LUDHIANA
Dr M. S. Dhaliwal, Additional Director of Research (Horticulture and Food Science), Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has been awarded “Dr Kirti Singh Gold Medal -2017” by the Horticultural Society of India for his contributions to vegetable science. The award was presented to Dr Dhaliwal during the Platinum Jubilee Foundation Day Celebration of the Society at Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi, on November 6.

Dr Dhaliwal has developed 18 crop cultivars including 13 of tomato, three of chilli and one each of radish and muskmelon. He has also developed genetic stocks in tomato incorporating male sterility, leaf curl virus and high temperature tolerance, and ripening inhibitor genes. In addition, he has developed male sterile lines in chilli and utilized these in hybrid development.

Dr Dhaliwal has published 110 research papers, two books, six book chapters, one practical manual, four reviews and 58 magazine articles. He has guided three Ph.D and 13 M.Sc students. He has also attended scientific group meetings and delivered lectures in Germany, Canada, Taiwan, Tanzania, Cameroon, Thailand and Pakistan.

Dr Dhaliwal has secured research funding from various national and international sources. Currently, Dr Dhaliwal is a Principal Investigator of three research projects aimed at fine mapping of male sterility gene ms10 in chilli, mapping of leaf curl virus resistance gene(s) in chilli, and pyramiding of multiple disease resistance genes conferring leaf curl virus, late blight and root knot nematode resistance in tomato. He is a Mentor of a woman scientist under DBT funded scheme.

Dr Dhaliwal is a recipient of the University Plaque and Merit Certificate, Dr Hans Raj Pahwa Award, Smt Harpal Kaur Memorial Award, and is a Fellow of Indian Society of Vegetable Science, Horticultural Society of India and Indian Society of Genetics and Plant Breeding.

Dr Baldev Singh Dhillon, Vice-Chancellor, PAU and Dr N.S. Bains, Director of Research, congratulated Dr Dhaliwal for this honour.