E. A. Siddiq

Last updated

E. A. Siddiq
Born1937
ilayangudi, sivagangai, India
OccupationAgricultural scientist
Awards Padma Shri
Hari Om Ashram Trust National Award
VASVIK Industrial Research Award
Om Prakash Bhasin Award
Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award
Borlaug Award
DRR Silver Jubilee Medal
INSA Silver Jubilee Medal
GP Chatterjee Memorial Lecture Award
Agricultural Leadership Award
INSA Professor Sundar Lal Hora Medal
NAAS Dr. B. P. Pal Memorial Award

Ebrahimali Abubacker Siddiq (born 1937) is an Indian agricultural scientist, whose research in genetics and plant breeding is reported to have assisted in the development of various high-yielding rice varieties such as dwarf basmati and hybrid rice. [1] The government of India honoured Siddiq in 2011 with the fourth-highest civilian award of Padma Shri. [2]

Contents

Biography

With the climate change already costing farmers with decreasing crop yields (up to 10 per cent) and new crop land constraints, efforts should be made to develop hybrid varieties that can withstand physical stresses, including water submergence during severe monsoon, drought and high salinity, says E. A. Siddiq. [3]

E. A. Siddiq was born in 1937 in Ilayangudi, Town in Sivaganga District, Tamil Nadu, India. [4] His graduate studies were completed in Botany (1959) [4] from the University of Madras following which he obtained masters (1964) [4] and doctoral degrees (1968) [4] in Cytogenetics, under the supervision of renowned botanist, M. S. Swaminathan, from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI). [1] [5] His career started at his alma mater, the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, as a cytogeneticist in 1968, [6] [1] [5] a post he held till 1976 when he was promoted as the Senior Scientist. [4] [1] [5] In 1983, he was deputed to Egypt as the Rice Breeder and in 1986, he was transferred to Philippines as the Professor of Genetics. [1] The next year, in 1987, he returned to India as the Project Director of the Directorate of Rice Research, Hyderabad and worked there till 1994. [4] [1] The next move was to Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi as the Deputy Director General of the Crop Science Division. [5]

In 1997 Siddiq was honored as the National Professor of ICAR and in 2002, [1] [6] he took charge of the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) as the Distinguished Chair. [4] [5] On his retirement in 2007, he was appointed as the Adjunct Scientist at CFFD. [4] He also holds the positions of Adjunct Professor of the University of Hyderabad, Adjunct Professor of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) and the Honorary Professor of Biotechnology at Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University, Hyderabad. [4] [1] [5]

Positions

Siddiq was a member of the scientific advisory council of the Prime Minister of India from 2004 to 2009. [1] He sits in the Board of Members of the International Rice Research Institute as well as the Executive Committee of the Agri Biotech Foundation. [1] He was a member of the working group for the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-2012) of India. [7] He was also a member of the Research Advisory Committee of the National Research Centre on Plant Biotechnology, an Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) subsidiary. [8]

Siddiq is the chairman of the Farm and Rural Science Foundation of The Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry. [9] He also served as a council member of National Science academy, India from 1998 till 2000. [4]

Legacy

Siddiq is credited with contributions on the scientific, academic and organizational fronts. [5] His research primarily focusses on genetic research and applied breeding of rice, for improving the yield and quality, and is reported to have assisted in the development of ten high-yielding rice varieties. [4] [5] A variety of dwarf basmati rice (Pusa Basmati-1), claimed to be the first high-yielding variety in its class, [1] and quick maturing varieties such as Pusa 2-21, Pusa 33, Pusa 4 and Pusa 834 are credited to Siddiq. [5] [4] His contribution is also reported in the development of DRRH-1, a first-generation Indian hybrid. [5] [4] Siddiq has also done basic research on adaptability, stability and the potential of convergent breeding of various rice breeds. His research has also covered the cytogenetic and phylogenetic aspects of rice breeding. [5]

