Abstract
Dr. Muhammad Imran Ali Siddiqui expired on August 07, 2006 at National Liaqat Hospital, Karachi due to severe viral infection and very high temperature fever. Dr. Siddiqui was born on April 02, 1972. He received his academic qualification graduate and post graduate from University of Karachi. He obtained his Ph.D. degree in Botany in 2002 from University of Karachi. His thesis dealt with “Use of growth promoting bacteria in the control of root knot nematode and root infecting fungi of crop plants”. Dr. Siddiqui began his career as a Research Fellow in projects of Department of Botany, University of Karachi and then joined as a Lecture of Biology in PAF Intermediate College, Korangi, Karachi then moved to Government Degree College Bufferzone, North Karachi as Lecturer in Botany. Dr. Siddiqui awarded a prestigious Post Doctoral Fellowship from Rothamsted Experimental Station, UK in 2004 where he worked for one year on “Biological control of plant parasitic nematodes using selected isolates of Pochonia chlamydosporia” under the supervision of eminent nematologist Prof. Dr. Brian Kerry. Recently he has been recommended for Post Doctoral Fellowship (European Union Fellowship) from European Commission, Brussels, Belgium to work under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Dieter Hass at the Department of Microbiologie Fondamentale, Universite de Lausanne, Switzerland. His research was currently involved with well-known foreign scientists Prof. Dr. Brain Kerry, Prod. Dieter Haas, Dr. Simon Atkins, and Dr. Som Dutt. Dr. Siddiqui was an outstanding researcher and made valuable contribution in the field of plant pathology, nematology, plant microbe interaction, microbial ecology. He published over 150 research papers in well reputed national and international refereed journals. He was also a co-author of “Essentials of Mathematical Ecology” with Prof. Dr. S. Shahid Shaukat. Pakistan Council of Science and Technology awarded him productivity allowance for the year 2003-05 on his outstanding research. Dr. Siddiqui was an active young scientist and was member of many scientific societies like Pakistan Botanical Society, Pakistan Phytopathological Society, Pakistan Science Society and International Society of Food Science and Agriculture. He was a member of editorial board of scientific journals, Journal of Food Agriculture and Environment (Finland) and Pakistan Journal of Plant Pathology. He was also a reviewer of Journal of Applied Microbiology (England), Biotechnology Progress (USA), Soil Biology and Biochemistry (Netherland), World Journal of Biotechnology and Electronic Journal of Biotechnology. Dr. Siddiqui was very generous and kindhearted person, his pleasant personality, scientific ability and teaching skill will be remembered by his friends and colleagues. May God Almighty shower his choicest blessing upon the departed soul and place his soul in heaven (Amen).
