Pramod Tandon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 6 October 1950 |
| Occupation | Academic |
| Spouse | Veena Tandon |
| Children | 1 |
Pramod Tandon is an India Plant Biotechnologist and academic. He is a former Professor of Botany & Vice-Chancellor of North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU), Shillong and Chief Executive Officer of Biotech Park, Lucknow. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour Padma Sri in 2009, for his contributions to science.
Tandon was born on 6 October 1950, at Lucknow. He received his BSc degree in 1969 and MSc (Botany) in 1971 from Lucknow University. [1] He obtained his PhD from Jodhpur University in 1976. In 1977, he joined the North-Eastern Hill University as a lecturer and later rose to the position of Vice-Chancellor. [1]
Tandon was awarded the National Scholarship for Study Abroad by Government of India and worked as a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry at the University of California, Irvine, US during 1978–79 and studied the genome organisation and expression of chloroplast DNA. From 1989 to 1995, the National Institute of Agro-biological Resources and several universities in Japan invited him for research work that led to a long-term collaboration on Plant Conservation Biotechnology.
Tandon is married to Veena Tandon, a parasitologist and former Professor of North-Eastern Hill University, [2] Shillong, and they have a son, Prateek. [3]
Tandon was Vice-Chancellor of NEHU from 2005 to 2010. [4] Under his leadership, NEHU received the distinction of 'University with Potential for Excellence' being one amongst nine such universities in the country at that time, [1] securing an 'A' grade through reaccreditation of the university by NAAC. [5]
In addition to his position as Vice-Chancellor, Tandon helped in establishment of Rajiv Gandhi Indian Institute of Management, Shillong as its Project Director. [1]
Tandon hosted the 96th Indian Science Congress at NEHU during January 2009. [1] [6]
Tandon served as a member of the National Advisory Council during 2010–14, where he worked extensively on development of northeastern region, [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] a region facing many challenges including troubled history and geo-politics, environmental vulnerability and rough terrain, seclusion and insurgencies, poor infrastructure and weak governance, and limited connectivity. [15] [16]
Tandon's has made seminal contributions in micropropagation, re-establishment in nature, and recovery of critically endangered endemic plants of Northeast India. [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] His most recent studies (2010–2015) focus on the genetic makeup of RET plants, including molecular and cytological basis of rarity of endangered plants that is useful in planning conservation strategies. [22] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29] Tandon has worked on biotechnological enhancement of Capsaicin biosynthesis in cell cultures of Capsicum chinense (Naga King Chilli - one of the hottest chillies of the world) [30] [31] [32] [33] [34] [35]
Tandon has published more than 200 research papers in journals and edited 4 books on biodiversity and biotechnology. [36] [37] [38]
Tandon promoted entrepreneurship in biotechnology-based industry in Uttar Pradesh to assure benefits to society including training of tribal youth.
Tandon is a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, India, Indian Botanical Society, Indian Botanical Society,Linnean Society of London, and International Society of Environmental Botanists and served as a member of many Academic bodies and National Task Forces including Scientific Advisory Committee to the Cabinet, GOI. [39]
Tandon is the recipient of a number awards and recognitions, including:
The Scoville scale is a measurement of pungency of chili peppers and other substances, recorded in Scoville heat units (SHU). It is based on the concentration of capsaicinoids, among which capsaicin is the predominant component.
Capsaicin (8-methyl-N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide) is an active component of chili peppers, which are plants belonging to the genus Capsicum. It is a chemical irritant and neurotoxin for mammals, including humans, and produces a sensation of burning in any tissue with which it comes into contact. Capsaicin and several related amides (capsaicinoids) are produced as secondary metabolites by chili peppers, probably as deterrents against certain mammals and fungi. Pure capsaicin is a hydrophobic, colorless, highly pungent, crystalline to waxy solid compound.
Nymphaeaceae is a family of flowering plants, commonly called water lilies. They live as rhizomatous aquatic herbs in temperate and tropical climates around the world. The family contains nine genera with about 70 known species. Water lilies are rooted in soil in bodies of water, with leaves and flowers floating on or emergent from the surface. Leaves are round, with a radial notch in Nymphaea and Nuphar, but fully circular in Victoria and Euryale.
The bell pepper is the fruit of plants in the Grossum Group of the species Capsicum annuum. Cultivars of the plant produce fruits in different colors, including red, yellow, orange, green, white, chocolate, candy cane striped, and purple. Bell peppers are sometimes grouped with less pungent chili varieties as "sweet peppers". While they are botanically fruits—classified as berries—they are commonly used as a vegetable ingredient or side dish. Other varieties of the genus Capsicum are categorized as chili peppers when they are cultivated for their pungency, including some varieties of Capsicum annuum.
