K. Abraham (born in 1944) got his graduate degree in Botany from University of Kerala, M.Sc. from Kalyani University and Ph. D. in Microbiology from Calcutta University. He started his career as a teacher and later became a research fellow at International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna and Senior Research Fellow in Bose Institute, Calcutta before joining as Research Associate in TBGRI at Trivandrum in 1981. He became Scientist in charge, Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanical Garden in 1991 and rose to the position of Deputy Director and Head of Microbiology division in TBGRI. Dr. Abraham’s research area involves physiology, biochemistry and taxonomy of fungi, fermentation of organic acids, enzymes etc. He was trained in garden management, planning and conservation at Royal Botanic Garden, London. He has published over 90 papers and four books and has several patents to his credit. Dr. Abraham served as the Vice-President of the Indian Mycological Society and the General Secretary and Vice-President of Kerala Academy of Sciences.

K. T. Augusti (born in 1932) got his M.Sc. degree in Organic Chemistry and Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Rajasthan. He had post doctoral experiences at RRL, Hyderabad, Christian Medical College, Vellore and Universities of New Castle upon Tyne (U.K.) before starting his career as Lecturer in St. Joseph’s College, Devagiri, Calicut. He became a lecturer in Biochemistry in the University of Kerala in 1966 and became a Professor in 1987. In between he also worked as Reader and Professor in the University of Midgyrum, Nigeria. He has been a visiting Professor in Amala Cancer Research Centre, Trichur, University of Calicut, and M. G. University; Kottayam. His research contributions are in the field of diabetes mellitus, life style and diseases, atherosclerosis, alcoholic diseases and medicinal effects of garlic and onions. Dr. Augusti, as the founder General Secretary of Kerala Academy of Sciences spent a considerable amount of his time and energy in its formative years and helped to establish it as a scientific movement.

V. P. Balagangadharan (born in 1950) works as the Head of Technology Transfer and Industrial Coordination Group of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Tn’vandrum. An M.Sc. in Chemistry, he has had his training in the National Institute of Foundry and Forge Technology in Ranchi and has worked as a Research Associate at Institute Charles Shadron in Strasbourg, France. He had a brief stint in the Bombay Oils Industries in Angamaly as an Analytical Chemist and then left to join the Propellant Engineering Division of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre. He has been actively involved in the establislunent of the integrated chemical and instrumental analysis facility at V.S.S.C. and supported establishment of characterisation facilities at SHAR and APEP of ISRO. Mr. Balagangadharan’s research activities include analytical research on determination of trace contamination in liquid propellants and chromatography of polymers and propellant binders. He is a member of several professional bodies and advisory panel for the State Institute of Education Technology, Kerala. He has established himself as a Science Communicator with about 100 radio talks in AIR, few science programmes on Doordarsan and many science articles in print media. As General Secretary of the Kerala Academy of Sciences, he was instrumental in lifting the Academy as a pioneer organisation to popularise science among school children.

A. D. Damodaran (born in 1937) passed B. Sc. (Hons) in Chemistry and joined the first batch of the Training School of the then Atomic Energy Establishment, Trombay in 1957. Soon after, he was posted in the Chemistry division to work on the virgin field of Pure Materials Technology Development Programme, which eventually led to its establislunent at the Indian Rare Earths Ltd., Alwaye. Deputed to the U.K. under the Colombo plan, he took his Ph.D. from the University of Leeds in 1965. Back in BARC he was instrumental to develop a new method for separation and purification of niobium and tantalum oxides free from impurities. Based on invitation, Dr. Damodaran joined KSEDC on deputation in 1981 and worked as its Technical Advisor for three years. He became the Director of the CSIR Regional Research Laboratory, Trivandrum in 1985 where he continued until 1997. Dr. Damodaran was the Chairman of the State Committee on Science Technology and Environment on invitation from the Government of Kerala. Apart from nearly a dozen patents in India, he and his colleagues have been granted two patents in the U.S. He has more than 150 publications.

Y. M. Fazil Marickar (born in 1948) took his MBBS, MS in Urology, MNAMS and Ph. D. in Urology from the University of Kerala. Dr. Marickar climbed the ladder of academic success to reach the position of the Professor & Head, Department of Surgery after 27 years of clinical and research experience. His research specialisation is on Urolithiasis and is an investigator for 37 research projects predominantly on various aspects of kidney stones. Dr. Marickar was awarded the Common Wealth Medical Fellowship and has held executive positions in a large number of scientific bodies and is a member of the International Consulting Committee of Urolithiasis. He is the editor of Kerala Surgical Journal and has been a very active Executive Council member, Vice-President and President of the Kerala Academy of Sciences.

Harsh K. Gupta (born in 1942) had his B.Se. (Hons) and M.Sc. from the Indian School of Mines and got his Ph.D. degree from the University of Roorkee. Dr. Gupta, an expert in earthquake studies, has recently developed the concept of spectral magnitudes, the latest application of which has been in characterizing the nuclear explosion. Dr. Gupta has been deeply involved with investigations related to the oceans and was the Leader of the 3rd Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica in 1983-84. He has published over 120 research papers and written 3 pioneering books published by Elsevier. He has held senior positions for the last two decades including the Vice-Chancellorship of Cochin University of Science & Technology. At present he is the Director of National Geophysical Research Institute. Dr. Harsh Gupta is Fellow of Indian National Science Academy, Third World Academy of Sciences, Italy and National Academy of Sciences, India. He is a recipient of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science & Technology, C. V. Raman Lectureship and the Indian Geophysical Union Decennial Award (1 998) to name a few.

R. Kaleysa Raj (born in 1938) took his M. Sc., and Ph. D. degrees from the University of Kerala, He began his academic life as a demonstrator in Scott Christian College, Nagercoil in 1958 and later joined the Dept. of Biochemistry, University of Kerala as lecturer in 1966. He became the Professor and Head of the Dept. in 1988. Dr. Kaleysa Raj has been a Visiting Professor to Indian Institute of Sciences, Bangalore. He was a national fellow of the UGC for two years. He also has worked as an Emeritus Scientist of ICMR in the University of Kerala. Dr. Kaleysa Raj’s research work has led to locate the targets of importance in filarial parasites for drug development to the understanding of the long survival of filarial parasites in the host. He has been awarded the visiting scientistship of WHO to work in Europe and Sri Lanka in 1981. He had been a research investigator in USA and. was awarded the Royal Society Nuffield Foundation Commonwealth Fellowship to work in Canada. He is an author of more than 100 papers.

K. Kalyanaraman (born in 1943) had his undergraduate degree from Vivekananda College, Madras and post-graduate degree from Presidency College, under Madras University. He joined the Madras Collegiate service as a tutor in Statistics in the Medical College at Madurai in 1966. Lateron he joined the Dept. of Statistics University of Kerala as a Research Officer in 1969. He became a Reader in the same Dept. subsequently. His research interests include operations research, reliability, Monte Carlo simulation and other computer related topics and generated a number of computer progranunes for specified research work. As extension work, he has been a regular invitee for refresher courses, workshops, training programmes and research methodology courses.

K. Krishnan (born in 1943) has had his post graduate and doctoral degrees from the University of Kerala. He started his scientific career at VSSC in the area of material characterization. He was instrumental in establishing the modern materials facility in the VSSC and had been involved in various research and development activities at VSSC. He has made noteworthy contributions to thermal analysis of materials. Dr. Krishnan is the proponent of the famous Madhusudanan-Krishnan-Ninan [MKN] equation for the kinetic analysis of non-isothermal processes. As a stalwart of the Trivandrum School of Thermal Analysis, he has made great contributions to the study of the kinetics and mechanism of the solid state reactions of polymers, propellants, igniters and composites. He is an expert in the area of catalysis. His publications number more than a hundred and he is a member of several professional bodies.

M. Krishnan Nair (born in 1939) took his M.B.B.S. degree from the University of Kerala and M.D. from Punjab University. He became a fellow of the Royal College of Radiologists, London in 19’12. Dr.Krishnan Nair started his career as a tutor in Radiology at the Medical College Hospital in 1965, and subsequently became Professor of Radiotherapy and later the Director of the Regional Cancer Centre at Trivandrum in 1981. He has been the Secretary, Regional Cancer Control Board of Kerala and Director, WHO collaborating centre for cancer control. As Founder Director of RCC, Dr. Krishnan Nair has established the largest comprehensive cancer research and treatment centre in India and probably in Asia. He has published more than 150 papers and was invited as a speaker in more than 30 international conferences. Dr. Krishnan Nair is the recipient of numerous awards which include Bhishmacharya Award (1993), Donab Tata Oration Award (1995), Rajeev Gandhi Award (1999), to name a few. Dr. Nair formulated the ‘Cancer Care for life’ scheme which ensured state of the art therapy for cancer patients. This has brought much acclaim to him as a great social scientist.

K. Madhavan Nair (born in 1936) obtained his B. Sc. degree in Geology from University of Kerala, M. Sc. from the University of Jammu and Ph. D. from Osmania University. Dr. Nair started his professional career as a Geologist with Oil and Natural Gas Commission, and worked in different parts of India until 1980. He then became a lecturer in the University of Ilorin, Nigeria. From l984 to 1988, Dr. Nair worked as an U.N. expert in a UNDP funded programme in Belize, Central America. He returned to ONGC as Chief Geologist and later on became the Director of the Centre for Earth Sciences Studies, Trivandrum until 1998. Subsequently he has held a position of consultant hydrologist in a R&D Costford Project at Hyderabad. Dr. Nair’s research area involved quaternary geological studies and he is an author of several publications, had attended and organised a number of conferences and workshops. He has been the Vice-President of the Kerala Academy of Sciences.

A. N. Namboodiri (born in 1930) had his Masters’ degree from University of Kerala and doctorate from University of Michigan, USA. Starting his carrier as a lecturer in University College in 1953, Dr. Namboodirl climbed the ladder of academic success and became a Professor in the Dept. of Botany, University of Kerala (1973-83). Subsequently he became the Director of TBGRI and continued there until 1990. Dr. Namboodiri’s research contributions include determination of the mode of amitosis in Neurospora. Dr. Namboodiri has published more than 40 papers and has served on the editorial board of several journals. Dr. Namboodiri’s contribution to popularisation of science through AIR and other media are remarkable, for which he had received several awards.

R. Narayana Pillai (born in 1933) obtained his B.Sc. degree in Mathematics and M.Sc. degree in Statistics from the University of Travancore. His Ph. D. degree is in Mathematical Statistics from the University of Illinois, USA. Dr. Pillai started his career as a Statistician, Govt. of Kerala. Before joining as the Professor and Head of the Department of Statistics, University of Kerala, Dr. Pillai had brief stints as Asst. Professor, University of Illinois, Associate Professor, Ohio Northern University, USA and as a Reader in Cochin University of Science & Technology. His research specialization concentrated on limit theorems semi-stable laws, geometric infinite divisibility, stochastic processes and time series modelling. He is the author of nearly fifty research publications and is the founder President of the Kerala Academy of Sciences and the Patron of the Kerala Statistical Association.

