Thar DESIGNS
(Desert EcoSystem Innovations Guided by Nature & Selection) aligned to The National Mission on Biodiversity and Human Well-Being Integrated study of the desert ecosystem to propel discoveries, inventions and innovation for mitigating water and health challenges and catalyzing growth of industry and agriculture for sustenance and livelihood
Ongoing Projects
Camel and Bat phenomics guided bioengineering: Design prospecting & bioinspired solutions
Bioprospecting from Biological soil crusts – Ecological engineers of the Thar
Design Synthesis and Evaluation of Therapeutic Properties of Bioactive 2ο Metabolites from Desert Medicinal Plants
Bioprospecting stress tolerance-promoting microbes from the rhizosphere of keystone Thar plants
Citizen Science of the Thar Ecosystem- “Desert Ecosystem Knowledge Grid”
New Initiatives
Understanding Design principles of Keystone floral species of Thar for bioprospecting and restoration insights from genomics and metagenomics of rhizosphere and validation in Arabidopsis model
Mapping the ethnographic and genetic landscape of indigenous and endogamous populations of Thar to understand patterns of adaptations to extreme arid conditions