INDIAN NATIONAL SCIENCE ACADEMY INSA PLATINUM JUBILEE By: Arvind Gupta Pix: Karen Haydock

taught by B. B. Dey and P. Narayana Iyer, whom he revered and remembered

for the rest of his life. After finishing BSc he worked for a year with the
Ramakrishna Mission. Later he joined the Chemistry Department of the
Presidency College as a researcher. His outstanding work on chemical synthesis
T. R. Seshadri won him two prizes from the University of Madras the Sir William
Wedderburn Prize and the Curzon Prize.
(1900 1975) In 1927, Seshadri was selected for a scholarship awarded by the Government
of Madras for higher studies in England. Here at the Manchester University he
worked under Prof. Robert Robinson, FRS a very distinguished organic chemist,
who later became the President of the Royal Society and also
received the Nobel Prize. Seshadri did pioneering work on
new anti-malarial drugs and synthesis of compounds. Based
Money and materials alone do not secure good research, they are only on his research the Manchester University awarded him a PhD
adjuncts and it is the human element behind them that matters. in 1929. Working with Prof. Robinson was cherished by Seshadri as the most
T. R. Seshadri important event in his research career.
T. R. Seshadri was born on 3 After his PhD, Seshadri worked for a few months in Austria with Nobel
February 1900 in Kulitalai, a Laureate Prof. Fritz Pregl, famous for his work on organic micro-analysis. He
small town situated on the also worked with Prof. George Barger, FRS at the Department of Medical
banks of the river Kaveri in Chemistry of the University of Edinburgh. In 1930, Seshadri returned to
Tiruchirapalli. His father India.
T. Iyengar was a teacher in a local
In 1934, he joined the Andhra University, Waltair as Reader and Head of the
school. Seshadri went to school
Department of Chemistry. Here he worked hard, built new laboratories, framed
in the temple town of
new courses and established an active research school. The University entrusted
Srirangam and Tiruchirapalli.
upon him the additional responsibility of setting up new Departments of
His teachers instilled in him a
Chemical Technology and Pharmaceutical Chemistry. All this while he pursued
sense of duty, obligation to
his own research and could be seeing bicycling to the Biochemistry Department
society, love of humanity and
of the Andhra Medical College located 5 km away at Vishakhapatnam. His
thirst for knowledge. In 1917,
devotion to work inspired many young students to take up research and make
Seshadri joined the Presidency
it their life long profession. Soon
College, Madras to do BSc
Andhra University became the most
chemistry. While studying at
active centre for original chemical
college he stayed at Sri
research in the country.
Ramakrishna Missions
students home. The spiritual The Second World War disrupted
values he learnt from the Seshadris work. Chemicals and
Mission Monks remained with equipment which came from
him throughout his life. At pedalitin Europe were difficult to get. Also,
Presidency College he was the army took over the chemistry
Seshadri developed a way to synthesize pedalitin,
a flavanoid found in sesame.
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 INDIAN NATIONAL SCIENCE ACADEMY INSA PLATINUM JUBILEE By: Arvind Gupta Pix: Karen Haydock
department building at Waltair. Seshadri had to move first to Guntur and Seshadri did research on the toxin
then to Madras but all this while he continued with his research. After the war in the pulse, khesari (Lathyrus
the labs at Waltair were rebuilt and Seshadri returned. sativus). Khesari contains varying
amounts of the neurotoxin, ODAP,
In 1949, Seshadri was invited to head the Chemistry Department of the Delhi which can cause paralysis in
humans and cattle, if taken in large
University by its Vice Chancellor Sir Maurice Gwyer. Seshadri took up the quantities. The toxicity of ODAP
challenge and established from scratch, in a very short period of time, a research is thought to be because of its
school in the chemistry of natural products comparable to the best anywhere structural similarity to the
in the world. Students from all over the country and in later years from other neurotransmiter, L-glutamate.
parts of the world came to work under his guidance. His large research team
included postdoctoral scholars from England, France and Germany. He trained ODAP
over 160 PhD students and published more than 1000 papers. A good number
of his students occupy senior positions both in India and abroad in teaching
and research establishments. He authored the book titled Chemistry of Vitamins
and Hormones. On attaining the age of superannuation in 1965 he was appointed
as the first Emeritus Professor of the University.
L-glutamate
Seshadri had a particular attraction for the variety and range of
floral and animal colouration. His early work was on the pigments
of the cotton flower and on different species of the hibiscus.
Apart from explaining the structure of new compounds he evolved
new procedures that have now become routine in the study of chemistry. He
was fascinated by biosynthesis and did pioneering work in this field. He was Prof. Seshadri rose to his eminent position by virtue of his deep devotion to
the first Indian to initiate chemical studies on lichens from the Himalayas. duty. However, the one thing that he cherished most was the affection of his
students. He helped them in every way possible including giving financial
Professor Seshadris expert advice and mature wisdom were frequently sought assistance in times of need. To remain with his students he declined the post
by a large number of organisations CSIR, ICMR, ICAR and DAE. He of the Chairman of the University Grants Commission. His students
headed several expert committees dealing with education, health, science, showered their love on him by bringing out commemoration volumes on his
agriculture and defence. He was also a member of the scientific advisory 60th, 65th, 70th and 75th birthday. They also set endowments to perpetuate
committee to the Cabinet and UNESCO. He his memory. Even after retirement Seshadri continued to teach and guide
received numerous honours and awards. research students and was always available to them. His research school in
Seshadri was elected a Fellow of the Royal Delhi consisted of half a dozen laboratories in three different buildings in
Society in 1961 and conferred honorary which more than 25 students worked at a time. He found time to visit them
doctorate degrees by several Universities. He at least four times a day and discussed their problems. He hoped that chemistry
was the general president of the Indian would secure for him the resources to live a simple life. In 1965, he donated his
Science Congress and the president of the entire personal library to the Delhi Universitys Department of Chemistry. He
Seshadri developed the technique
of O-methylation of phenols
Indian National Science Academy. He was thought of working peacefully in the Department till the end of his life.
using dimethyl sulphate, which is on the editorial boards of the international However, the new University rules promulgated in 1972 prevented him from
now widely used. Here is a journals Tetrahedron and Phytochemistry. The
compound that can be synthesized Government of India conferred on him the
receiving any remuneration whatsoever. This brought financial ruin He was
using this technique: 2-hydroxy- left with no research grant or means of subsistenceThus ended the life of
4-methoxyacetophenone. Padma Bhushan in 1963. this great son of India on 27 September 1975.
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