In this Episode of Geo Dialogue, you are going to read about the inspiring journey and views of Dr. Balaram Vysetti, Former Emeritus Scientist at the Geochemistry Division, CSIR - National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, India. Dr. V. Balaram is renowned geoscientist not only in India but all over the world. His name is continuously included in Stanford University's new list of the “Top 2% of Scientists in the World” in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 & 2024." There are many laurels in his account like "National Geoscience Award" from the Government of India, New Delhi (2000), the S. Narayanaswamy Award - from the Geological Society of India, Bangalore (2010), Eminent Mass Spectroscopist Award" from Indian Society of Mass Spectrometry, BARC, Mumbai, Dr. C.V. Raman Memorial Award from the Andhra Pradesh Academy of Sciences, Amaravati in 2019, and the ‘ISAS Sastra Pithamaha Award 2023’ from the Indian Society of Analytical Scientists (ISAS), BARC, Mumbai in 2024. Won 3 Lifetime Achievement Awards for Excellence in Science and Technology from i) ISAS-Kerala (2015), ii) Bundelkhand University, Jhansi, UP (2016), and iii) ISMAS, BARC, Mumbai (2019). He won the “SGAT Excellence Award 2024” from the Society of Geoscientists and Allied Technologists (SGAT), Bhubaneswar.
So let's explore the amazing journey of Dr. V. Balaram through his interaction with Exploring Geology.
Exploring Geology: We highly appreciate your work as
a Geoscientist Sir and welcome you for interaction with Exploring Geology
Platform, Sir.
Dr. Balaram: I am thrilled to be associated with the “Exploration Geology Platform” and for an opportunity to interact.
Q. Let’s start with your childhood memories Sir,
how was it?
Ans: I was born in an agricultural family in 1952 in
a village called Tarakatur, Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh. I was a merit
student even from my elementary and high school days. I was even a class leader
both in elementary and high school studies. Most of the time I was leading in
the respective classes and doing very well in my studies.
Q. Please tell us about your academic journey Sir.
Currently, you are known as an excellent geoscientist but how were you as a
school student?
Ans: Since I got a very good percentage of 73% in SSLC (1968), I got admission into the famous institute called Andhra Loyola College, Vijayawada. In those days we used to have students not only from all corners of our country, but also from countries like Ghana, Malaysia, and Singapore. I finished both PUC and B. Sc. from that Institute with 80% and 72% respectively and joined Andhra University Postgraduate Center, Guntur (which was later on upgraded to Nagarjuna University) for M.Sc. in Chemistry. I passed out with 73% after the final examination in M. Sc. and I was second in the class in my batch.
Q. How did you enter in Geology field sir and
how did this inclination increase with time?
Ans: I got PhD degree in Analytical Chemistry from Andhra University, Visakhapatnam in 1979. Ever since I joined the CSIR-National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, I have been interested in Geosciences, especially ‘Analytical Geochemistry’. I joined the Geochemistry Group of NGRI in 1979 and was continuously getting opportunities to use advanced methods of rock analysis by that time advanced techniques such as atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) and X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF). In 1987 we purchased an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) for the first time in India. With these analytical facilities, we successfully completed several geology/geochemistry/mineral exploration/environment-related projects at NGRI and helped several scientists/scientific groups across the country and even a few countries outside with highly precise geochemical data. My colleagues and I were not only the first to introduce ICP-MS to the Indian earth and environmental scientist groups in 1988, but we also introduced microwave plasma atomic emission spectrometry (MP-AES), another new analytical technique, around 2013 and published the first papers from India. Three of our MP-AES publications were among the first ten worldwide by using this new analytical technique. This gave me a real opportunity to analyze all elements from Li to U in different kinds of geological materials at ppb and sub-ppb levels. This also offered me interaction with some very good scientists from other institutions both within our country and outside, apart from our group. I published several papers on the subject which put me today at No. 3 in the world in ‘Analytical Geochemistry (https://scholar.google.co.in/citationsview_op=search_authors&hl=en&mauthors=label:analytical_geochemistry).
