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Past
Presidents IAMM
Presidents and Secretaries Since Inception
Past
Presidents
Prof.
S.C. Agarwal – A researcher and a Leader of Par excellence
President IAMM – 1977-78
Prof.
S.C. Agarwal, an outstanding medical microbiologist of the country
was a brilliant academic and research scientist. After graduation
with distinction from King George Medical College, Lucknow followed
by postgraduation (M.D. Path & Bact) from the same college, he
proceeded to U.K. under Nuffield Fellowship in Medical Sciences and
completed his Ph.D. degree from London University a Wright Fleming
Instt. He was the only Indian Medical Microbiologist to receive
D.Sc. (Medicine) from London University for his work in microbiology
& immunology of infectious diseases. Recipient of World Lifetime
Achievement Award (USA) Prof. Agarwal was Fellow of the Indian
National Science Academy, National Academy of Medical Sciences &
Royal College of Pathologists. After a short stint as Senior
Scientist at the Central Research Institute Kasauli where he
established the National Salmonella & Escherichia Centre, he
founded the Dept. of Microbiology at PGIMER, Chandigarh in 1964,
which turned out to be one of the best teaching & research
departments in the country. Later, he developed the departments of
microbiology at JIPMER Pondicherry and SKIMS Srinagar. In between he
was also Serologist to the Govt. of India. His research contribution
had been in the field of diphtheria, typhoid, cholera and mycetoma.
He developed a L-(forms) lysate and ribonucleic acid vaccine against
cholera and purified vaccine against typhoid & propounded the
new theory of toxaemic shock in diphtheria. He was the first to show
the role of Respiratory Syncitial Virus and different types of Para
influenza viruses in respiratory infection in children in India. All
these research findings have been published in National &
International journals of repute. Prof. Agarwal was responsible to
emphasise the need of separate association of Medical
Microbiologists. He along with his some other colleagues in
particular Prof. K.B. Sharma & Prof. S. Subramaniam established
the Indian Association of Medical Microbiologists in 1976 & was
its Founder President in 1977 and 1978 which has become a highly
vibrant scientific association in the country. He established the
annual Prof. S.C., Agarwal Prize to be awarded to a distinguished
& outstanding medical microbiologist of the country based on
his/her original & significant research contributions. Several
of his students are occupying prestigious chairs in Microbiology in
the country and abroad.
Dr.
R.C. Mahajan
Past
President IAMM (Founder Member)
S.N.
Bose INSA Research Professor and
Emeritus
Professor Department of Parasitology PGIMER,
Chandigarh
– 160 012
Dr.
H.I. Jhala (1919-1984)
President
IAMM 1979-80
Dr.
Harshadrai Ishwarlal Jhala was born on 13 th January, 1919 and after
obtaining his licentiate from College of Physicians & Surgeons
graduated in Medicine from the Grant Medical College, Bombay in
1943. In 1945 he obtained the Diploma in Tropical Medicine and
obtained MD in Pathology and Bacteriology in 1947. Dr. Jhala had
been a doyen of Indian Medical Microbiology and can be truly
considered as pioneer in the field of Virology in this country.
During his tenure as Professor and Head of the Department of
Pathology and Bacteriology at the Grant Medical College Bombay in
the 1950s, he took keen interest in developing the discipline of
Microbiology and made valuable contributions to the advancement of
medical education. Dr. Jhala held the post of Director of Haffkine
Institute Bombay for 11 years from 1958 onwards. During his tenure
as Director he contributed immensely to the growth of Haffkine
Institute, both in the field of research in tropical diseases and
production of biologicals. Along with late Professor Gharpure he
initiated a programme in Poliomyelitis both with respect to
surveillance and production of polio vaccines. In recognition of his
services, the Royal College of Pathologists (London) elected him its
Fellow in 1966. He retired from government service as the Director
of Medical Education of Maharashtra State but remained active in the
professional field first at H.N. Hospital, Bombay and later at
Arogaya Mandal Hospital in Karamsad. He made a mark as an
administrator in all the institutions where he served. He was
committed to the cause of Pathology and Microbiology and served with
distinction as President of both Indian Association of Pathologists
and Microbiologists, and the Indian Association of Medical
Microbiolgists in 1979-80. The latter association grew to greater
heights during his strewardship as the President. He also served as
an editor of the Indian Journal of Pathology and Microbiology for
about 6 years. His services were utilized by the WHO as a
Consultant. He was a Fellow of Academy of Science (FASc) and a
Fellow of National Academy of Medical Sciences. He will be
remembered by all his students, colleagues and staff as a very kind,
humane and considerate person ever willing to help everyone. In his
passing away the scientific community in India in general and
Microbiologists in particular have lost a very ardent research
worker, a scientist, an excellent teacher, philosopher, guide and
friend.
Dr.
K.B. Sharma
Past
President IAMM (Founder Member)
B-7,
Swasthya Vihar New Delhi-110092
Professor
Atindra Nath Chakrabarty (1930-2002)
President
IAMM - 1986
Professor
Atindra Nath Chakrabarty was born in Calcutta in 1930. After
completing I. Sc. From St. Xavier’s College, Calcutta, he obtained
his M.B.B.S. degree from Calcutta Medical College in 1954. He was a
Gold Medallist in M.D. from King George’s Medical College, Lucknow,
from where he also completed his D.C.P. He then came to Calcutta and
joined the West Bengal Government Health Services. He worked in
N.R.S. Medical College and Hospital and School of Tropical Medicine.
