Report on the International Seminar on
"The Role of Geological Surveys in the 21st Century"
The Seminar was inaugurated by Sri Jaisingrao Gaikwad Patil, the then Honourable Minister of State, Ministry of Mines, Government of India. About 400 geoscientists including 21 foreign delegates from 11 Geological Surveys and allied Institutes of different countries like USA, Japan, China, France, the Netherlands, Finland, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Korea, Kenya and Sri Lanka participated in this International seminar. In addition, representatives from almost all the National Geoscientific and Academic Institutions also took part in this event.
The seminar was structured into three main themes viz. (i) Role of Geological Surveys : review and opportunities (Chaired by Dr. Robin Brett of US Gological Survey and Co-chaired by Dr. S.K. Acharyya, Director General (Retd), Geological Survey of India. (ii) Geological Surveys : Challenges and future outlook (Chaired by Dr. S.V.P. Iyengar, Deputy Director General (Retd),GSI and co-chaired by Prof A. De of Calcutta University) and (iii) Earth science dynamics, Resources and Hazards (Chaired by Sri Ravi Shanker, Senior Deputy Director General, GSI and co-chaired by Dr. Hirokazu Kato, Geological Survey of Japan). Forty abstracts of papers along with the brief history of the other geological surveys were published in a pre-seminar volume. Twenty eight papers were presented at the seminar in three oral and one concurrent poster sessions.
The concluding session had a panel discussion with Dr. Young Hoon Kwak of Korea and Shri K. Krishnanunni,Director General, GSI in chair. From the deliberations in the seminar and the panel discussions, the following recommendations have emerged:
1. Close interaction between Universities, Research Organisations and the Geological Surveys to promote curiosity driven basic researches in frontier areas of earth and planetary sciences through inter-disciplinary programmes.
2. Detailed specialized multi-thematic mapping programmes to develop basic research in earth science and to target new mineral deposits.
3. Programmes on search for energy resources to meet the rising energy demands of growing population.
4. Earth Science driven environmental programmes on the following two frontiers : area - specific and pollution specific environmental issues.
5. Programmes on geological control in water resources development issues and geotechnical input in large development plans. In this context basic ground water studies were felt to be part of the mandate of the Geological Surveys as in United States Geological Survey.
6. Programmes on geological input in issues of great societal values especially related to geological hazards like, landslide, earthquake, flood, coastal zone instability, desertification etc.
7. Creation of development-oriented earth-science data base and maps of rural and urban areas.
8. Programmes on customization of earth science data for dissemination to user agencies and government departments.
Last updated Dec 18, 2001