K. N. Ninan (born in 1946) secured M.Sc. in Chemistry from Maharajas College Eranakulam with a first rank and gold medal and was subsequently awarded Ph. D. degree by the University of Kerala. Dr. Ninan joined the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Trivandrum in 1968, and carried out research and development activities at the centre in different capacities. Starting his career as propellant engineer, Dr. Ninan rose to the position of the Deputy Director, Propellant Polymers and Chemicals entity. Dr. Ninan has made significant contributions towards the development of propellants, polymers and special chemicals required for India’s space research programme. He has established a modem chemical analysis facility at VSSC and has led an R&D team of scientists and engineers engaged in the development of propellants, polymers and chemicals required for the rockets and satellites of our country. An author of about 240 research publications, Dr. Ninan is well known for his research in the areas of thermal analysis, reaction kinetics etc. and was awarded the NETZSCH-ITAS award 1987 for his contributions in the field of thermal analysis. He is a former President of the Kerala Academy of Sciences.

Oommen V. Oommen (born in 1949) obtained B.Sc. from the University of Kerala and M. Sc. and Ph. D. degrees in Zoology from the Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi. During the last 20 years he has established an active School of research in the area of Comparative Endocrinology and Physiology, primarily in Lower Vertebrates. This has earned him several National and International recognitions. Dr. Oommen has been the Professor and Head of the Department of Zoology, University of Kerala. He has published over 65 research papers as well as chapters in books on endocrinology and presented papers in scores of national and international symposia. His research work has been recognised by a number of awards including the UGC National Associateship, CSIR-CNRS award, International Scientific Exchange Award from the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Common Wealth Academic Staff Fellowship, Fellowship in Reproduction and Endocrinology and Prof. P. Govindarajulu Gold Medal. He is on the editorial board of a few scientific journals and is a founder member of the Society for Reproductive Biology and Comparative Endocrinology. He is also a member of a number of National and International Professional and Scientific bodies including Kerala Academy of Sciences and currently is one of its Vice-Presidents. He had supervised several research projects financed by National funding agencies and ten doctoral theses.

C. S. Padmanabha Iyer, born (1933) at Haripad, took his post-graduation in Chemistry from the University of Delhi and Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Bombay. Dr. Iyer started his professional career as a scientist at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in 1958 and was one of the pioneers who built up the Analytical Chemistry Division of the Centre. While at BARC, Dr. Iyer was associated with the operation of the Nuclear Power Reactors and specialised in trouble shooting jobs and in indigenisation of some of the vital components. Later, in 1992, he took up the responsibility of setting up a centre for Marine Analytical Reference and Standards at the Regional Research Laboratory, Trivandrum, for the Department of Ocean Development. Dr. Iyer has specialised in ultra trace analysis, preparation of standards and in environmental management. He has over hundred research publications and a few patents to his credit. Dr. lyerhas been the chaimian / member of various committees of the Bureau of Indian Standards, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, Department of Environment, Department of Ocean Development, Govt. of Maharashtra and Govt. of Kerala. He is a former President of the Kerala Academy of Sciences.

S. R. Prabhakaran Nayar (born in 1947) obtained his doctoral degree from the University of Kerala. He started his scientific career at the Indian Institute of Geomagnetism, Mumbai, as a Research Associate and subsequently joined the Department of Physics, University of Kerala as a Lecturer in 1978 and subsequently became Reader and Professor of Physics. He has served as the Honorary Director of the Trivandrum observatory for fourteen years. He has guided several Ph. D. students and his research areas have been solar physics, interplanetary medium, ionosphere, atmosphere, computational techniques for data and image analysis. He has undertaken many projects funded by UGC, DST, ISRO, IUCAA, and KSCSTE. He had established research collaborations with VSSC, MST radar facility at Tirupathi and Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bengaluru, IIGM, Mumbai and NPL, New Delhi. He has published more than a hundred scientific articles and has also authored several books. He is member of several professional bodies and has visited many countries. As an able science communicator, he has delivered multitudes of popular talks through media.

V. Prasannakumar (born in 1956) had his B. Sc. from the University College and M. Sc. as well as Ph. D. from the University of Kerala. He did research in microtectonics at the University of Leeds, UK, as a Commonwealth Academic Staff Fellow and in microstructures at the University of Oulu, Finland, as an Exchange Fellow. He joined the University of Kerala as lecturer in Geology and later on became Reader in 1989 and Professor in 1995. He served as the Head of the Department of Geology from 2004 to 2009, as the Director of the ENVIS centre from 2004 to 2006 and as the CSS Vice-Chairman from 2005 to 2007. He was instrumental in establishing the Centre for Geo-information Science and Technology as a joint venture of the University of Kerala, DST and KSCSTE and became the Director of the centre in 2008. He has been nominated as the Dean, Faculty of Science, as well as Director of Research, University of Kerala. As a member of UNESCO’s International Geological Correlation Programmes, he has collaborative research programmes with the University of Leeds, UK and Institute of Geology and Geochemistry, Ekaterinberg, Russia and has presented and published research findings in National and international media. He is a Fellow of the Geological Society and a member of many professional bodies including the International Association of Structural and Tectonic Geologists and has served as the President of the Trans Asiatic GIS Society as well as executive council member of the SGTSG INDIA.

P. Pushpangadan started his scientific career in 1969 as Junior Scientific Assistant at the Regional Research Laboratory. He has been actively engaged in Botanic research and related development activities for the past 30 years. The Government of India in 1983 appointed him as the chief coordinator of All India co-ordinated Research Projects on Ethnobiology. He assumed the Directorship of Tropical Botanical Garden & Research Institute, Palode in 1990. During his tenure the TBGRI got a unique status “a Centre of Excellence in ex-situ conservation and sustainable utilisation of tropical plant diversity”. His team has successfully isolated potential biodynamic compounds and developed 14 field patents. Dr. Pushpangadan was appointed Director of National Botanic Research Institute, Lucknow in February 1999. He has received many national and international awards in recognition of his research contributions.

P. K. Rajendran Nair, born (1941) in Trivandrum, took his B.Sc. degree from the University College, and has had his post graduate education at the Indian School of Mines in Applied Geology. He got his doctorate degree in 1969 from the Leningrad State University of the erstwhile U.S.S.R. His area of research specialisation is the Structure of Precambrian terrains. Dr. Rajendran Nair’s academic joumey began in 1963 as an Instructor at the Indian School of Mines. He travelled through Kamatak University as a demonstrates and reached University of Kerala where he anchored himself from 1964. He became a Reader in 1973 and then, the Professor & Head of the Department of Geology in 1979. He was also the Dean of the Faculty of Science. He was decorated with the distinguished Alumnus award by the Indian School of Mines. Dr. Nair has served as Member and Chairman of Academic Bodies of several Indian Universities and is an author of more than 25 research publications.

M. Ramachandra Das (born in 1937) took his B.Sc. in Chemistry from Travancore University in 1956, M.Sc. in Biochemistry from Kerala University in 1958 and Ph.D. from Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) in 1966. Starting his career as Research Assistant he rose to be a Reader at TIFR (1958-1976). Later he joined the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, (CCMB) Hyderabad and served there in various capacities as Deputy Director and Director-Grade Scientist until 1994. He became the Director of Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology, Trivandrum in 1994 and simultaneously the Chairman State Committee on Science, Technology and Environment, and Ex-officio Principal Secretary, Government of Kerala since 1998. Dr. Das and his team carried out research on the molecular biology of cancer and on the molecular virology of hepatitis C, a virus which is the major cause of post transfusional hepatitis, and developed a very effective diagnostic kit for hepatitis C. After moving to Trivandrum Dr. Das had started research in a number of new areas such as plant molecular biology, infectious diseases, genetic diseases, molecular endocrinology, envirorunental biotechnology etc. Dr. Das has held the distinguished position of being a scientist who had been an elected fellow of all the three national academies of sciences in India, FNA, FNASC and FASC. Dr. Das was a recipient of several coveted awards, the FICCI Award, Hari Om Ashram Award, ICMR Sandoz Oration Award and the Bi-Annual Oration Award of the Indian Association of Cancer Research. He was an author of over 80 publications.

C. G. Ramachandran Nair, born (1932) at Alwaye, took his masters degree in Chemistry from Maharajas College, Ernakulam and Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. Dr. Nair joined the faculty of Dept. of Chemistry, University of Kerala and went on to become the Professor and Head (1977-1992) and later on, the Dean, Faculty of Science (1988-90). He hasserved as the Director, State Institute of Encyclopaedic Publications, before becoming the Chairman, State Committee on Science, Technology and Environment, Govt. of Kerala in 1991. He was a visiting consultant at the VSSC between 1993-94. Dr. Nair was a Humboldt Fellow (1966), Commonwealth Academic Staff Fellow (1976) and a Visiting Professor at the Central University, Algeria (1981-83). Dr. Nair’s research areas include studies on mixed metal oxides, solid state reactions, rare earth complexes, etc. He is a well-acclaimed lecturer on Quantum Mechanics, Stereochemistry, Ligand Field theory and semiconductivity and is an author of more than 120 research papers and 60 popular science articles. Dr. Nair is a Fellow/ member of several scientific societies and a former President of the Kerala Academy of Sciences.

F. Ramachandra Panikkar (born in 1929) took his B.Sc. degree from Bombay University and M.Sc. degree from Sagar University. He later obtained his Ph.D. degree from the University of Kerala. Starting his career as a Lecturer in M.G. College, Trivandrum, Dr. Panikkar later moved over to the Medical College where he worked as a Demonstrator, Lecturer and later on a Professor in 1977. He was Professor and Research Director in Amala Cancer Research Centre, Trichur from 1984 to 1991, consultant to TBGRI Palode until 1994, Honorary Professor in the School of Medical Education M.G. University from 1994 to 1997 and continued as a honorary scientist at Regional Cancer Centre, Trivandrum. Dr. Panikkar’s research contributions are in the field of enzyme profiles in brain tumor and studies on anticancer activity of Crocus sativus and Saraka Asoka. He is the Fellow of the International Medical Science Academy and member of several other professional medical organisations.

P. Sadasivan Nair (born in 1945) had his B.Sc. degree in Mathematics and three Master’s degrees, one in Economics and two in Demography, from the University of Kerala and University of Brussels, Belgium. He also got his doctorate in Demography from Brussels University in Belgium. Dr. Nair started his career as an Analyst in the Department of Statistics and Demography in 1968. He worked as a social demographer for a short spell and as a social scientist in Gandhigram, Madurai for eight years upto 1978. He was a Visiting Research Fellow in Netherlands before working as a Reader at the International Institute for Population Sciences at Bombay. He worked as the Professor & Director of the Population Research Centre, Dharwad, Kamataka from 1986 to 1988 and then became the Professor and Head of the Department of Demography, University of Kerala in 1996.

