Born in Selangor, Malaysia, in November 1929, Tan Sri Dr. B.C. Sekhar was educated in Malaysia, Singapore, USA and UK. He is the first Asian to be appointed Director of the Rubber Research Institute of Malaysia in 1966. He was the first Chairman of the Malaysian Rubber Research and Development Board. Between 1974 and 1984, he was also the Chairman of the International Rubber Research and Development Board (IRRDB) which ex­panded under his stewardship from a club of three to a dynamic international organization of 14 member countries. Until 1984, he was Adviser to the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) from its inception and played a key role in the establishment of the International Natural Rubber Agreement (lNRA) and the International Natural Rubber Organization (INRO) under UNCTAD. Sekhar is accredited with spawning technically specified natural rubber and thus containing the onslaught of synthetic rubber.

After retirement  from the Malaysian Rubber Research and Development Board in 1984, Sekhar held prestigious positions in several organizations including the Palm Oil Research and Development Board, Malaysia Carbon, MARDEC, IT International Tyre and Plant Malaysia. In January 1988, he became the first Asian appointed as the Secretary-General of the International Rubber Study Group (IRSG) based in London. In August 1993, he returned to Malaysia and continues to be active in research and development. During the last six years he has filed six international patent applications.

Sekhar is author of more than 300 scientific publications and keynote lectures and has 28 international patents to his credit. He is a Fellow of numerous scientific organizations including the Linean Society, Institute of Materials and the Royal Society of Chemistry, UK. He is a Fellow of the Malaysian Institute of Management and one of the seven Senior Fellows of the Malaysian Academy of Science.

Several national and international accolades have been bestowed upon Sekhar which include the Colwyn Gold Medal of the Institution of rhe Rubber Industry, UK, in 1966; the Ramon Magsaysay Award from the Philippines in 1973: the PSM from the King of Malaysia which carried the title of Tan Sri in 1976; the Tun Razak Award in 1980; the Ridley Memorial Gold Medal in 1984 and the Asian Productivity Gold Medal in 1991. 

A combined analysis of the two equations for rolling resistance R, one based on the whole tyre hysteresis ratio and a second one based on the tyre spring rate, indicated that the tyre parameters namely, the hysteresis ratio (h), the footprint dimensions width (w) and area (A) and the radial stiffness (K) were the first order effects that affect the rolling resistance. The rolling loss reduction with reduced tread width was explained by the footprint shape term (w/A) rather than by the tyre weight loss values. The K was partitioned into' component stiffness values. The K value was approximately equal to 8 per cent of tread stiffness K(t), 15 per cent of carcass stiffness K(c) and 75 per cent of inflation pressure stiffness K(a) for a P195/75R14 size tyre for its working pressure range (207 -262 kPa). The K(a) term was evaluated for the first time for this tyre. 

A sixteen year old rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) plantation was subjected to a study on root distribution pattern using the logarithmic spiral trench method. Considerable variation in root intensity was observed far different soil depths and lateral distances sampled. Total root intensity was maximum in the upper 0-10 cm soil layer for all the lateral distances. The soil zone lying within 3 m lateral distance from the base of the tree and at 30 cm soil depth accounted for almost 70 per cent of the total roots for the rubber trees studied. This forms the zone of root activity for most of the field intercrops, However, crops with limited root spread can be intercropped with rubber under quincunx planting. Also, there is a scope for integrating deep-roared multi-purpose trees with rubber. 

Properties of latex and rubber from 12 exotic Hevea brasiliensis clones along with RRII 105 have been studied for different seasons. Clonal difference, seasonal variation and clone to season interaction have been examined. Possible influence of various latex components and other factors on some of the properties are discussed. Most of the clones studied yielded latex with average to high rubber content and the highest DRC was obtained for RRII 105. Majority of the clones yielded rubber with medium to high viscosity and RRII 105 had a relatively higher viscosity. Good correlation was observed between Mooney viscosity and initial Wallace plasticity of rubbers from these clones. Correlation between initial Wallace plasticity and accelerated storage hardening was also significant. ASHT and gel content showed significant indirect relationship. The molecular weight distribution was extremely wide for these rubbers. The molecular weight and the related characteristics showed less variation. Infrared spectroscopic and thermogravimetric analyses of rubber showed only minor variations between the different clones studied. 

Crop coefficients were worked out for immature rubber using lysimetrically measured crop evapotranspiration and reference evapotranspiration estimated using weather based empirical methods (pan evaporation, modified Penman, Hargreaves and radiation methods). The mean evapotranspiration measured was 2.60, 4.24 and 4.98 mm per day during the first, second and third year respectively. The Kc values increased from the first year to third year of planting for all the four methods studied. A regression analysis indicated that modified Penman method and Hargreaves method are suitable for estimating evapotranspiration of rubber during the summer season. 

A study was conducted to evaluate the performance of seven Hevea brasiliensis clones in different landforms viz., foot hill, mid hill and hill top under the prevailing agroclimatic conditions of Mizoram. All the clones performed well in the foot hill compared to mid hill or hill top. The highest yield was recorded for the clone SCATC 93/114 followed by PB 235 and RRII 300. More yield per tap was recorded for ½S d/3 system of tapping compared to d/2 and d/1 systems, whereas annual yield was high for d/l system. The incidence of tapping panel dryness was high on trees tapped under d/1 system. An increasing trend in the yield was observed from September onwards with a maximum in November and a decline thereafter in all clones under the different tapping systems.