |
Specialization: |
Ecological Restoration
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Address: |
Sub-Vertical 3 :Solid and Hazardous Waste Management, NEERI Nagpur
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Biodata: |
Sr. No. | Project Name |
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1 |
National Clean Air Mission
Assessment and Management of Air Pollution and Health problems in sources, pathways and receptors. Assessment of Indoor air pollution and Green house gases. |
2 |
Development of Biofencing on farmers degraded land for erosion control in Hinganghat
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Sr. No. | Publication Name |
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1 |
Natural Vs. reclaimed forests-a case study of successional change, reclamation technique and phytodiversity
The present study accounts for the successional changes that took place in vegetation structure and composition over a time span of 25 years at reclaimed manganese mine site. Adjoining natural forest site was also studied for comparison of floral composition. The results corroborate the fact that as the age of succession increases, the reclaimed area gets invaded by higher successional species leading to an ecologically sound self-sustaining restructured system. This is an indication of the efficacy of the restoration programme. Plant species diversity of reclaimed site was 3.34, 2.81 and 2.12 for herbs, shrubs and trees, respectively, whereas in the adjoining natural forest site (Pench national park, reserved forest), it was 2.74, 1.88 and 2.13 for herbs, shrubs and trees, respectively. Phytodiversity assessments at both sites led to the conclusion that higher values of importance value index (IVI) were obtained for shrubs and herbs at the reclaimed site when compared to the adjoining natural forest site. However, higher values of tree diversity and IVI were associated with the natural forest site than the 25-year-old reclaimed site. This paper compares the composition of flora, species diversity and rapid succession of phytodiversity of a 25-year old reclaimed site with nearby natural reserved forest site. Plant species richness of reclaimed site was 141, 38 and 18 for herbs, shrubs and trees, respectively, as compared to reserved forest site values of 55, 11 and 20 for herbs, shrubs and trees, respectively. Also, this paper evaluates the total and available nutrient, and microbial diversity in both the newly formed ecosystem and the adjacent natural forest site. |
2 |
Biodiversity promotion in restored mine land through plant-animal interaction
Ecological integrity includes enriched biodiversity, flourishing plant-animal interaction, and dynamic nutrient cycling. The present study examines the ecosystem structure and function of a newly developed ecosystem at a 24 year-old of restoration efforts in manganese mine area, Gumgaon, India. This study was initiated in the year 1988 through microbe assisted green technology (MAGT), which included application of top soil, site specific plantation, organic amendments and addition of soil microbes. The physico-chemical and biological properties of the reclaimed soil were gradually improved during the restoration programme with reference to soil pH, EC, bulk density, porosity, N, P, K, organic carbon, soil microbes, etc. Herbs occupied major ground cover with maximum density, followed by shrubs, trees and climbers. Regeneration capacity of the vegetation also followed the same pattern. An attempt was also made to analyse pollinator web with plant-pollinator interaction, influence of floral distribution on the composition of pollinator communities. The results of the study may help in understanding the linkage between plant and pollinator communities in eco-restoration programme. Four different groups of litter decomposing organisms, viz. microflora (bacteria, fungi, VAM), mircofauna (Nematoda), mesofauna (Protura, Enchytraeidae, Acari, Collembola) and macrofauna (Diplura, Isopoda, Isoptera, Chilopoda, Diplopoda, Coleoptera, Earthworms) have been studied. The present study clearly illustrates the sequence of various successional stages of ecosystem development from hostile ecological conditions of mine spoil to fully developed ecosystem and the study demonstrated how a barren land could be converted into a flourishing carbon sink. |