Kanchan Pande (born 1958) is an Indian Isotope geologist,

geochronologist Geochronology is the science of determining the age of rocks, fossils, and sediments using signatures inherent in the rocks themselves. Absolute geochronology can be accomplished through radioactive isotopes, whereas relative geochronology is p ...

and former professor at the department of earth sciences of the

Indian Institute of Technology Mumbai The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay or IITB) is a public research university and technical institute in Powai, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is considered as one of the best engineering universities in India and is top ranked ...

. He is known for his studies on the evolution of continental flood

basalts Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90% of ...

in the Indian subcontinent and is an elected fellow of the

National Academy of Sciences, India The National Academy of Sciences, India, established in 1930, is the oldest science academy in India. It is located in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Prof. Meghnad Saha was the founder president. Fellows *Suddhasatwa Basu * Sudha Bhattacharya * Ch ...

. The

Council of Scientific and Industrial Research The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research ( IAST: ''vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada''), abbreviated as CSIR, was established by the Government of India in September 1942 as an autonomous body that has emerged as the ...

, the apex agency of the Government of India for scientific research, awarded him the

Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology (SSB) is a science award in India given annually by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for notable and outstanding research, applied or fundamental, in biology, ...

, one of the highest Indian science awards for his contributions to Earth, Atmosphere, Ocean and Planetary Sciences in 2003.

Biography

Kanchan Pande, born on 14 March 1958 in the Indian state of Uttaranchal, completed his master's degree in geology at

Kumaun University Kumaun University is a state university headquartered in Nainital, Uttarakhand, India. In 2017, it hosted the first Kautik Student Film Festival. Campuses The university has two campuses, DSB Campus Nainital, and KU campus Bhimtal Bhim ...

in 1981 and secured PhD in Geochronology and Isotope geology from

Gujarat University The Gujarat University is a public state university located at Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. The university is an affiliating university at the under-graduate level and a teaching university at the postgraduate level. It is accredited B++ by NA ...

in 1990. His career started at

Physical Research Laboratory The Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) is a National Research Institute for space and allied sciences, supported mainly by Department of Space, Government of India. This research laboratory has ongoing research programmes in astronomy and astrop ...

in 1990 as a scientist (Grade D) and he held the position of an associate professor from 1998 to 2002 before becoming a professor in 2003. However, his service as a professor at PRL lasted only 5 months and in June 2003, he moved to the

as a professor at the department of earth sciences and retired from the post in March 2023. Pande is known to have done extensive research on the geochronology of the region covering the Deccan Traps. His researches are reported to have assisted in understanding the ''geochronological constraints for the evolution of continental flood basalts in the Indian subcontinent'' and highlighted their geological and geochemical impact which has been detailed in an article, ''Age and duration of the Deccan Traps, India: A review of radiometric and paleomagnetic constraints'', published in June 2002. His studies have been documented in several peer-reviewed articles; ResearchGate, an online repository of scientific articles, has listed 70 of them.

Awards and honors

Pande, who was selected as Young Associate of the

Indian Academy of Sciences The Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore was founded by Indian Physicist and Nobel Laureate C. V. Raman, and was registered as a society on 24 April 1934. Inaugurated on 31 July 1934, it began with 65 founding fellows. The first general meet ...

in 1987, received the Young Scientist Medal of the

Indian National Science Academy The Indian National Science Academy (INSA) is a national academy in New Delhi for Indian scientists in all branches of science and technology. In August 2019, Dr. Chandrima Shaha was appointed as the president of Indian National Science Acade ...

in 1989. The

awarded him the

Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology (SSB) is a science award in India given annually by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for notable and outstanding research, applied or fundamental, in biology, ...

, one of the highest Indian science awards in 2003. The

elected him as a fellow in 2015.

Selected bibliography

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Notes

References

External links