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Question 22 of 38 · Scientific Research Institutes & Organisations
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The Geological Survey of India (GSI) was established in:

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Answer: Option C — 1851

Detailed Solution

The Geological Survey of India (GSI) was established on 4 March 1851.

About the establishment of GSI:

  • It was set up by the British East India Company, mainly to find coal deposits in eastern India for the steam engines of the newly planned railways and for steamships.
  • Its first superintendent was Thomas Oldham, an Irish geologist, who is regarded as its founder.
  • It is one of the oldest geological survey organisations in the world, and the second-oldest survey organisation in India after the Survey of India (1767).

About GSI:

  • Its headquarters is in Kolkata, West Bengal.
  • It works under the Ministry of Mines, Government of India.
  • It has regional offices and state units across India.

Its main functions include:

  • Preparing geological maps of the country.
  • Exploring and assessing mineral resources, such as coal, iron ore, gold, copper, limestone and rare earth elements.
  • Studying earthquakes, landslides, glaciers and other geological hazards.
  • Conducting marine, airborne and Antarctic geological surveys.
  • It played an important role in discovering major mineral deposits, such as the coalfields of Raniganj and Jharia, and gold, copper and other mineral deposits.
  • In 2023, GSI reported the discovery of lithium resources in the Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir.
  • Its museum in Kolkata has a large collection of fossils, minerals and meteorites.

Other old scientific organisations of India:

Survey of India (1767): the oldest scientific department of the Government of India; responsible for mapping. It is headquartered in Dehradun.

Archaeological Survey of India (1861): founded by Alexander Cunningham; headquarters New Delhi.

India Meteorological Department (1875): headquarters New Delhi.

Botanical Survey of India (1890): headquarters Kolkata.

Zoological Survey of India (1916): headquarters Kolkata.

Forest Research Institute (1906): Dehradun.

Other bodies under the Ministry of Mines:

  • Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM): Nagpur (1948).
  • National Aluminium Company (NALCO) and Hindustan Copper Limited.

Why not the other options?

  • ✗1767 is the year the Survey of India was established.
  • ✗1861 is the year the Archaeological Survey of India was founded.
  • ✗1905 is not the founding year of the GSI.

Quick tip

Remember: Geological Survey of India = 4 March 1851 (founder Thomas Oldham; to find coal for railways; HQ Kolkata; Ministry of Mines); Survey of India = 1767 (oldest); ASI = 1861; IMD = 1875; BSI = 1890; ZSI = 1916.

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Scientific Research Institutes & Organisations — Preparation

This question tests your understanding of Scientific Research Institutes & Organisations, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.

This topic covers India's scientific research institutes and organisations, such as BARC, ISRO, DRDO, CSIR and its laboratories, ICAR and ICMR, and specialised research centres for crops, animals, oceans and medicine, along with where they are located. Questions usually ask where an institute is located and what it researches. For example, BARC is in Mumbai, the Central Rice Research Institute is in Cuttack, and the National Institute of Oceanography is in Goa. A table of institute, city and field is the best way to revise this topic. Practise the research institutes questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.

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