The atmosphere around us is filled with many dust particles, pollen grains, tiny molecules, etc. The world of science has various fields which involves the study of everything present not only on Earth but also on the Universe. There is a field of science which deals with the study of plants, different parts of plant and environment is known as “Botany”.
Ganapathi Thanikaimoni was one among those great scientists who made several contributions in the field of botany. Born on the first day of the year, 1st January, 1938. Ganapathi’s birth place was Madras, India. And most of his education was done in Madras only. His primary and intermediate schooling and graduation was done in his hometown. Ganapathi joined the University of Madras in 1962 to get his Master’s degree in Botany.
The successful career of Ganapathi Thanikaimoni started along with his studies. Under the guidance of Prof B G L Swamy, Ganapathi Thanikaimoni contributed to the field of natural science. And for his successful research, he was honored with Fyson Prize. After his Master’s degree, Ganapathi started his research on pollen morphology and study of plant evolution. His outstanding work was the reason for him getting a doctorate degree from the University of Montpellier in 1970.
After his achievements as a palynologist, Ganapathi Thanikaimoni decided to make his name in the field of botany. He joined the French Institute of Pondicherry. His hard work and dedication towards his job was appreciated by everyone and he was promoted as the Director of the Institute. He researched on certain plant species like Clusiaceae, Menispermaceae, Mimosacea, Araceae etc. His works were published in various journals.
Thanikaimoni also named as Thani was a palynologist and researched on pollen morphology. He worked on pollen from flora, fossil pollens, etc. In 1972, Thani got worldwide recognition after publishing of ‘Index Bibliographique sur la Morphologic des Pollens d’Angiospermes’- a work on angiosperm pollen morphology. Ganapathi collected around 20000 species of tropical palynomorph which was used for his later researches.
Ganapathi Thanikaimoni was not only a great scientist but also an environmentalist. Along with his contributions to science, he also researched for the welfare of the environment as well. Thani found that mangroves are very important for the environment. The mangroves and the coastline play a very significant role in the ecosystem. Ganapathi Thanikaimoni tried to educate the public and the government about the need and protection of the mangroves and the coastal areas. The ‘Asia and Pacific Mangrove Project’ of UNESCO had Thani as one of its important members.
Ganapathi Thanikaimoni was a very successful botanist who not only made the nation proud by his discoveries, but also helped in the improvement of relations between two countries in the field of botany.
The great botanist had a very sudden and unexpected death on September 5th 1986. It is said that the plane in which Thani was travelling to attend the UNESCO lecture was hijacked which unfortunately resulted in his death. French Institute of Pondicherry has still preserved Ganapathi Thanikaimoni’s studies and unfinished work for further research.