Dr Zabeer Ahmed, Director of the CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (CSIR-IIIM), Jammu, has been entrusted with the additional charge of Director of the CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute (CSIR-NBRI), Lucknow.
The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), through an office memorandum issued on August 3, assigned the additional responsibility following the voluntary retirement of Dr Ajit Kumar Shasany from the post of Director, CSIR-NBRI.
According to the order, the Vice President of CSIR has approved that Dr Ahmed will hold the additional charge until a regular Director is appointed or until further orders, whichever is earlier. He will exercise all powers of the post without any additional remuneration.
Dr Ahmed will continue to serve as Director of CSIR-IIIM Jammu while overseeing the functioning of CSIR-NBRI, one of the country’s premier research institutes dedicated to plant sciences, biodiversity conservation, taxonomy and botanical research.
The arrangement has been made to ensure administrative continuity and the smooth implementation of scientific programmes at the Lucknow-based institute.
A distinguished scientist with more than 28 years of experience in drug discovery and natural product research, Dr Ahmed has made significant contributions in the fields of inflammatory and metabolic disorders.
Under his leadership, CSIR-IIIM has played a key role in several flagship national programmes, including the CSIR Phytopharmaceutical Mission, Aroma Mission and Floriculture Mission. He has also been closely associated with the Purple Revolution through lavender cultivation in Jammu and Kashmir and has contributed to the establishment of Industrial Biotech Parks at Ghatti in Kathua and Handwara.
Dr Ahmed has published over 150 research papers, guided several doctoral and postgraduate scholars, and holds multiple patents.
He has received several honours for his contributions to science and innovation, including the UT Level Tribal Award in Science and Technology (2022), CSIR Knowledge Partnership Award (2023), Maharaja Hari Singh Award for Excellence (2024), Prominent Alumni Award by the University of Jammu (2025), the Indian Army’s Award of Appreciation for Excellence in Science and Technology (2025), and the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar as a team member of the CSIR Aroma Mission (2025).