Q. What are your memories of your early days in Geoscience and with top Geoscientists?
Ans: I started developing an interest in ‘Exploration Geochemistry’ after a few years. We worked on gold exploration in collaboration with Hutti Gold Mines Limited (HGML), Hutti, Karnataka and also Mineral Sales Private Limited (MSPL), Hospet, Karnataka, and with National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) for gold exploration in Madagascar, Africa, and with Hindustan Zinc Limited (HZL), Azmer on zinc exploration studies under the leadership of Dr, S. M. Naqvi. I did a lot of field studies with stalwarts like Shri. Sawkar (HGML & Geological Society of India), Prof. Mihir Deb (University of Delhi), and Prof. Talat Ahmad (University of Delhi). I even had an opportunity to do geological fieldwork in Lake District in UK in 1994, and visit to a molybdenum mine in Rocky Mountains in Colorado, USA in 1997. I continued to work in this field of mineral exploration even after my retirement in 2016. One of my publications on rare earth elements (REE) published in 2019 obtained 1729 citations up to today which also fetched me the "Highly Cited Author Award 2023" from the Geoscience Frontiers Journal (Elsevier, Beijing, China) which was presented to me at Curtin University, Kuching, Malaysia in November 2024. These contributions put me today at World Rank No.4 in mineral exploration (https://scholar.google.co.in/citations?view_op=search_authors&hl=en&mauthors=label:mineral_exploration)
Q How was your experience as
young scientist in NGRI? How has the work culture changed there over a period of
time?
Ans: My early days as a scientist at NGRI were very confusing because I was a trained analytical chemist and did not know even ABCDs of Geology. Slowly I got into geochemical analysis, geochemistry, and mineral exploration with time. It was not an easy job. It took 8 years for me to publish my first paper after joining in NGRI. Afterwards I never looked back, and my last publication was a review on lithium in the International Geological Review in November 2024. In 1996 one of my papers published in Geostandards Newsletter (France, IF > 6) with a high impact factor was listed among the top 40 papers from all 40 CSIR Laboratories at that time. Mine was the only paper from NGRI that was on that list. In addition, on some occasions, I got certificates of commendation for years 1999, 2000, 2007 & 2008 from Dr. H. K. Gupta & Dr. V. P. Dimri then Directors, NGRI for publishing highest number of SCI publications. In 2013, the Geochemistry Group, I was heading got the “Best Performance” Certificate with a Cash Award from then Director, Dr. Mrinal K. Sen for the Group’s overall performance including publications. Such small things encouraged me to do further hard work. NGRI's work culture is much better even today when compared to other earth science institutes in India. Relatively our institute was better equipped with highly sophisticated instrumentation, one of the best in the world, and one only needs to work hard to compete with the best in the world. I even used to get opportunities continuously to attend national and international conferences and present my work before my peers.
Q. Were you influenced by the good work of
any Geoscientist during the early days of your career?
Ans: There was some influence of stalwarts like Dr.
S. M. Naqvi (NGRI), Dr. D. M. Banerjee (University of Delhi), and Dr. Kuldeep
Chandra (ONGC, Dehradun)
Q. Would you like to mention a few researchers
doing good work in Geoscience as per your observation?
Ans: Currently, Dr. Waliur Rahman, & my student,
Dr. Parijat Roy (both from NCPOR, Goa), Prof. N. V. Chalapathi Rao (Director,
NCESS, Trivandrum), Prof. E. Shaji (University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram),
Dr. Nagender Nath (NIO, Goa), Dr. C. Manikyamba (NGRI) are some who are doing
good work in Geoscience in my opinion. There could be a lot of others I might
have missed.
Q. Why did you choose Geochemistry, Mineral
Exploration, Spectroscopy, etc. as your research field? I mean it was planned
or just situational or demand of your job at NGSI?
Ans: I was recruited to work on analytical instruments and to generate precise geochemical data by Dr. B. P. Radhakrishna, doyen of Indian geology who happened to be the Chairman of the then Selection Committee in 1978 at NGRI. I was not aspiring to become an expert in any particular field. As you very rightly said it was just a situational demand of my job at NGRI, and I just took the opportunities that were coming my way.
Q. Other than your publications, in what other
ways you contributed for the growth of geosciences and young
and budding geoscientists of our country?