Siddiq was a part of the project for enhancement of rice research in Egypt, under the USAID-funded Rice Breeder programme of International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in 1987 as well as in the establishment of the Government of India-sponsored National Rice Research Institute in Vietnam. [5] [4] Working as a consultant for the World Bank, he has designed the projects for agricultural development in Assam and Bangladesh. [4] He is credited with two scientific studies, one in Egypt and the other in India, in the capacity of the consultant to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). [5]

On the organizational front, Siddiq has collaborated with the World Bank/FAO as consultant and advisor and has prepared many project proposals for programs in Egypt, Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia and the Philippines. [4] [5] He has also helped in the establishment of rice research institutes in Vietnam and Bangladesh. He was a member of the Task Force on Crop Biotechnology, Monitoring and Evaluation Committee and the National Convenor of the Natural Rice Biotechnology Network during the period from 1990 to 2002. [4] [5]

Siddiq is credited with over 150 research publications, [4] [5] [10] 16 of which have been listed by Microsoft Academic Search in their online repository [11] and his research findings have been cited in many books and journals. [12] [13]

He has supervised 35 students in their PhD studies [4] and has delivered keynote addresses at many conferences. [9] [6]

Awards and recognitions

Siddiq has received several honors starting with the Hari Om Ashram Trust National Award in 1976. [1] [5] In 1981, he was awarded the VASVIK Industrial Research Award, [14] followed by Amrik Singh Cheema Award in 1988, Silver Jubilee Medal from the Directorate of Rice Research (DRR) in 1990 [5] [4] and Om Prakash Bhasin Award in 1994. [1] [5] A year later, in 1995, he received the Borlaug Award and the Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award. [5] [1] [4] Indian National Science Academy honored Siddiq in 1997 with the Silver Jubilee Medal. [1] [5] [4] He has also received the GP Chatterjee Memorial Lecture Award [4] of the Indian Science Congress Association in 2001, the Agricultural Leadership Award in 2008 [1] and appreciative mementos from the Government of Tamil Nadu and the Government of Egypt, [5] besides receiving the Professor Sundar Lal Hora Medal of INSA, (2011) and B. P. Pal Memorial Award of National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS) (2011–12). [4] In 2011, the Government of India included him in the Republic day honours, listing him for the fourth highest civilian award of Padma Shri. [1] [2]

Siddiq is an elected Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy (1995), [15] National Academy of Sciences (India), Allahabad and National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, New Delhi. [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basmati</span> Variety of long-grain rice

Basmati, pronounced ['bɑːsmət̪iː], is a variety of long, slender-grained aromatic rice which is traditionally grown in India, Pakistan, and Nepal. As of 2019, India accounted for 65% of the international trade in basmati rice, while Pakistan accounted for the remaining 35%. Many countries use domestically grown basmati rice crops; however, basmati is geographically exclusive to certain districts of India and Pakistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thirumalachari Ramasami</span> Indian civil servant

Thirumalachari Ramasami is a former Indian Science and Technology Secretary. He assumed charge in May 2006. Prior to this assignment, he served as the Director of the Central Leather Research Institute, Chennai, India. He is a distinguished researcher and leather scientist. He was awarded India's National Civilian Honour the Padma Shri for excellence in Science and Engineering in 2001 and the Padma Bhushan in 2014. He was awarded the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award, the highest award for science in India, for notable and outstanding research in Chemical Sciences in 1993.

Gurdev Singh Khush is an Agronomist and Geneticist who, along with mentor Henry Beachell, received the 1996 World Food Prize for his achievements in enlarging and improving the global supply of rice during a time of exponential population growth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pusa Basmati 1121</span> Independently derived Basmati rice variety, evolved by hybridization over a long breeding process

Pusa Basmati 1121 is an independently derived Basmati rice variety, evolved through the process of hybridization over a long breeding process. This variety of basmati rice was developed by Padma Shri awardee Dr Vijaipal Singh at Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi. It was released for commercial cultivation in Kharif season of 2003 as Pusa 1121. By 2007, the variety has become widely popular with farmers, and was renamed as Pusa Basmati 1121 in 2008. It holds the world record for highest kernel elongation on cooking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benjamin Peary Pal</span> Indian agricultural scientist (1906–1989)

Benjamin Peary Pal or B. P. Pal FRS was an Indian plant breeder and agronomist who served as a director of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in Delhi and as the first Director General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research. He worked on wheat genetics and breeding but was also known for his interest in rose varieties.

