Okhil Kumar Medhi

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Okhil Kumar Medhi
Prof OK Medhi.png
Okhil Kumar Medhi during his early years at the Department of Chemistry, Gauhati University
Alma mater
Scientific career
Fields Chemistry
Institutions Gauhati University, North-Eastern Hill University, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research

Okhil Kumar Medhi (1951-2021) was an Indian chemist and academic. [1] He is best known for his time as the Vice-chancellor of Gauhati University in Guwahati, Assam, where he was also a professor of inorganic chemistry and former Head of Department in the university's chemistry department. [2] After completing a Ph.D. at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Medhi undertook research at both the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (as a visiting fellow) and North-Eastern Hill University (as a lecturer), but spent much of his academic career at Gauhati University. [1] [2] His scientific work has been varied but has included contributions to the fields of inorganic chemistry [3] and carbon nanoparticles. [4]

Contents

During his time as Vice-Chancellor, Medhi made notable contributions to the development of Gauhati University, including overseeing the creation of the university's Institute of Science and Technology (GUIST). [2] He additionally advocated for holistic and skill-based education especially in the university, and extending support to colleges across the state of Assam. [5] [6] [7]

Early life and education

Okhil Kumar Medhi completed his early years of education at Don Bosco High School, a private education institute. [1] [7] Showing a particular interest in chemistry, Medhi attended Cotton College, and thereafter he studied for a Master's degree in Chemistry at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur) in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. [1] His doctoral thesis was on the electron paramagnetic resonance of heavy transition metals and was supervised by Professor UC Agarwal at IIT Kanpur. [2]

Career

Medhi's first research position following his doctoral studies was as a visiting fellow at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research [1] in Mumbai, India. This was followed by an academic appointment as lecturer at North-Eastern Hill University in Shillong. [1] [2] In 1983, Medhi was appointed as a Reader of Chemistry at Gauhati University where he spent the majority of his career. [2] He took a brief sabbatical from this position to undertake a visiting position as a Commonwealth Fellow at the University of Essex in the United Kingdom. [3]

Upon his return to Gauhati University, Medhi was promoted to a full professorship and eventually became the Head of Department between 2000 and 2003. [2] During his tenure as Head of Department, Medhi secured funding from the Government of India's Department of Science and Technology to help the department modernise itself. [2]

Later in his career, Medhi was elected as the Vice-Chancellor of Gauhati University. [1] During his time as Vice-Chancellor, Medhi advocated for significant change in the Assamese education system, including promoting the teaching of science. [5] [8] His notable contribution includes leading the creation of the Gauhati University Institute of Science and Technology. [2]

Aside from his academic profile, Medhi's scientific research focussed predominantly on bioinorganic chemistry [ citation needed ] and nanoparticles. [9] He contributed to several academic papers and is a co-author of Inorganic Chemistry – Principles of Structure and Reactivity, [10] a reference textbook for chemistry students. He was also an advisor to several doctoral students during his career. [2]

Personal life

Medhi resided for most of his life in north-east India, mostly in Guwahati, the capital city of the state of Assam. [2] He married Chitrani Medhi, also a chemistry professor, with whom he had two daughters. [2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Akhil Kr Medhi appointed new Gauhati University VC". Assam Times. 20 May 2008. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Remembering Prof Okhil Kumar Medhi - campus". sites.google.com. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  3. 1 2 Medhi, Okhil K.; Silver, Jack (1989). "A Mössbauer study on the (protoporphyrinato IX)iron(II) complexes of imidazole and substituted imidazoles as axial ligands in frozen aqueous solutions". Inorganica Chimica Acta. 166 (1): 129–133. doi:10.1016/s0020-1693(00)80797-5. ISSN   0020-1693.
  4. ↑ Deka, Manash Jyoti; Dutta, Parlie; Sarma, Sewaljyoti; Medhi, Okhil Kumar; Talukdar, N.C.; Chowdhury, Devasish (2019). "Carbon dots derived from water hyacinth and their application as a sensor for pretilachlor". Heliyon. 5 (6) e01985. Bibcode:2019Heliy...501985D. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e01985 . ISSN   2405-8440. PMC   6626484 . PMID   31338457.
  5. 1 2 "[Assam] Prof OK Medhi new GU VC (The Assam Tribune, Tuesday, August 19, 2008 )". listserv.aoir.org. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  6. ↑ "Make Gauhati University an abode of enlightenment: Governor". The Times of India. 9 July 2013. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  7. 1 2 "Vice Chancellor Recalls Fond Memories of DB School". NewsGrab. 26 July 2011. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  8. ↑ Staff Reporter (15 September 2010). "OIL supports cancer research". assamtribune.com. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  9. ↑ Boruah, SK; Boruah, PK; Sarma, P; Bezbarauh, B; Medhi, C; Medhi, OK (2013). "Exfoliation of Graphene oxide nanosheets from pencil lead and in situ preparation of gold nanoparticles on graphene oxide nanosheets". International Journal of Nanoscience. 12 (5): 1350034. Bibcode:2013IJN....1250034B. doi:10.1142/s0219581x13500348. ISSN   0219-581X.
  10. ↑ Huheey, James E.; Keiter, Ellen A.; Keiter, Richard L.; Medhi, Okhil K. (2006). Inorganic Chemistry: Principles of Structure and Reactivity. Pearson Education. ISBN   978-81-7758-130-0.
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