Drsuruchipuri at 23:19, 25 April 2024

2024-04-25T23:19:25Z

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{{short description|Indian ecologist and professor}}
{{autobiography|date=March 2017}}{{Primarysources|article|date=December 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2016}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2016}}
[[File:Chandra Prakash Kala.JPG|thumb|Chandra Prakash Kala in the middle Himalayan region of India]]
'''Chandra Prakash Kala''' is an Indian ecologist and professor. His research interests include [[Alpine climate|alpine]] ecology, [[conservation biology]], [[indigenous knowledge]] systems, [[ethnobotany]] and [[Medicinal plants|medicinal]] [[aromatic plants|aromatic]] plants. He is an assistant professor in the faculty area of Ecosystem and Environment Management at the [[Indian Institute of Forest Management]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://iifm.ac.in/node/196 |title=Kala, Chandra Prakash | भारतीय वन प्रबंध संस्थान, भोपाल |access-date=1 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151203144027/http://www.iifm.ac.in/node/196 |archive-date=3 December 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Early life and education==
Kala was born and grew up in Sumari, a small village of [[Uttarakhand]] state in [[India]]. He studied life sciences at the [[Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University]], Srinagar before completing a PhD on the ecology and conservation of the [[Valley of Flowers National Park]] at the [[Forest Research Institute (India)|Forest Research Institute]] (a [[deemed university]]), Dehradun.

==Career==
He has published over 185 research papers and articles and nine books including: ''The Valley of Flowers: Myth and Reality'',<ref name="indianbooks">{{cite book|url=http://www.indianbooks.co.in/bookmart/the-valley-of-flowers-myth-and-reality.html|title=The Valley Of Flowers: Myth and Reality; Chandra Prakash Kala; International Book Distributors, New Delhi|publisher=indianbooks.co.in|accessdate=2014-10-05|isbn=9788170893110|date=2004-01-01|archive-date=6 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006095617/http://www.indianbooks.co.in/bookmart/the-valley-of-flowers-myth-and-reality.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> ''Medicinal Plants of Indian Trans-Himalaya'',<ref name="google">{{cite book|title=Medicinal Plants of Indian Trans-Himalaya: focus on Tibetan use of medicinal resources|author=Kala, C. P.|date=2003|publisher=Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh|isbn=9788121101806|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xqRKAQAAIAAJ|accessdate=2014-10-05}}</ref> ''Medicinal Plants of Uttarakhand'',<ref name="amazon">{{Cite book|isbn=978-8176222099|title=Medicinal Plants of Uttarakhand: Diversity, Livelihood and Conservation: Chandra Prakash Kala: 9788176222099: Amazon.com: Books|last1=Kala|first1=Chandra Prakash|year=2010|publisher=Biotech Books }}</ref> and ''Ecology and Conservation of Valley of Flowers National Park''.<ref name="google2">{{cite book|title=Ecology and conservation of the Valley of Flowers National Park, Garhwal Himalaya|author1=Kala, C.P.|author2=Rawat, G. S.|author3=Uniyal, V. K.|author4=Wildlife Institute of India (Dehra Dūn, India)|date=1998|publisher=Wildlife Institute of India|isbn=9788185496061|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ydEsAQAAMAAJ|accessdate=2014-10-05}}</ref> He writes popular articles regularly in English and Hindi. His decade long studies on the [[Valley of Flowers National Park]] laid the foundation stone to declare the Valley of Flowers a [[World Heritage Site]] by UNESCO in 2005.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Kala | first1 = C. P. | year = 2005 | title = The Valley of Flowers- A Newly Declared World Heritage Site | url = http://www.iisc.ernet.in/currsci/sep252005/919.pdf | journal = Current Science | volume = 89 | issue = 6 | pages = 919–920 | access-date = 20 September 2014 | archive-date = 17 October 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181017190453/http://www.iisc.ernet.in/currsci/sep252005/919.pdf | url-status = dead }}</ref>

