Profile Summary

Dr. Maqshoof Ahmad obtained his PhD degree in Soil Microbiology and Biochemistry from the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad. Post-Doctoral Research training was received from the Institute of Agricultural Sciences in the Tropics, University of Hohenheim, Germany. Dr. Maqshoof is young Scientist who enjoys excellent reputation among his fellow scientists at National and International level due to his novel research achievements. He is working as Associate Professor of Soil Microbiology and Biochemistry in the Department of Soil Science, the Islamia University of Bahawalpur. As Soil Microbiologist, his major focus is on development of biofertilizers for improving crop growth under changing climate. The major research areas are plant growth promoting bacteria, endophytic bacteria as biopesticides, biological nitrogen fixation, study of microbial community structure and diversity, harnessing soil-plant-microbe interactions for improving crop yields, and bioremediation of contaminated soils for sustainable agriculture and environment. Dr. Ahmad has more than 12 years of post-PhD research and teaching experience along with over 10-years of Administrative experience at IUB. He is also working as Director Academics for the last three years and recently appointed as Chairman of the Department of Soil Science. Before this, he served as Manager Research Operations and Development in the Office of Research, Innovation and Commercialization. He is also a part of different Financial and Administrative Committees, and completed various University, Faculty and Department Level assignments. Regarding research, he has established Soil Microbiology and Biotechnology Laboratory at Department of Soil Science, IUB, through competitive grant from Higher Education Commission of Pakistan and won ten (10) research projects of worth more than PKR 35 million, as PI, Co-PI and collaborating scientist funded by National and International organizations including Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, International Food Policy Research Institute IFPRI), USA, BMZ, Germany, and EFS-UAF. Dr. Ahmad has supervised 42 postgraduate research students including 10 PhD scholars and published more than a hundred fifteen research papers with cumulative impact factor of more than 150 and over 4500 citations, and eleven book chapters. He delivered several orals talks in International/National Conferences. He has also visited Germany, Austria, Turkey and Thailand for research purpose. He has developed biofertilizers for cotton, wheat and mung bean, and registered more than 60 novel strains with NCBI database. During his services at IUB, he has established Soil Microbiology and Biotechnology Laboratory through competitive grant from Higher Education Commission of Pakistan and jointly established Soil and Environmental Microbiology Laboratory through Academia-Industry Linkages, at the Department of Soil Science, IUB. The Laboratories are now providing world class analytical facilities for soil fertility & plant nutrition, drinking & irrigation water analysis, heavy metal analysis for soil, water, food, and environmental contaminated samples, and microbial community structure and functioning, to students, faculty, industries, and farming community. Dr. Ahmad is recipient of Research Productivity Award from Pakistan Council of Science and Technology (PCST), Government of Pakistan and won the Best University Researcher Award for the year 2020. He is editor of different journals including Microbiology Journal, Soil & Environment, Frontiers in Microbiology, and Frontiers in Plant Sciences and is working as Editor, News Letter of Soil Science Society of Pakistan.