K. G. Satyanarayana, born in Tumkur, Karnataka has had an early education in Mysore. He obtained his Master’s Degree from the Bangalore University and his doctoral degree from the Banras Hindu University. He started his career at the National Aeronautical laboratory, Bengaluru and later moved to NIIST, then the RRL, Trivandrum. In between, he has visited Tohuku University, Japan. At RRL, he focused his attention on material science. His work at RRL was on structure-property correlations, aluminium alloys, metal matrices, natural fiber and polymer composites; among several others. He has over two hundred papers to his credit and has supervised several doctoral students. He has been the editor of twekve books and has developed five processes for composites and metallurgy. He is recipient of WIPO International Gold medal, NRDC award and many other honors. He has been a visiting professor of Federal University of Parana and is a member of several professional bodies.

T. K. Sreenivasan Unnithan (born in 1942) took his B.Sc from the University College, Trivandrum and M.Sc. from Rajasthan University. He joined the faculty of the University of Kerala as a lecturer and subsequently became a Reader in Statistics. His areas of academic interests are inference, stochastic processes etc. and he has published over 10 research papers and coauthored a statistical tables and a book. He was Secretary of Kerala Statistical Association and the Editor of the Proceedings of the Kerala Academy of Sciences. Apart from being a scientist, Sri. Unnithan is a scholar in Vedanta, especially in the Gita and the Upanishads.

K. S. Subramonian Nambooripad (bom in 1935) had his B.Sc.(Hons.) from Maharaja’s College, Eranakulam and Ph. D. degree from the University of Kerala. He started his academic career as Lecturer in Mathematics in U.C. College, Alwaye, and later joined the University of Kerala in 1976 and became the Professor and Head of the Department of Mathematics to retire in 1995. He has also been the Director-in-Charge of the Center for Mathematical Sciences at Kariavattom. The main research interest of Dr. Nambooripad has been structure, theory of regular semigroups, semigroup of linear transformation, semigroups of operation on locally convex space etc. Dr. Nambooripad has been invited to several Universities abroad, for collaborative research. He has been a member of several scientific organisations and a recipient of the Sri Chitra Prize for outstanding research contribution. He is the author of more than 30 papers and a few monographs, most of them in coveted international joumals.

P. R. Sudhakaran (born in 1952) secured his B.Sc. (Special) degree from Maharaja’s College, Eranakulam, and M.Sc. degree in Biochemistry and Ph.D. degree from the University of Kerala. Dr. Sudhakaran joined the Department of Biochemistry in 1975 as Lecturer to become Reader in 1982 and Professor in 1988 and has then been the Head of the Biochemistry Dept., University of Kerala. The major area of his research includes Chemistry and Molecular Biology of extracellular matrix, growth tissue morphogenesis and metabolism of lipoprotein, particularly VLDL. A Visiting Professor in many Universities abroad and a recipient of Humboldt Fellowship, German Academic Exchange Fellowship and Commonwealth Academic Staff Fellowship, Dr. Sudhakaran has to his credit 80 research publications. A winner of the Career Award in Science, Dr. Sudhakaran is a member of the academic bodies of many Indian Universities and is closely involved with several professional societies.

V. Unnikrishnan Nayar (born in 1941) took his B.Sc. degree from University of Kerala and M.Sc. degree in Physics from the Annamalai University and Ph. D. degree from the University of Kerala in Molecular Spectroscopy. Dr. Nayar began his career as a Lecturer in St. Thomas College, Kozhencheri in 1969 and moved over to Cochin University in 1973 where he continued until 1978. He joined the University of Kerala as a Reader and became the Professor and Head of the Department of Optoelectronics in 1995. He has been the Dean of the Faculty of Applied Science, University of Kerala. He has published more than 100 papers on holography, phase transition, Laser spectroscopy, nonlinear optical materials, superconductors and thin films. Dr. Nayar was a recipient of Commonwealth Academic Staff Fellowship.

V. K. Vaidyan (born 1947) took his B.Sc. degree (1965) and M.Sc. in Physics from the University of Kerala and Ph.D. from IIT Madras. Dr.Vaidyan began his academic career as a lecturer in the University of Calicut, became a Reader (1978) and a Professor (1984) in the University of Kerala. Dr. Vaidyan’s research interests include materials science, crystal growth, thin films, composite materials, non-destructive evaluation of materials etc. His significant contributions include a new theory for Liesegang phenomena, a new method for the growth of coinage metal crystals, growth and characterisation of biological crystals, to name a few. Dr. Vaidyans research contributions and more than 100 publications attracted several distinctions, namely the Commonwealth Academic Staff Fellowship in 1983 and ABI Gold Record of Achievement in 1997. Dr. Vaidyan has served on the Academic bodies of several Indian Universities and has been a member of various scientific and professional organisations.

G. Vijay Nair (born in 194 1) got his B.Sc. degree from University of Kerala, and M.Sc. and Ph. D. degrees from Banaras Hindu University. Dr. Nair later took a second doctorate degree from the University of British Columbia. Dr. Nair started his career as a post doctoral fellow in the University of Chicago, and subsequently as a senior and principal Research Chemist in Lederle laboratory until 1990. He joined the CSIR Regional Research Laboratory as Deputy Director in 1990 and became its Director in 1997. Dr. Nair’s research areas of specialisation include C-C bond forming reactions, cycloadditions, asymmetric synthesis, synthesis of bioactive compounds and medicinal chemistry, to name a few. He is a member of the American Chemical Society, Royal Society of Chemistry, U.K. and International Society of Heterocycle Chemistry. He has published over ninety papers and authored two books. He has several US and Indian Patents to his credit.

Vishnu Potti (born in 1949) obtained Master’s degree in Physics from Banaras Hindu university. He later joined as a ballistics expert at the Kerala State Forensic Science laboratory. Shri Potti acquired post graduate diploma forensic ballistics from the Institute of Criminology and also has a PG diploma in forensic physics from the Central Forensic laboratory, Hyderabad. His contributions include scientific services to thousands of cases of criminality and accidents as an expert in forensic ballistics and physics. His expertise and vast experience has helped judiciary, police and other law enforcement agencies, investigating agencies in dissemination of justice. He became the Director of the Kerala State Forensic Research laboratory and has received awards by the Govt. of Kerala and CBI, Govt. of India.

Dr. Achuth Sankar S. Nair (born in 1964), obtained his B.Tech. (Electrical Engineering) from College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram, M.Tech. (Electrical Engineering) from IIT Bombay, M.Phil. (Computer Speech and Language Processing) from the Dept. of Engineering, University of Cambridge, UK and Ph.D. from University of Kerala. He held positions of lecturer/professor in electrical engineering/computer science and led the establishment of the field of Bioinformatics in Kerala University. He was visiting Professor in University of Korea. He is a prolific popular science writer and an inter disciplinarian with publications ranging from electrical engineering, computer science, bioinformatics, micro history and carnatic music. His scientific contributions are in the field of bio-sequence analysis in the areas of gene finding, pattern recognition and compression. He is the recipient of the INSA Teacher Award of the Indian National Science Academy.

Dr. Ajit Kumar K. G. (born in 1960), took his B.Sc. degree from St. Johns College, Anchal, affiliated to University of Kerala and M.Sc., Ph.D. and Post doctorate from the University of Calicut. He started his career as a Lecturer in Govt. College, Kasargod and later moved over to the NSS College Ottapalam, Nemmara & VTMNSS College, Dhanuvachapuram. Dr. Ajit Kumar’s research contributions are in the field of Plant Physiology and Environmental Science. Three students were awarded Ph.D. degree from University of Kerala under his guidance. He is a member of the Board of Studies in Botany as well as Biotechnology of the University of Kerala. He is the Dist. Coordinator of National Green Crops (NGC) supported by Ministry of Forest Environment & Climate Change, Govt. of India and KSCSTE, Govt. of Kerala. He is also the District coordinator of Smart Energy Programme of the Energy Management Centre (EMC), Govt. of Kerala. He is the Life member of Indian Science Congress Association. Presently Dr. Ajit Kumar is the Professor and Head of the Dept. of Botany, Mahatma Gandhi College, Thiruvananthapuram and also acting as the General Secretary of Kerala Academy of Sciences.

Dr. Anil Bhardwaj (born in 1967), received his B.Sc. (1985) and M.Sc. (1987) in Physics from Lucknow University, and Ph.D. (1992) from the Institute of Technology, Banaras Hindu University. He joined ISRO in 1993 as Scientist at the Space Physics Laboratory (SPL) of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Center (VSSC), Trivandrum. He has worked at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, USA, during 2004-2005, as Senior Research Associate of the National Academy of Sciences – National Research Council. He has been the Principal Investigator (PI) of SARA (Sub-keV Atom Reflecting Analyzer) experiment on the first Indian lunar mission Chandrayaan-1. He is the PI of MENCA (Mars Exospheric Neutral Composition Analyzer) experiment on the Mars orbiter mission and CHACE-2 (Chandra’s Atmospheric Composition Explorer) experiment on Chandrayaan-2 mission. His research findings have led to six Press Releases by NASA and two Press releases by European space agency. He has over 100 refereed publications in high impact factor journals, six chapters in books including a Chapter in the “Encyclopedia of the Solar System” and has edited 5 books. He was the Editor-in-Chief of Advances in Geosciences (Planetary Science Volume) and has been on Editorial Board of Planetary and Space Science (Elsevier), Space Science Reviews (Springer), and Bulletin of Astronomical Society of India. He was elected President of Asia Oceania Geosciences Society (AOGS) Planetary Science Section for 2006-2008 and was re-elected for 2008-2010. Dr. Bhardwaj was awarded Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize (2007), ISRO Team achievement award for the Chandrayaan-1 Science and Mission (2008), Fellowship grant from the United Nations Office of Outer Space Affairs (1996). He has received Indo-Swedish project award from Swedish Research Council, Sweden (2010-2013), and Indo-Swiss Research Programme (ISJRP) Fellowship. He is an elected Fellow of Indian Academy of Sciences (2009), Indian National Science Academy (2010), and Indian Geophysical Union (2008), and Member of International Astronomical Union. He is also a life member of KAS and takes active part in the science popularization activities of the academy. Recently, he is elected as Vice-Chair of COSPAR Commission B. Currently he is the Director, Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmadabad

Dr. Aravamuthan S. (born in 1958), took B. Sc. and M. Sc. in Chemistry from Madras University and obtained his Ph.D. from IIT Madras. He had a brief stint at Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) where he worked on semiconductor based solar cell materials. He joined Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in 1987 as Scientist. He worked on development of Ni-Cd battery cell technology for satellite application and made significant contributions to technology development, qualification and its production for both 12Ah and 24Ah cells. The cells produced were subsequently used in SROCC C2, IRS P3, TES, GSAT 2 and EDUSAT missions. The successful use of the cells in both LEO and GEO is a testimony to the robustness of the design and the process. Later, Dr. S. Aravamuthan embarked on the development of Lithium ion cells, the 3rd generation space craft battery cells. The development, qualification and use of polyimide pipelines for cryogenic upper stage of GSLV remain to be a very important achievement for Indian space programme. Dr. Aravamuthan has 17 publications, a book chapter and a large number of project reports / design / development / qualification / process reports. Also, he is the winner of ISAMPE Gold medal and ISRO team Excellence award. Dr. Aravamuthan, Scientist- H, is presently occupying the position of Deputy Director at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre.

