Bollywood Director

Priyadarshan releases
the vacation issue (April) of
Manorama Tell Me Why,
'Great Movies'.
,
June 2013 . , Volum: 7 No: 6 ' ; ,<
From the house of
MAGIC POT, THE WEEK,
MANORAMA YEARBOOK, VANITHA &
THE MALAYALA MANORAMA DAI!)
MERA SHARAT MAHAAN
Twenty-six centuries ago, before the advent of
modern medical practices, an I ndi an doctor, Sushruta
stitched back the severed nose of a patient! Thi s giant
l eap, considered the world's first plastic surgery, was
a great mi l estone in medical science, si nce the rest of
the world knew little about the human body.
I ndia's knowledge, ski l l , and scientific tradition
dates back to some 3000 years before Christ. Thanks
to our ancestors' bri l l i ant and creative mi nds, I ndia
made great achievements in different areas of
science, right from i ntroduci ng the concept of zero,
to expl oring the wonders of astronomy. The concept
of the atom was first proposed by an I ndi an scientist,
Kanada. From the mi crocosm to the vast expanses of
outer space, nothing was beyond I ndi an scientific
mi nds. Today, I ndi an scientists are internati onal l y
renowned, and cel ebrated for thei r i nnovation and
talent.
This issue ofTel l Me Why tel l s the i nspiring story of
our great I ndi an scientists, from ancient times to the
present.
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Why is Baudhayana associated
with the Pythagoras theorem?
A
famoustheorem i n geometry,
known as the Pythagoras
theorem was actual l y expl ai ned by
an I ndi an mathematician cal l ed
Baudhayana, many years before
Pythagoras was born. Baudhayana
l ived around 800 Be. Pythagoras
l ived between 580 and 500 Be.
Baudhayana was the author of
one of the earl iest documents i n
I ndi an mathematics. I t i s bel i eved
that Pythagoras actual l y travel l ed
to Egypt, and then I ndia, and
l earned many i mportant mathe
matical theories, among them what
i s now known as the Pythagoras
theorem.
Baudhayana has made many
other i mportant discoveries_ These
Tel l Me Why
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i ncl uded how to draw
a ci rcl e and a square
havi ng the same area,
theval ueofthesquare
root of two, and the
approximate val ue of
'pi' whi ch is cal cul ated
and corrected to five
deci mal s.
Great Indian Scientists
Why is Sushruta called 'the father of
plastic surgery?'
S
ushruta was one of the earl i est
surgeons in recorded hi story. He
l ived i n the 6th century BC, nearly 1 50
years before Hi ppocrates, and lef a
book, the 'Sushruta Samhita,' explai ni ng
hi s surgical methods.
I n his book, Sushruta described howto
pul l teeth, how to fix broken bones, and
how to fix bl ockages of the i ntestines.
Sushruta was the first physi ci an to
advocate what i s today known as the
'caesarean' surgery. He was al so an
expert in removi ng kidney stones, and
locati ng and treati ng fractures.
Sushruta was the first physi ci an wh0
mended a nose al most 26 centuri es ago.
The techni que he used i s not very
different from what a plastic surgeon
uses today.
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6
Statue ofCharaka
Halayudha
Halayudha was
an Indian mathe
matician who
lived in the TU'"
century AD. He is
believed to be
the first person
to give a clear
description of a
geometrical
arrangement
now known as
Pascal's Triangle.
Why is Charaka called the I the father
of medicine'?
C
haraka was born around 300 BC
He is bel i eved to have been a
wanderi ng Buddhist monk and
physi ci an, and was one of the pri nci pal
contributors to the anci ent art and
science of ayurveda. He wrote a famous
treatise cal l ed 'Charaka Samhita', whi ch
i s used as a reference book even today.
Charaka was the first physi ci an to
present the concept of
di gestion, metabol i sm,
i mmunity, and the funda
,
mental s of genetics. He studied
Why is Kanada associated with the
atom?
T
he Sage Kanada, who l i ved in the
6th century BC, was the world's
first proponent of the 'atomi c theory'.
He stated that the atom- or paramanu
is i ndivi si bl e, and that the world is made
up of atoms. He has cl assified all the
objects of creation i nto ni ne el ements
earth, water, l i ght, wi nd, ether, ti me,
space, mi nd, and soul . Accordi ng
to
hi m, every object of creation is made of
atoms. Kanada added that there are a
variety of paramanu that are as different
as the di fferent classes of substances.
Tell Me Why
the anatomy of the human body and
vari ous organs, and cal culated 360 as the
total number of bones, i ncl udi ng teeth,
present in the human body. He wrongly
bel i eved that the heart had one cavity,
but he was ri ght when he considered it to
be a control l i ng centre.
Charaka never just treated di seases. He
would first study al l the factors, i ncl udi ng
environment, whi ch i nfl uence a patient's
di sease, and only then, prescribe a course
oftreatment. To thi s day, Charaka i s cal l ed
the father of medi ci ne, and i s famed for
hi s power to i l l umi nate the reason for
i l l ness with the l amp of knowledge and
understandi ng.
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Su1CCuS10Oy.
Great Indian Scientists
Each paramanu has a
pecul i ar property whi ch i s
the same as the cl ass of
substance it bel ongs to.
Kanada spoke of the
tendency of atoms or
paramanu to combi ne
together to form what we
now cal l' mol ecul es.
Kanada al so put forward
the i dea of chemi cal
change, whi ch he said i s
caused by heat. Kanada
was a geni us, phi losopher,
a nd the pi oneer of the
atomi c theory.
7

