Bright old boy does mines cradle proud

Ranchi: An alumnus of Indian School of Mines (now IIT-ISM), Dhanbad, has bagged the National Geoscience Award, 2017, for Young Scientist for his significant contribution to the field of Earth sciences.

Shib Sankar Ganguli (32),

Speaking to this newspaper on Tuesday, Ganguli said he was forever grateful to his alma mater for acting as his career compass. "It was during my days at ISM that I got a chance to attend a two-month course at the National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad. The course motivated me into doing research instead of opting for a job," he said.

The citation, received from the Union ministry of mines, congratulates Ganguli on his research on carbon dioxide.

"The research on assessment of CO2-enhanced oil recovery and safe geological sequestration has great relevance to the society for climate change mitigation owing to excess CO2 emission and recovering oil from mature oilfields for better reservoir management," the citation said.

In other words, his research shows how global warming can be checked by capturing CO2 from industrial areas and injecting it into oilfields to enhance oil recovery, which in turn can reduce dependence on oil import.

"The mobility ratio will increase if oilfields are infused with CO2. The gas can squeeze out the last drop of oil from pores," Ganguli told this newspaper from Kanpur. "It is like washing your oily hands with soda," he explained.

A native of Kashipur in Purulia district of Bengal, Ganguli got his masters degree in applied geophysics from ISM in 2011 after graduating with physics from Burdwan University. He cleared the Graduate Aptitude Test for Engineering with an all-India rank of 30 and earned a fellowship to the Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, Hyderabad.

On being chosen as an Inspire (Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research) faculty under a flagship programme of the Union science and technology ministry, he joined the Earth sciences department of IIT-Kanpur in January 2017.

But, ISM will always be closest to Ganguli's heart. "Since it started functioning in 1926, the institute has been globally known for mining and Earth science studies. The IIT tag is well-deserved and will help students get better placements," he said.

Does he regret having chosen research instead of a steady job in 2012? "Not really," Ganguli said, but mentioned that he missed his mother at the award function. She had heard that he was chosen as the Young Scientist of the Year, but passed away just a month before he received the award.