CSIR NBRI

वै.औ.अ.प. - राष्ट्रीय वनस्पति अनुसंधान संस्थान
CSIR - National Botanical Research Institute

Rana Pratap Marg, Lucknow, India
राना प्रताप मार्ग, लखनऊ, भारत

An Institute of National Importance under Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India

Dr. S.K. Behera
Full Name: Dr. S.K. Behera
Designation: Sr. Principal Scientist
Address: Plant Ecology and Climate Change Science Division CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Rana Pratap Marg Lucknow-226001, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Email Address: soumitbehera@nbri.res.in
Contact Number: 2297860
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Research Area

Dr. Soumit K. Behera currently works at the Plant Ecology and Climate Change Science Division. His group has been working in the field of tropical forest productivity assessment, monitoring and modelling using field measurements. His group is primary focusing on long-term studies for understanding carbon dynamics in tropical forests using field-based eco-physiological observations and advanced Eddy covariance flux measurements.

Tropical forest plays disproportionately important role in carbon sequestration and storage, with complex regulation mechanism by local environment (microclimate) and community structure. Dr. Behera is experienced in forest ecology, field measurements for biomass and productivity studies using silvicultural and instrument-based measurements. As a leading team member, he has assessed the biomass and productivity in few tropical forests in few selected protected areas of India. He has also generated inputs for 11 eco-physiological variables from in-situ measurements to run Biome-BGC, a production efficiency model. His team is generating data on species diversity, biomass, carbon production, plant functional traits and microclimate across various ecosystems, which could provide valuable insights for climate change mitigation and long-term ecosystem monitoring. His group is also monitoring fluxes of H2O, CO2, sensible heat (H), and latent heat (λET) by using Eddy covariance flux measurements in tropical semi-evergreen forest in Similipal Biosphere Reserve, Odisha. His team is also investigating role of urban vegetation in mitigation of urban heat islands

Research

Research Summary:

Standardized and developed two new indirect methods for leaf area index (LAI) and canopy structure attributes estimation using Li-COR LAI plant canopy analyzer (i) in discontinuous row crops like cotton, jatropha, etc. and (ii) in tropical deciduous forests, and formulated forest type-wise aboveground biomass equations using LAI as variable.

Assessed above ground biomass (AGB) and carbon sequestration at species level in three tropical forest communities i.e. dry mixed, sal mixed and teak using annual DBH data and biomass allometric equations at Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary, Uttar Pradesh.

Mapped forest biomass of Sal and Teak forests at Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary, Uttar Pradesh using Microwave satellite data (Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) derived information through water cloud model) (In collaboration with IIT Kharagpur)

Modeled for first time forest carbon and NPP in three plant functional types (PFTs) in Indian tropical deciduous forest by using BIOME-BGC biogeochemical model and opens scope for further improvement for LAI algorithms for better in-situ LAI simulation.

Investigated functional relationship between forest community structure and microclimate with productivity by having GLM and multivariate analysis. Established 'Atmospheric temperature and humidity demonstrated strong correlation to productivity in tropical dry deciduous forests'.

Assessed the carbon sequestration potential of three native tropical tree species to identify the high carbon sequestering species, which will enhance the carbon stocks under urban greening.

Climate change is drastically impacting biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, particularly in high-altitude alpine ecosystems. Assessed the bryophyte phytosociological attributes, biomass, biomass carbon and water relation parameters with potential microclimate drivers that determine the diversity patterns of these understudied plants in the alpine ecosystems in Indian Himalaya with implications for long-term monitoring of their response to climate change.

Publications
  • Singh, P., Amit Kumar, A., Singh, T., Anto, S., Indoliya, Y., Tiwari, P., Soumit K. Behera, Chakrabarty, D., 2024. Targeting OsNIP3; 1 via CRISPR/Cas9: A strategy for minimizing arsenic accumulation and boosting rice resilience. Journal of Hazardous Materials 471: 134325, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.134325.

