Kamala Sohonie - Woman, Who Established the Nutritive Value of the Plants, Consumed by Poor People

Ritesh Kumar

Senior Research Fellow, NICRA (Mango) Project

ICAR Research Complex for Eastern Region

Research Centre, Plandu, Ranchi-834010

Jharkhand, India

Historically, women have always lagged behind that of men in education and it is pretty well documented. Science and technology have always been considered ‘masculine’ for a long time. The social norms, societal structure, relationship between family and work, and the organizational processes of scientific institutions have created a series of inter-related problems for women in science. After overcoming all the barriers and passing many rapids, Dr. Kamala Sohonie became the ‘Woman in Science’. A firm believer in Mahatma Gandhi, Kamala refused to accept this refusal based on gender bias and became the first Indian woman to get a PhD in a scientific discipline. 

Biocontrol: Need of the Hour in Indian Agriculture

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Ritesh Kumar
Senior Research Fellow (Plant Pathology)
ICAR Research Complex for Eastern Region-Research Centre

Ranchi-834010 Jharkhand, India 

Email id.- ritesh.nstt@gmail.com

According to Cook and Baker (1983) ‘Biological control is the reduction of the amount of inoculum or disease producing activity of a pathogen accomplished by or through one or more organisms other than man’. The terms “biological control” and its abbreviated synonym “biocontrol” have been used in different fields of biology, most notably entomology and plant pathology. In entomology, it has been used to describe the use of live predatory insects, entomopathogenic nematodes, or microbial pathogens to suppress populations of different pest insects. In plant pathology, the term applies to the use of microbial antagonists to suppress diseases as well as the use of host specific pathogens to control weed populations (Pal et al., 2006). In both fields, the organism that suppresses the pest or pathogen is referred to as the biological control agent (BCA). More broadly, the term biological control may also be applied to the use of the natural products extracted or fermented from various sources. These formulations may be very simple mixtures of natural ingredients with specific activities or complex mixtures with multiple effects on the host as well as the target pest or pathogen.