By Matters India Reporter
Palayamkottai: Jesuit Father Savarimuthu Ignacimuthu has been identified as one of the top 1 percent scientists in biology.
The director of St Xavier’s College in Tamil Nadu’s Palayamkottai town earned the honor after scientists in the United States evaluated the Jesuit’s research publications.
A recent article by three professors of the Stanford University in the United States has analyzed the contributions of more than 100,000 scientists from all over the world in biology.
The article, titled ‘Updated Science-wide Author Databases of Standardized Citation Indicators,’ was authored by professors John P.A. Ioannidis, Kevin W. Boyack, and Jeroen Baas. It was published October 16 in the “Plos Biology,” a reputed journal.
The US professors used assessment parameters such as total number of papers published in journals indexed by Scopus, an abstract and citation database launched in 2004, total number of citations, h-index and hm-index.
The h-index is used to measure the impact of a scientist’s publications in terms of the citations received. It is defined as the highest number of papers of a researcher that have been cited h or more times.
The US professors have used sophisticated algorithms to simplify their findings and presented the data with clarity and depth. The authors have analyzed 113,961 scientists from all over the world and ranked Father Ignacimuthu 872.
The professors analyzed the Jesuit’s contributions during 1985-2019. He has been ranked below 1,000 for the past 20 years. His name is found under high achievers’ category in all the parameters used for the assessment. He is ranked 10th among Indian scientists.
The 71 year-old Jesuit scientist has published more than 800 research papers and 80 books; he has 12 Indian patents and two US patents. He has helped more than 100 students to get their doctoral degree.
One insect species is named after him: jacthrips ignacimuthui. One natural molecule is named after him: Ignaciomycin. He was instrumental in developing Xavier herbal hand sanitizer to protect against pathogens including Covid-19.
Father Ignacimuthu had earlier served as the vice chancellor of two universities in Tamil Nadu — Coimbatore-based Bharatiyar University and Chennai-based University of Madras.
He had earlier developed a natural herbal biopesticide Ponneem to control insect pests. He worked at Entomology Research Institute, Loyola College, Chennai, during 1993-2018. Since June 2018 he has been working at Xavier Research Foundation, St Xavier’s College, Palayamkottai.
The Jesuit scientist attributes all achievements to scientists and students who have worked with him in what he says is the “labor of love with God’s grace.”
Father Ignacimuthu says God has blessed him “abundantly” and he owes everything to the Society of Jesus, his congregation. “She has nurtured and helped me in all ways,” he told Matters India November 28.
He also recalled with gratitude his teachers, “who formed me from my very young age with intellectual curiosity. They have played a very big role, especially the professors during my university days.”
He further thanked his research staff and students “who have toiled with me for the last 35 years with dedication and hard work.”
It is with great pleasure to know that Rev. Father Ignacimuthu is honoured as high ranking Scientist and proud of him and appreciate and admire him on his scientific pursuits
I knew him very well when he was working in the Loyola College and later as Vice chancellor of Bharathiar University . He is a friendly and amicable personality Prof. Govindarajulu
Former Registrar of University of Madras and senior Prof. Endocrinology
As one of his doctoral students, I am not at all surprised to see this. Some scientists do good to the society they belong to and some do more harm by stealing the tax-payers money, only to publish ‘cherry-picks’. They also go to an extent to accomplish their tasks by dumping who helped them to get into this level. They even obtain radioactive chemicals by cheating the authorities and stored them in unsecured places such as common fridges, a threat to the Health and Safety of research students!
Well done Dr. Ignacimuthu! You have done a great job!!
We praise and thank God for the grace bestowed on Dr Rev. Fr Ignacimuthu. Through his work he has glorified God.
Very happy a d proid to hear about Dr Rev Father Ignacimuthu Certaily Father deserves this international recognition…The Jesuit Community has to be honoured and praised no doubt…Let us all thank God for this recognition
Congratulations Fr Ignaci. I feel so good to hear of this news. Thanks for your friendship from 1984-Delhi. I wait for your next visit to Chicago. 🙏👏
Hearty congratulations. God bless.
Awesome works.great salute to your works in research.hatts off.
Excellent and pathbreaking achievements!
We are all honoured by this highly intelligent and yet humble and loving human being, humanitarian, scientist and consecrated religious and apostle of Christ.
Congratulations. Give us more good scientists.
1) Judith Vijaya of the Department of Chemistry in Loyola College, Chennai
2) Fr. Ignacimuthu of the Department of Biology in St. Xavier’s College, Palayamkottai
have been selected as the topmost scientists.
Indeed, this is one of the many “milestones” or “achievements” of the Jesuits in India. May their good work flourish! May they continue to contribute their best to the human society!!