In 1960, he was selected as the first medical student for the award
of Commonwealth Scholarship and went to Manchester to study Diploma
in Bacteriology, which he completed with flying colors. After
returning to Calcutta, he joined as Assistant Professor in the
Department of Pathology and Bacteriology at P.G. Hospital. As he
faced some difficulties in pursuing fundamental as well as applied
research in Bacteriology, he later joined the Department of
Pharmacy, Jadavpur University, as Reader. Here he got all the
facilities to carry out his research and started bringing in
projects from ICMR, UGC and CSIR. From here, he moved on to IIEM
(now IICB), hoping to get greater facilities in Research. However,
in 1977, he joined Calcutta University as the first Professor of
Pathology and Bacteriology. His main aim was to establish a
department of Medical Microbiology at University College of
Medicine, Calcutta that materialized in 1979. Since 1981,
innumerable M.D. students have come out from his Department. Prof.
Chakrabarty also ably guided more than 50 M. Pharma. and Ph.D.
students. All of his students are well placed in institutions and
hospitals throughout the world. Prof. Chakrabarty pioneered research
in various fields of Microbiology, making some breakthrough
contributions in many fields. Amongst his chief achievements
are
1)
Cultivation of Leprosy backillus and establishing the significance
of transmission of the bacillus and from soil to man.
2)
Recognition of a new class of compounds that are internationally
acclaimed as ‘Non-antibiotics’.
3)
Discovery of a new mode of transfer of genes through
transformation.
4)
Detection of the presence of drug-resistant DNA in the non-synthetic
antibiotics and possible chance of transfer from antibiotics
themselves in creating drug-resistant bacteria in nature. He has
almost 200 national and international publications to his credit,
and he also authored a book entitled ‘Non-antibiotics: a new class
of unrecognized antimicrobics’. He was invited to deliver lectures
in various international and national conferences, along with many
workshops in the field of Medical Microbiology. He received Dr. S.C.
Agarwal Oration Award, H.I. Jhala Award and also the IAMM Endowment
Award. He was President of Indian Association of Medical
Microbiologists (IAMM) in 1986 and delivered the presidential
oration on cultivation of leprosy bacillus. Prof. A.N. Chakrabarty
breathed his last on 25 November 2002 in Bangalore while attending
the 26 th Annual Congress of the IAMM. He has left behind him his
wife, children and grandchildren and innumerable students,
colleagues and friends.
Dr.
Sujata G. Dastider
Prof.
& Head,
Division
of Microbiology
Dept.
of Pharmaceutical Technology Jadavpur University,
Kolkata
–700 032
Professor
Kunti Prakash (1934-2001)
President
IAMM - 1988
Professor
Kunti Prakash was born in Lucknow on 1 st September 1934 and had her
preliminary education in Lucknow and Agra. She graduated in Medicine
from S.N. Medical College, Agra in 1958. She started her career in
Microbiology at Lady Hardinge Medical College in 1960 and except for
a short stay at UK and in Maulana Azad Medical College, she remained
in the Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi till her retirement
as Director Professor in 1992. Dr. Kunti Prakash together with Dr.
K.B. Sharma at Lady Hardinge Medical College charted the
Microbiological Research and Education in 1961 and they worked as
professional colleagues for almost 40 years. What was initiated in
the nineteen sixties by them, ultimately became an epoch-making
Research work due to her dedication and tireless pursuit in her
quest over the decades. She was an accomplished research worker par
excellence and a kind teacher. She put in lot of effort for her
postgraduate students guiding them sagaciously and appropriately.
Almost 40 postgraduates who obtained degrees of M.D. and Ph.D.
during her period at LHMC are scattered all over the globe and are
engaged in carrying out research in the field of infectious diseases
and many of them have reached the pinnacle of the scientific field.
Professionally she scaled great heights in the field of
streptococcus and these endeavors put India on the world map leading
to recognition of WHO Collaborative centre at the Lady Hardinge
Medical College in 1980. Her scientific accomplishments put her on a
very fast track and very quickly even in late 1970s reached the
pinnacle of her career and gained international leadership in the
field and many national and international awards came her way viz;
Hari Om Ashram Research Award of MCI 1980. Y.S. Narayan Rao Award of
ICMR 1984 and S.C. Agarwal Prize of IAMM 1988 and honorary F.R.C.
Path (London) 1984. Her lifetime work in the streptococcal research
led to important initiative of the Govt. to start control of RF/RHD
on a national level under Jai Vigyan Scheme. In fact International
streptococcus meet which was held in India in 2003 where we were the
hoping to felicitate her at that juncture which could only be a
tribute. Her contributions to the IAMM were immense right from the
date of its inception. She was among the sixteen signatories
signaling the birth of Indian Association of Microbiologists in
1976. The first conference of IAMM in Lady Hardinge Medical College
was largely due to her untiring efforts. She was founder Associate
Editor of the Indian Journal of Medical Microbiology in the years
1982-88 and ably assisted the founder editor Dr. K.B. Sharma in
putting the journal on firm footing. She was elected President of
IAMM in 1988.
Dr.
K.B. Sharma
Past
President IAMM (Founder Member)
B-7,
Swasthya Vihar New Delhi-110092
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