Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology

A Yoga session was held at CMLRE on 21 June 2024 as part of the International Yoga Day 2024.

Dr. Ansari ZA, retired Scientist NIO, one of the stalwarts in the field of benthic ecology, and Dr. PM Aboobakkar retired scientist CMFRI, visited CMLRE's Bhavasagara facility today.

A team of scientists from CMLRE described a new species, Ascetoaxinus ravichandrani, named in honour of Dr. Muthalagu Ravichandran, Secretary, MoES, for his dedication to advancing our understanding of ocean ecosystems and Deep-Sea Biodiversity Exploration and Conservation by coordinating the Samudrayan program. The new species belongs to the Thyasirids group, inhabiting sulphide-rich habitats near chemosynthetic environments. This revelation marks a significant milestone in marine exploration and biodiversity research.

Cdr Prashanth Srivastava, O-SMART Programme Officer, MoES, and Dr. Rajasekhar, Scientist, NIOT, visited CMLRE today (30/05/2024) and appreciated the facilities established at the centre.

A consultative meeting was held at CMLRE with the Chairman of MPEDA under the chairmanship of the Secretary (MoES) to discuss the engagement of Indian industries in Southern Ocean fisheries. The CMLRE director Dr. GVM Gupta and other senior scientists Shri Saravanane N and Dr. Sendhil attended the meeting.

Students from the Institute of Fisheries Biotechnology, Chennai, visited CMLRE today (29/05/2024) as part of their industrial visit. They were mesmerized by the cutting-edge technologies and various facilities at CMLRE, which led to vibrant scientific interactions.

Dr. Agnew, Executive Secretary of CCAMLR, visited CMLRE on Friday, 24th May 2024. He engaged in discussions with the Director of CMLRE and other senior scientists. Shri Saravanane N, Sc-F, CMLRE, showcased and explained the newly established facilities at the institution.

The South African delegates attending the ongoing 46th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM 46) in Kochi visited CMLRE on 23rd May 2024. The team toured various CMLRE facilities and held discussions with the Director of CMLRE regarding potential collaborative efforts on Marine Living Resources (MLR) between India and South Africa.

Visit of girls students from different government schools of Kallakurichi district, Tamil Nadu

A research expedition led by Shri Saravanane set sail aboard FORV Sagar Sampada on 21st March 2024 for a 25-day cruise as part of the Deep Ocean Mission to explore the biodiversity of a seamount in the Lakshadweep Archipelago. The data collected promises to enhance our understanding of critical habitats like seamounts. 🌊🚢

A team of scientists led by Dr. Kusum Komal Karati, CMLRE has completed a cruise onboard FORV Sagar Sampada from 19.02.2024 to 14.03.2024 to study the spawning ecology of the pelagic fishes in the eastern Arabian Sea.

CMLRE, as the nodal agency for Marine Mammal Monitoring, leads the charge in collecting tissue samples of Marine Mammals along the coasts of India. The centre has been diligently gathering tissue samples to construct a digital repository for marine mammal sequences.

During a recent field trip to Goa, our dedicated researchers, Dr. Madhu Magesh and Dr. G. Kuber, guided by our esteemed Director, Dr. G.V.M. Gupta, successfully collected 36 tissue samples from 5 different marine mammal species, including a potential Blue Whale sample!

This achievement would not have been possible without the incredible support of the Department of Forest, Goa, and various NGOs. Their collaboration has been instrumental in facilitating the collection of these invaluable samples.

These tissue samples will now undergo high-throughput sequencing at our state-of-the-art genomic facilities in CMLRE, Kochi. This will contribute to a deeper understanding of species diversity and population genomics of marine mammals, furthering our conservation efforts.🌊🐬

A stakeholder Consultative meeting was held at CMLRE with officials of World Bank, CMFRI & CIFT, as part of the proposed joint report between MoES and World Bank on Blue Economy pathways for resource efficient, inclusive and resilient growth in India.

Day 3: CMLRE Colleagues with Dr. Shailesh Naik, former secretary, MoES, the esteemed recipient of the coveted Padma award during the Indian Ocean Regional Decade Conference 2024.

Day 2: CMLRE team at Indian Ocean Regional Decade Conference-2024 at , Hyderabad.

