SERB-DST grants International Travel support to PU Scientist to Present Research Papers at American Academy of Forensic Sciences Conference in Seattle, WA (USA)

Chandigarh February 19, 2022

Dr. J.S. Sehrawat, Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology, Panjab University, Chandigarh, has been awarded International Travel Grant by Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), DST, Govt. of India, New Delhi, to attend and present his research papers in-person at 74th Annual Scientific Meeting of American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS) at Seattle, WA (USA).  The conference will be held at Washington State Convention Center, Seattle (WA) from 21st to 25th February, 2022. It is a great achievement to secure funding for attending and presenting research papers during current challenging times of COVID-19 when almost whole of the world is closed due to COVID restrictions. The continuous financial support for his international travels by one or the other central funding agency every year reflects his research acumen and dedication to the discipline of forensic science in India; he has represented India in a number of international conferences in the recent past. Considering his experiences and contributions in diverse fields of forensic sciences, he is credited with the Membership of American Academy of Forensic Sciences in the Anthropology section.

Dr. Sehrawat claimed a significant achievement to his credit that his research papers have been accepted for in-person scientific presentations at AAFS Annual Scientific Meeting where thousands of delegates from across the world participate every year. He expects some excellent scientific collaborations and networkings with the researchers from global universities and research institutions to boost up his future academic and research accomplishments. Participation in AAFS 2022 conference will provide me a great opportunity for interacting and having professional networkings, not only with my collaborators (who will be there in AAFS 2022 meeting at Seattle) but also with other global scientists and experts to seek their expert guidance for identification of such a huge and only skeletal collection from India, Dr. Sehrawat said. AAFS 2022 will offer him ample opportunities for complementary dialogues, scientific networkings, and plausible research collaborations. Expansion of professional networkings and scientific cooperation are expected from different deliberations and presentations at such a bigger common platform related to diverse sub-disciplines of forensic sciences. Various sub-themes of the conference will help to have a deeper insight into global scenario and different perspectives about current research endeavours in the field of forensic anthropology, odontology, osteology and other allied disciplines. The shared opinions and experiences with global scientific community will help me better understand and bridge knowledge void in my research area which will further improve upon my research strategies in the discipline. Excellent scientific collaborations and networkings with researchers from prestigious universities and research institutions are expected to boost up my future academic and research accomplishments too. It will help me in better understanding of scientific consolidations and standardization of biological anthropological techniques developed worldwide to help me towards the most accurate and reliable identification of thousands of unknown human skeletal and dental remains excavated from an abandoned well at Ajnala- the only skeletal collection reported from India. I wish to expand my scientific domain in collaboration with international researchers in the field. Forensic experts of diverse sub-disciplines from all across the world will exchange their research findings and practical forensic experiences at this international conference of very high repute.

Dr. Sehrawat is working towards forensic identification of thousands of unknown human skeletal remains excavated from an abandoned well at Ajnala (Amritsar, India) and SERB, Department of Science and Technology has funded this project of national importance. The human remains reportedly belong to 282 Indian sepoys killed by the British forces in August 1857, during India’s first freedom struggle against the colonial rulers. Thousands of unknown human skeletal remains along with contextual items of identity unearthed from the said well situated underneath a religious structure were handed over to Dr. Sehrawat for establishing their biological identity. Dr. Sehrawat has research agreements and collaborations with University of Oklahoma (USA), Cranfield Forensic University, Swindon (UK), St. John’s Memorial University, Canada, Max Planck Institute of Human History, Germany, BSIP, Lucknow, WIHG, Dehradun, IIT Roorkee for the identification pursuits of these skeletal remains of its kind firstly reported from India. Recent stable isotope, carbon dating and mitochondrial DNA results have verified that Ajnala remains belong to the individuals of reported regiment of British Indian army. “It’s my pledge as well as scientific obligation to extend the deepest respects to the martyred brave Indian soldiers killed during British rule in India by learning and applying advanced scientific techniques available to the global scientific community” said Dr. Sehrawat. Retrieval of such human remains from the cemeteries, war-time mass graves and other clandestine burials is a common affair in the western world like USA, UK, Canada and some other European and American countries, including some war-affected Asian countries of the world. I expect numerous distinguished forensic anthropologists from these continents to participate and share their research experiences and observation at this international platform.

Earlier, Dr. Sehrawat has presented his research papers in England, New Orleans, Seattle, Baltimore, Toronto, Portugal, Anaheim etc. The International Association of Forensic Sciences (IAFS) had financed his entire trip for his research presentations in Toronto (Canada) in August 2017. Dr. Sehrawat has published quality research papers in various international and national journals and was awarded with ‘Young Progressing Career Achievement’ award by University of Delhi in 2018, for his research contributions to the discipline of Forensic Anthropology. Previously, he has served Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, GMCH-32, Chandigarh, for more than eight years.

Dr. Sehrawat will present a research paper entitled “Multi-isotopic analysis of Ajnala skeletal remains for provenance of their local or non-local origin, geographic affinity and mobility patterns” in which he will elaborate how isotopic analysis of δ13C, δ14N, δ18O and 87Sr/86Sr helped him in narrowing down the potential geographic affiliation and mobility history of Ajnala victims. He will also emphasize the role of dental pathologies, anomalies and restorations in forensic identifications of Ajnala dental remains in his second presentation.