Virander Singh Chauhan is an Indian scientist and a Rhodes Scholar working in the fields of genetic engineering and biotechnology and known for his contributions to the development of a recombinant vaccine for malaria. and for synthetic structural peptides with biological functions. He was honored by the Government of India in 2012 with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri. He is the present Chancellor of Gandhi Institute of Technology and Management.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vijaipal Singh</span> Indian scientist

Vijaipal Singh in Narsan Kalan, Haridwar District of Uttarakhand State, India is an Agricultural scientist associated with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and is known for his contributions to the science of rice genetics and breeding. He is well known for his contributions in developing the most popular Basmati rice variety, Pusa Basmati 1121. A post graduate and a doctoral degree (PhD) holder in Agriculture Botany from Agra University, he started his career as a research assistant at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi in 1968 and retired as a professor at the Division of Genetics, IARI. Singh is credited with several articles published in peer reviewed journals. In recognition of his services to the nation, he was honored by the Government of India, in 2012, with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri.

Paul Ratnasamy is an Indian catalyst scientist, INSA Srinivasa Ramanujan Research Professor and a former director of National Chemical Laboratory of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). He was honored by the Government of India, in 2001, with one of the highest Indian civilian awards of Padma Shri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prem Shanker Goel</span> Indian scientist

Prem Shanker Goel is an Indian space scientist, former secretary at the Department of Ocean Development, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India and a former director of Indian Space Research Organization. He was honored by the Government of India, in 2001, with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri.

Sarvagya Singh Katiyar FRSC popularly known as S. S. Katiyar, was an Indian scientist specializing in enzymology, and the founder Director of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University, Lucknow. He is a former president of the Association of Indian Universities and a former vice chancellor of Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University, Kanpur and Chandra Shekhar Azad University of Agriculture and Technology. He was honoured by the Government of India in 2003 with Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award, followed by Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award, in 2009.

Krishnaswamy Ramiah was an Indian agricultural scientist, geneticist, parliamentarian and the founder director of Central Rice Research Institute, Cuttack, credited with introducing systematic hybridisation programmes in rice breeding in India. The Government of India honoured him in 1957, with the award of Padma Shri, the fourth-highest Indian civilian award for his services to the nation and followed it up with the third-highest civilian honour of the Padma Bhushan in 1970.

Navalpakkam Parthasarthy, (1900–1993) was an Indian geneticist, executive secretary of International Rice Commission and Rice Advisor to the governments of Liberia and Thailand. The Government of India honoured him in 1958, with the award of Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award for his services to the nation.

Paranandi Venkata Suryanarayana Rao is an Indian computer scientist, known for his research in the fields of speech and script recognition and is credited with contributions to the development of TIFRAC, the first indigenously developed electronic computer in India. He is a recipient of awards such as IEEE Third Millenium Medal, Vikram Sarabhai Award, Om Prakash Bhasin Award and VASVIK Industrial Research Award. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of Padma Shri in 1987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A. V. Rama Rao</span> Indian chemist (born 1935)

Alla Venkata Rama Rao is an Indian inventor and chemist, known for his pioneering researches in the field of drug technology. He is the founder of the A. V. Rama Rao Research Foundation, a non governmental organization promoting research and doctoral studies in chemistry and Avra Laboratories, an organization dealing in intermediates and active pharmaceutical ingredients, used in therapeutics. An elected fellow of the Indian National Science Academy, Indian Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Sciences, India, and Third World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), Rama Rao is a recipient of several awards such as TWAS Technology Award, VASVIK Industrial Research Award and Om Prakash Bhasin Award. The Government of India awarded him Padma Shri in 1991 and Padma Bhushan in 2016.

Gopalasamudram Sitaraman Venkataraman (1930–1998) was an Indian botanist, academic and the director of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi. He was also a director of the DBT Centre for Blue-Green Algae at Madurai Kamaraj University and a recipient of the VASVIK Industrial Research Award and Om Prakash Bhasin Award. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri in 1992.

