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Chemistry calling
Staff Reporter
Enriching experience:British High Commissioner Andrew MacAllister talking to students at the IICT on Friday.
India needs more than 14,000 chemical engineers and research scholars in next decade to fulfil the demands from
industries, Pinto Ganguly, General Manager of Sigma Aldrich India Ltd., said on Friday. Due to this, there are many
emerging career opportunities available in the field of chemistry, he said while speaking at ‘CHEMCAREERS
India-2013’ held at Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT).
More than 400 chemistry graduates, post-graduates and Ph.D. students participated in the event where experts from
industry and academia spoke about various career opportunities available for them. The day-long conference was
inaugurated by British High Commissioner Andrew MacAllister.
“United Kingdom is a major destination for conducting cutting-edge research in chemistry,” Mr. MacAllister said.
Organisations like the UK’s Science and Innovation Network promote collaboration between India and the UK in the
fields of research and innovation and Indian students and scholars should take advantage of such opportunities along
with exchange programmes, he explained.
Speakers also appraised the participants about various aspects and openings available in the industry for students of
chemistry. “Climate change and related concerns have opened vast avenues for chemical engineers to conduct research
and mitigate adverse effects on the environment,” Pankaj Patel, another speaker, said.
Mr. Patel, who works in Ahmedabad-based Abellon Bioenergy, said that the fields of carbon dioxide management,
biomass and algae production and production of ethanol were some of the areas that will witness rapid growth.
“Chemistry will be relied upon to create sustainable alternative sources to tackle future problems and this provides a
better avenue for students,” he said.
Chemistry graduates also have avenues in communications as there is a need to explain achievement of chemistry to
the general public, Nalin Pant from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, said. “Being a technical subject,
chemistry can be explained better by students of this subject,” he observed.
The event was held in association with Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). The major aim of this event is to provide a
platform for academy and industry interaction, RSC career specialist Julie Frankline said.
Day-long conference on careers in the subject held at the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology
Chemistry calling - The Hindu http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/...
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