Birth & Educations: Born in 1967 at Nadia Dist (WB), B. Sc (Ag) Hons. (198-89) and M.Sc. (Ag) (1991-92) in BCKV; PhD (1996-97) in ICAR-IARI, New Delhi; Post Doc (2002-04) in UFL, USA

Positions hold: Presently working as In-Charge, Advanced Center for Plant Virology (Plant Virology Unit), and Principal Scientist & Faculty of Plant Pathology, ICAR-IARI, New Delhi.

Awards/Honours: National Scholarship Award in Madyamik, Ministry of Edu & Culture, Govt. of India, New Delhi (1982); Univ Merit Scholarship UG and PG level, BCKV, Mohanpur ((1989); Senior Research Fellowship for Ph.D. Program, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi (.1992); ICAR- NET,Indian Council for Agricultural Research, New Delhi (1994.); Prof. M. J. Narashimhan Academic Award, Indian Phytopathological Society, New Delhi (1999); SPPS Meritorious Scientist Award, Society of Pl Protec Science, New Delhi (2010); Shiksha Ratan Puraskar, India-International Friendship Society, New Delhi (2011); K.P.D. Menon Best Poster Award, Indian Phytopathological Society, New Delhi) (2012); P. P. Singhal Memorial PI Industries Award, Indian Society of Mycol and Pl Pathology, Udaipur (2016); J.F. Dastur Memorial Award, Indian Phytopathological Society, New Delhi (2020); Prof. S.B. Chattopadhyay Memorial Award, Indian Mycological Society, Kolkata (2020); Member of NASI, Prayagraj, (2021), Head/In-Charge, IARI-RS,Kalimpong, Darjeeling District (2000 to 2002, 2011); and eight Best Poster Awards in National and International Conference.

Fellow: Fellow (FPSI), Indian Phytopathological Society, New Delhi (2012); Fellow (FISV) (Indian Virological Society, New Delhi) (2018); Fellow (FPISMP), Indian Society of Mycol and Pl Pathology, Udaipur ((2019) and Fellow (FNABS), National Academy of Biological Science, Chennai, TN (2021). P).

Research Areas: Plant virology & Molecular Plant Virology during the last 30 years in the areas of diagnostics, biological properties, genomics, genetic diversity, pathogenesis of plant viruses; resistance of plant viruses, cross protection,biological & molecular-based (RNAi based based-transgenic) virus management; plant viruses infecting pulse, legumes, citrus, cotton and vegetables. He has made significant contribution in molecular plant virology and management of plant virus diseases, particularly, Citrus tristeza virus (CTV) (Citrus decline), cotton leaf curl (CLCuD-begomovirus); yellow mosaic (YMD), bud necrosis and leaf crinkle disease (LCD) of pulses. His work is focused on diagnostics, genomics, phonemics and transgenic resistance. He has developed diagnostics for several viruses based on ELISA, simplex-, duplex-, multiplex-PCR, RT-LAMP and HMA. He characterized CTV, CLCuD-begomovirus and MYMV based on sequencing full length virus, CP and other genes. He sequenced full genome (19.3 kb) of a CTV strain (Kpg3) inducing citrus decline for the first time in India; full length genome of 18 CLCuD-begomoviruses and their associated betasatellites and alphasatellites. He determined recombinant CLCuMuV-Ra is predominant strain causing CLCuD outbreak in NW India. He identified 10 CTV strains from India. CTV has co-evolved and originated from mandarin tree (Biswas et al., 2019). He has identified CTV mild cross protecting strains by in silico and biological indexing will be useful for protection of severe CTV by preimmunization. He developed sense, antisense and ihp constructs targeting CTV and CLCuD-begomovirus.