Dr. Baba M (born in 1950), obtained his B.Sc. in Physics from Kerala University in 1970, M.Sc. in Oceanography from Cochin University in 1972 and Ph.D. in Technical Sciences from Moscow Institute of Civil Engineering in 1978. He initiated his professional career in 1973 at National Institute of Oceanography, Goa and joined Centre for Earth Science Studies (CESS), as a Scientist in 1978. He was Director of CESS from 1998 to 2010 and later served as the founder Executive Director of Centre for Advanced Training in Earth System Sciences and Climate (CAT-ESSC) of the Ministry of Earth Sciences at Pune during 2010-2012. Dr. Baba has extensive professional experience in the areas of coastal oceanography, coastal processes and coastal resources management. Dr. Baba has published more than 90 papers and co-edited six books and an atlas. He served in two international working groups of the Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR) of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG) on sea level rise and lately as an expert in the Belmont Forum. His contributions to the protection and management of the coastal ecosystems of the country has been recognized by the Ministry of Environment and Forests by roping him in the National Coastal Zone Management Authority for more than ten years and in many other important committees associated with the subject. Dr. Baba has been honored by the Geological Society of India for his valuable contributions in Earth Sciences and by the Indian Society of Remote Sensing with the Satish Dhawan Award.

Dr. Benny K George (born in 1963), secured M.Sc. in Polymer Chemistry from Mahatma Gandhi University with first rank in 1985 and was awarded Ph.D. in 1990 by the University of Calicut. He started his career as Scientist at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Trivandrum in 1988. Dr. Benny K. George has made significant contributions in the indigenization of space materials and towards the characterization of propellants, polymers and special chemicals required for India’s space research programme. He played a lead role in establishing state of the art analytical facilities at VSSC and is a specialist in molecular spectroscopy. His research in the areas of material characterization, molecular spectroscopy, molecular modeling and polymer supported reagents resulted in about 60 research publications. He has served as the General Secretary of the Academy (2005-08) and was instrumental in starting the website for the Academy. He is a member of several professional and scientific bodies including Kerala Academy of Sciences and currently functions as the Hon. Secretary of High Energy Materials Society of India, Trivandrum Chapter and also as the Head, Analytical and Spectroscopy Division of VSSC.

Dr. David Devraj Kumar (born in 1958), earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in chemistry from University of Kerala, masters in analytical chemistry from University of Louisville, and doctorate in science education from Vanderbilt University. He served as a postdoctoral fellow at The Ohio State University, and a Guest-Scholar at The Brookings Institution at Washington, DC. Dr. Kumar was a Professor of Science Education at Florida Atlantic University. His research interests include computer supported problem-based learning in STEM disciplines, nano-scale science and technology, science and technology policy, and popularization of science. He has published over 78 refereed journal articles in additions to books and chapters. He is the past President of The American Institute of Chemists, and since 2012 appointed as the Editor-in-Chief of the refereed scientific journal, The Chemist. He serves on the Science Education Committee of the Council of Scientific Society Presidents in the United States. He has received numerous recognitions including the Chemical Pioneer Award from the American Institute of Chemists, the Sir Ron Nyholm Education Prize (Medal and Lectureship) from the Royal Society of Chemistry, invited to deliver the Sir Ramaswamy Mudaliar Lecture by the University of Kerala, selected as a scholar in residence under the Erudite Scheme by the Kerala State Higher Education Council, and elected as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Dr. George Thomas K., secured his master’s degree in Chemistry and Ph.D. from University of Kerala. He has held positions as Junior and Senior Research Fellow of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research; Research Associate and Scientist at the Photosciences and Photonics Group, National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science & Technology, Trivandrum and Visiting Scientist, Radiation laboratory, University of Notre Dame, USA. He has won several awards and recognition including: A. V. Rama Rao Foundation Prize Lecture of JNCASR, Materials Research Society of India Medal, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize in Chemical Sciences (2006), Chemical Research Society of India Bronze Medal -Area of work comprising-Photosciences, Nanomaterials, Self-organization of molecules, Photoresponsive nanomaterials and Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore. He is interested in the general areas of photochemistry and photophysics, nanomaterials and surface properties; currently focusing on the studies related to light-matter interaction at the nanoscale, light energy conversion systems, properties of molecules on surfaces. His teaching area includes Nanoscience and Photochemistry and concepts in Organic Reaction mechanisms. He has published over 20 refereed journal articles focusing on synthesis of CdS nanorods and nanospheres, Directional hydrogen bonding controlled 2D self-organization of phenyleneethynylenes, Optimizing the shell thickness of core-shell quantum dots, Light induced modulation of self-assembly on spiropyran capped Au nanoparticle etc. Currently he is serving as Honorary Faculty Member of the JNCASR, Bangalore (2007 onwards), also Director in-charge & Dean (Academics), IISER, Thiruvananthapuram.

Dr. Gouri C. (born in 1957), obtained her M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Chemistry from University of Kerala. She started her career as Lecturer at Mar Ivanios College, Thiruvananthapuram. Subsequently in 1988 she joined Polymers and Special Chemicals Division of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre as Scientist and carried out research and development activities at the centre in different capacities. She made significant contributions towards the development and qualification of several polymeric adhesive systems that are being regularly used in launch vehicles and satellites of Indian Space Research Organization. Her achievements in areas of smart polymers and polymer composites are also commendable. After a postdoctorate, she joined back VSSC in the Lithium-ion and Fuel Cell Division in 2008 and is presently heading the division. Dr. Gouri spearheaded the development of the technology of space quality Lithium-ion cells and establishment of a world-class facility in VSSC for production of these cells. The outstanding research contributions have fetched her various awards including “Materials Research Society of India (MRSI) Medal 2010”. Her publications include one book, about hundred technical papers and she has three patents. She is an Executive Council member of the academy, and taken active part in many of its activities. Dr Gouri is actively associated with many other professional bodies also including MRSI, Society for Polymer Science India (SPSI) and High Energy Materials Society of India (HEMSI).

Dr. Jacob Philip (born in 1952), obtained his M.Sc. in Physics and Ph.D. in condensed matter physics from University of Kerala in 1974 and 1979 respectively. He had his three year post doctoral training in low temperature Physics at University of Tennessee, USA, and later joined Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore as a Research Associate. He moved to Cochin University of Science and Technology as a Reader in 1984 and later became Professor in 1990. He founded the Department of Instrumentation in CUSAT in 1993 and served there for nearly 10 years. Moved to Sophisticated Test and Instrumentation Center (STIC), CUSAT as its Director in 2004 and has been there since then. He was instrumental in establishing the Sophisticated Analytical Instrument Facility (SAIF) at STIC. He has been a Fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany working at Fraunhofer Institute in Freiburg (1988-90) as well as at University of Heidelberg (2001-02). His research contributions have been in the areas of sensors, instrumentation, photoacoustic and photothermal phenomena, ultrasonics, thermal and elastic properties of condensed matter, phase transitions, nanomaterials and composites etc. He has visited several countries and presented papers at a large number of international and national conferences. He has to his credit over 170 publications in peer-reviewed journals, two book chapters, over 80 publications in conference proceedings, two books and two patents. He has well over 4000 citations to his credit. He has executed over 15 research projects funded by different agencies. He has guided over 20 researchers to obtain doctoral degree. He is a member of the editorial boards of two journals and a reviewer for more than a dozen international journals. He is a fellow/member of a number of scientific bodies.

Dr. Jayaprakash C. A. (born in 1961), obtained his M.Sc. Zoology with Entomology specialization and Ph.D. in Zoology (Entomology). He held positions as Junior Research Fellow, Department of Zoology, University of Calicut, Senior Research Assistant, Central Sericulture Research and Training Institute, Mysore; Principal Scientist, Head Division of Crop Protection. He is the recipient of Swadeshi Innovation Award – 2012 , Bhodananda Research Foundation award for team work- 2011, Eminent Scientist Award 2011 by Lions Club of Thiruvananthapuram, Best Poster award, Kerala Science Congress (Govt. of Kerala)- 2009, CSIR Senior Research Fellowship,- 1994, Ph.D. guide at the University of Kerala & Kannur, External examiner of M.Sc. M. Phil, Ph.D, Editor, Entomon. He is a life member in many societies such as International Society for Tropical Root Crops, Peru and Indian Society for Root & Tuber Crops, Thiruvananthapuram, Association of Advancement of Entomology, Thiruvananthapuram, Indian Society for Nuclear Techniques in Agriculture & Biology, New Delhi. He has been awarded 2 patents, 26 years of research experience in Entomology. He has published in several peer reviewed journals. Currently he is serving as Principal Scientist & Head, Division of Crop Protection, CTCRI, TVM.

Dr. Jayasree Nair G. R. (born in 1953), had her college studies at University College, Thiruvananthapuram (B.Sc.) and Maharajah’s College, Ernakulam (M.Sc). She has a Diploma in German language (University of Kerala). She had her Ph.D. in Aquatic Biology from the University of Kerala in 1980. Her Ph.D. programme was on Taxonomy of Fish Parasites and she had identified 5 new species which were well accepted by researchers worldwide. Immediately on completion of Ph.D., she entered Kerala Government College service and taught Zoology at various senior colleges of the state dealing with PG, M.Phil and Ph.D. classes thus keeping her research interests active and she could successfully guide two students to obtain their Ph.D. degree from University of Kerala and had successfully guided 27 students for M. Phil. Taxonomy of fish parasites, Anti-diabetic effects of Plants, Bacteriology and Radiation induced changes on human RBC are the areas of research for these Ph.D. and M. Phil programmes. She had served as Ph.D. examiner of Andhra University (Waltair), Visakhapatnam and M.G. University, Kottayam. Dr. Jayasree had been a member of the Board of studies of Kerala, M.G, Calicut and Kannur Universities. Since 1984 she had undertaken a number of outreach activities and even after retirement from service the same is continued, thus making her professional expertise available to the State of Kerala. She has 18 publications/conference papers and a book to her credit and is a member of many professional bodies. She is a life member of the academy since 1999 and an EC member since 2008 and is taking active part in various activities of the academy.

