On March 21, 1988 India lost a noted mycologist, Professor Shyam Bahadur Saksena. Hardly eight months had passed when his erst while students and admirers had assembled at the principal seat of his academic activity, the Botany Department of Sagar University, Sagar, M.P. to celebrate his 70th birthday to wish that he should continue to enjoy a pleasant retired life for many-many more years to come, little realising that our fond wishes were not going to be fulfilled. 

Dr. S.B. Saksena started his research career (1947-48) at a time when there was a dearth of taxonomists in the country who could identify soil saprophytes with confidence. Dr. Saksena's devotion and persiverance soon brought fruits and he came out with a very interesting new genus of the order Mucorales which he named after his guide and mentor Dr. Ram Kumar Saksena. He has been known by this monotypic genus because of its interesting morphology and the thoroughness with which it was worked out. The other two or three genera he described were of the Hyphomycetes and these have stood the test of time. 

Dr. S.B. Saksena, later, during 1958-59 came in contact with Dr. S.D. Garrett, F.R.S. of the Botany School, Cambridge. On his return from Cambridge he introduced in his laboratory studies on root infecting fungi of the soil including the control of Phytophthora blight of Piper betle. 

Besides his academic attainments his amiable temperament and helpful attitude towards his students and colleagues endeared him to all who came in his contact. Some of his former students Professors Mr. R. Siddiqui, R.S. Mehrotra, K.M. Vyas, R.K. Grover, S.S. Ali, and N. Dixit are occupying high academic positions at various centres in India. The Scientific community of the country bestowed on him several honours, such as Fellow of the Indian Botanical Society, Indian Phytopathological Society, Indian Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Sciences and also President of the Indian Science Congress and Indian Science Congress and Indian Phytopathological Society. 

Dr. S.B. Saksena after retirement as Professor and Head of the Botany Department of Saugar University settled at Gwalior and built his own house and he named it in Hindi "Fungus House" because of his abiding love for fungi. Though himself childless he loved, brought up and educated some children of others like his own. We really need more mycologists and humane like him to fulfill the vacuum created.