Sant Singh Virmani is a US-based Indian plant breeder, rice scientist and a former Principal Scientist at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). He served IRRI from 1979 to 2005 and retired from its service as the deputy head of the Plant Breeding, Genetics and Biochemistry Division.

Goriparthi Narasimha Raju Yadav is an Indian farmer, known for his achievements in agricultural farming. Hailing from the Guduru village, in Krishna district, in the south Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, he is reported to have recorded harvests such as 7.5 to 8.3 tonnes of Pusa Basmati 1 rice per hectare, 3 tonnes of black gram per hectare, and 4 to 5 tonnes of groundnut per hectare. He is also known to have grown a horsegram creeper with over 10,000 branches and a mango tree in his farm yielded 22,000 mangoes in a single season. He has been associated with the expert committees of the Indian Rice Development Council (IRDC) and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) as a member and is a recipient of several awards including Krishaka Ratna, Krishi Ratna, Krishi Samrat and the Jagjivan Ram Kisan Puraskar (1999) of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri, in 2009, for his contributions to agriculture.

Trilochan Mohapatra is an Indian biotechnologist, geneticist, a government secretary of the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE) and the director general of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research. Known for his studies in the fields of molecular genetics and genomics, Mohapatra is an elected fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, India, the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, the Indian National Science Academy and the Indian Society of Genetics and Plant Breeding. The Department of Biotechnology of the Government of India awarded him the National Bioscience Award for Career Development, one of the highest Indian science awards, for his contributions to biosciences in 2003.

Tilak Raj Sharma is an Indian plant biologist, the Deputy Director General (CS) of ICAR and former executive director and chief executive officer of the National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), and Center of Innovative and Applied Bioprocessing (CIAB) respectively, both autonomous institutes under the Department of Biotechnology. Known for his studies in the fields of genomics and plant disease resistance, Sharma is an elected fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, India, the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the Indian National Science Academy. The Department of Biotechnology of the Government of India awarded him the National Bioscience Award for Career Development, one of the highest Indian science awards, for his contributions to biosciences in 2007.

Chokkanathapuram Venkataraman Sundaram (1929–2008) was an Indian chemical metallurgist, best known for the commissioning of the Fast Breeder Test Reactor at Kalpakkam. He was the director of the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR). He was a recipient of the Sanjay Gandhi Award for Science and Technology as well as the National Metallurgists Day Award and an elected fellow of the Indian National Science Academy, the Indian Academy of Sciences and the Indian National Academy of Engineering. The Government of India awarded him the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award, in 1986.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 "Prof E A Siddiq". ABF. 2014. Archived from the original on 19 October 2015. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  2. 1 2 "Padma Shri" (PDF). Padma Shri. 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
  3. "'Need to try non-conventional methods in agri'". Business Standard. 3 February 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 "INSA Indian Fellow Dr EA Siddiq". INSA. 2014. Archived from the original on 13 August 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 "CDFD. Computational & Functional Genomics. Dr. E.A.Siddiq". Centre for DNA Finger printing and Diagnostics. 2014. Archived from the original on 27 August 2009. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 "Padmashree Prof Dr E A Siddiq". Video. YouTube. 10 February 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  7. "Planning Commission". Planning Commission. 2007. Archived from the original on 11 September 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  8. "NRCPB". NRCPB. 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  9. 1 2 "Speech". Hybiz TV. 2013. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  10. "Bridging the Rice Yield Gap in India". Scientific paper. Food and Agriculture Organization. 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  11. "Microsoft Academic Search". Microsoft Academic Search. 2014. Archived from the original on 22 November 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  12. Chemical Aspects of Rice Grain Quality. IRRI. 1979. ISBN   9789711040109 . Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  13. Breaking the Yield Barrier. IRRI. 1994. ISBN   9789712200564 . Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  14. "Vasvik". Vasvik. 2014. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  15. The Year Book 2014 // Indian National Science Academy, New Delhi