Kala has surveyed two major traditional systems of Asian therapies - [[Ayurveda]]<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash |title=Current Status of Medicinal Plants used by Traditional Vaidyas in Uttaranchal State of India |journal=Ethnobotany Research & Applications |date=2005 |volume=3 |pages=267–278 |doi=10.17348/era.3.0.267-278 |hdl=10125/179 |doi-access=free |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash |title=Preserving Ayurvedic Herbal Formulations by Vaidyas: The Traditional Healers of the Uttaranchal Himalaya Region in India |journal=HerbalGram |date=2006 |volume=70 |pages=42–50 |url=http://cms.herbalgram.org/herbalgram/issue70/article2969.html }}</ref> and the [[traditional Tibetan medicine]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash |title=Health traditions of Buddhist community and role of amchis in trans-Himalayan region of India |journal=Current Science |date=2005 |volume=89 |issue=8 |pages=1331–1338 |jstor=24110838 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1080/17451590609618098 |title=Medicinal plants of the high altitude cold desert in India: Diversity, distribution and traditional uses |journal=International Journal of Biodiversity Science, Ecosystems Services & Management |volume=2 |pages=43–56 |year=2006 |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash |s2cid=85420560 |doi-access=free }}</ref> He has studied various natural resource management practices evolved by various tribal communities in northwest,<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/S0006-3207(99)00128-7 |title=Status and conservation of rare and endangered medicinal plants in the Indian trans-Himalaya |journal=Biological Conservation |volume=93 |issue=3 |pages=371–379 |year=2000 |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1111/j.1654-1103.2002.tb02104.x |title=Patterns of plant species distribution in the Trans-Himalayan region of Ladakh, India |journal=Journal of Vegetation Science |volume=13 |issue=6 |pages=751 |year=2002 |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash |last2=Mathur |first2=Vinod B. }}</ref> northeast<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1186/1746-4269-1-11 |pmid=16288657 |pmc=1315349 |year=2005 |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash |title=Ethnomedicinal botany of the Apatani in the Eastern Himalayan region of India |journal=Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine |volume=1 |pages=11 |doi-access=free }}</ref> and central India,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kala |first1=C. P |title=Traditional ecological knowledge on characteristics, conservation and management of soil in tribal communities of Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve, India |journal=Journal of Soil Science and Plant Nutrition |date=2013 |doi=10.4067/S0718-95162013005000018 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1007/s11676-015-0083-3 |title=Forest structure and anthropogenic pressures in the Pachmarhi biosphere reserve of India |journal=Journal of Forestry Research |volume=26 |issue=4 |pages=867–874 |year=2015 |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash |s2cid=16408415 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1186/1746-4269-5-20 |pmid=19653889 |pmc=2729299 |title=Aboriginal uses and management of ethnobotanical species in deciduous forests of Chhattisgarh state in India |journal=Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine |volume=5 |pages=20 |year=2009 |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra |doi-access=free }}</ref> especially in [[Arunachal Pradesh]], [[Himachal Pradesh]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (union territory)|Jammu and Kashmir]], [[Uttarakhand]], [[Chhattisgarh]] and [[Madhya Pradesh]]. Besides the Valley of Flowers, he surveyed many other high altitude protected areas, including [[Kedarnath Wild Life Sanctuary]], [[Great Himalayan National Park]], [[Hemis National Park]], [[Karakorum Wildlife Sanctuary]], [[Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary]], [[Kibber]] Wildlife Sanctuary, [[Pin Valley National Park]] and [[Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary]].<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1111/j.1523-1739.2005.00602.x |title=Indigenous Uses, Population Density, and Conservation of Threatened Medicinal Plants in Protected Areas of the Indian Himalayas |journal=Conservation Biology |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=368–378 |year=2005 |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash |s2cid=85324142 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra |last2=Kothari |first2=Kishor |title=Livestock predation by common leopard in Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary, India: human-wildlife conflicts and conservation issues |journal=Human–Wildlife Interactions |date=1 January 2013 |volume=7 |issue=2 |doi=10.26077/c366-ej10 |url=https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/hwi/vol7/iss2/10/ }}</ref> Kala also has surveyed the [[Alps]] including the only national park of Slovenia, [[Triglav National Park]].<ref name="springer">{{cite journal |doi=10.1007/s10531-012-0246-x |title=High altitude biodiversity of the Alps and the Himalayas: Ethnobotany, plant distribution and conservation perspective |journal=Biodiversity and Conservation |volume=21 |issue=4 |pages=1115 |year=2012 |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash |last2=Ratajc |first2=Petra |s2cid=13911329 |url=https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?id=36874&dn= }}</ref>

He has served internationally recognized institutions well known for framing and implementing policies, including the National Medicinal Plants Board, the apex body of the [[Ministry of Health and Family Welfare]], of India.<ref name="indianjournals">{{cite journal |doi=10.5958/j.0975-4261.1.2.011 |title=Medicinal plants conservation and enterprise development |journal=Medicinal Plants - International Journal of Phytomedicines and Related Industries |volume=1 |issue=2 |pages=79 |year=2009 |last1=Kala |first1=Chandra Prakash }}</ref>

Kala is on the editorial and advisory board of over a dozen of national and international scientific journals, including ''Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine'', ''American Journal of Plant Sciences'', ''International Journal of Ecology'', ''Applied Ecology and Environmental Sciences'', ''International Journal of Forestry Research'', ''Journal of Biodiversity'' and ''African Journal of Plant Sciences''.<ref name="ethnobiomed">{{cite web|url=http://www.ethnobiomed.com/about/edboard|title=Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine | Editorial Board|publisher=ethnobiomed.com|accessdate=2014-10-05}}</ref><ref name="hindawi.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.hindawi.com/35040497/|title=Chandra Prakash Kala|publisher=hindawi.com|accessdate=2014-10-05}}</ref>

