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Journalism of Courage
Lonar Lake in Buldhana district of Maharashtra is believed to be the den of a mythical giant demon,slayed by Lord Vishnu. But it is the tiny microorganisms that dwell in its waters that are the subject of a study by Pune-based Maharashtra Association for the Cultivation of Science-Agharkar Research Institute (MACS-ARI).
The lake dates back to the Pleistonic era and was formed by the hypervelocity impact of either a comet or a meteorite. Though there are such lakes created by meteorite impact in other parts of the world,Lonar is perhaps the only one that has basalt rocks at the base and in the surroundings. Prompted by its unique formation and salinity,a scientist from the Microbiology Department of the MACS-ARI embarked upon a research project about ten years ago to look for microorganisms that live in the alkaline waters of the lake. Now,after identifying the microbes and studying their characterics,ARI is looking at how they can be appliedin manufacturing biodegradable plastic,antibiotics and also producing enzymes for various industrial applications.
It took the ARI team,comprising Kanekar,SS Sarnaik and SS Nilegaonkar,besides assisting researchers,five years to identify the microbial contents of the samples and the latter part of the current decade to focus on their applications. The research is supported by the Government of India. Besides biodegradable plastic,ARI is looking at other applications of the microbes,such as in developing special antibiotics and enzymes,used when extremely specific catalysts are required in manufacturing processes.
