IMPHAL, June 7 � Dr Waikhom Vishwanath, Department of Life Sciences, Manipur University, has been conferred the prestigious �Prof EK Janaki Ammal National Award on Fish Taxonomy� for his distinguished and outstanding contribution in the field of fish taxonomy, in New Delhi on Friday.
The award carries Rs 1 lakh in cash along with a citation, scroll and medallion. It was conferred during the World Environment Day function organised by Ministry of Environment and Forest in New Delhi on June 5 by Union Minister of State (Independent) for Environment and Forests Prakash Javadekar.
Dr Vishwanath has so far discovered more than 60 freshwater fish species since 1986. Altogether about 520 fresh water species were found in the Eastern Himalaya region, according to an International Union for Conservation of Nature study.
Incidentally, IUCN had even named Prof Vishwanath and Kerala Senior Researcher Dr Rajeev Raghavan of St Albert�s College, Kochi among its 19 member fresh water fish specialist group to study 18 fresh water region of the world.
