Palpu Pushpangadan

Palpu Pushpangadan
Born23 January 1944
Prakkulam, Kollam, Kerala, India
Died (aged 81)
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India
CitizenshipIndia
Known forDevelopment of Jeevani drug
AwardsPadma Shri
Borlaug Award
Dingra Memorial Award
John W. Harshberger Medal
UN-Equator Initiative Prize
Ayurved Gaurav Award
Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam Memorial -NABS -Life time achievement Award
Scientific career
FieldsBotany
Institutions

Palpu Pushpangadan (23 January 1944 – 19 December 2025) was an Indian ethnobiologist and botanist, who was a director of the National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI), Lucknow. He was also the director of the Tropical Botanical Garden and Research Institute (TBGRI), Palode, Kerala.[1], Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (RGCB), Thiruvananthapuram and Central Institute for Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP), Lucknow.

A Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, India and National Academy of Agricultural Sciences,[2] He was known for the development of Jeevani, a formulation developed from the medicinal plant, Arogyapacha (Trichopus zeylanicus), which was found to enhance immunity in humans and the 'TBGRI-Kani Model' of Benefit sharing. [3] He received the Padmashri Award from the Government of India in 2010.[4]

Life and career

Born on 23 January 1944 at Prakkulam in Kollam district in Travancore, Pushpangadan was known for his contribution to plant sciences. He was educated at SNDP High School, Neeravil (1961), Sree Narayana College Kollam (1962-65), Aligarh Muslim University (1966-75) and started career at Regional Research Laboratory (renamed IIIM in 2007), Jammu (1969-1990)[5][6] He got multidisciplinary training in cytogenetics, plant breeding, bioprospecting, biotechnology, conservation biology, ethnobiology, ethnopharmacology and pharmacognosy.

Pushpangadan published about 515 research papers/articles in various national and international journals, authored/edited 26 books, contributed 41 chapters in books in taxonomy, plant breeding, conservation biology, biotechnology, ethnobiology, ethnopharmacology and Intellectual property, etc. Filed/Awarded 232 patents in herbal drugs/products jointly with other scientists.[7][8][9][10] 15 of his patented products are already commercialized.[11] He was a recipient of several awards and honors which include Dingra Memorial Award (1980, 1983), Borlaug Award (1998),[12] John W. Harshberger Medal (2001), UN-Equator Initiative Prize (2002), Ayurved Gaurav Award (2009), and Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam Memorial -NABS -Life time achievement award (2020).[2]

Pushpangadan died on 19 December 2025, at the age of 81.[11]

Eponymy

Garcinia pushpangadaniana T.Sabu, N.Mohanan, Krishnaraj & Shareef (Clusiaceae), Heptapleurum pushpangadanii (Chakrab.) G.M.Plunkett & Lowry (Araliaceae), Ischaemum pushpangadanii Ravi, N.Mohanan & Kiran Raj (Poaceae), Meliola pushpangadanii Hosag. & T.K.Abraham (Meliolaceae), Myristica pushpangadaniana M.G.Govind & Dan ex Kottaim.(Myristicaceae), Pedicularis pushpangadanii T.Husain & Arti Garg (Orobanchaceae), Schefflera pushpangadanii Chakrab. (Araliaceae),[13]

References

  1. ^ "Previous Director". Home - Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  2. ^ a b "National Academy of Agricultural Sciences". naas.org.in. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  3. ^ IANS (19 December 2025). "Pushpangadan, 'Jeevani' pioneer who ensured tribal share in science, passes away". IANS News. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  4. ^ "Padma Shri Awardees". Government of India. Retrieved 5 March 2010.
  5. ^ "P. Pushpangadan, plant scientist and ethnobiologist, passes away aged 81". The Hindu. 19 December 2025. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  6. ^ Daily, Keralakaumudi. "Scientist Passes Away". Keralakaumudi Daily (in Malayalam). Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  7. ^ "Profile: Dr P Pushpangadan – Gitamritam". Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  8. ^ "Palpu Pushpangadan". scholar.google.com. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  9. ^ "Glimpses of Indian ethnopharmacology". Wellcome Collection. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  10. ^ "P. Pushpangadan - Semantic Scholar". www.semanticscholar.org. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  11. ^ a b "Dr. P. Pushpangadan passed away". @mathrubhumi. 19 December 2025. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  12. ^ "Borlaug Award To Go To Three Conservationists". www.business-standard.com. Archived from the original on 6 September 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  13. ^ "Binomials in honor of Dr Palpu Pushpangadan". POWO. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  14. ^ International Plant Names Index. Pushp.
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