== Award and recognition ==
Kala is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the first science academy of India established in 1930.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nasi.org.in/ |title=The National Academy of Sciences, India - Home |accessdate=2014-05-27 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140516215346/http://nasi.org.in/ |archivedate=16 May 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> He has been awarded fellowships from the national and international institutions including the [[International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development]], Nepal the [[Ministry of Environment and Forests (India)|Ministry of Environment and Forests]], the [[Wildlife Institute of India]], and the [[G.B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment|G. B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development]] - for carrying out research on the ecology and [[biodiversity]] conservation in the various [[national parks]], wildlife sanctuaries and [[biosphere reserves]] of the Indian [[Himalayas]].<ref name="hindawi.com"/><ref name="KalaSilori2013">{{cite book|author1=Chandra Prakash Kala|author2=Chandra Shekhar Silori|title=Biodiversity, Communities and Climate Change|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z669SP9trLAC&pg=PA329|date=1 January 2013|publisher=TERI Press|isbn=978-81-7993-442-5|pages=329–}}</ref>

He has been a [[visiting scholar]] at [[Pennsylvania State University]], in the United States and the [[University of Ljubljana]] in Slovenia.

Kala was awarded the prestigious [[Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education|ICFRE]] Award for Excellence in the Forest Conservation (Biodiversity and Ecology).<ref>Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education. http://icfre.org/UserFiles/File/annual_report-2005-06/chapter-2.pdf</ref>

== Works ==
=== Collection ===

* ''Nanda's Neelkanth''

=== Short stories ===
{{columns-list|colwidth=30em|
* "A Delicious Affairs"
* "Nagrasani"
* "The Last Wish"
* "The Tip of the Tail"
* "Man-eaters of Garhwal"
* "Spurge and Snake Bite"
* "Tapyo"
* "My Favorite Medicine"
* "The Prisoners of School"
* "Riding the Best"
* "Gaura’s Home"
* "Aunty"
* "A Killer in the Clouds"
* "A Bull in the Leopard’s Monarchy"
* "The Heavenly Leaf"
* "The Forgotten Healers"
* "His Confession"
* "Seers of Pandukeshwar"
* "Battle Between the Best"
* "The Fragrance of Parijaat"
* "The Childhood Friend"}}

=== Travelogues ===
{{columns-list|colwidth=30em|
* "On His Wishes"
* "The Bear’s Trail"
* "A Non-vegetarian in the Holy Hills"
* "A Job Hunter"
* "My First Job"
* "My Maiden Visit to Penn State"
* "Botanist of Surguja"
* "Ziro"
* "A City of Biodiversity"
* "A Week with Everest and Nanda Devi Summiteers"
* "The Silence of Candolim"
* "The Land of Many Shades"
* "Om Mani Padme Hum"
* "The Roof of the World"
* "The Floating Heaven"
* "A Vagrant and the ‘Queen of Mountains’"
* "Hidden Gem of Europe"
* "The Majesty of Mahasu"}}

=== Essays ===
{{columns-list|colwidth=30em|

* "Paradise Under Fire"
* "Taste the Himalayas"
* "Revitalizing Sacred Grove"
* "The Tremor of Tragedy"
* "Mountains of Sanjeevani"
* "Grasslands in Peril"
* "Call from the Hills"
* "Sacred, a Way of Life"}}

=== Books ===
* ''The Valley of Flowers: Myth and Reality''
* ''Medicinal Plants of Uttarakhand''
* ''Medicinal Plants of Indian Trans-Himalaya''
* ''Medicinal Plants and Sustainable Development''
* ''Biodiversity, Communities and Climate Change''

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
*{{cite web|url=https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=EfLtwKIAAAAJ|title=Chandra Prakash Kala|publisher=[[Google Scholar]]|accessdate=2016-02-28}}
*{{cite web|url=https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.url?authorId=6602891940|title=IE7Message|publisher=scopus.com|accessdate=2014-10-05}}
*{{cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Chandra_Prakash_Kala|title=Chandra Prakash Kala|accessdate=2016-08-19}}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.downtoearth.org.in/author/chandra-prakash-kala-842|title=Chandra Prakash Kala|publisher=Down To Earth|accessdate=2016-08-19|archive-date=14 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160914133434/http://www.downtoearth.org.in/author/chandra-prakash-kala-842|url-status=dead}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kala, Chandra Prakash}}
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Indian male writers]]
[[Category:Ethnobotanists]]
[[Category:Indian ecologists]]
[[Category:Scientists from Uttarakhand]]
[[Category:People from Pauri Garhwal district]]
[[Category:Indian environmentalists]]
[[Category:Himalayan studies]]
[[Category:Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University alumni]]

Chandra Prakash Kala - Revision history

Drsuruchipuri at 23:19, 25 April 2024