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P.S.Desikan is a Scientist by profession and a retired Deputy Director of Central Electrochemical Research Institute (CECRI) Karaikudi, India. He graduated in Chemical Engineering from Annamalai University and joined CECRI in 1953. A specialist in fused salt electrometallurgy, he underwent specialized training in France in this field for one year between 1964 and 1965. He headed the Electropyrometelurgy Division of CECRI and was responsibe for the development of a number of new technologies in the field of molten salt electrochemisty. Besides his interests in scientic and technological research P.S.Desikan was deeply devoted to Tamil language and literature. He was also a votary for teaching science through one's mother tongue and thus keen on development of Scientific Tamil. He served for eight years as an Editor of a Tamil journal devoted for science and wrote a number of scientific articles, poems and short-stories relating to science and technology. During his post-retirement period i.e from 1991, he got interested in the field of Translation. His verse-by-verse translation of the Sundara Kandam of Kamban's Ramayana in English prose form which was published by Gangai Puthaga Niliam was acclaimed by several noted Tamil scholars when it was released in 2005.(Click here for newspaper clipping) Following that, he has translated several religious and secular classsics from Tamil to English and vice versa.

Contributions in Science and R &D work

His major contribution is in the field of production of Magnesium metal His team is responsible for the development of a “modular” type of electrolytic cell for the production of Magnesium which resulted in considerable saving of energy and for identifying for the first time in the world “sea-bitterns” as a source of production for Magnesium. He was chosen for the NRDC award Rs.50000/- in the year 1990 and later in1991 he was recipient of WIPO gold medal, from the World Intellectual Property Organization, of UNESCO, for the above discoveries. He has also developed a new process for the production of Super purity Aluminum. He has published over 50 research papers (Click here for a List of Scientific Publicationsand is the author of over 5 patents. .After his retirement in 1991 he has been serving as a consultant for the Defence Metallurgical Research Laboratory, Hyderabad. where he made significant contribution for the development of an industrial proto-type electorylser for the production of magnesium metal.

Literary Pursuits

Mr. Desikan evinced keen interest in scientific Tamil and served as the first Editor of “Ariga Arivial” a Tamil Science journal started by Thava.Thiru Kundrakkudi Adigalar. After his retirement he has been devoting his time in rendering translations and commentaries of some classical works of Tamil. Besides this translation of Sundara Kandam of Kamban in English, he has translated Tagore’s Gitanjali in Tamil. His other works include a commentary on Alwars, a rendering of Tiruvirutham of Nammalwar in a simple free-verse form in Tamil, a Tamil translation of a few Upanishads and a commentary in Tamil of “IranianVadhai Padalam” (The story of Prahalada) of Kamba Ramayana, considered as a masterpiece insertion by Kamban which was not found in Valmiki's original Ramayana.. He has also done a translation of Saint Manikkavasagar's “Tiruvachagam” in English verse form. Though an English translation of this volumious work was done by Rev.GU Pope, some 100 years ago,Desikan has tried to present his own version in contemporaray style. As a part of his quest for translating some secular literature, he has rendered an English version of Manonmaniyam a poetic drama by Prof.Sundaram Pillai (in whose name an university "Manonmanium Sundaranar University" in functioning in Tamil Nadu) . His concern for the social inequalities prevailing in the country in the light of new economic reforms and globalisation prompted him to render a Tamil version (in free verse form) of Oliver Goldsmith's "The Deserted Village" which was written during the period of industrial revolution in England when the villages remained impoverished while urban life prospered. Desikan is presently engaged in translating into English, Nammalwar's Tiruvaimozi, the most celeberated vaishnaivaite literature.

For his contributions to Scientific Tamil and Translations, Salem Tamil Sangam confered the title Tamil Vaagai Semmal(Click for Vidio Clipping) and presented Desikan with a purse of Rs.10000/- at a function held on 4th March 2007

(Shri. P.S. Desikan passed away on September 29, 2007)