Dr. Laladhas K. P. obtained his M Sc in Zoology, M. Phil and Ph.D. from University of Kerala. He held positions as member-secretary, Kerala State Biodiversity Board, KSBB; Member, Senate of University of Kerala; Director, Life Science Res. Centre, St. Stephens College, EC member of KAS. His interested areas of work Includes marine & terrestrial bio-active natural products; utilization of biodiversity for societal needs. Currently he is serving as Associate Professor, St. Stephens College, Pathanapuram.

Dr. Latha P. G. (born in 1956), completed her graduation, post graduation, M.Phil. and doctoral degrees in Botany from Kerala University. Dr. Latha has 32 years of Research experience in the areas of Plant Tissue Culture, Plant Cytogenetics, Ethnomedicine and Ethnopharmacology of Medicinal Plants. She is a Life Member of several scientific bodies. She is a Fellow and Joint Secretary of the National Society for Ethnopharmacology, India. She was short listed for the DBT Young Woman Bio Scientist Award in 2000 and Fellow of National Academy of Sciences, Allahabad during 2010 and 2011. Dr. Latha has two patents to her credit and a plant hybrid registration for development of an elite orchid hybrid Dendrobium “Prof A. Abraham” registered by ICAR, New Delhi, Government of India. She has contributed 16 chapters in books and has published over 100 research papers in National and International journals and presented invited lectures at several National and International Conferences. Dr. Latha has operated several research projects at the Institute, funded by National and State agencies. She had won the Millennium Award for the best poster at the International Conference of Ethnopharmacology, Zurich in 2000. She has already initiated several developmental programmes like Compost Manufacturing Facility in association with NABARD and successfully helped to organize the JNTBGRI Open House during December – 2011, which attracted over 35,000 visitors after a long span of 17 years. TBGRI’s original name, JNTBGRI was restored during her stewardship of the Institute.

Dr. Mohandas K. (born in 1944), obtained his MBBS degree in 1970 from University of Kerala; Diploma in Anaesthesiology-1973 – University of Madras; MD (Anesthesiology) -1975-University of Mysore FRCA – Conferred and 2003 – Royal College of Anesthetists – United Kingdom. He has held positions as Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology, Sree Chitra Tirunal Medical Centre, Trivandrum,1976-1981; Associate Professor & Head of the Department of Anesthesiology, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences & Technology, Trivandrum; 1981-86; Head of the Department since 1982; Professor and Head of the Department of Anesthesiology, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum,1986 – 2009; (HoD until he took over as the Director of the Institute on 1st June 1994); Professor of International Health, University of Minnesota Medical School – Appointed October 6, 1999; Dean, Academic Affairs, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum,1993 – 1994; Director, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum – 1994 – 2009; Vice Chancellor, Kerala University of Health Sciences, Thrissur, since December 2009; member, Board of Governors, Medical Council of India, till November 2014. He is recipient of Henry Dunant Award– Indian Red Cross Society, Rotary Award for Service to the Society 1999 – Rotary International, Trivandrum. Lions Excellence Award 2002 – Lions International, Trivandrum. Life Time Achievement Award – Indian Association of Cardiothoracic Anesthesiologists – 2006. Life Time Achievement Award – Indian Society of Critical Care Medicine – 2007. Heart Care Foundation Award-2008. Swadeshi Science Congress Award – 2008, Kerala Ratna Puraskaram – 2008 and Best Doctor Award –2008 (Govt. of Kerala). He retired as the Director of SCTIMST in July 2009. At the time of retirement, he was the longest serving University head in India. On 18 December 2009, he took over as the first Vice Chancellor of the Kerala University of Health Sciences.

Dr. Mohanadasan Nair G. (born in 1951), did his graduation and post graduation from S.D. College, Alappuzha and Ph.D. from M.S. University, Baroda, Gujarat. Initially he served as a faculty in M.S. University, Baroda, Gujarat. He held position as a Reader in Botany, University of Kerala and retired as Professor and Head of the Department of Botany and Dean of Science. He was the former Director of JNTBGRI, Palode, Trivandrum. He also served as Dean of Science in Central University of Kerala, Kasargod. He is the president of Kerala Academy of Sciences (KAS), is a distinguished plant biotechnologist and academician. Currently he is serving as the Advisor, Kerala Biotechnology Commission, KSCSTE, Pattom, Thiruvananthapuram.

Dr. Omkumar R.V., obtained his M.Sc. (Biochemistry), 1984-1986, Kerala University, Thiruvananthapuram and Ph. D. (Biochemistry), 1986 -1992, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Post doctoral fellow Purdue University, USA, 1992 – 1994, California Institute of Technology, CA, USA, 1994 – 1996. He held positions as Scientist E-II (2004 – 2008), RGCB, Scientist E-I (2000 – 2004), RGCB and Scientist C (1996-2000), RGCB. His Research interests include Neurobiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Enzymology. He is an active member representative from India in the School’s Initiative of the International Society for Neurochemistry, 2010-2013; Life Member of the Asia-Pacific Society for Neurochemistry, Member, Society for Neuroscience, USA; Life Member and National Executive Committee Member, Indian Academy of Neurosciences; Life Member of the Society for Neurochemistry, India; Life Member of the Society of Cell Biologists, India; Life Member of the Society of Biological Chemists, India and Life Member of the Society for Biotechnologists, India. He is a visiting scientist, Health Technology Research Centre, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Japan, 2009 and UGC Visiting fellow, School of Life Sciences, Sree Ramanand Theerth Marathwada University, Nanded, Maharashtra, India, 2012. Currently he is Scientist F, Head of Molecular Neurobiology Division, RGCB, TVPM.

Dr. Prakashkumar R., completed his postgraduation in Plant Sciences underwent the doctoral programme on the clinico immunological influences of pollen grain allergy, in 1993. He demonstrated the allergenicity of nine airborne pollen grains among the people of Kerala and developed both diagnostic and therapeutic antigens which is being routinely administered for the diagnosis and management of respiratory allergy among the patients of Kerala state. Prakashkumar also demonstrated the role of Scanning Electron Microscopic studies in the varietal classification of natural fruit crops, successfully. He joined the collegiate education service in 1995 and was in service till 2002. Subsequently he joined the Kerala State Council for Science, Technology & Environment in 2002 and is currently Scientist F and Head, Science & Technology Promotion Division of the State Science & Technology Council. Dr Kumar has been the nodal officer for establishing a Patent Information Centre, Govt. of Kerala, first State Kerala Biodiversity Board, first Kerala State Biotechnology Commission & Kerala State Biotechnology Board. Dr. Kumar has been the master brain behind the much appreciated Sastraposhini Programme, Science Research Scheme, Student Project Scheme, KSCSTE research fellowship, Sastrabodhini, Bionidhi Scheme and also in the establishment of Centres of Excellence in Geo Information Science & Technology, Traditional knowledge documentation facility for the state. He also implemented the much highly rated SARD Scheme and the SPYTiS programmes in the Council. Currently his team introduced Sastraposhini in the model residential schools of the state, Sastrabodhini, KSCSTE Post Doctoral Fellowship Programme, KSCSTE Emeritus Scientist Scheme, Bionidhi scheme and the Kerala Sastrapuraskaram, with a view to promote the Science & Technology in the state. His efforts in establishing life conservatories for the lower plant groups such as bryophytes, pteridophytes, algal forms and aquatic biopark, Hortus Valley, Systematic Garden at the Malabar Botanical Garden is highly appreciated. Dr. Kumar is Fellow of the Linnean Society, London (FLS), Academy of Environmental Biology (FAEB), Indian Botanical Society (FBS), Indian Association for Angiosperm Taxonomy (FIAT), Electron Microscope Society of India (FEMSI), Indian Association of Biomedical Scientists (FABMS), National Academy of Biological Sciences (FNABS), Freshwater Plants Specialists Group, IUCN and Commission on Ecosystem Management, IUCN. Dr. Prakashkumar published more than 80 research papers in various national and international journals, edited more than 20 scientific publications and contributed chapters in 8 books and is the recipient of several State and National Awards in Biological Sciences. Dr. Kumar is the Vice President of the academy at present and is very active in the science popularization activities of the academy and currently serving as the Director, MBGIPS, Kozhikode.

Dr. Radha R. Das, secured M. Sc. from Bombay University and had her Ph.D. from Cornell University, New York. She held position as Associate Director AMD/DAE, Hyderabad. Her Achievements and areas of work includes contributions towards Uranium and rare earth extractions, high purity indium and gallium exaction in nuclear & electronic industry, investigations in geochemistry and isotope geochemistry, spectroscopic methods like spectrophotometry, spectrofluorimetry.

Dr. Radhika Ramachandran (born in 1961), Scientist- G had been working with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) for nearly three decades, starting her career in the Space Physics Laboratory (SPL) of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre. An Atmospheric Scientist by profession, she had her Ph.D. degree from the University of Kerala in Atmospheric Boundary Layer Physics and had a Postdoctoral Fellowship from the North Carolina State University, USA. Her pioneering work has been in the field of numerical weather prediction. Her research interests also include climate change, ocean-atmosphere interaction, and monsoon dynamics. She has won several awards and recognition in her field of specialization including the BOYSCAST award of the Department of Science and Technology for Young Scientists, ISRO-Astronautical Society of India award and Best Paper Award several times at the National Space Science symposia across the country. While at SPL, she was selected for techno-managerial assignments in ISRO. She served as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) at the Branch Secretariat of the Department of Space at Delhi. Subsequently in 2008, she was posted as ISRO Technical Liaison Officer, based at the ISRO Technical Liaison Unit under the Embassy of India in Paris, France. She was the first woman to be selected from ISRO for this assignment. In this role she was able to contribute substantially towards outreach, international co-operation and extension activities of ISRO in Europe. She has also served as a visiting faculty at the International Space University (ISU), Strasbourg, France and Society Italliana Organizzazione Internationale (SIOI), Rome, during her three year tenure in Paris. From 2011-2013, she worked as Adjunct Professor at the Department of Earth and Space Science in the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology. She had co-authored thirty odd research papers in peer-reviewed journals, books, book chapters in addition to several conference papers and scientific reports. She is a member of several professional bodies including the International Academy of Astronautics. Dr Radhika is a life member of the Academy and took part in many of its science popularization programmes and currently acting as the Director, Space Physics Laboratory, VSSC.

Dr. Rajasekharan K.N. (born in 1951), obtained his M.Sc. and Ph.D. from Kerala University and had research associateship in Case Institute of Technology, Baylor Medical Centre. He served as KSCSTE Emeritus Scientist and Head, Department of Chemistry, University of Kerala, He has won several awards and recognition in his field of specialization including Commonwealth Fellowship, Oxford University, Fogarty International Travel Award, NIH, USA. His major areas of work include organic synthesis, bioconjugate chemistry, green reagents, marine alkaloids, cancer cell cytotoxics. Currently he is serving as the Treasurer of KAS.