  • M.D. Behera, J.S.R. Krishna, S. Paramanik, S. Kumar, Soumit K. Behera, S. Anto, S.N. Singh, A.K. Verma, et. al., 2024. Digital hemispherical photographs and Sentinel‑2 multi‑spectral imagery for mapping leaf area index at regional scale over a tropical deciduous forest. Tropical Ecology, https://doi.org/10.1007/s42965-024-00327-y

  • R. Nayak, A. K. Verma, N. Manika, L.B. Chaudhary, Soumit K. Behera, K. Bargali, V.N. Pandey, 2024. Distribution pattern and management of invasive alien plant species in Sikkim Himalaya, India. Plant Science Today, Vol 11(2): 205–213, https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.2968.

  • Soumit K. Behera*, Behera, M.D., Tuli, R., Barik, S.K., 2023. Atmospheric temperature and humidity demonstrated strong correlation with productivity in tropical moist deciduous forests. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 195, 69, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-10668-7.

  • Verma, A.K., Nayak, R., Manika, N., K. Bargali, V.N. Pandey, L.B. Chaudhary, Soumit K. Behera*, 2023. Monitoring the distribution pattern and invasion status of Ageratina adenophora across elevational gradients in Sikkim Himalaya, India. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 152, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-10549-z.

  • Jamal, R., Narayan, S., Dubey, R., R. Kannujia, R. Rai, Sandip K. Behera, Soumit K. Behera, P.A. Shirke, V. Pandey, S.K. Barik, 2023. Response of tropical trees to elevated Ozone: a Free Air Ozone Enrichment study. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 195, 238 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-10713-5.

  • Soumit K. Behera*, S. Mishra, N. Sahu, N Manika, S. N. Singh, S. Anto, R. Kumar, R. Husain, A. K. Verma, N. Pandey, 2022. Assessment of carbon sequestration potential of tropical tree species for urban forestry in India. Ecological Engineering, 181, 106692.

  • S.M. Ghosh, M.D. Behera, S. Kumar, P. Das, A.J. Prakash, P.K. Bhaskaran, P.S. Roy, S.K. Barik, C. Jeganathan, P.K. Srivastava, Soumit K. Behera, 2022. Predicting the Forest Canopy Height from LiDAR and Multi-Sensor Data Using Machine Learning over India. Remote Sensing, 2022, 14(23), 5968; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14235968.

  • P. Das, M. D. Behera, S.K. Barik .., Soumit K. Behera.. et. al., 2022. Shifting cultivation induced burn area dynamics using ensemble approach in Northeast India. Trees, Forests and People, 7:100183.

  • R.K. Verma, B. A. Khan, V.V. Wagh, B. Meena, Soumit K. Behera, S. Tamta, L. B. Chaudhary, 2022. Notes on the distribution of an alien weed Hyptis brevipes (Lamiaceae) in India. Plant Science Today, 9 (sp1):1–4.

  • K. K. Rawat, V. Sahu, R. R. Paul, Soumit K. Behera, 2021. Frullania bolanderi Austin (Marchantiophyta: Jubulaceae), a rare, disjunct liverwort in the Himalaya. Current Science, 121 (No 10):1279–1280.

  • M. D. Behera, S. Barnwal, S. Paramanik, P. Das, B. K. Bhattyacharya, B. Jagadish, P. S. Roy, S. M. Ghosh, Soumit K. Behera, 2021. Species-Level Classification and Mapping of a Mangrove Forest Using Random Forest—Utilisation of AVIRIS-NG and Sentinel Data. Remote Sensing, 13, 2027. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13112027.

  • Soumit K. Behera, P. Tripathi, M. D. Behera, R. Tuli, 2019. Modeling net primary productivity of tropical deciduous forests in North India using bio-geochemical model. Biodiversity and Conservation, 28: 2105-2121.

