A herbarium specimen is consists of dried plant parts with labelled information on Scientific name and collection data. It has immense use in plant identification, systematics studies and ecological studies. The Botanical Survey of India has more than 30,00,000 herbarium specimens persevered in different herbaria located in the different parts of the country.
In addition to general collections many type specimens are deposited in the various herbaria of Botanical Survey of India, viz. Arunachal Pradesh Regional Centre, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh (ARUN), Eastern Regional Centre, Shillong, Meghalaya (ASSAM), Central Regional Centre, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh (BSA), Northern Regional Centre, Dehradun, Uttarakhand (BSD), Sikkim Himalayan Regional Centre, Gangtok, Sikkim (BSHC), Western Regional Centre, Pune, Maharashtra (BSI), Deccan Regional Centre, Hyderabad, Telangana (BSID), Industrial Section, Indian Museum, Kolkata, West Bengal (BSIS), Arid Zone Regional Centre, Jodhpur, Rajasthan (BSJO), Central National Herbarium, Howrah, West Bengal (CAL), Southern Regional Centre, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (MH) and Andaman and Nicobar Regional Centre, Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands (PBL).
MAJOR HERBARIA IN INDIA
1. The Central National Herbarium (CAL) located at Howrah, established in 1795 and comprises about 2,000,000 (2 million) specimens. This is the first herbarium in the country and one of the most important Asian Herbaria.
2. Forest Research Institute, Dehra Dun contains 350,000 specimens (DD)
3. The National Botanic Gardens, Lucknow contains 260,000 specimens (LWG)
4. Blatter Herbarium, St. Xavier‟s college, Fort Bombay contains 200,000 specimens. (BLAT)
5. Botanical Survey of India has herbaria attached to their regional centres and units in different parts of India.
| Name of the Regional Centre/Units | Location | Date of Initiation | Acronym | No. of Specimens |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Central National Herbarium |
Howrah |
1795 |
CAL |
20,00,000 |
|
Southern Regional Centre |
Coimbatore |
1955 |
MH |
2,80,000 |
| Eastern Regional Centre | Shillong | 1956 | ASSAM | 2,60,000 |
| Western Regional Centre | Pune | 1955 | BSI | 1,75,000 |
| Northern Regional Centre | Dehradun | 1956 | BSD | 1,10,000 |
| Central Regional Centre | Allahabad | 1962 | BSA | 65,000 |
| Andaman and Nicobar Regional Centre | Port Blair | 1972 | PBL | 25,000 |
| Arid Zone Regional Centre | Jodhpur | 1972 | BSJO | 25,000 |
| Sikkim Himalaya Regional Centre | Gangtok | 1979 | BSHC | 35,000 |
| Industrial Section India Museum | Kolkata | 1887 | BSIS | 20,000 |
| Arunachal Pradesh Regional Centre | Itanagar | 1977 | ARUN | 15,000 |
| Deccan Regional Centre | Hyderabad | 2005 | BSID | 10,000 |
A nomenclatural type is the element to which the name of a taxon is permanently attached, whether as the correct name or as a synonym. Types are of great importance in plant taxonomy to ascertain the scientific names of plants. Nearly 30,000 type specimens of the Indian plants are deposited in the Herbarium of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, United Kingdom (K). Some other herbaria where many types are deposited pertaining to names of the Indian plants are The Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom (BM), Herbier National de Paris, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France (P) and Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Genève, Switzerland (G).
Many type specimens are deposited in the various herbaria of Botanical Survey of India, viz. Arunachal Pradesh Regional Centre, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh (ARUN), Eastern Regional Centre, Shillong, Meghalaya (ASSAM), Central Regional Centre, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh (BSA), Northern Regional Centre, Dehradun, Uttarakhand (BSD), Sikkim Himalayan Regional Centre, Gangtok, Sikkim (BSHC), Western Regional Centre, Pune, Maharashtra (BSI), Deccan Regional Centre, Hyderabad, Telangana (BSID), Industrial Section, Indian Museum, Kolkata, West Bengal (BSIS), Arid Zone Regional Centre, Jodhpur, Rajasthan (BSJO), Central National Herbarium, Howrah, West Bengal (CAL), Southern Regional Centre, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (MH) and Andaman and Nicobar Regional Centre, Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands (PBL).
About 22,000 type specimens at CAL, Howrah followed by 1016 at MH, Coimbatore; 244 at BSI, Pune; 175 at ASSAM, Shillong; 163 at BSD, Dehra Dun; 136 PBL, Andaman and Nicobar Islands; 32 at BSIS, Kolkata; 31 at ARUN, Itanagar; 17 BSHC, Gangtok; 20 at BSJO, Jodhpur; 15 at BSID, Hyderabad and 49 at BSA, Allahabad. They may be Holotype, Isotypes(s), Syntype(s), Isosyntype, Lectotype, Isolectotype, Neotype, Isoneotype, Epitype or Isoepitype.
Andaman & Nicobar Regional Centre, Port Blair (PBL)
Arid Zone Regional Centre, Jodhpur (BSJO)
Arunachal Pradesh Regional Centre, Itanagar (ARUN)
Central National Herbarium, Howrah (CAL)
Central Regional Centre, Allahabad (BSA)
Deccan Regional Centre, Hyderabad (BSID)
Eastern Regional Centre, Shillong (ASSAM)
Industrial Section, Indian Museum, Kolkata (BSIS)
Northern Regional Centre, Dehra Dun (BSD)
Sikkim Himalayan Regional Centre, Gangtok (BSHC)
Southern Regional Centre, Coimbatore (MH)
Western Regional Centre, Pune (BSI)