Dr. Ramachandran K.K., obtained his post graduate degree in Marine Geology from the Cochin University with First Rank in 1982. He joined Centre for Earth Science Studies as a Scientist at a very young age of 22 years. Subsequently, he obtained Ph.D. from the Cochin University of Science & Technology for his thesis pertaining to the Mud Banks (Chakara). He has done extensive research work on modern and quaternary coastal sedimentation. Later he has established himself in the field of Geoinformatics, especially in the field of remote sensing, photogrammetry and GPS. He was part of many national programs including the `Chandrayan’ and published many research papers variously in national and international refereed Journals. He visited many countries to present papers. He also authored chapters in books in Malayalam as well as in English. He worked for a short while as a consultant to ADB project and is responsible for having high resolution GIS maps for the 5 Municipal Corporations in Kerala. He also worked as Project Manager for Saudi Government to map Environmental Sensitivity Index for the Gulf coast. He was heading the Geomatics Lab of the Centre for Earth Science Studies before he joined the Kerala State Council for Science & Technology as its Member Secretary in June 2011. He is also the member secretary to the Kerala Coastal Zone Management Authority, as well as Member convener of Kerala Biotechnology Commission. He is in the Board of Studies on Environmental Science in CUSAT as well as in Technical committees/Executive committees of various organizations. Dr. Ramachandran is a member in the Core group committee for evaluation of State Science and Technology oriented demonstration projects of department of Science and Technology, Govt. of India.

Shri. Raveendran Pillai N. (born in 1949), completed his PG in Chemistry from University College, Thiruvananthapuram and is the winner of K.R. Krishna Iyer memorial gold medal of the University of Kerala. He holds a Diploma in German language (University of Kerala) and had undergone residential crash courses in Powder metallurgy (IIT, Bombay) and Vacuum technology (Osmania University, Hyderabad). He has held important positions in VSSC like Head, Satellite power systems section and as Scientist G, Head, Battery development division and Group Director, Quality assurance & reliability- propellants, chemicals, polymers, composites and energy systems group. In the initial formative years he had carried out the development of CdS solar cells and electrical brush materials for space applications and had been part of the team that modified/prepared the batteries for the maiden flight of India’s first Satellite Launch Vehicle SLV-3. As founder member of the Electrochemical energy systems development activities at VSSC, he had the rare distinction to start the activities from scratch and build up a young dynamic team of scientists/technicians and set up world class laboratory facilities at the centre which can cater to the present and future needs of ISRO in terms of space energy systems. His scientific/technical contributions include successful design, development and flight qualification of 12 Ah and 24 Ah Nickel Cadmium (NiCd) cells and use of these cells in five Indian Satellites, both IRS and GSAT including the landmark EDUSAT Shri. Pillai had successfully steered the development, qualification and flight use of Nickel Hydrogen (NiH2) cells, the second generation space battery cells. Further, the development of Lithium ion cells and fuel cells was initiated under his leadership. In the Quality Assurance and Reliability area, his major achievement is the successful implementation of quality protocols for all flight components from propellant, chemical and composite areas for India’s prestigious Chandrayaan mission and participation in the flight campaign. He had also been a faculty of ISRO Induction Training Program (IITP) for newly recruited engineers/scientists. He has 13 publications/conference papers and a book chapter in addition to a number of project reports / design / development / qualification / process and quality control / assurance reports. He had been the General Secretary of the academy (2008-2010) during which period the programme “Science is Exciting” was successfully undertaken.

Dr. Reghunadhan Nair C.P. (born in 1956), took his Masters in Applied Chemistry from Cochin University of Science and Technology and Doctorate in macromolecular materials from Louis Pasteur University, Strasbourg, France. He joined Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (ISRO) in 1980. His areas of research include materials for space, polymer chemistry and propellants. Apart from contributing to the basic understanding in fundamental polymer science in the field of free radical polymerization, chain transfer, addition-fragmentation etc, Dr. Nair is much known for introducing the concept of INIFERTER that led to development of a method for synthesizing end-functional and multiblock copolymers by free radical route. He added a chapter of Addition Cure Phenolics to polymer literature. These non-conventional phenolics provide higher char suited for composites and matrices for ablatives/C and CMC composites. His other major contributions to polymer field is development of polyacryl nitrile precursor for carbon fibre, natural-synthetic hybrid polymers for biomedical applications, high temperature polymer systems and adhesives, shape memory polymers etc. Of late, the click chemistry was explored for development of a series of functional polymer systems including high energy propellant binders. He has successfully guided twelve Ph.Ds and is a recipient of Prof. Sukumar Maity Polymer Foundation Award for the period 1999-2000 and Prof. Santappa Silver Jubilee Award for the period for 2005- 2006 for outstanding contributions to Polymer Science. He was a French Government fellow for the period 1985-89 and visiting scientist in 1993 in the same country. He has published over 150 research papers and authored two books and fifteen book chapters in addition to more than 100 conference papers and a dozen popular articles. He is an inventor of sixteen patents. He is keen in popularizing chemistry through lectures, articles in periodicals and newspapers and well versed in French and German languages.

Shri. Shaneeth M. (born in 1974), had his B.Tech. in Chemical Engineering from University of Calicut and M. Tech. in Chemical Engineering from IIT Kanpur. He joined Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in 1997. He has made significant contributions to the development and production of Nickel-Hydrogen battery cells for satellite applications. He played a pivotal role in the design, development and qualification of unique high pressure vessels made of Inconel 718 alloy which are used as the casing for NiH2 cells. These contributions proved instrumental in eventual successful application of the cells in INSAT 4CR satellite. Shri. Shaneeth, subsequently, embarked on development of Fuel cell technology for space and various societal applications. His contributions resulted in development and productionisation of a highly special gold plating process on aluminum alloy bipolar plates for PEM Fuel Cell stacks. He made substantial contributions towards developing high performing fuel cell electrodes, designed a 1 KW proof of concept PEM fuel cell power plant and played a pivotal role in realization of the system and demonstration of its standalone performance. In a first of its kind work in the country, under his leadership, a 100 W class autonomous PEM fuel cell system was designed, developed, qualified and accomplished successful installation and operationalisation of the system for powering automatic weather station (AWS) at North East Space Application Centre (NESAC), Shillong and in TERLS, VSSC. The present system makes the operation free of changes in weather conditions and extends our forecasting capabilities and has potential impact in various other fields. Shri. Shaneeth has presented contributory and invited papers in several national and international conferences of repute on Fuel Cell technology and he has successfully supervised six M. Tech. theses so far. As a science communicator, he has conducted classes in more than 60 schools and colleges on Space Science, Technology and programmes as well as Emerging energy scenario based on Hydrogen and Fuel Cells. He is also involved in the national committee deliberations towards finalising the roadmap and policies for implementation of Hydrogen and Fuel cell technologies in the country. Shri. Shaneeth is a life member of the Academy apart from many other professional bodies and currently he is working on Electrochemical energy systems at VSSC.

Dr. Soniya E.V., Obtained her Ph.D from University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram, 1995. She held positions of Research Associate, Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, Thiruvananthapuram and RGCB and Scientist C, RGCB. Her achievements include, third prize in the Biotechnology Entrepreneurship Student Teams (BEST 2010) (http://www.ableindia.in/best/index.php) Competition, a national level life science entrepreneurship development programme which is sponsored by the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India and is administered by ABLE – India. She is an active member of Kerala Academy of Sciences, Indian Society of Cell Biology and Society for Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, Society for Biotechnologists (INDIA) and National Academy of Science, India. She is a recipient of the INSA/DFG visiting Scientist in Max Planck Institute of Chemical Ecology, Germany. Currently she is a Scientist E1 at RGCB, TVPM.
Dr. Sudha J.D. (born in 1959), secured M.Sc in Chemistry from University College, Trivandrum. Winner of K.R. Krishna Iyer memorial gold medal of the University of Kerala and she was awarded Ph.D. in Chemistry by University of Kerala in of 2000. She has received visiting scientist fellowship from Technical University, Dresden, Germany in 2007. Her research areas of interest are conducting polymers, liquid crystalline polymers, adhesives and analytical techniques such as thermal, rheology, microscopy. She has successfully completed independent research project programmes funded by ISRO, Atomic Energy Department, KSETC and a team member of CSIR funded network programs. Her scientific contributions are evident from more than fifty publications appeared in well reputed journals. She is having ten patents to her credit. Dr. Sudha is an active member of several professional bodies such as Society for Polymer Science of India, Materials Research Society of India, and Chemical Research Society of India, Microscopic Society of India and Indian Analytical Society. She was the treasurer of the academy for six years.

Dr. Annie Abraham (born in 1960), took her M.Sc in Biochemistry (first rank) and Ph.D from the Department of Biochemistry, University of Kerala. She then joined State Government service as Lecturer in Biochemistry at University College, Thiruvananthapuram and later on became Reader in the Department, and also served as the Head, Department of Biochemistry, University of Kerala and Director, School of Life Sciences. Major areas of Dr. Annie’s research work include therapeutic efficacy of phytochemicals, nanomaterials and photosensitizers in cancer, cataract, atherosclerosis and tissue engineering. She had developed biomarker tagged nanomaterials and photosensitizers for early detection of cancer and elucidated the mechanism of action to prevent cataract using bioactive components of medicinal plants. Under her guidance, 22 students have taken Ph.D and currently 8 more are pursuing research. She has over 80 research publications to her credit. Prof. Annie is the recipient of University Merit Scholarship, UGC postdoctoral exchange fellowship, INSA fellowship, Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Award and Dewang Mehta National Educational Award for the Best Professor in Biochemistry. Also she has held positions like Chairperson, Board of Studies in Biochemistry and Applied Health Sciences, University of Kerala; Member, Scientific Advisory Committee, ICMR and Sectional Secretary, 97^th Indian Science Congress. Also she served in different committees of DBT, ICMR and KSCSTE as external expert. At present she is working as Professor of Biochemistry and Director of Research, University of Kerala.

Dr. Bibin John (born in 1981), secured his B Sc (2002) and M Sc (2004) in Chemistry from Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam and Ph. D (2006) from University of Kerala.  Dr. Bibin’s field of specialization includes electro chemical energy systems, polymers and polymer composites. His research contributions include development of foam composites and Li-ion cells for space applications.  He actively took part in development of Lithium ion cells used in launch vehicles/satellites/electric vehicles. He is also involved in the development of new products from VSSC such as cyanate ester syntactic foams, electron spun polyacrilonitrile based gel polymer electrolytes, and synthesis of lithium titanate in submicron and in fibrous foam. He is the Member, Board of Studies at SB College, Changanacherry from 2014 to till date. Dr. Bibin John delivered numerous invited talks for the science popularization and related activities. He has 20 publications, 23 conference papers and 2 book chapters. He extended his contributions as reviewer for international journals like Ionics, Electrochimia Acta, Journal of American Ceramic Society, Journal of Alloys and Compounds, Polymer Composites and Cellular Polymers. He is a Ph D research guide of the University of Kerala and CUSAT. Currently he is serving as Scientist/ Engineer SE at VSSC, Thiruvananthapuram.

