Great Thought Pankaj Ji. This shows the love and pain towards the scenario of biodiversity around the world in the heart of a great personality like him. Now simple question is that what a common man, a botanist and a nature lover can do to save the biodiversity. Most of the *bureaucrats* don't pay any attention towards this type of problems.
On Thu, Mar 22, 2012 at 6:42 AM, Dr Pankaj Kumar <[email protected]>wrote: > Yesterday I was in a meeting with one very senior, great orchid expert > from Russia, Prof. Leonid Averyanov. He has spent nearly 30 years studying > plants in Vietnam and of course studied Russian Orchids and flora too. He > has named over 200 new taxa to science. > We were four guys, Russian, Austrian, British and me, Indian. > He said something that really touched me a lot so felt like sharing. > He asked why do we collect herbarium specimens? > Some one answered that to make vouchers of our collections. Its acts like > a proof that yes we saw and studied this plant. > And his answer was, "NO. ITS BECAUSE, WHEN NOTHING WILL REMAIN ON EARTH > THEN WE CAN SHOW THESE COLLECTIONS TO OUR FUTURE GENERATIONS AND TELL THEM > THAT SUCH PLANTS EXISTED ON EARTH BUT WE DESTROYED THEM TO EXTINCTION". > I got goose bumps hearing him say this... > Pankaj > > > > -- Regards Dr Balkar Singh Head, Deptt. of Botany and Biotechnology Arya P G College, Panipat Haryana-132103 09416262964
