Sep 19, 2007, 11:01 GMT
New Delhi - A fossil in Canada which is believed to be 565 million years old has been named after Indian geologist, Shiva Balak Misra, who discovered it, media reports said Wednesday.
The fossil, considered the oldest record of multi-cellular life on earth, will be called Fractofusus Misrai, the Indian Express daily reported.
The geologist who is based in India's northern city of Lucknow found imprints of the ancient soft-bodied, jelly-like creatures at a place called Mistaken Point in Canada's Newfoundland in June 1967.
The rare honour for the Indian scientist was announced by geologists Guy Narbonne from Canada and Jim Gehling from Australia at a ceremony in the Portugal Cove South City of Newfoundland recently.
'I am excited,' Misra told the newspaper about the development, adding that initially the research was offered to another colleague who had declined to work on the project.
'When my department asked me if I was ready to take up the challenge, I accepted. Success fell into my lap,' he said.
Misra had decided to give up active research in Canada 37 years ago and return to India to build a school.
'There was no school in my village and I remember the hardship,' Misra, who is in his early seventies, told the Kolkata-based Telegraph newspaper. The scientist took up research and teaching again after he set up the school.
Misra, who now leads a retired life said he received an e-mail from Narbonne on Tuesday afternoon.
'Your name appears as the discoverer of the Mistaken Point fossils..(It) will be seen by thousands of people every summer,' Telegraph quoted from the e-mail Narbonne sent to to Misra.
'You should feel quite pleased at the huge role you played in discovering this world-famous fossil site. I hope you view this as a suitable recognition of your important and pioneering work,' the e-mail read.
The Canadian government has also declared Mistaken Point, the site of Misra's discovery, a protected area.
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