The Department of Geology of Fergusson College that is celebrating its centenary foundation year on December 19 and 20 is in the process of applying for Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India and University Grants Commission (UGC) for research grants, said Ravindrasinh Pardeshi, council member of Deccan Education Society (DES) that runs Fergusson College on Tuesday. “The department will simultaneously take efforts to set up its own geological research laboratory with modern equipment,” he said. The department also plans to introduce advance diploma in gemology and another add-on course in disaster management at Jagannath Rathi Vocational Guidance and Training Institute, Pardeshi said. The department already runs a diploma in gemology at the institute. As part of the centenary celebrations, the department will host an alumni meet on December 19 and 20 along with technical deliberations. Lectures are also scheduled on "Petroleum explorations and career opportunities in petroleum industry," "Deccan Volcanic Province: Past, Present and Future," among others. Another feature of these proceedings will be the programme "Geological Spectrum" in which eminent past students actively working in various disciplines of geology will share their experiences. Mukund Ghare, a consulting geologist and noted environmentalist will inaugurate the function. The department was started in 1908 at the college under the affiliation of Bombay University, which was later affiliated to Pune University after its establishment. A peek into the museum The 46-year-old K V Kelkar Geology museum at the Geology Department of Fergusson College that has more than 1000 rock and fossil specimen will be thrown open for commoners on December 19 and 20, the centenary celebration of the department. This is only second time after 1984 during the centenary function of Fergusson College that the museum is being thrown open for the public, said Sandhya Joshi, former head of the department. The collection includes a 600 million year old fossil of a marine organism, 200 million year old leaf fossils, wood turned into fossil called as petrified wood, volcanic froth that floats on water, among others. The museum will be open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