  • A. Gautam, N. Kumar, A. K. Dubey, R. Ranjan, N. Sahu, Soumit K. Behera, K. Shah, R. D. Tripathi, S. Mallick, 2019. Sucrose plays key role in amelioration of arsenic induced phytotoxicity through modulating phosphate and silicon transporters, physiological and biochemical responses in C3 (Oryza sativa L.) and C4 (Zea mays L.). Environmental and Experimental Botany, DOI.org/10.1016/j.envexpbot.2019.103930.

  • M. D. Behera, Soumit K. Behera, S. Sharma, 2019. Recent advances in biodiversity and climate change studies in India. Biodiversity and Conservation, 28:1943–1951.

  • N. Sahu, S. N. Singh, P. Singh, S. Mishra, N. Karakoti, R. Bajpai, Soumit K. Behera, S. Nayaka, D. K. Upreti, 2019. Microclimatic variations and their effects on photosynthetic efficiencies and lichen species distribution along elevational gradients in Garhwal Himalayas. Biodiversity and Conservation, 28:1953–1976.

  • S. Mishra, L. B. Chaudhary, M. K. Jain, V. Kumar, Soumit K. Behera, 2019. Interaction of abiotic factor on soil CO2 efflux in three forest communities in tropical deciduous forest from India. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, DOI : 10.1007/s10661-019-7689-4.

  • S. Mishra, K. Singh, N. Sahu, S. N. Singh, N. Manika, L. B. Chaudhary, M. K. Jain, V. Kumar, Soumit K. Behera, 2019. Understanding the relationship between soil properties and litter chemistry in three forest communities in tropical forest ecosystem. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, DOI : 10.1007/s10661-019-7691-x.

  • P. Tripathi, M. D. Behera, Soumit K. Behera, N. Sahu, 2019. Investigating the contribution of climate variables to estimates of net primary productivity in a tropical deciduous forest in India. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, DOI : 10.1007/s10661-019-7684-9.

  • A. K. Dubey, N. Kumar, A. Kumar, M. A. Ansari, R. Ranjan, A. Gautam, Meenakshi, N. Sahu, V. Pandey, Soumit K. Behera, S. Mallick, V. Pande, I. Sanyal, 2019. Over-expression of CarMT gene modulates the physiological performance and antioxidant defense system to provide tolerance against drought stress in Arabidopsis thaliana L.. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 171: 54-65.

  • N. Kumar, A. Dubey, A. K. Upadhyay, A. Gautam, R. Ranjan, S. Srikrishna, N. Sahu, Soumit K. Behera, S. Mallick, 2017. GABA accretion reduces Lsi-1 and Lsi-2 gene expressions and modulates physiological responses in Oryza sativa to provide tolerance towards arsenic. Scientific Reports, 7: 8786, DOI:10.1038/s41598-017-09428-2.

  • Soumit K. Behera, N. Sahu, A.K. Mishra, S.S. Bargali, M. D. Behera, R. Tuli, 2017. Aboveground biomass and carbon stock assessment in Indian tropical deciduous forest and relationship with stand structural attributes. Ecological Engineering, 99: 513-524.

  • V. C. Pandey, N. Sahu, Soumit K. Behera, N. Singh, 2016. Carbon sequestration in fly ash dumps: Comparative assessment of three plant association. Ecological Engineering, 95: 198–205.

  • M. D. Behera, P. Tripathi, B. Mishra, Shashi Kumar, V. S. Chitale, Soumit K. Behera, 2016. Above-ground biomass and carbon estimates of Shorea robusta and Tectona grandis forests using QuadPOL ALOS PALSAR data. Advances in Space Research, 57: 552-561.

  • A.K. Dubey, N. Kumar, N. Sahu, P. K. Verma, D. Chakrabarty, Soumit K. Behera, S. Mallick, 2016. Response of two rice cultivars differing in their sensitivity towards arsenic, differs in their expression of glutaredoxin and glutathione S transferase genes and antioxidant usage. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 124: 393–405.

