Dr. Basharat Ali

Academic Biography

Dr. Basharat Ali is an early career aquatic scientist, academician and researcher specializing in aquaculture, fish nutrition, aquatic ecology and sustainable fisheries development. With years of research and professional experience, he has built expertise in fish nutrition, fish health management, ichthyofaunal diversity and sustainable aquaculture practices with a strong focus on sustainable aquatic food production in ecologically sensitive regions. He holds a Ph.D. in Zoology from Panjab University, Chandigarh, where his doctoral research focused on optimizing dietary protein requirements in Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio) and evaluating cost-effective herbal feed additives to improve fish growth, immunity and overall health. He also qualified prestigious national examinations including UGC-CSIR NET-JRF and GATE in Life Sciences. Currently, Dr. Ali serves as Assistant Professor in the Department of Zoology at the University of Ladakh, where he teaches postgraduate students and leads research in fish diversity, aquatic ecology and sustainable aquaculture development in high-altitude ecosystems. Earlier, he worked with the United Nations Development Programme as District Program Manager Fisheries, implementing climate-resilient aquaculture strategies and supporting local fish farming communities under a World Bank-funded initiative. Dr. Ali has made significant research contributions with 10+ peer-reviewed scientific publications in reputed international journals including Aquaculture Research, Fisheries Science, Agricultural Research, and Aquaculture Reports. His work largely focuses on fish nutrition, herbal feed additives, disease resistance and sustainable alternatives to conventional aquafeeds. He is currently Co-Principal Investigator of a DST-funded major research project worth INR 39.3 lakh titled Sustainable Aquaculture at High Altitude for Food and Livelihood Development in Rural Ladakh and has also secured a Prakriti Research Fellowship grant for community-led conservation of fish habitats in Kargil. Among his notable achievements, Dr. Ali received the Junior Scientist Award (2025) from the Society of Fisheries and Life Sciences and secured First Position in first ever 110 hour national-level Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) Biodiversity Hackathons in 2025. Through his research, teaching and field-based conservation work, he continues to contribute toward advancing sustainable aquaculture, biodiversity conservation and livelihood development in Himalayan and high-altitude ecosystems of India.