History and Development of Lichen Research in India

The lichens of India were initially studied by European lichenologists starting from the era of Carl Linnaeus. Although Indians started exploring lichens during the late twenties of last century, they were identified by Europeans. It is now (about seven decades) that D.D. Awasthi successfully established school of lichenology in India and laid a strong foundation for the subject in the country. Later, researchers at CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI), Lucknow, played a crucial role in introducing various aspects of lichenology such as biomonitoring, biodeterioration and bioprospecting together with both classical and modern taxonomy. CSIR-NBRI, in close association with Indian Lichenological Society, is instrumental in popularizing lichenology in the country and today over 200 researchers are practising the subject all over the country. Agarkar Research Institute, Pune, and Botanical Survey of India are the other two major organizations that contributed significantly for exploring the lichen wealth of the country and critically revising several important taxa. At present, India is represented by approx. 2900 species; north-east India (including eastern Himalaya), Western Himalaya, Western Ghats and Andaman Nicobar Islands are being considered as hotspots of lichen diversity. The lichens are used in air pollution and climate change studies; for biological activities such as antimicrobials and antioxidants to lifestyle diseases; for biodeterioration and in forestry as indicators. In the recent years Indian lichens and endolichenic fungi are widely studied for their medicinal potential and in developing antimicrobial nanoparticles. Indian researchers are publishing more than 75 research papers every year, and lichenology is no more a neglected branch of science in the country.