Balachandra Chakkingal Sekhar (17 November 1929 – 6 September 2006 ) modernised
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
's
natural rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, a ...
industry. He was also involved in the development of the nation's
palm oil
Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from the mesocarp (reddish pulp) of the fruit of the oil palms. The oil is used in food manufacturing, in beauty products, and as biofuel. Palm oil accounted for about 33% of global oils produced fr ...
industry.
Personal history
Sekhar was born on 17 November 1929 at the Ulu Bulu Estate (now Malayan Glass). His place of birth is located near the
Rubber Research Institute of Malaysia's (RRIM) 3,400-acre experimental station at
Sungai Buloh
Sungai Buloh, or Sungei Buloh, is a town, a mukim (commune) and a parliamentary constituency in the northern part of Petaling District, Selangor, Malaysia. The name itself means ''bamboo river'' in the Malay language. It is located 16 km N ...
, which he developed during his tenure into one of the most comprehensively equipped research centres.
He started as a
chemist
A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe ...
at RRIM in 1949 and led research, particularly in physiochemical changes in
natural rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, a ...
. He turned the institute into a research centre able to conduct in-depth research into the manufacture of rubber applications from tubes, tyres, and gloves to earthquake
disaster prevention devices.
Contributions
Rubber
Sekhar served the
natural rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consis