Awantipora: Dr. Hilal A Makroo, Assistant Professor at the Department of Food
Technology of the Islamic University of Science & Technology (IUST) Kashmir has been
awarded the Young Scientist and Technologist award by the Department of Science and
Technology, Government of India.
The award is granted under the theme “Socio-economic Development and Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs)” for his research on “Ohmic heating based novel aseptic and
continuous processing of viscous food materials for shelf-life enhancement”. Dr. Makroo’s
research team is dedicated to working on valorizing food waste, byproducts, and
underutilizing minor fruits and vegetables. These studies involve the integration of chemical
and life sciences to understand the complexities of the food systems and provide solutions to
challenges in their utilization as part of food security and safety.
Appreciating the research acumen of Dr. Makroo, Prof. A. H. Moon, Dean Research IUST
said “Dr. Hilal is one of the most promising young researchers in our fold. His research work
has already gained international attention and acceptance among top researchers. This a
testimony to the fact that IUST is moving up the ladder very quickly in establishing itself as
an upcoming research university with state-of-the-art infrastructure and visionary leadership”
Under this project, Dr. Makroo and his research team will be working on designing joules
heating-based unconventional thermal processing equipment for viscous food material’s
aseptic and continuous processing. The proposed project is aimed to develop novel
processing equipment and a process to limitations of traditional processing.