Department of Biotechnology
inStem (Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine)
Directory > Faculty & Scientists

Dr. Sabuj Bhattacharyya

Scientist - C

sabujb@instem.res.in

91-80-61948001 EXT, 8179

Dr Sabuj Bhattacharyya is a scientist specialising in research and academic integrity at the Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (BRIC-inStem). He joined inStem in 2022 and established the dedicated Research Ethics and Integrity Office (RIO), a major milestone that has helped shape conversations on research governance, academic integrity, and responsible conduct of research on campus and beyond. His work bridges science, research policy, ethics, education, and communication, with a strong commitment to strengthening trust, transparency, and accountability in the scientific research ecosystem.

Dr Bhattacharyya has received training in wildlife sciences as well as in research ethics and integrity during his doctoral tenure at the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, and the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has explored conservation genomics during his post-doctoral tenure at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, and the University of Sheffield, UK. Before joining DBT-inStem, he worked as a grant adviser at DBT-Wellcome Trust India Alliance, Hyderabad, to facilitate clinical and biomedical research in India.

Area of Expertise

  • Academic, research ethics and integrity
  • Publication ethics
  • Systematic review and policy analysis
  • Pedagogy and curriculum development
  • Artificial Intelligence and Ethics
  • Ecology, environment and climate change

Teaching Responsibility

  • Primary course instructor for Research Methodology and Publication Ethics (2 credits)
  • Co-course instructor for Fundamentals of Science Communication (2 credits)
  • Monthly ethics seminar for campus awareness.

Student Supervision

  • Ms Geethika Y (2025). Summer Internship, Manipal University, Jaipur campus.
  • Mr Mradansh Boyal (2025). KARYA Summer Intern, Govt. of Rajasthan, Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur, Rajasthan
  • Mr Arnab Chatterjee (2018). Master’s Thesis, Department of Zoology, University of Calcutta. At present PhD candidate supported by a DAAD-INDIA doctoral fellowship at Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany

Professional Memberships

  • European Network for Academic Integrity (ENAI) since 2023
  • IUCN/SSC Lagomorph Specialist Group (2009 to date)
  • British Commonwealth Scholarship Commission Alumni Advisory Panel, UK (2021-2025)

Outreach and Infographics

• Developed Academic Integrity and Regulatory Compliance Teaching Resource Database (https://ethicsandregulatio.wixsite.com/-ethics-and-regulato) funded by DBT Wellcome Trust India Alliance. Contributed to Nature India Article “ India’s research retraction surge sparks call for reform” (https://www.nature.com/articles/d44151-025-00141-y) , which was focused on a recent study on retraction of life science articles in the last 4 decades.
• Bhattacharyya S, Thorat T (2024). Organised and delivered lectures in Workshop on Academic Integrity and Regulatory Compliance in Life Science for University Faculties, 12th-13th Feb 2024, at inStem, Bangalore, funded by DBT Wellcome Trust India Alliance.
• Helped IndiaBioscience to make Research Ethics and Integrity Infographics Infographics
• Shining a spotlight on academic integrity: A conversation with Sabuj Bhattacharyya by IndiaBioscience
• ENAI – Around the Globe in 30 Vodcast: Ep2 by European Network for Academic Integrity

Fellowships

  • British Commonwealth Professional Fellowship (2016-2017) at the University of Sheffield, United Kingdom
  • DBT Postdoctoral Research Associate Fellowship (2014-2018) at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore
  • Ravi Sankaran Inlaks Foundation Internship 2012 in Conservation Biology at Bangor University, Wales, United Kingdom.
  • CSIR -Senior Research Fellowship 2012-2014 at Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun
  • Senior Research Fellowship (2009-2010 & 2011-2012) from Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun and Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India
  • Nehru-Fulbright Doctoral Fellowship 2010-11 at the University of Colorado, Boulder and the University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
  • Junior Research Fellowship (2007-2009) from Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India

Research Grant

  • IRMI RM grant 2022-2023 from DBT Wellcome Trust India Alliance, India
  • Pro Natura Foundation, Japan, grants 2014-2015 in Conservation Science