Ans: I along with my colleagues, organized several National and International Seminars/Conferences/ Workshops/Training Courses on various contemporary and important themes in collaboration with elite scientific bodies such as the Department of Science and Technology, (DST), Government of India, New Delhi, Geological Society of India, Bangalore; Mineralogical Society of India (MSI), Mysore; Indian Society of Applied Geochemists (ISAG), Hyderabad, and with other prestigious academic and research institutions like CSIR-IMMT, Bhubaneswar, and University of Delhi not only at my institute but also at several other institutions across the country including remote locations like Andaman and Nagaland. I delivered ~ 800 invited lectures in 281 universities/R&D organizations in India and abroad. I visited several prestigious academic organizations such as British Geological Survey, (BGS), Nottingham, Cambridge University, Cambridge. Oxford University, Oxford (UK); Iowa State University, USA; Australian National University, Canberra, Australia; University of Pretoria, South Africa; University of Kiel and IFM-GEOMAR, Kiel, Germany; Okayama University of Science, Japan; University of Windsor, and University of Toronto, Canada; and University of Campinas, Brazil in more than 40 countries in all 6 continents and delivered invited talks on various related subjects. I also organized and convened Sessions in the Asia Oceania Geosciences Society (AOGS) Meetings twice in Singapore, once each in Hyderabad, Taipei, Taiwan, and Busan, South Korea.
Q. You are the author of more than 340 SCI
publications which is not less than excellent so what is your approach to
writing a research paper this is a big dilemma for new researchers.
Ans: For any researcher, documentation is more
important. Whatever results you generate and whatever observations you make in
field or laboratory, you need to record them. You may be very good at memory,
but unless you record, your memory power will not help you. Everything needs to
be written; while writing, you get ideas. In addition, I used to spend an hour
every day in our library up to year 2000, to find out what is going on in my areas of
interest. Currently everything is available on your fingertips. Manuscripts
will come back and this can happen to even to Nobel laureates. Sometimes it
will be very frustrating. You should not get disappointed, and keep trying
until your manuscript is published. With this kind of
mindset, I could publish >345 international publications with Google scholar
citations ~10, 000, (h-index 49; i10-index 158, https://scholar.google.co.in/citations?hl=en&user=5Dm3QakAAAAJ)
Q. Your research papers are highly cited which
is nice but we want to know, Is the citation only criteria for a research paper
to be good and if not, what are the other criteria?
Ans: In my opinion, citation is the best criterion
which cannot be manipulated, and Google is not biased. People can be highly
biased and try to manage and manipulate, if you adopt any other criteria other
than publications in high-ranking journals.
Q. Which of your research paper do you
consider best as per your efforts and satisfaction?
Ans: There are more than 10 publications I consider
best which also gave me satisfaction. But if you want that I should mention
only one paper, the following publication in the Geological Journal:
Balaram V. Current and emerging analytical techniques for geochemical and geochronological studies. Geological Journal. 2021; 56, 5, 2300-2359. https://doi.org/10.1002/gj.4005
Once recently during on one of my visits to WIHG, Dehradun, Prof. Devesh K. Sinha, Department of Geology, University of Delhi was telling to a lot of other colleagues that Dr. V. Balaram deserves all awards of our country basing on just this particular publication. He also said that every year he will tell every new batch of geology students to take a copy of this publication and read it.
Q. Of course in the long journey of your career
as a Geoscientist there could be many interesting and sweet memories that
happened during research paper writing, data analysis, fieldwork, etc. Would
you like to share a few interesting memories with our readers?
Ans: Sure
1.
In September 1988, I attended and made an oral presentation of my work
at the “First International Conference on Plasma Source Mass Spectrometry” held
at the University of Durham, Durham, UK. I was the only Indian scientist who
made a presentation. This was my first international conference
participation outside our country.
2.
For my review publication: Balaram, V (1996) Recent Trends in the
Instrumental Analysis of Rare Earth Elements in Geological and Industrial
Materials. Trends in Analytical Chemistry, 15: 475-486 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0165-9936(96)00058-1, I got a reward of $250/- from the
publisher (Elsevier). Today the situation is the opposite.