  • N. Kumar, A. K. Dubey, P. K. Jaiswal, N. Sahu, Soumit K. Behera, R. D. Tripathi, S. Mallick, 2016. Selenite supplementation reduces Arsenate uptake greater than Phosphate but compromises the Phosphate level and physiological performance in hydroponically grown Oryza Sativa L.. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 35: 163–172.

  • Soumit K. Behera, M. D. Behera, R. Tuli, 2015. An indirect method of estimating leaf area index in a tropical deciduous forest of India. Ecological Indicators, 58: 356–364.
  • A. Kumar, O. Bajpai, A. K. Mishra, N. Sahu, Soumit K. Behera, S. S. Singh, L.B. Chaudhary, 2015. A checklist of the flowering plants of Katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary, Uttar Pradesh, India. Journal of Threatned Taxa, 7(7): 7309–7408

  • P. S. Roy,.., Soumit K. Behera.. et. al., 2015. New vegetation type map of India prepared using satellite remote sensing: Comparison with global vegetation maps and utilities. International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation, 39: 142-159.

  • V. S. Chitale, P. Tripathi, M. D. Behera, Soumit K. Behera, R. Tuli, 2012. On the relationships among diversity, productivity and climate from an Indian tropical ecosystem: a preliminary investigation. Biodiversity and Conservation, 21: 1177–1197.

  • P. Srivastava, A. Kumar, Soumit K. Behera, Y. K. Sharma, N. Singh, 2012. Soil carbon sequestration: an innovative strategy for reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration. Biodiversity and Conservation, 21: 1343–1358.

  • Soumit K. Behera, A. K. Mishra, N. Sahu, A. Kumar, N. Singh, A. Kumar, O. Bajpai, L. B. Chaudhary, P. B. Khare, R. Tuli, 2012. The study of microclimate in response to different plant community association in tropical moist deciduous forest from northern India. Biodiversity and Conservation, 21: 1159–1176.

  • P. Srivastava, Soumit K. Behera, J. Gupta, S. Jamil, N. Singh, Y. K. Sharma, 2011. Growth performance, variability in yield traits and oil content of selected accessions of Jatropha curcas L. growing in a large scale plantation site. Biomass and Bioenergy, 35: 3936–3942.

  • Soumit K. Behera, P. Srivastava, U. V. Pathre, R. Tuli, 2010. An indirect method of estimating leaf area index in Jatropha curcas L. using LAI-2000 Plant Canopy Analyzer. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 150: 307 – 311.

  • Soumit K. Behera, P. Srivastava, R. Tripathi, J. P. Singh, N. Singh, 2010. Evaluation of plant performance of Jatropha curcas L. under different agro-practices for optimizing biomass- A case study. Biomass and Bioenergy, 34: 30 – 41.

Patents
Scholars
  • Dr. Prem Prakash Singh, Senior Project Associate

  • Mr. Ragib Hussain, UGC-Senior Research Fellow (Academic Break)

  • Mr. Rahul Kumar, CSIR-Senior Research Fellow (Academic Break)

  • Mr. Anil Kumar Verma, Junior Research Fellow

  • Mr. Sonik Anto, CSIR-Senior Research Fellow

  • Mr. Chandan Sahu, CSIR-Senior Research Fellow

  • Mr. Sandeep K. Pal, CSIR-Senior Research Fellow (Academic Break)

  • Mr. Anupam Awasthi, UGC-Senior Research Fellow (Academic Break)

  • Mr. Mohd Saad, CSIR-Junior Research Fellow

  • Mr. Ramya Ranjan Paul, Project Assistant-II
Contact

Plant Ecology and Climate Change Science Division
CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Rana Pratap Marg
Lucknow – 226 001, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Email:soumitbehera@nbri.res.in; soumitkbehera@gmail.com
Phone: +91522- 2297860 (O), Mobile: +918948191777