Travel Grant & Bursary

  • Word Congress in Research Integrity (WCRI) Travel Grant 2026 to participate in the WCRI 2026 conference, in Vancouver, Canada.
  • American Society for Mammalogists Travel Bursary 2024 to participate in the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Mammalogists in Colorado, USA.
  • Word Congress in Research Integrity (WCRI) Travel Grant 2024 to participate in the WCRI 2024 conference, in Athens, Greece.
  • DBT Wellcome Trust IRMI Travel Grant 2022 to participate in the European Conference on Ethics, Integrity in Academia, 2023, Derby, UK.
  • Society for Experimental Biology and the Company for Biologists Travel Grant 2017 to participate in the 3rd symposium on molecular analysis of trophic interactions, Uppsala, Sweden.
  • EPFL Travel grant to participate in the conference at Polar Congress 2017, Crans-Montana, Switzerland.
  • International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP), Oxford, UK Travel Grant 2015 to participate in the 3rd conference of the North American Pika Consortium in Golden, Colorado, USA.
  • Beijing Forum Travel Grant 2014 to participate in the Student Conference on Conservation Science (SCCS) at Peking University, Beijing, China.
  • GYBN Travel Grant 2012 to participate in the 1st Global Youth Biodiversity Network Conference in Berlin, Germany.
  • World Lagomorph Society Travel grant 2012 to participate in the 4th World Lagomorph conference in Vienna, Austria.

Peer-Reviewed Publication (* corresponding author, Google Scholar Profile)

Theme: Research Integrity and Publication Ethics

23.Bhattacharyya S*(2025). Designing research and publication ethics assignments for doctoral students in higher education institutes.  Discover Education 4, 425. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44217-025-00884-x

21. Bhattacharyya, S*., Mahapatra, B. B., Palakodeti, D., Ladher, R. K., Sane, S. P., & Ramanathan, A. (2025). Building a Multi-Institutional Research Ethics and Integrity Office in India: Processes and Challenges. In European Conference on Ethics and Integrity in Academia (pp. 13-24). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-95686-7_2

20. Bjelobaba S, Waddington L, Perkins M, Foltýnek T, Bhattacharyya S, Weber-Wulff D (2025).  International Journal for Educational Integrity. 21, 18 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40979-025-00191-w

19. Bhattacharyya S*, Chatterjee N and Ramanathan A. Understanding the patterns and magnitude of Life Science publication retractions in the last four decades (2025). International Journal for Educational Integrity. 21, 17 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40979-025-00193-8

Theme: Ecology, Genetics and Environment

18. Beever E, Wilkenning J.L.,., Bhattacharyya, S.,., Kenneth C. (2023). Geographic and taxonomic variation in adaptive capacity among mountain-dwelling small mammals: Implications for conservation status and actions. Biological Conservation. 282, p.109942. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2023.109942

17. Varner, J., Carnes‐Douglas, Z. J., Monk, E., Benedict, L. M., Whipple, A., Dearing, M. D., Bhattacharyya, S, … & Ray, C. (2023). Sampling a pika’s pantry: temporal shifts in nutritional quality and winter preservation of American pika food caches. Ecosphere, 14(5), e4494. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4494

16. Grace, M. K., Akçakaya, H. R…, Bhattacharyya S,.., Young S. (2021). Testing a global standard for quantifying species recovery and assessing conservation impact. Conservation Biology, 35(6), 1833-1849. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.13756

15. Chatterjee A, Bhattacharyya S*(2021). Assessing the threats facing wetland mammals in India using an evidence-based conservation approach.  Mammal Review. 51(3):385-401.https://doi.org/10.1111/mam.12242. https://doi.org/10.1111/mam.12242

14. Bhattacharyya, S.*, Dawson, D., Hipperson, H., Ishtiaq, F (2019). A diet rich in C3 plants reveals the sensitivity of an alpine mammal to climate change. Molecular Ecology. 28(2): 250-265. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.14842

16. Bhattacharyya, S.*, Ishtiaq, F. (2019). Noninvasive genetic sampling reveals population genetic structure in the Royle’s pika (Ochotona roylei) in the western Himalayas. Ecology and Evolution. 9:180-191.doi10.1002/ece3.4707. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.14842

13. Bhattacharyya, S.*, B. S. Adhikari and G. S. Rawat (2019). Faunal abundance along timberline ecotone in western Himalaya with reference to anthropogenic pressure and season: A case study. Tropical Ecology, 60, 288-298. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42965-019-00033-0