Chili peppers, from Nahuatl chīlli, are varieties of the berry-fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum, which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for their pungency. Chili peppers are widely used in many cuisines as a spice to add "heat" to dishes. Capsaicin and related compounds known as capsaicinoids are the substances giving chili peppers their intensity when ingested or applied topically. While chili peppers are pungent or "spicy", there are other varieties of capsicum such as bell peppers, which generally provide additional sweetness and flavor to a meal rather than "heat".
North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) is a Central University established on 19 July 1973 by an Act of the Indian Parliament. The university is in the suburb of Shillong, the state capital of Meghalaya, India. The university has two campuses: Shillong and Tura both are in Meghalaya. The first pro-vice chancellor was Early Rising Singha
Capsicum pubescens is a plant of the genus Capsicum (pepper). The species name, pubescens, refers to the hairy leaves of this pepper. The hairiness of the leaves, along with the black seeds, make Capsicum pubescens distinguishable from other Capsicum species. Capsicum pubescens has pungent yellow, orange, red, green or brown fruits.
Capsicum frutescens is a wild chili pepper having genetic proximity to the cultivated pepper Capsicum chinense native to Central and South America. Pepper cultivars of C. frutescens can be annual or short-lived perennial plants. Flowers are white with a greenish white or greenish yellow corolla, and are either insect- or self-pollinated. The plants' berries typically grow erect; ellipsoid-conical to lanceoloid shaped. They are usually very small and pungent, growing 10–20 millimetres (0.39–0.79 in) long and 3–7 millimetres (0.12–0.28 in) in diameter. Fruit typically grows a pale yellow and matures to a bright red, but can also be other colors. C. frutescens has a smaller variety of shapes compared to other Capsicum species. C. frutescens has been bred to produce ornamental strains because of its large quantities of erect peppers growing in colorful ripening patterns.
Capsicum chinense, commonly known as a "habanero-type pepper", is a species of chili pepper native to the Americas. C. chinense varieties are well known for their unique flavors and many have exceptional heat. The hottest peppers in the world are members of this species, with Scoville Heat Unit scores of over 2 million. Some taxonomists consider them to be part of the species C. annuum, and they are a member of the C. annuum complex; however, C. chinense and C. annuum pepper plants can sometimes be distinguished by the number of flowers or fruit per node – two to five for C. chinense and one for C. annuum – though this method is not always correct. The two species can also hybridize and generate inter-specific hybrids. It is believed that C. frutescens is the ancestor to the C. chinense species.
Nepenthes khasiana is an endangered tropical pitcher plant of the genus Nepenthes. It is the only Nepenthes species native to India. It is thought to attract prey by means of blue fluorescence.
Nymphaea micrantha is a water lily belonging to the genus Nymphaea. It is native to the tropics of West Africa.
The Carolina Reaper is a cultivar of the Capsicum chinense plant. Developed by American breeder Ed Currie, the pepper is red and gnarled, with a bumpy texture and small pointed tail. In 2013, Guinness World Records declared it the hottest chili pepper in the world.
The ghost pepper, also known as bhut jolokia, is an interspecific hybrid chili pepper cultivated in Northeast India. It is a hybrid of Capsicum chinense and Capsicum frutescens.
Dkhar, is a term used by the Khasis to refer to non-Khasi people in Meghalaya. It is non derogatory but some perceived it as derogatory. For Khasis any non-tribal is a dkhar and they address them by that term. Sometimes the word dkhar have been collectively used with the term heathen (Non-believers), as most of the native Khasis are christian, While non-tribals are mainly hindu. In real, the term is mostly used against affluent Bengali Hindu settlers from West Bengal or the Bengali Hindu refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan It is sometimes abbreviated to ′Khar and may also denote a Khasi clan with the same name.
Capsicum is a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae, native to the Americas, cultivated worldwide for their chili pepper or bell pepper fruit.
Photoautotrophic tissue culture is defined as "micropropagation without sugar in the culture medium, in which the growth or accumulation of carbohydrates of cultures is dependent fully upon photosynthesis and inorganic nutrient uptake".
Veena Tandon is an Indian parasitologist, academic and a NASI senior scientist at Biotech Park, Lucknow. She is a former professor of zoology at the North Eastern Hill University and serves as the chief instigator for the North-East India Helminth Parasite Information Database. She is known for her researches on worm infections afflicting the animals of food value and is the author of two books and several articles on parasitology.
Nymphaea tetragona is an aquatic perennial species of flowering plant commonly called pygmy waterlily and small white water lily, belonging to the family Nymphaeaceae.
Phalaenopsis appendiculata is a species of miniature epiphyte in the family Orchidaceae, endemic to peninsular Malaysia.
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