A great Meteorologist of international repute and was widely acknowledged as the one who introduced remote sensing in India. Recipient of Padmasri in 1970 and Gold medal from World Metrological Organization in 1989. He was disciple of Prof C V Raman. Author of X-Ray, Monsoon and Biography of Dr. C V Raman. He was the founder director of Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, National Physical Research Laboratory-Ahmedabad, National Remote Sensing Agency.
Born on 10th February 1909 to Kollankott Perum Trikkovil Pisharath Lakshmi Pisharasiar and Gopala Vadhyar, he completed his early education in Kerala. Having done his Physics BA honours from St. Joseph’s College, Trichinopoly, Madras state, he went on to do his MA (Physics) from Madras University. He then proceeded to work as a college lecturer in Physics at Chennai during 1932-1941. During the summer vacations he used to work under Prof. C. V. Raman at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. On being recommended by Raman, Pisharoty joined the India Meteorological Department in 1942. There he carried out research on thunderstorms, western disturbances, movement of monsoon depressions, orographic rain, etc. He then joined the University of California for further studies where he worked under renowned meteorologist Jacob Bjerknes. His published two reports titled Some aspects of geostrophic poleward sensible heat and The kinetic energy of the atmosphere. He obtained his MS (in Meteorology) and PhD degrees by 1954.
Pisharoty served as the Director, Remote Sensing and Satellite Meteorology, at ISRO Space Applications Centre, Ahmedabad during 1972-75. He was a Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of World Meteorological Organization from 1963 to 1968 and later its Chairman. He also served as the Vice-President of the International Association of Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences, and as a member of Joint Organising Committee for Global Atmospheric Research Programme from 1969 to 1977. He worked at PRL until the early nineties when he retired for health reasons.
Awards
1957 – Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences
1978 – Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy
1970 – Awarded the prestigious Padma Shri national civilian award of the Indian government in recognition of his contributions.
1988 – First recipient of the Raman Centenary Medal.
1989 – Awarded the IMO Prize by the WMO.
1990 – Received the K. R. Ramanathan Medal established by Indian National Science Academy.
Family
Wife: Droupadi Pisharasiar, Thonnangamath Pisharam, Thrissur.
Daughter: Rema Pisharoty
Son: Narayan Pisharoty
Daughter: Jaya Pisharoty
Pisharoty died on the morning of 24 September 2002 at Pune, at the age of 93. The Indian Society of Remote Sensing renamed the Indian National Remote Sensing Award to ‘P. R. Pisharoty Memorial Award’ in his memory. The GPS Radiosonde of ISRO’s VSSC is named after Pisharoty.
പ്രണാമം മഹാത്മൻ പി ആർ പിഷാരോടി 🙏