Nearly 30% of the forest plants are uniquely Himalayan, and are not found anywhere else in the world. These include certain species of Oak, Rhododendron and Pine. About 125 plant species are wild relatives of cultivated plants, including cereals, legumes and nuts. These constitute valuable gene-pools which can be used in future for the improvement of crops. Of the 1,500 species of angiosperms known in India, 20 to 49% occur in the Himalayan province. More than 30% of these angiosperm plants are entirely endemic and economically quite useful. Nearly 7,020 species or 54% of the Indian Fungi have been reported from this mountain domain. About 1,159 out of the total 1,948 Indian lichens, occurs in the Himalayan world.

Studies on biomass utilization in the rural India and its impact assessment on environment with suggestions for possible alternatives. Santosh Sharma, Annapurna Rathore and Ashwini Kumar New Generation Development and Globilization Foundation, 2-Kha-14, Sector-2, Jawaharnagar, Jaipur, 302004. India. Email: ngdgf_nature@yahoo.com

Rural energy needs of India and role of women in developing alternative sources of energy: a case study. Annapurna Rathore, Santosh Sharma, and Ashwini Kumar New Generation Development and Globilization Foundation, 2-Kha-14, Sector-2, Jawaharnagar, Jaipur, 302004. India. Email: ngdgf_nature@yahoo.com The changing scenerio of the rural energy needs and the role of women in developing alternative sources of energy has not been worked out for the semi-arid and arid regions of India. The present paper will describe the role of women in the developmen t of alternative sources of energy.

Isolated Microspore Embryogenesis in Cereals: Aspects and Prospects Archana Chugh and François Eudes Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Lethbridge Research Centre, 5403 1st Avenue South, PO Box-3000, Lethbridge, Alberta T1J 4B1, CANADA. Telephone: 1-403-317-3358/3338, Fax: 1-403-382-3156 e-mail: chugha@agr.gc.ca, eudesf@agr.gc.ca Abstract

The biodiversity of the Himalaya province is extraordinarily high. The eastern part of Himalaya embraces the zones of highest biological diversity, with more than 4,000 species of vascular plants per 10,000 km2 area. This is exceptionally high even in the global context. In the larger part of Himalayan province, the vascular plant species is above 3,000 per 10,000 km2 area. (Fig. 1.4)