Born at Kolkata, West Bengal, India on 06 October 1962. Educated at Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya, Narendrapur, 1974-1979; RE College Model School, Durgapur 1979-81; Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, 1981-89; B.Sc. (Ag.) Hons., 1986; M.Sc. (Ag.) in Plant Pathology, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, West Bengal, India, 1989; Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, Ph.D. Mycology and Plant Pathology, 1992; Post-Doctoral experience: Research Attachment at Rothamsted Research, Harpenden (Hertfordshire), UK, 15 Apr – 15 Sep 2004 on ASPECTS OF BREEDING FOR DISEASE RESISTANCE AND HOST-PATHOGEN INTERACTIONS INVOLVING Brassica spp. – Albugo candida.

Principal Scientist, CSRSJAF, ICAR-Central Research Institute for Jute & Allied Fibres, Bud Bud (West Bengal), India: 2022 to date.

Scientist, NAARM, Hyderabad, Directorate of Oilseeds Research, Hyderabad 1992-99; Senior Scientist and Principal Scientist, Directorate of Rapeseed-Mustard Research, Bharatpur, 1999-2009; Head, Division of Crop Protection, Indian Institute of Pulses Research (ICAR), Kanpur, 2009-12; Director, National Research Centre for Integrated Pest Management (ICAR), New Delhi, 2012-16; Vice-Chancellor, Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Coochbehar, 2016-21; Principal Scientist (Plant Pathology) & Joint Director Academic (Actg.), ICAR-Indian Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology, Ranchi (Jharkhand), India: 2021 to 2022.

Awards/Honours: P.P. Singhal Memorial Pesticides India Award, Indian Society of Mycology and Plant Pathology, 1996; Vividhlaxi Audyogik Samshodhan Vikas Kendra (VASVIK) award for Agricultural Sciences & Technology, VASVIK apex committee (Patel Extrusion Group, Mumbai), 2004; Hexamar Agricultural Research and Development Foundation (HARDF) Award, Indian Society of Oilseeds Research, 2005; Prof V.P. Bhide Memorial Award, Indian Society of Mycology and Plant Pathology, 2010; Prof. S.B. Chattopadhyay Memorial Lecture of the Indian Mycological Society (2014); Vice-President, Society of Rapeseed-Mustard Research (2008-10), Plant Protection Association of India (2010 – 2012), Society of Plant Protection Sciences (2014-16); Bioved Agri-Innovation Award – 2015 from Bioved Research Institute of Agriculture & Technology, Allahabad; Dodla Raghava Reddy Memorial Gold Medal, Plant Protection Association of India, 2016; ICAR Award: Rajashri Tandon Rajbhasha Puraskar, First Prize for small institute category of 2014-15 to ICAR: NCIPM for usage of Hindi as official language in `k’ and `kha’ regions; ICAR Award: NCIPM received the Award for Best Annual Report for 2015-16 under small institute category; DD Kisan Samman 2016, Prasar Bharati: Doordarshan; Lifetime Achievement Award by Confederation of Indian Universities; Shri P.P. Singhal Memorial Award for outstanding contribution to research, teaching and extension in Plant Protection for the year 2012-13 by Society of Plant Protection Sciences; Nominated from Oct 2013 from India to the Commission for Agricultural Meteorology (CAgM-16) as Expert Team Member for focussed area on pest/ disease modeling of the World Meteorological Organization; Expert, Advisory Committee (13 Nov 2018-continuing) of a research project funded by the Australian government through the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) as part of the DFAT Sustainable Development Investment Portfolio (ACIAR SDIP) entitled ‘Institutions to support intensification, integrated decision making and inclusiveness in agriculture in the East Gangetic Plain’; Bioved Honorary Fellowship Award 2018 conferred by the Bioved Research Institute for Agriculture, Technology & Sciences; Prof B.B. Mundkur Memorial Award Lecture (Indian Phytopathological Society) 2021.

Honorary Fellow: Indian Mycological Society

Fellow: National Academy of Agricultural Sciences; National Academy of Biological Sciences; Plant Protection Association of India; Indian Phytopathological Society; Indian Society of Mycology and Plant Pathology; Society of Rapeseed-Mustard Research; Indian Society of Oilseeds Research; Bioved Research Institute of Agriculture & Technology.

Research Areas: Host resistance to plant diseases (oilseed, pulse crops), disease and insect-pest forecasting, bio-intensive integrated pest management

Publications: Patent / process (Bioformulation of soil fungus Aspergillus niger strain AN27 to biofungicide-cum-biofertilizer Kalisena Seed Dressing formulation, 2003, no.123/ 191420 of Indian Class and C 05C 009/00 of International Class, vide The Gazette of India no. 48 of 29 Nov-05 Dec 2003; part-III, section 2);  Peer reviewed Full paper: 96 (Foreign journal: 28; Indian journal: 68); Short communications: 12; Books: 11; Review chapters: 35 [Citations (https://scholar.google.co.in/citations?user=JpUkBgsAAAAJ&hl=en): 2615 (1244 since 2019); h-index: 30 (18 since 2019); i10-index: 68 (41 since 2019); ResearchGate interest score: 1,609]

Countries visited for professional purpose: Australia (2007, 2017), Bangladesh (2008, 2017), Brazil (2017), Cambodia (2009), Malawi (2014), United Kingdom (2002, 2004), United States of America (2014), Nepal (2019).