3.
In 2022, I represented India at the United Nations/IAEA Meeting at IAEA
Headquarters in Vienna, Austria.
4. I won “The Academician Sazhin Medal 2024” from the ROSATOM
State Atomic Energy Corporation, GIREDMET JSC, Moscow, Russia for outstanding contributions to rare earths and rare metals. When Dr. Konstantin
Ivanovskikh, Deputy Director for Research & Innovation Giredmet JSC ROSATOM
State Atomic Energy Corporation, Moscow, Russia, invited me to deliver a talk
at an international conference on Rare Earths and Rare Metals in Moscow, he didn’t
mention about the award. I was the first person to be invited on to the dais to
receive this award in April 2024, and it was a very pleasant surprise to me.
5.
Even the “Highly Cited Author Award” by Geoscience Frontier Journal
presented to me at an International Conference held by Curtin University,
Kuching, Malaysia was a pleasant surprise to me as this kind of international
awards cannot be managed and manipulated.
6.
I was very happy when I won “Dr. C.V. Raman Memorial Award” from the
Andhra Pradesh Academy of Sciences, Amaravati in 2019 as this award was named
after Sir C. V. Raman. When Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman got the Nobel
Prize in Physics in 1930 for his work on the scattering of light and the
discovery of the effect named after him – the “Raman Effect”, he was not only
the first Indian but also the first Asian scientist to win the Nobel Prize in
science.
Q. There are many laurels in your account in
terms of Awards, honors, citations, etc. and of course, each one has its
importance and place but how do you rate them, it would be very interesting if
you could arrange them from Higher to lower order as your achievements?
Ans: All are very important and gave me immense
satisfaction.
National Awards:
1. National Geoscience Award,
Government of India, New Delhi
2. Eminent Mass Spectroscopist Award from ISMAS, BARC, Mumbai
3. Sastra Pithamaha Award, ISAS, BARC, Mumbai
4. Narayanaswamy Award from Geological
Society of India, Bangalore
5. Dr. C.V. Raman Memorial Award from
the Andhra Pradesh Academy of Sciences, Amaravati
6. SGAT Excellence Award 2024” from the Society of Geoscientists and Allied Technologists (SGAT), Bhubaneswar.
International Awards
1. Representing our country at the
United Nations/IAEA Meeting at IAEA Headquarters in Vienna, Austria in 2022.
2. The Academician Sazhin Medal
2024 from the ROSATOM State Atomic Energy Corporation, GIREDMET JSC,
Moscow, Russia
3. Highly Cited Author Award 2023 from the Geoscience Frontiers Journal (Elsevier, Beijing, China) presented to me at Curtin University, Kuching, Malaysia
4. Inclusion in Stanford University's list of the “Top 2% of Scientists in the World” continuously in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 & 2024.
Q. Were you confident about these awards during
your registration for nomination or some are surprises for us also?
Ans: As I told above, I was never confident of any
award until it came in my way.
Q. Sounds good that you mentored at 80 DST Inspire
Science Camps all over India? Please tell us more about this event and
activities.
Ans: Mentoring young and budding scientists (mostly
12th-class meritorious students across India) and motivating them to take
up science as their career is a pleasant job that I have enjoyed from 2010
onwards. From Kamaraj College, Tuticorin in the south to Bundelkhand University
in the north, and from Saurashtra University, Rajkot in the West to Kalinga
Institute of Industrial Technology University in Bhubaneswar, Odisha in the
east, I participated in about 80 DST INSPIRE Science Camps. Usually, I used to
give two lectures: i) Combating Climate Change and Global Warming for a
Sustainable Living in Harmony with Nature, under Earth Sciences, and ii)
Chemistry, Environment and the Society, under Chemistry.
Q. You have continuously made place in the top
2% scientists of in the world since 2020 so what motivates you to be so active,
especially after you retire from the Govt. service?
