Chunni Lal Khetrapal (25 August 1937 – 21 July 2021) was an Indian chemical physicist and a vice chancellor of the

Allahabad University , mottoeng = "As Many Branches So Many Trees" , established = , type = Public , chancellor = Ashish Chauhan , vice_chancellor = Sangita Srivastava , head_label ...

. He was known for his studies in chemical physics, particularly in the field of

Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, most commonly known as NMR spectroscopy or magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), is a spectroscopic technique to observe local magnetic fields around atomic nuclei. The sample is placed in a magnetic fie ...

. He was an elected fellow of the

Indian National Science Academy The Indian National Science Academy (INSA) is a national academy in New Delhi for Indian scientists in all branches of science and technology. In August 2019, Dr. Chandrima Shaha was appointed as the president of Indian National Science Acade ...

and the

National Academy of Sciences, India The National Academy of Sciences, India, established in 1930, is the oldest science academy in India. It is located in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Prof. Meghnad Saha was the founder president. Fellows *Suddhasatwa Basu * Sudha Bhattacharya * Ch ...

. The

Council of Scientific and Industrial Research The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research ( IAST: ''vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada''), abbreviated as CSIR, was established by the Government of India in September 1942 as an autonomous body that has emerged as the ...

, the apex agency of the Government of India for scientific research, awarded him the

Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology (SSB) is a science award in India given annually by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for notable and outstanding research, applied or fundamental, in biology, ...

, one of the highest Indian science awards, in 1982, for his contributions to chemical sciences.

Biography

C. L. Khetrapal, born on 25 August 1937 in the Indian state of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

, did his college studies at the

Allahabad University , mottoeng = "As Many Branches So Many Trees" , established = , type = Public , chancellor = Ashish Chauhan , vice_chancellor = Sangita Srivastava , head_label ...

from where he graduated in 1957 and completed his master's degree in 1959. He started his career by joining the Atomic Energy Establishment Training School, Mumbai the same year, simultaneously doing his doctoral research at Mumbai University to secure a PhD in 1965. In between, he worked at the

Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) is a public deemed research university located in Mumbai, India that is dedicated to basic research in mathematics and the sciences. It is a Deemed University and works under the umbrella of the ...

for a while and moved to Switzerland where he did his post-doctoral studies at the

University of Basel The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis'', German: ''Universität Basel'') is a university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest surviving universit ...

from 1967 till 1969. Then he shifted his base to the US to work at the Liquid Crystal Institute of

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in ...

as a research assistant. He returned to India in 1973 and joined the

Raman Research Institute The Raman Research Institute (RRI) is an institute for scientific research located in Bangalore, India. It was founded by Nobel laureate C. V. Raman in 1948. Although it began as an institute privately owned by Sir C. V. Raman, it is now fund ...

as an assistant professor where he spent over eleven years till his move to the

Indian Institute of Science The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is a public, deemed, research university for higher education and research in science, engineering, design, and management. It is located in Bengaluru, in the Indian state of Karnataka. The institute was ...

as a professor and the head of the ''Sophisticated Instruments Facility'' in 1984. On his superannuation from service in 1998, he was appointed the vice chancellor of the

Allahabad University , mottoeng = "As Many Branches So Many Trees" , established = , type = Public , chancellor = Ashish Chauhan , vice_chancellor = Sangita Srivastava , head_label ...

. When his tenure ended in 2001, he joined the

Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences is a medical Institute under the State Legislature Act in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, south of Hazratganj on Raebareli Road. It was established in 1983 and is named after Sanjay Gandhi. Th ...

as a distinguished professor for a five-year term (2001–06) and also held the directorship of Centre of Biomedical Magnetic Resonance, Lucknow, an autonomous research centre of the Government of Uttar Pradesh. In between, he had two stints at the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...

as a visiting scientist during 1979–80 and in 1984.

Legacy

Using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), Khetrapal studied the molecular orientation in the nematic phase of liquid crystals, the non-planar distortions in peptides in the liquid phase and weak molecular interactions involved in

hydrogen bonding In chemistry, a hydrogen bond (or H-bond) is a primarily electrostatic force of attraction between a hydrogen (H) atom which is covalently bound to a more electronegative "donor" atom or group (Dn), and another electronegative atom bearing a l ...

. Apart from pioneering NMR studies in India, he established the ''Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies'' and the ''Institute of Professional Studies'' at Allahabad University. His contributions are also reported to be behind the establishment of the National Centre on NMR in Bangalore. He has published a number of articles and books, besides contributing chapters to books published by others including the 8-volume ''Encyclopedia of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance''. He was one of the founders of the National Magnetic Resonance Society and the Centre of Biomedical Magnetic Resonance and served as the first president of the former and was an incumbent director of the latter.

Awards and honors

The

awarded Deb the

Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology (SSB) is a science award in India given annually by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for notable and outstanding research, applied or fundamental, in biology, ...

, one of the highest Indian science awards, in 1982. He is also a recipient of the C. V. Raman Award of the

University Grants Commission of India University Grants Commission (UGC) is a statutory body set up by the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Government of India in accordance to the UGC Act 1956 and is charged with coordination, determination and maintenanc ...

(1996), Goyal Prize (1996), P. C. Ray Memorial Medal of the Indian Science Congress Association (2002) and the Lifetime Achievement Award of the

Indian Chemical Society The Indian Chemical Society is a scientific society dedicated in the field of chemistry from India. It was established in 1924 with Prafulla Chandra Ray as its founding president. The same year the society started to publish its "Quarterly Journa ...

(2005). He has delivered several award orations including the R. K. Asundi Memorial Lecture Award of the Indian National Science Academy in 1990 and N. R. Dhar Memorial Lecture Award of National Academy of Sciences, India in 2005. He was an elected fellow of the Indian National Science Academy and the National Academy of Sciences, India.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khetrapal, Chunni Lal Recipients of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in Chemical Science 1937 births 2021 deaths 20th-century Indian chemists Indian scientific authors Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy Scientists from Uttar Pradesh Heads of universities and colleges in India University of Allahabad alumni University of Mumbai alumni University of Basel alumni Kent State University alumni Academic staff of the Indian Institute of Science

Biography

Legacy

Awards and honors

See also

References