EnvironmentTuesday, 21 July 2026·The Hindu - Science
InvenTree-meta: India’s largest tree inventory meta-dataset covers 465 studies and 4,650 hectares
NCBS-led researchers compiled InvenTree-meta from 465 studies conducted between 1991 and 2023 across more than 4,650 hectares.
Key highlights
Direct fact
In 2026, researchers led by the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS) compiled InvenTree-meta, described as the largest meta-dataset of tree inventory studies from India, using 465 published studies conducted between 1991 and 2023.
Key specifics
- InvenTree-meta combines 465 published tree inventory studies from India.
- The studies span the period 1991 to 2023.
- The dataset covers more than 4,650 hectares of forests across India’s biomes.
- More than 80% of the underlying datasets are not publicly accessible.
- Knowledge gaps remain in the northern Western Ghats, northeastern India, the Western Himalayas and the Nicobar Islands.
Exam lens
Question type: environment and biodiversity data MCQ, research dataset, Indian forest ecology. TNPSC one-liner: remember NCBS, 465 studies, 1991–2023, 4,650 hectares, and the under-sampled regions.