New Delhi/Bhubaneswar: Renowned plant biologist and Founder of the Cherry Blossom Festivals of India, Professor Dinabandhu Sahoo, has been conferred the Nature Care Award 2025 for his outstanding contributions in promoting nature-based solutions to contemporary environmental challenges.
The award was presented by Nature Care Initiative, a national-level think tank, at a ceremonial function held at the Constitution Club of India, New Delhi. The event was attended by eminent scientists, policymakers, and dignitaries from across the country.
Professor Sahoo is internationally acclaimed for conceptualising and initiating the Indian Cherry Blossom Festivals in Shillong, Meghalaya, and Manipur in 2016, during his tenure as Director of the Institute of Bioresources and Sustainable Development (IBSD) under the Government of India. IBSD has centres in Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Sikkim. He also holds the distinction of being the first Indian student to visit Antarctica as part of the Indian Scientific Expedition (1987–88).
Currently serving as the Head of the Department of Botany and Chairperson of the Research Council at the University of Delhi, Professor Sahoo has been working extensively in the areas of climate change and bioresources management. His pioneering work includes the development of underwater forests through seaweed cultivation, which can sequester three to four times more carbon dioxide than terrestrial plants. He noted that seaweed-based solutions also play a crucial role in mitigating ocean acidification, an emerging global concern.
Professor Sahoo has also been actively promoting environmental awareness through his campaign “Grow a Tree for Life” at college and university levels across the country. In recognition of his scientific contributions, two plant species—Prunus dinabandhuana (a cherry blossom species) and Caulokaempferia dinabandhuensis (a ginger species)—have been named in his honour.