Ans: In general, by the time of retirement, one will get a complete understanding of what he or she has been doing in that subject. I did not want that knowledge to go waste. Moreover, I was getting invitations continuously to deliver talks at different academic institutions both within India and outside. In all cases, the host institutions paid my travel, accommodation and living expenses. I traveled to Dubai, UAE; Rome, Italy; Oxford University, UK; Moscow, Russia, UN-IAEA, Vienna, Austria; Materials Research Society (MRS), USA; Kurtin University, Kuching, Malaysia, after my retirement in 2013. These invitations encouraged and made me continuously read, write, and publish which led to be in Top 2%.
Q. We are eager to know the story of one of
your most cited papers with more than 1742 citations and earned you “Highly Cited
Author Award-2023” by Geoscience Frontiers Journal (Elsevier, Beijing,
China).
Ans: My journey with rare earth elements (REE) started in 1987 when NGRI bought the country’s first ICP-MS. Prof. V.K. Gaur was the Director, NGRI at that time. Until that time, we used to depend on BARC, Mumbai to obtain REE data by Instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) on very few samples with long wait times. With ICP-MS in our hand and with its capability to provide very accurate and precise geochemical data of about 50 elements in about 100 samples a day, I published several papers including some review papers in addition to helping several hundreds of active groups not only in our country but also outside. After my retirement, I went to my daughter’s home in London, UK in 2017 to stay there for a few months. There I started writing this manuscript which took a lot of time to publish because the two anonymous reviewers also took a lot of interest in that manuscript and suggested me to add several related aspects and discuss. Finally, it was accepted and published in 2019 in Geoscience Frontiers. I didn’t expect that publication would attract the attention of hundreds of groups and thousands of scientists across the globe which is very rare in earth science.
Q. As per your observations,
which are the domains in Geoscience where new researchers should focus so that
they may make good careers?
Ans: The following topics are of
contemporary interest:
1.
Mineral exploration – Geochemical
exploration methods for critical minerals/metals like REE, Li, Co, graphite, etc
2.
Environmental – for example, uranium in
groundwater, toxic heavy metal pollution, climate change, etc
3.
Analytical geochemistry, for example
determination of lithium in sedimentary rocks, brines, and pegmatites, etc.
Any topic you choose must target
the contemporary issues and interests. Most of my current publications are in
these areas.
Q. How do you see the current
status of Geoscience in India in terms of career perspective and importance for
society how has it changed over time and what more needs to be
done by policymakers, academicians, industrialists of Geoscience?
Ans: The progress of geoscience in
India is good but not the best. In geology departments in most state
universities in India, there is no proper research activity. First of all,
there are no good teachers. Some departments are being managed by a single
professor. There are cases where the staff of the whole earth science department
is completely retired and there is no recruitment. When compared to other
countries such as the US, China, Germany, the UK, and Israel, our investment in
R&D is meagre. In R&D and Sports, the outcome will be directly
proportional to the investment.
Q. What message do you want to
convey to new researchers and students of Geoscience? Sir thank you very much
for sparing your valuable time and thoughts with the Exploring Geology Platform
and we wish you a happy, healthy, and long life, Sir!
Ans: First of all, I convey my
heartfelt thanks to the ‘Exploring Geology Platform’ for this opportunity to
share some of my thoughts as a geoscientist. I also take this opportunity, to
thank all my Group Members at NGRI, my Ph.D. students (Osmania University, Hyderabad:
SRTM, Nanded, Maharashtra; Punjab University, Chandigarh, & and Aligarh
Muslim University, Aligarh), my national and international collaborators. We
all worked across borders, cultures and disciplines on similar objectives. All
through my professional career, I believed only in hard work. For getting
success, there are no shortcuts except hard work and sincerity in what you are doing.
Hard work always gets rewarded in one way or the other. For example, despite my
consistent performance for more than 45 years, I couldn’t become a Fellow of at
least one of the Indian Academy of Sciences, but I feel that I got much more in
the form of International Awards/Recognitions as stated above which I
never thought even my dreams that I would get them. This was possible only through hard work.
With Dr. P.A. Freedman, the developer of MC-ICP-MS at the Application Laboratory, Nu Instruments, Wrexham, Wales, UK in 2009 with a backdrop of the photo of F. W. Aston who built world’s first mass spectrograph in 1919.
Disclaimer: The Views expressed here are personal and All rights reserved to 'Exploring Geology'.
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