Introduction

The Digital Phytoinformatics Centre

Data regarding plant resources have been scattered in different formats in natural history collections, survey reports and the literature. A central challenge for the matters pertaining to plant resource informatics or phyto-informatics community is to provide the means to share and rapidly synthesise this data and the knowledge they provide us to build an easily accessible, unified and user-friendly map of plant resources.

Vision and Mission

The concept of digitalisation of floras collected from different phyto-geographical regions particularly Eastern Himalayas, Sub-Himalayan and Gangetic West Bengal was visional to document live and our preserved specimens, exploration cites and to gradually develop an electronic data bases of the plant resources.

Our mission is to develop a comprehensive and holistic knowledge hub and converting our departmental herbarium collection into its virtual form in the region through digital imaging and word description.

Our Endeavour

The Department of Botany, Raja Peary Mohan College, Uttarpara, with administrative, financial and secretarial support from our 130-years old esteemed institution initiated a novel effort, unique in this region to digitalise plant resources collected from Gangetic West Bengal and other Phytogeographical regions of India particularly, from The North-East Himalayas, Gangetic & Sub-Himalayan West Bengal, Chota Nagpur Plateau, Mahanadi Basin of Orissa, and South India. The centre was established in July 2014 to facilitate and maintain the large collection of the specimens of the department in proper form and function. This centre includes an advanced access to the images and description of the different plants that have been collected, preserved and maintained meticulously by the students and staff of the department.

The Task

The concept of global biodiversity informatics can be effectively aided by electronic data bases of dried and preserved specimen i.e, the digital or virtual Herbarium. As a first-hand reference center for matters relevant to plant resources of the region, the RPMC-DPIC is endeavouring to collect, conserve and analyze specialized and unique taxa. The center harbours nearly 500 diverse collection of indigenous and exotic floras, medicinal plants, rare and endangered taxa and it is rapidly increasing. Our collection of Eastern Himalayan plants is getting enriched every year with the addition of a number of wild species, made possible due to extensive and strenuous exploration and field study by students and faculty members undertaken in Eastern, Southern and remote Northern parts of Sikkim and Darjeeling Himalayas, South India, as well as Chota Nagpur plateau. The oldest specimens were collected dated back to 1960. All the living collections, seed accessions, herbarium collections, etc., are systematically being put on the web for access to the public free of cost to make it socially relevant and a thrust to teaching, learning as well as research particularly in biodiversity, conservation, sustainable development, climate change research, phyto-therapeutic uses and systematics in the region.

Herbaria as a Research Resource

In addition to storing and organising specimens, larger or highly specialised herbaria usually have an associated research program. Focus scientific areas typically include taxonomy, systematics (how living things are classified and named), evolutionary biology, conservation biology and applied botany (using plants for economic benefit).

Many herbaria have molecular genetics laboratories attached to them. DNA can be extracted from many specimens, even very old ones, and thus they can become a core part of ongoing DNA based scientific research. Today, DNA barcoding can provide a rapid tool for identifying species when flowers or fruits are not available, or if we have only fragments. Globally, DNA barcodes are now available for more than 265,448 species in the BOLD database. This aggregation of DNA sequences, which for plants are linked to herbarium vouchers, are a global resource that can be used in a "Big Data" context to explore ideas.

The value of herbaria samples extends beyond just the plants themselves. Herbarium specimens have been used to collate data for inferring changes in flowering times, leaf morphology and species ranges with climatic shifts.

Scientists also analyse chemicals that herbarium specimens have been exposed to, such as heavy metals associated with urban development, and different elements incorporated as leaves grow. Knowledge about waxes on leaf surfaces, as well as inhabitation by insects, fungi and bacteria are all possible through herbarium samples.

The global network of herbaria share specimens so that taxonomists and other researchers can benefit from their existence. With online resources making it known exactly what specimens are in which herbarium, there is an ever growing set of demands made on the use of specimens.

Curators who look after collections must balance the requests for using specimens in the present with long term preservation. The ability to track the impact of climate change and other unforeseen influences on plant health may make our current herbaria collections even more priceless in years to come.

Digitization of Herbarium resources has gained momentum in recent years for easy access, quick identification, and maintenance. Development of e-herbarium in proper format is an urgent need of the hour to document the vanishing treasure of India's rich biodiversity in different Phytogeographical regions.

Some Important Herbaria of India

Minor Herbaria of India

1. Botanical survey of India, Andaman and Nicobar circle, Port Blair.
2. Botanical survey of India, Arid zone circle, Jodhpur.
3. Botanical survey of India, Sikkim Himalayan circle, Gangtok, Sikkim.
4. Delhi University Herbarium, Delhi.
5. Lloyd Botanic Garden, Darjeeling.
6. School of Plant Morphology, Meerut College Meerut. (It contains approximately 25,000 specimens).
7. LWH-CSIR-NBRI Virtual Herbarium, Lucknow, UP, India (5000 taxa)

Fig: The herbarium specimens at the centre are arranged according to the Bentham and Hooker's system of taxonomic classification

We sincerely thank to our college administration for sanctioning the project and giving all necessary support in our present endeavour. We are highly grateful to all of my fellow colleagues in different streams, our students and non-teaching staff who relentlessly helping us to build the concept and to innovate it time to time in developing this digital data bases for the last three years.

We wholeheartedly thank IQAC of the College for taking the lead in this endeavour to make our vision a reality and the center more technologically up-graded and contemporary. Special thanks to IInd and IIIrd year B.Sc. Botany students from 2010-2014 who initially got involved in this hard work.

Finally sincere thanks to Dr. Sayak Ganguli and his team at THE BIOME for collaborating with us for this novel endeavour, providing valuable inputs and suggestions to make this web available.

ABOUT THE INSTITUTION

RAJA PEARY MOHAN COLLEGE was founded on 20th June, 1887 by an eminent philanthropist, promoter of education and social reformer in the nineteenth century Bengal - Raja Joykrishna Mukherjee, who was also a benevolent zamindar of Uttarpara in the Hooghly District of West Bengal.

The college is situated in a place which is very near to the famous Grand Trunk Road and just on the opposite bank of the Hooghly river of the famous temple of Goddess Kali at Dakshineswar. Exactly, 125 years ago from now, with thirty one students, Raja Joykrishna Mukherjee established this educational institution with the vision and mission to achieve excellence in higher education.

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT OF BOTANY

The Department of Botany started to function in 1971 and was upgraded in 1997 to Honours teaching. It is the youngest Laboratory based subject of the college and is still growing up to meet up its necessary infrastructural setup. Still the Department has been maintaining a very sound track record in the sphere of students' performances.