Dr. Syed Mashayak Hussaini Qadri, has been working as the Director of Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute (CSR&TI), Mysore since October, 2008. He obtained his First class Masters degree in Botany (1974) followed by Doctorate for his work on “Disease Resistance Studies in Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius)” in 1981 from Marathwada University, Aurangabad (Maharashtra). Initiating his career as Plant Pathologist at Agricultural Research Station at Phaltan (Maharashtra), so far, he has put in 36 years of research & development service in various capacities with different organizations as Assistant Director and Deputy Director in National Horticultural Research & Development Foundation, New Delhi and subsequently as Joint Director in Central Silk Board, Government of India, Bangalore with first posting at Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute (CSR&TI), Berhampore in West Bengal. He was then posted at various places of India from Jammu & Kashmir to Tamil Nadu with longest tenure at Salem as Joint Director at Regional Sericultural Research Station from June 2001 to August 2007, where he contributed tremendously for the promotion of bivoltine sericulture through effective transfer of technology (TOT) and cluster development which resulted into improvement in bivoltine silk production in Tamil Nadu from 0.1% during 2000 to 26% during 2006-07. He has also been instrumental in popularizing ericulture, the poor man’s silk obtained from castor and tapioca plants in the state. Later he worked as Scientist-E/Director of Central Sericultural Germplasm Resource Centre (CSGRC), Hosur, Tamil Nadu before joining at CSR&TI, Mysore.

Apart from his experience in administration in government service Dr.Qadri has an excellent research and academic record and handled many research projects funded by Central Silk Board, extra mural agencies like DBT and DST and foreign agency like JICA, Japan. He is life member in various scientific societies of India. He has reported many new diseases of onion, garlic, safflower and mulberry including one new bacterial pathogen of mulberry (Xanthomonas campestris pv. mori) and also worked for their control measures. He has been instrumental in development of a number of sericulture technologies and has six patents (either granted or filed) to his credit. During the year 2004 on nomination by the Government of India, he visited Japan as a JICA Expert Indian Counterpart for Overseas Training on “Extension for Bivoltine Sericulture” at National Institute of Agro-biological Sciences, Tsukuba in Japan. He was a Senate Member (Governor nominee) in Periyar University, Salem Tamil Nadu for the period of three years from Sept.04 to Sept.07. He has more than 300 research/ technical papers, to his credit published in various national and international journals of UK, France, USA, Netherlands, Bangladesh, Korea and Japan etc., besides a number of popular articles. His research works have been appreciated at home as well aboard by USDA Washington, USA. He has also written ten books including a sericulture guide for farmers. He is a recipient of Indira Gandhi Priya Darshini Award 2010 and was also awarded by the Government of Tamil Nadu and Government of Maharashtra for his outstanding contribution in sericulture. One of his books written originally in Hindi has been awarded Indira Gandhi Rajabhasha Puraskar by the President of India on 14th September 2011 at New Delhi. Totally, five students have completed Ph.D under his guidance (Two from Santhi Niketan University, West Bengal and another three from Periyar University, Tamil Nadu). Currently, four students are pursuing Ph.D degree programme of Periyar University under his guidance.