12. Bhattacharyya, S.*, B. S. Adhikari and G. S. Rawat (2019). Seasonal variation in the activity budget of Royle’s pika. Journal of Natural History, 53:1873-1888. https://doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2019.1662130

11. Bhattacharyya, S.*, Mungi, N., Rawat, G.S., Kawamichi, T., Adhikari, B.S., Wilkening, J.(2019). Insights from past and present distribution of an alpine mammal, Royle’s Pika (Ochotona roylei), to predict future climate change impacts in the Himalaya. Regional Environment Change. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-019-01556-x  

10. Wilkening, J.*, Pearson-Prestera, W., Mungi, N., Bhattacharyya, S (2019). Endangered species management and climate change: when habitat conservation becomes a moving target. Wildlife Society Bulletin.43(1): 11-20, https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.944

9. Bhattacharyya, S.*, A.T. Smith (2018). Species account: Ochotona roylei. In: “Lagomorphs: Pikas, Rabbits, and Hares of the World of World”, Prof. A.T. Smith, C. Johnston, P. Alves, K.Hacklender (Eds.), Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 75-76.

8. Smith, A.T.* and Bhattacharyya, S. (2016). Ochotona roylei. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016:e.T41268A45184591. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/41268/45184591#assessment-information

7. Bhattacharyya, S. and C. Ray* (2016). Of plants and pikas: evidence for a climate-mediated decline in forage and cache quality. Plant Ecology and Diversity. 8(5-6):781-794. https://doi.org/10.1080/17550874.2015.1121520

5. Bhattacharyya, S.*, S. Dutta, B. S. Adhikari and G. S. Rawat (2015). The presence of a small mammalian prey species in open habitat is dependent on refuge availability. Mammal Research. 60(4), 293-300 https://doi.org/10.1007/s13364-015-0234-0

5. Bhattacharyya, S.*, B. S. Adhikari and G. S. Rawat (2014). Influence of microclimate on the behavioural response of Royle’s pika (Ochotona roylei) in western Himalaya, India. Zoological Studies. 53:73. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40555-014-0073-8

4. Bhattacharyya, S.*, B. S. Adhikari and G. S. Rawat (2014). Influence of snow and habitat characteristics on abundance of Royle’s pika in Western Himalaya, India. Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research. 46(3): 558-567. https://doi.org/10.1657/1938-4246-46.3.558

3. Bhattacharyya, S.*, B. S. Adhikari and G. S. Rawat (2013). Factors affecting food selection in Royle’s pika (Ochotona roylei) in Western Himalaya, India. Zoology. 116(5):300-306. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.zool.2013.05.003

2. Rai, I.D.*, S. Bhattacharyya and B.S. Adhikari (2011). Common Coot Fulica atra: first report for Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary, Western Himalaya, Uttarakhand, India. Indian Birds 7(4):110.

1. Bhattacharyya, S., B. S. Adhikari* and G. S. Rawat (2009). Abundance of Royle’s pika (Ochotona roylei) along an altitudinal gradient in Uttarakhand, Western Himalaya. Hystrix: The Italian Journal of Mammology 20(2): 111-119.  DOI: https://doi.org/10.4404/hystrix-20.2-4441

Technical Report

1. Bhattacharyya S.*, Ishtiaq F., Kawamichi T., Ray C., Peacock M.M. (2017). Assessing the impact of climate change on high altitude small mammals in the alpine Himalaya, India: An interdisciplinary approach.  Annual Report of Pro Natura Foundation Japan, vol. 25, pages 97-110  

2. BS Adhikari*, Rawat GS, Rai ID, Bharti RR, Bhattacharyya S (2011). Ecological assessment of timberline ecotone in western Himalaya with special reference to climate change and anthropogenic pressures. IV Annual Report, Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, India.

Journal  Reviewer

1. Journal of Academic Integrity, 2. International Journal for Educational Integrity, 3. Frontiers in Psychology, 5.  European Science Editing Journal, 6. Scientific Reports, 7. Peerj, 8. Ecology and Evolution, 9. Mammal Review,10. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 11. PlosOne, 12. Journal of Mammalogy, 13. Journal of Biogeography, 14. Integrative Zoology 15. Canadian Field Naturalist, 16. Mammalian Biology, 17. Journal of Applied Ecology, 18. Canadian Journal of Zoology