Dr. Haridas M. had his post graduate (M Sc Life Science) from Sardar Patel University, Gujarat and continued his doctoral and post doctoral studies in Structural Biology at AIIMS, New Delhi and Massey University, New Zealand. He served as Lecturer, School of Biosciences, Mahatma Gandhi University in 1988 and moved to Kannur University, Dept Biotech and Microbiology in 2000 as Reader. He had served as Member, Academic Councils of CUSAT, MG University, Kannur University; Research Council- RGCB, RAC- AVP Research Foundation, Coimbatore and KBC- KSCSTE. He was the Dean, Faculty of Science and Member Syndicate, Kannur University. He was the first biologist to get trained in X-Ray crystallography of single crystals of proteins in India and had established the first protein crystallography research group in Kerala. Experimental evidence and theoretical support to the advantage of Ayurvedic fermentation were provided by the research led by him. He has ninety plus international publications, twenty chapters in edited volumes and two patents (applied) to his credit.  He has guided 23 students for their PhD and continues to guide three students. Currently he is the Director, Inter University Centre for Bioscience Dept. Biotech and Microbiology, Kannur University Thalassery Campus, Palayad.

Dr. Madhusoodanan  P. V. (born in 1950), had his M.Sc. in Botany from Calicut University in 1973 with 3^rd rank and Ph.D. from University of Calicut in1988. He started his career as Lecturer in 1979, Reader in 1989, Professor in 1995 and became the Head of the Botany Department, University of Calicut in 2005-2007. He had 42 years of research experience in plant science, that includes 31 years of PG teaching. His topics of interests include Biodiversity (Pteridophytes, Bryophytes, Cyanobacteria), Plant Systematics /Taxonomy and Plant Biotechnology and has over 190 research publications in national and international journals including NATURE and six research level books. He had also produced 15 Ph.D. theses; 20 M.Phil./M. Sc. dissertations and 5 Ph.D. programmes are ongoing. He had visited China and UK as part of his research programmes. He has won several awards and recognitions such as Fellow of the Indian Fern Society (FIFS) and Life Time Achievement Award of IFS in 2014. His academic assignments include, Chairman/ Member, Board of Examiners and Board of Studies in Calicut University; Kannur University, MS University, Goa University, Annamalai University, Mysore University and MG Univ. Dr. Madhusoodanan was also the Officer in Charge, Calicut University Botanical Garden (CUBG), President, Calicut University Botanical Society (CUBS), Ex. President, Gregor Mendel Foundation, Vice President, Indian Fern Society and Member KBC-KSCSTE. He had carried out R&D projects of ICAR, KSCSTE, MoEF, DST, Planning Board, SMPB and NMPB. He is currently working as Emeritus Scientist at Malabar Botanical Garden and Institute for Plant Sciences, Kozhikode.    

Dr. Mohan Kumar B. (born in 1953), obtained his master’s (1978) degree from Kerala Agricultural University and did his Ph.D at IARI, New Delhi (1980-84) and postdoc at Utah State University, USA (1986-87). He was employed as Assistant Director General (Agronomy, Agroforestry and Climate Change), ICAR, New Delhi (2012-15); and various positions at Kerala Agricultural University. He was also the Courtesy Professor, School of Forest Resources and Conservation, University of Florida, USA, (2006 to date) and visiting professor of various Indonesian Universities (2012 to present). His research areas include agroforestry, agroecology, forest ecology and silviculture. He was in the editorial board of prestigious journals such as Journal of Tropical Agriculture; Agroforestry Systems; Indian Journal of Agroforestry; Forest Ecology and Management; International Journal of Ecology and Environmental Sciences and Agrivita. The Awards/honours includes; Dr. KG Tejwani Award for Excellence in Agroforestry Research and Development in India  by Indian Society of Agroforestry, Jhansi (2008); CNRS Visiting Scholarship (University of Toulouse, France, 2010); Erasmus Mundus Visiting Scholarship (University of Wales, UK, 2009); Visiting Professor (University of Tokyo, Japan, 2008); Fulbright Scholarship (University of Florida, USA, 2007); JSPS Invitation Fellowship (Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Japan, 2003-04); USAID Postdoctoral Fellowship, Utah State University, USA (1986-87); He is the Elected Fellow of the NASc (2004); National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (2008); and National Institute of Ecology (2008). He is currently working as Professor, School of Ecology and Environment Studies, Nalanda University, Bihar.

Dr. Muthiah Rm. obtained his B.E. (Chemical) from Annamalai University, M.S. (Fuels Engg.) from University of Utah and Ph.D from Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. He joined VSSC as Engineer Trainee and rose to Divisional Head of Propellant Engg. Division, and finally Group Head of Propellants and Chemicals Group. Dr. Muthiah, embarked on the development of solid rocket propellants for SLV-3, PSLV, GSLV, GSLV-MK3, SRE and Chandrayaan projects and also in technology development of multiple pressure casting of pyrogen igniters and water heated ovens. He has held positions as Principal / Director in various Engineering Colleges. He has to his credit 60 journal and conference papers and 2 patents. He is recipient of Dalmia-Hemsi Award for the contributions in the field of solid propellants and related technologies. He is a life fellow of IIChE, HEMSI, SPSI, ISNT and was the Vice President, Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers (IIChE).

Dr. Pradeep N. S. had his B.Sc and M.Sc in Botany from Kerala University and obtained his PhD from Gandhigram University, Madurai, India.  He joined the Division of Microbiology, JNTBGRI during 1998 as Junior Scientific Assistant and became the Head of the Division in 2015.  His research efforts have been focused on understanding the diversity of fungi, their enzymes and potential applications, molecular taxonomy etc.  He has published over 50 scientific papers and reviews, and edited three books. He is a life member of Association of Microbiologists of India, Mycological Society of India, and Mushroom Society of India. Dr. Pradeep is actively involved in science extension and training programmes and he is the member of the Research Committee of Integrated Rural Technology Centre, Kerala and the Governing Council member of the Sophisticated Test and Instrumentation Centre, Kerala.  He is also the Task Force Member of Women Biotechnology Programmes, Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India.  During his 20 years of research, he has guided 5 students for Ph. D and completed several major research projects.  As of now he is at KSCSTE-Malabar Botanical Garden and Institute for Plant Sciences on working arrangement.

Dr. Ruby John Anto (born in 1963), did her Masters in Chemistry from Government College, Madappally, Vadakara and took PhD from Amala Cancer Research Centre, Thrissur. She did her post-doctoral studies at RGCB and worked as a visiting scientist at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, USA. Currently her research focuses on bio-prospecting of anti-cancer compounds having chemotherapeutic, chemopreventive or chemosensitizing potential. Dr. Anto is a recipient of National Woman Bio-Scientist Award, from DBT, Govt. of India and is a Fellow of NASc. She is a reviewer of several reputed international journals such as Cancer Research, Oncogene, Antioxidants & Redox Signaling, Apoptosis, Oncotarget, Scientific Reports, Cell Death and Disease etc. She is a member in the editorial board of the journals, PLOS ONE, Science Letters, PNAS India etc. She has 53 manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals to her credit and holds two patents. She has several national and international research collaborations. Her team has recently isolated uttroside B, a steroidal saponin, which exhibits exceptional cytotoxicity towards liver cancer cells and a patent has been filed on this invention. Currently she is working as Scientist F in the Division of Cancer Research, RGCB, Thiruvananthapuram.

Dr. Sabu Abdulhameed (born in 1971), obtained his M.Sc in 1994 and PhD in 2000 from CUSAT and joined the Biotechnology Division of CSIR-NIIST, Thiruvananthapuram as Scientist Fellow.  Later, in 2006 he moved to Kannur University as Assistant Professor in Biotechnology. He had post-doctoral experience in microbial fermentation and biotransformation from USA, France and Hungary. His main focus of research has been on microbial fermentation, therapeutic enzymes and biotransformation of bioactive molecules. Dr. Sabu developed a bioprocess for the enhanced production of the feed enzyme phytase and a solid state reactor was developed for onsite production of biocontrol agents under solid state fermentation. He had contributed extensively on fermentation and biotransformation in medicated wines. He has three patents to his credit, edited four books and authored one. He has also published 60 research papers in reputed international journals. In 2007 Dr. Sabu received the Malavya Memorial Award for Senior Faculty from Biotech Research Society of India. He is a member of the EC and GC of KSCSTE and a member of the Syndicate of CUSAT. He is also a member of many academic bodies and expert panels and in the editorial board of reputed journals. He had received visiting professorship from Mexican Agency for International Cooperation and Development. Currently he is serving as Associate Professor at the Department of Biotechnology and Microbiology, Kannur University.

Dr. Sameer Kumar V.B., after qualifying B.Sc. (2000) and M.Sc (2002) with first rank, did his M.Phil.and PhD (2008) from University of Kerala.  He had worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Weizmann Institute of Sciences, Israel till 2010 and then at the Cincinnati Childrens’s Hospital Medical Centre, USA till he joined Central University of Kerala as Assistant Professor towards the end of 2011.He specializes in the areas of endothelial cell biology, angiogenesis, functional analysis of non-coding RNA and protein engineering. Providing an interdisciplinary edge to his expertise, his lab also work on applications of nanomaterials in modulating EC functions and angiogenesis.  He has published 39 research articles in peer reviewed international journals of repute like Nature Communications, IJBCB, JCP, JCB etc. He is a member of the academic bodies of other Universities and is associated with several professional societies. Presently, Dr. Sameer is serving as Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Central University of Kerala, Kasaragod.

Dr. Jasmine M Shah is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Plant Science in the Central University of Kerala. She is also the Joint Director of the Kasaragod Botanical Garden and Research Centre (KBGRC). It is a greenfield project of the University in Kasaragod. Dr. Shah did her M.Sc. in Genetics and Plant Breeding at the University of Kerala; Ph.D. in Biotechnology at Madurai Kamaraj University; and Post-Doctorate from the IIT- Madras. Dr. Shah is an active Science popularizer, who has given over 60 scientific talks in Schools, Colleges and Universities in India and abroad, organized over 23 scientific programs, and written many popular scientific articles in magazines and newspapers. She has published over 20 research articles in peer-reviewed national/ international journals, and written three book chapters. She is the Handling Editor for the Journal ‘Frontiers in Genome Editing’. She is also a Reviewer for around 15 International Journals. Dr. Shah is a recipient of several Awards and Fellowships such the prestigious DST INSPIRE Faculty Fellowship, Women Achiever Award 2023, Young Scientist Award, DBT Research Associateship, IIT-M post-doctoral fellowship and CSIR Junior Research Fellowship. Dr. Shah is also the Fellow of Young Academy of India, an Executive Council Member of the ‘Kerala Academy of Sciences’, and also the ‘Society of Cytologists and Geneticists’.

