Phyllosphere Microbial Plant Pathogens: Detection and Crop Disease Management

Prof. P. Narayanasamy was awarded the BSc (Ag.) (1958), MSc (Ag.) (1960), and PhD (1963) degrees by the University of Madras, and later with the Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship, he pursued postdoctoral research on rice virus diseases at the International Rice Research Institute, Philippines during 1966-1967. He served as the virus pathologist at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, during 1969-1970. He returned to his alma mater, which was upgraded as the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), Coimbatore, in 1970. He was appointed associate professor and then promoted to professor and head of the Department of Plant Pathology. He was elected a fellow of Indian Phytopathological Society, New Delhi. He functioned as the editor of the Madras Agricultural Journal published from the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University Campus and a member of editorial committees of the plant pathology journals published in India. He was invited to participate as the lead speaker and chairman of sessions in the national seminars held in India.

As a researcher in plant pathology, he was the leader of projects on diseases of rice, legumes, and oilseeds. He organized the National Seminar for the Management of Diseases of Oilseed Crops. His research on antiviral principles yielded practical solutions for the management of virus diseases affecting various crops. He published over 250 research papers in national and international journals. He was the principal investigator of several research projects funded by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, New Delhi, and the International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics, Hyderabad, India. He continues to share his experience and knowledge with the staff and graduate students of the Department of Plant Pathology, TNAU, Coimbatore. As a teacher, he taught courses on plant virology, molecular biology, physiopathology, and crop disease management for master's and doctoral programs. Under his guidance, 25 graduate students and 15 research scholars earned master's and doctoral degrees, respectively. With long experience and in-depth knowledge of various aspects of microbial plant pathogens and crop disease management, he has authored 20 books published by leading publishers such as Marcel Dekker, John Wiley & Sons, The Haworth Press, Springer Science, and CRC Press. These publications cover various aspects of plant pathology and are well received by their intended audience.

As a social obligation, he is deeply involved in social welfare activities to help orphaned, old, and infirm people, as well as children through Udavum Karangal (Coimbatore), HelpAge (New Delhi), Global Cancer Concern (New Delhi), Children Rights and You (CRY, Bangalore), and The Hindu Mission Hospital (Chennai) to lessen the sufferings of needy persons. As one interested in literature and spirituality, he has composed poems in Tamil and English and published two collections of poems to inculcate self-confidence in the young and spiritual exploration for older people.