Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has emerged as a global leader in shaping the biodiversity movement, said Kirti Vardhan Singh, Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change. He was speaking at the closing session of the Animal Taxonomy Summit-2025, organized by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) in Kolkata on Wednesday.
The summit focused on strengthening scientific research and conservation efforts in animal taxonomy. In his address, Singh praised ZSI for its remarkable contribution to India’s scientific landscape, highlighting that the organization has documented over 100,000 species, an achievement he described as a significant milestone.
He also referenced Prime Minister Modi’s Independence Day speech, in which the Prime Minister called on every Indian to adopt the ‘Panch Pran’, the five key resolutions for building a developed India. Reflecting on India’s deep-rooted respect for knowledge, Singh cited the example of Sage Dattatreya, who had 24 gurus, many of whom were animals, to emphasize the sacredness of learning from nature.
Singh commended the ZSI scientists as modern-day sages, decoding life, one species at a time, with dedication and insight. He further remarked that true intellectual freedom lies in liberating the mind from blind imitation of the West. Instead, he urged a renewed focus on India’s indigenous knowledge systems, advocating for a meaningful blend of traditional wisdom and cutting-edge science. This approach, he believed, would allow Indian science to break new ground, rooted in an indigenous mindset that is both original and forward-thinking.
The Animal Taxonomy Summit, now in its third consecutive edition, brought together over 500 delegates from five countries, including Ghana, Denmark, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Over three days, participants engaged in discussions on three main themes: Taxonomy, Systematics, and Faunal Diversity and Conservation. The summit featured 22 lead lectures by distinguished experts and 170 poster presentations by early-career researchers. The outcomes of these discussions will be submitted to the Government of India to inform future strategies on biodiversity documentation and conservation.
During the closing session, Singh released several important publications from the Zoological Survey of India. These included faunal compendia on ecologically important regions like the Terai ecosystem, Sonanadi Wildlife Sanctuary in Uttarakhand, Tampara Lake, and the mudflats along India’s east coast. The Minister also unveiled catalogues on Indian jumping spiders, tarantulas, and a comprehensive reference work on Collembola type specimens in the National Zoological Collection. These publications highlight ZSI’s continued efforts to expand and share knowledge about India’s rich faunal diversity.
In recognition of academic excellence, Singh awarded gold, silver, and bronze medals to research scholars for their outstanding poster presentations during the summit.
The year 2025 also marks the 110th Foundation Day of the Zoological Survey of India. To commemorate this milestone, ZSI hosted a 110-Hour Hackathon on Biodiversity Conservation and Climate Change across its 16 Regional Centres. The Hackathon engaged students, researchers, and innovators in developing practical solutions to urgent ecological challenges. The final round of the Hackathon was held on June 30, 2025, and Union Minister for Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, Shri Bhupender Yadav, inaugurated the Animal Taxonomy Summit-2025 on the same day.
