New Delhi, Dec. 22: A professor who conducted extensive archaeological research on sites associated with the Ramayan and the Mahabharat and an expert on south Indian history were today selected as the first batch of gurus under a scheme to promote the gurukul tradition.

The fellowship scheme, launched by the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR), is aimed at sustaining the guru-shishya parampara (tradition) of teachers passing on their skills to their disciples.

Professor B.B. Lal, a 95-year-old former director-general of the Archaeological Survey of India in the early seventies, had worked on the "archaeology of Ramayan site" project the ASI had funded in 1976.

He had also conducted research on Hastinapur, described in the Mahabharat as the capital of the Kauravas.

Ramachandran Nagaswamy, the other retired professor chosen as one of the gurus under the scheme, served as the director of the Tamil Nadu government's department of archaeology. A senior ICHR official said Nagaswamy, 86, was known as an expert on south Indian history.

The official said both the gurus selected by the council would have one student each. Both were active academically, the official added.

Under the two-year fellowship scheme the junior researcher would get Rs 28,000 a month. The ICHR is yet to decide the fellowship amount for the gurus.

"There are eminent experts in history who do not get any platform to pass on their skills. This scheme would provide such a platform to enable transmission of knowledge," the official said.