Dr. PV. Mohanan is Scientist-G and Head, Toxicology Division and also the Head, Dept. of Applied Biology, BMT Wing, at Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum. Dr. Mohanan did his Masters from the University of Calicut, PhD from University of Kerala, and Post doctorate from The University of Tsukuba, Japan. Dr. Mohanan is the Fellow of The National Academy of Sciences India, Fellow of Royal Society of Biology, UK, Fellow of Society for Applied Biotechnology, Fellow of Society of Toxicology, and Fellow of Academy of Sciences for Animal Welfare. Dr. Mohanan is also a Visiting Professor at Toyo University, Japan and Bharat Institute of Higher Education & Research, Chennai. He is an Adjunct Professor, Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, and Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi. He is also a Visiting Researcher at the Bio Nano Electronics Research Centre, Saitama, Japan.Dr. Mohanan has 271 publications, he edited 6 books, has 5 patents filed and 3 design registrations. Dr. Mohanan is an Expert Member in scientific committees of RCGM, DST, SERB, DBT, ICMR, CSIR and FSSAI, and Joint FAO-UN-WHO (JECFA) committees. He is the Secretary General of Society of Toxicology, India, and also the Vice President Kerala Academy of Sciences, India.

Dr. K. N. Narayanan Unni is a Senior Principal Scientist and the Head of Center for Sustainable Energy Technologies at CSIR-National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (NIIST). He was also the previous Head of the Photosciences and Photonics Section. Dr. Narayanan is also a Professor at the Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR).  Dr. Narayanan obtained his Master’s and Ph. D degrees in Physics from School of Pure & Applied Physics, Mahatma Gandhi University. He has done Post-Doctorate from IIT Bombay, and also from the Laboratoire des Proprietés Optiques des Matériaux et Applications, CNRS, University of Angers, France. In 2005, Dr. Narayanan joined Samtel Color Ltd, New Delhi, and was posted at IIT Kanpur as a Research Engineer to work with the OLED Prototype Development Unit. In 2008, he became the team leader and by 2012, the group developed commercial-quality OLED displays for the first time in India. Subsequently, he joined IIT Kanpur as a Principal Research Engineer and in April 2013, he took up the position of Principal Scientist with the CSIR- NIIST. Dr. Narayanan is also the Nodal Scientist for Energy Theme at CSIR-NIIST. Dr. Narayanan was a recipient of the CNRS post-doctoral fellowship, a Citation from the Chairman of Samtel Group of Industries, and the CSIR Technology Award. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers of India. 

Dr. Pramod Gopinath was the immediate past Director of International School of Photonics at Cochin University of Science and Technology. Dr. Pramod was the Professor and faculty of the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, since its inception in 2007.Dr. Pramod has an M.Sc. in Physics- Materials Science from Mahatma Gandhi University and was awarded Ph.D. from Cochin University of Science and Technology. Dr. Pramod is a Fellow of Royal Society of Chemistry. He is a Senior Member of IEEE and Chair of IEEE Photonics Society Kerala Chapter, Executive Council member of Kerala Academy of Sciences, Life Fellow of Optical Society of India, Member of Optica (Formerly Optical Society of America). He is a Life Member of Indian Physics Association, Indian Laser Association, Plasma Science Society of India, Indian Science Congress Association, and Photonics Society of India. Dr. Pramod was a Visiting Professor at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. Dr. Pramod has more than 45 publications in reputed international journals and more than 90 in conferences/symposia with an h-index of 18. He is an Editorial Board Member of the Frontiers and Review Editor for Frontiers in Chemistry-Nanoscience and Frontiers in Photonics- Nonlinear Optics.

Dr. K G Raghu former Chief Scientist from CSIR-National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram. Dr. K G Raghu is a recipient of the ‘CSIR Technology Award’, ‘Hari Ohm Ashram Perit Bhaika Inter-University, Smarak Trust Award’ by Sardar Patel University, and ‘S.S. Parmar Foundation Research Prize’ by the Indian Academy of Neuroscience. He is a also the Fellow of Indian Academy of Biomedical Sciences.Dr. Raghu is an established molecular pharmacologist, known for his contribution in metabolic syndromes and reverse pharmacology. His finding on the role of mitochondrial injury and ER stress in the genesis of insulin resistance has been a landmark in the drug discovery research of diabetes. Dr. Raghu has published about 116 original research papers, 5 review articles, 1 book, 10 book chapters, and filed 2 patents. He has mentored 18 PhD students and 5 post-docs and executed 18 projects from various funding agencies like CSIR, DBT, ICMR, SERB, and DST.

Dr. K.B. Rameshkumar is a Principal Scientist in the Phytochemistry and Phytopharmacology Division at the KSCSTE Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute (KSCSTE-JNBGRI), Thiruvananthapuram. Dr. Rameshkumar took his M.Sc. in Chemistry from St. Thomas College, Thrissur and Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram. Dr. Rameshkumar is the current General Secretary of Kerala Academy of Sciences. He is the Scientist-in Charge of Central Instrumentation Facility at JNTBGRI.Dr. Rameshkumar is a recipient of the prestigious ‘Young Scientist Award’ by the Govt. of Kerala, and ‘K.S. Manilal Award’ by the Indian Association for Angiosperm Taxonomy. His students have bagged more than 30 ‘Best Presentation Awards’ during various Seminars/Conferences. Dr. Rameshkumar has organized around 50 National/International workshops/seminars, and delivered 70 invited lectures in India and abroad. He has visited several countries including Oman, Malaysia and Sri Lanka. Dr. Rameshkumar has published 70 research papers, and 2 books. He had guided 5 Ph.D. students and supervised 30 M.Sc. dissertation students. In his tenure of 25 years of research, he has worked on the phytochemistry of several hitherto uninvestigated endemic plants of the Western Ghats and identified new compounds and new plant species.

Dr. Reghu Ravindran is currently a Professor at the Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU). He is the Head of the Veterinary Parasitology Department. Dr. Ravindran did BVSc & AH and MVSc (Veterinary Parasitology) from the Kerala Agricultural University, and pursued Ph.D. in Veterinary Parasitology from the Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar. Dr. Ravindran worked as a Veterinary surgeon in Department of Animal Husbandry, Kerala, prior to opting the teaching career at the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Pookode from December,2004 where he continues till date. With more than 18 years of experience, Dr. Ravindran has won many awards including Best Agricultural Scientist Award in 2011 by the Govt. of Kerala, ‘PUBLONS Peer review award’ 2018, ‘Visiting fellowship 2018 JNCASR’, and the ‘INSA Teacher Award’ 2020. Dr. Ravindran is an Executive Council Member of Kerala Academy of Sciences. Dr. Ravindran has completed several research projects funded by DBT and KSCSTE. He has over 60 publications in well-reputed international journals, one granted patent, an H index of 21 and more than 1500 citations. He has guided one Ph.D. scholar and six master’s students. Currently, Dr. Ravindran is the Review Editor for Frontiers in Veterinary Science, Senior Managing Editor for Journal of Veterinary Parasitology, Member of Editorial Committee for Microbes, Infection, and Chemotherapy.

Dr. Sabu Thomas was a Faculty Scientist and Principal Investigator at the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology under the DBT, Govt. of India. Dr. Sabu completed his MSc in Zoology from Mahatma Gandhi University and PhD from the University of Kerala. As a Global Task Force Member of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Sabu was instrumental in preparing a road map to control Cholera by 2030. Currently, a Task Force Member of the Indian Council of Medical Research and Kerala State Nodal Officer in AMR research and Chairman of the Working committee to set up a Centre of Excellence in Microbiome in the State. Dr. Sabu has received the ‘Fellow Award’ in Medical Biotechnology by the Society for Applied Biotechnology and honored with the ‘Catholicate Award’ for the Best Scientist (2022). Dr. Sabu has published more than 90 research articles in journals of repute, 15 book chapters, and edited 3 academic books. He has supervised 10 Doctoral theses. Dr. Sabu was a member of the Second Indian Arctic Expedition team to study the Polar Microbiome at 79^o North and contributed substantially to Polar Science research in India.

Dr. Sreejith Parameswara Panicker is an Assistant Professor, Dept. of Zoology, University of Kerala. He is also the Director of the Advanced Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research in Cutaneous Biology   (ACRem-Stem), University of Kerala. Dr. Sreejith completed his Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Kerala. He has completed Post. Doctorate from the Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, USA, the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria, USA, and the Case Western Reserve University, Ohio, USA. Dr. Sreejith is a recipient of several International Fellowships by the University of Manchester, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, University of Roehampton, London, and UK Higher Education Academy, in conjunction with FLAIR Program, Govt. of Kerala. Dr. Sreejith has received Research Funding amounting to about 8 Crore, from several funding agencies such as UGC, ICMR, Dept. of Health Research, DST, KSCSTE-KBC, MHRD, KSHEC & Dept. of Higher Education, Govt. of Kerala. Dr. Sreejith is the Joint Secretary of the Society for Nutraceuticals Chronic Diseases, and the Kerala Academy of Science, Treasurer of the Society for Translational Cancer Research, Executive Member of the Society for Alternatives to Animal Experiments-India, Secretary of the Association of British Scholars, and the President of the Lions Club, Trivandrum Host.

Dr. T.S. Swapna is a Professor of the Department of Botany, University of Kerala, and the officiating Head of the Department of Biotechnology, University of Kerala. Prof. Swapna did her PhD from the Cochin University of Science and Technology and Post-Doctoral research from the University of Paul Cezanne, Marseille, France. Prof. Swapna has received the ‘Best Women Scientist Award’ in Botany, By PEARL Foundation Educational Excellence Awards in 2017,   held at Madurai Kamaraj University. Prof. Swapna is an Executive Council Member of the Kerala Academy of Science, and a Member of Kerala State Biodiversity Board. Prof. Swapna has worked as an Assistant Professor in various SN Colleges and Government Colleges in Kerala. She was the Principal Scientific Officer at Kerala State Biodiversity Board. She has 26 years of teaching and research experience and has guided 9 PhD students and several Post Graduate and M Phil students. She has published more than 100 research papers in reputed journals, 14 books, and presented papers in National/International Seminars/Conferences. She has served as a reviewer in many reputed Journals and is Chairperson of the Board of Studies in Botany and Biotechnology, University of Kerala. She has completed 12 research projects funded by DST-SERB, Dept. of Environment and Climate Change, Western Ghats Cell Govt. of Kerala, UGC, and State Medicinal Plant Board.