India Strengthens Marine Research with Bhavasagara Centre as National Repository

To preserve the marine conservation India designated the ‘Bhavasagara’ Referral Centre as the National Repository for Deep-Sea Fauna. It was established in Kochi and this facility will preserve and study the India’s deep-sea biodiversity. It was developed by the Centre for the Marine Living Resources and Ecology which function under the Ministry of Earth Sciences. This initiative aims to strengthen the scientific research, biodiversity protection and country’s growing blue economy.

Bhavasagara Centre: India’s New Deep-Sea Biodiversity Hub

The ‘Bhavasagara’ Referral Centre is located in Kochi and it has been officially recognized by the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) under the Biological Diversity Act 2002.

This recognition transforms the center into the national-level scientific repository and it is responsible for to preserving and documenting the India’s deep-sea life forms.

The facility already have over the 3,500 scientifically classified marine specimens and also making it one of the most significant marine biodiversity collections in the country.

What Makes This Repository Unique?

The Bhavasagara Centre is not just the storage facility but it is the comprehensive research and documentation hub for the deep-sea ecosystems.

The collection of the centre includes a wide range of species like,

• Invertebrates such as cnidarians, molluscs, arthropods and echinoderms
• Vertebrates which includes the deep-sea fishes like elasmobranchs and teleosts

Key Functions Under the Biological Diversity Act

As per the provisions of the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 this repository has been assigned with the several important responsibilities.

These include to,

• Secure preservation of the biological samples along with the DNA data
• Acting as the custodian of the newly discovered deep-sea species
• And also supporting the scientific research and taxonomy development

Boost to India’s Blue Economy and Ocean Research

The establishment of centre is the major step taken towards to strengthen the India’s blue economy which is focuses on the sustainable use of ocean resources.

According to M Ravichandran the repository will be enhance the India’s deep-sea research capabilities and also support the sustainable marine resource management.

This will be aligns with global effort like the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).

Question

Q. The designation of Bhavasagara as a National Repository primarily aims to the,

A. Promote commercial fishing
B. Preserve and document deep-sea biodiversity for scientific research
C. Replace international marine research institutions
D. Increase coastal tourism