ZSI signs MoU with Natural History Museum London

The Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) has signed an MoU with the Natural History Museum (NHM) London to work together to collect, study and conserve faunal specimens for science and to create and exchange associated data and images.

The MoU will be for five years, the ZSI said in a statement on Saturday.

The MoU was signed on a virtual platform on September 24 between Dr. Dhriti Banerjee, Director of ZSI, and Dr. Douglas Gurr, Director, Natural History Museum London, the statement said.

The ZSI Director said that this MoU was long overdue and the NHM, London, and ZSI, Kolkata are going to be mutually benefited from the faunal diversity research through scientific exchange between the two great institutions and long standing relationship.

She said that ZSI is the umbrella institute for Biodiversity studies in India. ''We have our headquarters in Kolkata and we have 16 Regional Centres instituted to cater to the faunal diversity of the various biogeographic areas of India. We have around 5 million animal collection holding, 20,000 type collections, and around 450 scientists and scientific staff towards curatorial and research on the vast animal collections present in ZSI,'' she said.

Gurr while thanking the Government of India for agreeing to this MoU with them expressed his gratitude to ZSI and said that ZSI and NHM, London look forward to joint research activities by both since they share a joint passion for natural history collections and accelerate towards better science. ''This collaboration will not only benefit both institutions, but the millions of vital collections present in NHM, London and ZSI including type materials are also important nationally and across the world for understanding and conserving the biodiversity, curing natural resource loss and sustainable management of bio-resources as well as the impact of climate change,'' he said.

Through this MoU both the institutions are committed to implementing the 1973 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Fauna (CITES), the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and relevant national and regional laws and regulations concerning biodiversity including laws relating to access to faunal specimens, associated benefit sharing and traditional knowledge.

The NHM, London, and ZSI will be working together to collect, study and conserve faunal specimens for science and to create and exchange associated data and images, the ZSI director said.

There are plans for conducting joint fieldwork expeditions, transfer of duplicate animal material and associated data and images by ZSI, Kolkata to NHM, London, and vice versa, capacity-building in the areas of Systematic Zoology, and Conservation to ensure the greater long-term conservation of animal genetic resources in India. Nevertheless, all faunal material and information exchange would be subject to all relevant extant domestic regulations of the participants as well as international laws to which either of the participants is a party.

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