Dr. GVM Gupta, Director, CMLRE, participated in the Indian Ocean Regional Decade Conference-2024 held at , Hyderabad. He delivered an insightful talk on "Marine Living Resources and Biodiversity of the Northern Indian Ocean". The CMLRE team has also set up a stall showcasing a range of research activities conducted by the institute. Ministry of Earth Sciences Government of India

eDNA sampling in the Coastal waters off Kochi.

Dr. Rasheed, Dr. Kuberan & Dr. Ramu from CMLRE @ India International Science Festival (IISF) held at RCB Campus,Faridabad from 17-20, Jan 2024 .

Participants of FORV Sagar Sampada cruise No. 400

Wishing You all a Very Happy New Year

CMLRE has conducted a one-day awareness program on 20thDecember to students from St. Alberts College, Sacred Hearts College, Thevara, CUSAT and KUFOS, Kochi. This was in connection with the 9th India International Science Festival (IISF-2023) during 17-20 January 2024 to be held in Faridabad, Haryana

Students from the Department of Aquatic Biology, Kerala University visited CMLRE on December 11, 2023.

Dr. Sherine S Cubelio, Scientist, CMLRE delivered a public talk on Marine biodiversity as part of the Outreach program to stimulate and harness young minds at the Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium Bangalore organized by the International Centre for Theoretical Science of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bangalore on Dec 10th, 2023.

Dr. Hashim Manjebrayakath, Scientist-E, CMLRE was one of the distinguished panelist for the technical session on "Deep Sea Fishing: Technology, Resources & Economics" at the Global Fisheries Conference 2023 held in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

Mapping the Seamounts: The CMLRE team has embarked on a cruise aboard Sagar Nidhi under the ambitious Government of India (GOI) program, the "Deep Ocean Mission," to explore the life around seamounts in the Lakshadweep Archipelago in the Southeastern Arabian Sea. 🚢🌊

CMLRE is proud to announce the successful breeding of Amphiprion clarkii, a highly sought-after marine ornamental fish known for its high market demand. This achievement was realized in controlled conditions within three months of stocking at the experimental pilot hatchery facility of CMLRE-MoES, as part of our Societal Services initiative.
The breeding process occurred in synthetic seawater with zero water exchange. Remarkably, the breeding pair laid eggs, and within just seven days, the individuals hatched successfully. Currently, the larvae are thriving on a diet of live feed, which includes copepods enriched with Isocrysis galbana and Nanochloropsis salina.
This accomplishment signifies a significant milestone in our commitment to marine biodiversity and sustainable practices. 🐟🌊 Ministry of Earth Sciences Government of India

Biodiversity sampling in the Andaman waters! 🌊🐠 Our dedicated team is hard at work, collecting water and sediment samples to assess the diversity of metazoan communities using cutting-edge eDNA approaches.🧬🔬

The Indian delegation, led by Dr. GVM Gupta, Director, CMLRE, and members viz, Dr. Vijay Kumar Scientist-G, MoES, and Shri N. Saravanane, Scientist-F, CMLRE, participated in the 42nd Commission meeting of CCAMLR. The ongoing meeting focused on the discussion of conservation measures to regulate krill and fishery resources in the Southern Ocean for the upcoming fishing season in 2023-24. The Indian delegation is actively participating in these discussions, with a particular focus on the creation of a representative system of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). This system aims to contribute to the long-term conservation and sustainable utilization of resources. India is also a co-sponsor of the East Antarctic and Weddell Sea proposal, which is under consideration during this year's discussions.🌊🐟 Ministry of Earth Sciences Government of India National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research PMO India Kiren Rijiju

Shri N Saravanane and Dr. R Sendhil Kumar, Scientists from CMLRE, participated in the 42nd Scientific Committee Meeting of the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) held in Hobart, Australia from 16 to 27 October 2023. Ministry of Earth Sciences Government of India National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research Kiren Rijiju PMO India

Dr. Sherine Sonia Cubelio, Scientist E participated in the workshop on Enhancing Biological Data Sharing to Advance Deep-Sea Taxonomy, which is being convened by the International Seabed Authority (ISA), in collaboration with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries of the Republic of Korea (M*F), the National Marine Biodiversity Institute of Korea (MABIK) and the Institute of Tropical Biology of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), from 3-6 October 2023. Discussions were held on agenda items such as implementing Best Practices on Utilizing Biological Data Platforms and Understanding Deep-Sea Biodiversity Data in the context of ISA. Ministry of Earth Sciences Government of India Kiren Rijiju