Dr. Rajib Roychowdhury, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-arid Tropics, India
Dr. Rajib Roychowdhury is a seasoned plant biotechnologist with a Ph.D. in Biotechnology and postdoctoral experience from Israel. He currently serves as Research Associate Scientist in Genomics, Pre-breeding & Bioinformatics at ICRISAT, Hyderabad. His research spans crop improvement, stress tolerance, molecular breeding, and disease resistance 🌱. With over 7.5 years of post-Ph.D. experience, he has worked across leading global institutes, including the ARO-Volcani Center and University of Haifa 🌍. Honored with several awards including the Young Researcher Award (2023) 🏆 and FLS (UK, 2012) 🎖️, Dr. Roychowdhury is driving innovation in sustainable agriculture.
Publication Profile
Google Scholar
🎓 Educational Background
Dr. Rajib Roychowdhury holds a Ph.D. in Biotechnology (2017) from Visva-Bharati Central University, Santiniketan, where his research focused on genetic analyses in rice for agro-morphological traits, grain quality, and osmotic stress tolerance 🌾🧬. He earned his M.Sc. in Botany (2010) from the University of Burdwan, completing a thesis on mutation breeding in Carnation (Dianthus sp.) 🌸. His academic journey began with a B.Sc. (Honours) in Botany (2008) from Ananda Chandra College under the University of North Bengal, with Zoology and Chemistry as minor subjects 🔬🧪. His education laid a strong foundation for his career in plant biotechnology.
👨🏫 Teaching Experience
Dr. Rajib Roychowdhury served as a Teaching Assistant at the University of Haifa, Israel 🌍. He was actively involved in delivering practical and exercise sessions for M.Sc. and Ph.D. students enrolled in the course titled “Plant Genetics and Molecular Biology” 🧬🌿. His role emphasized hands-on training and academic support, fostering student understanding in advanced genetic techniques and molecular biology applications. Through this two-year teaching experience, Dr. Roychowdhury not only enhanced his pedagogical skills but also contributed to developing the next generation of plant science researchers
🔬 Professional Research Experience
Dr. Rajib Roychowdhury has made significant contributions to crop genomics and biotechnology. Currently a Research Associate Scientist at ICRISAT, Hyderabad 🇮🇳, he focuses on pigeonpea trait improvement through haplotype mapping, speed breeding, and stress resistance 🌾. His international roles include research at the ARO-Volcani Center and University of Haifa, Israel 🌍, where he worked on viral gene silencing, viroid diversity, and powdery mildew resistance in wheat. Earlier, he explored metalloid stress tolerance in rice 🌾 and marker-assisted breeding. His work bridges advanced genomics and sustainable crop development
🔍 Research Interests
Dr. Rajib Roychowdhury’s research focuses on advancing sustainable agriculture through plant and agricultural biotechnology 🌾🧬. He is particularly interested in improving stress tolerance in crops, addressing both abiotic factors like drought and salinity 💧🌞 and biotic challenges such as plant-pathogen interactions 🦠. His expertise includes genomics and molecular genetics for trait improvement, disease resistance, and accelerated breeding strategies. He also emphasizes the use of diverse crop genetic resources for breeding innovation 🌱. His multidisciplinary approach aims to enhance crop resilience, yield, and sustainability in the face of global climate and environmental stressors
🏅 Awards and Honors
Dr. Rajib Roychowdhury has received several prestigious awards recognizing his contributions to plant science and biotechnology 🌾. In 2025, he was nominated for the “Emerging Scientist Award” at HARVEST-2025 by AgriMeet Foundation 🏆. He earned the “Young Researcher Award” in 2023 from ISAHRD, Chandigarh 🇮🇳. His international acclaim includes a Travel Award from the International Wheat Initiative, Germany in 2019 ✈️ and the Best Poster Award in 2013 for rice genomics 🌾. He was elected a Fellow of the Linnaean Society, London in 2012 🇬🇧 and featured in Marquis Who’s Who (USA) the same year
🔍 Research Focus
Dr. Rajib Roychowdhury’s research focuses on plant biotechnology, stress physiology, and molecular breeding. His most cited works explore heat stress tolerance 🌡️, disease resistance 🦠, and abiotic stress responses like drought and salinity 💧 in crops. He specializes in multi-omics integration, mutagenesis for crop improvement 🌱, and virome/genomic analysis in cereals and legumes. His research also emphasizes sustainable agriculture under climate change 🌍 and genetic resource utilization in rice and pigeonpea. Through molecular, biochemical, and physiological approaches, he advances resilient crop development—positioning him as a key contributor in plant stress biology and genomics-driven breeding strategies
Publication Top Notes
📘 Physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms of heat stress tolerance in plants – Cited by: 2511 📈 | Year: 2013 🗓️
📗 Alternaria pathogenicity and its strategic controls – Cited by: 221 📊 | Year: 2013 📅
📕 Mutagenesis—A potential approach for crop improvement – Cited by: 175 🔬 | Year: 2013 🧪
📙 Multi-omics pipeline and omics-integration approach to decipher plant’s abiotic stress tolerance responses – Cited by: 110 🌐 | Year: 2023 🌾
📘 Chemical mutagenic action on seed germination and related agro-metrical traits in M1 Dianthus generation – Cited by: 90 🌱 | Year: 2011 🧬
📗 Dissection of a rapidly evolving wheat resistance gene cluster by long-read genome sequencing accelerated the cloning of Pm69 – Cited by: 77 🧬 | Year: 2024 🧾
📕 Plant-Endophyte Interaction during Biotic Stress Management – Cited by: 72 🌿 | Year: 2022 🧫
📙 Salicylic acid (SA)-mediated plant immunity against biotic stresses – Cited by: 65 🧪 | Year: 2024 🦠
📘 Utilization of plant genetic resources and diversity analysis tools for sustainable crop improvement – Cited by: 62 🌾 | Year: 2015 📚
📗 Organic farming for crop improvement and sustainable agriculture in the era of climate change – Cited by: 61 🌍 | Year: 2013 🌿
📕 Sustainable Agriculture in the Era of Climate Change – Cited by: 60 🌱 | Year: 2020 🌡️
📙 Analysis of Genetic Parameters on Mutant Populations of Mungbean – Cited by: 57 🌿 | Year: 2012 📘
📘 Assessment of chemical mutagenic effects in M1 generation of Carnation – Cited by: 53 🌸 | Year: 2011 🧬
📗 Physiological and Molecular Responses for Metalloid Stress in Rice – Cited by: 50 🧪 | Year: 2019 🌾
📕 Profiling of rice landraces of Rarh Bengal for osmotic stress tolerance – Cited by: 48 💧 | Year: 2012 📖