Assistant Professor, Department of Environmental Biotechnology, Gujarat Biotechnology University (GBU) Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India

Dr. Balaram Mohaptra is an Associate Editor of Biotechnology Kiosk. He is an Assistant Professor and Principal Investigator of the Geomicrobiology-Ecogenomics-Metabolic Engineering (GEMe) research group of the Department of Environmental Biotechnology at the Gujarat Biotechnology University (In partnership with University of Edinburgh). He received his PhD in Arsenic groundwater geomicrobiology from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur, India. Professor Mohapatra is a well-known expert in the field of geomicrobiology, biogeochemistry, metal-microbe interaction, xenobiotic bioremediation, microbial systematics, and genomics. His studies have contributed to the understanding of the role of microbial in releasing toxic arsenic (As) from minerals to groundwater that affects millions of people in Bengal basin, India. Dr. Mohapatra’s innovative research has provided decentralized solution to mitigate As problem. He has received various awards for his research. Prior to joining Gujarat Biotechnology University, he was a Research Associate at IIT Kharagpur in collaboration with University of Sheffield, UK. Then he joined IIT Bombay, India as a Post-Doctoral Fellow, where he conducted studies on fascinating pollutant degrading traits of various novel microbes for their application in waste and pollutant bioremediation. Dr. Mohapatra has published numerous papers in reputed international journals that are well cited. In addition, he has published 12 book chapters/reviews and edited 4 books for students and science enthusiasts. For further details and collaborative opportunities, he is available at balaram.mohapatra@gbu.edu.in.