'
I
I

Lharakabamhta
'Charaka Samhita' is the famous Ayurvedic treatise
written by Charaka. lt has remained a standard work on
the subject for more than two thousand years, and has
been translated into many languages, including Latin
and Arabic.
N
agarjuna was a great I ndi an sci entist who
was born i n Gujarat i n AD 931 . He was a
chemi st, an alchemist, metal l urgi st and
medi ci ne man.
As an al chemist, he knew the ar of trans
muti ng base metal s to look l i ke gol d. The Arabs
learnt the technique from hi m, and cal led it AI
Ki mi a. Medi eval Europeans learnt about it from
the Arabs, and cal l ed it al chemy.
Nagarj una's most famous work i s 'Rasarat
nakara,' whi ch deal s with preparati ons of rasa -
or mercury- compounds. I n hi s treatise, he has
di scussed methods for the extracti on of metals
l i ke gol d, si lver, ti n, and copper.
As the author of medi cal books l i ke 'Arogya
manjari ' and 'Yogasara', heal so made si gnificant
contri buti ons to the field of curative medi ci ne.
Because of hi s profound schol arl i ness and
versati l e knowledge, he was appoi nted as
chancel l or of the famous Uni versity of Nal anda.
He was one of the wizards of chemi stry, and hi s
di scoveries conti nue to i mpress and astoni sh
scientists even today.
8
Tell MeWhy
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and shi nes only because
of sunl i ght, and that the
ecl i pses are caused by the
shadows cast by the Earth
1:
and the moon.
Why i ryabhata cons ered to be
one of tte greatest of astron
omers?
A
ryabhata is a famous I ndi an
mathematician and astronomer,
who was born in 476 AD. He studied
at the University of Nal anda. Later, he
became the head ofthe university.
Aryabhata i s consi dered to have
changed the course of
mathematics and
astronomy to a great
extent. He was the first
to deduce that the
Earth i s round, and
that it rotates on i ts
own axis, creati ng day
and ni ght. He decl ared
that the moon i s dark
Statue of Arabhata
Great Indian Scientists
Hi s most famous works
are the Aryabhatiya, and
the Arya Si ddhanta.
Aryabhata was the first i n
the l i ne of great mathe
mat i ci an- astronomers
from the cl assi cal age of _
I ndi an mathematics and
astronomy. I ndia's first
satel l ite is named afer
hi m.
Why was Varahamihira considered one of
the nine jewels of Vikramaditya's court?
V
arahami hi ra was an I ndi an astrologer,
astronomer, and mathemati ci an who
l ived i n Ujjai n between 505 and 587 AD. Hi s
book 'Pancha Si ddhanta' hol ds a promi nent
place i n the real m of astronomy. The work i s a
treatise on mathematical astronomy, and it
summarizes five earl i er astronomical treatises.
Varahami hi ra's other works reveal hi s
di scoveries i n the fiel ds of geography, sci ence,
botany, and ani mal science.
I n hi s treatise on botani cal science,
Varahami hi ra presents cures for vari ous
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diseases afl icting
plants and trees. Hi s
work 'Brihat Samhita'
gives us descri ptions
of heavenly bodies,
thei r movements,
and conjunctions .
Varahami hi ramade
some i mportant
mathematical di scov
eries as wel l. He was
considered to be one
of the ni ne jewels or
navaratnas of the
courtofthel egendary
rul er Vikramaditya of
Ujjai n for hi s contri
butions to di ferent
branches of science.
Tell MeWhy
Why is Brahmagupta considered a great
mathematician?
B
rahmagupta was a great 7th century
(AD 597-668) I ndi an mathemati ci an and
astronomer hai l i ng from the state of Rajasthan.
Brahmagupta became the head of the astro
nomi cal observatory at Ujjai n.
I n hi s work on arithmetic, Brahmagupta
explained how to find the cube and cube-root of
an i nteger, and gave rul es faci l itating the compu
tation of squares and square roots. He al so gave
rules for deal i ng with five types of combi nations
offracti ons.
Brahmagupta's geni us, however, came i n hi s
treatment of the concept of zero. Although the
number zero i s often al so attributed to the 7th
century I ndi an mathematician Bhaskara I,
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Great Indian Scientists
B r a h m a g u p t a ' s
'Brahma Sphuta
Si ddhanta' i s
probably the earl i est
known text to treat
zero as a number i n
its own right, rather
than as si mply a
placeholder digit as
was done ti l l then.
Brahmagupta al so
dedicated a
substanti al portion
of his work to
geometry and trigo
nometry.
Statue oJ
Patanjali
Why is Patanjali respected to this day?
P
atanjal i , or Acharya Patanjal i as he has been known through
the ages, was one of the great yogi s of al l time . He lived i n
the 2nd century Be, and is credited wi th the first attempt to bri ng
together al l the knowledge contai ned i n the ancient I ndi an science
of yoga. He prescribed the control of prana or l ife breath as the
means to control the body, mi nd, and soul . Acharya Patanjal i's 84
yogic postures efectively enhance the efficiency of the respi
ratory, circul atory, nervous, di gestive, and endocrine systems, and
many other organs of the body.
The yoga system of Patanjal i i s known as the Eightfol d Path,
which leads to the fi nal goal of God-realization. Acharya Patanjal i
wi l l forever be remembered and revered as a pioneer i n the science
of self-discipl i ne, happi ness, and self-real ization.
Why is Sridhara considered to be a great mathema
tician?
S
ridhara, was an I ndi an mathemati ci an who lived
around the 1 0th century (AD 870-930). There are two
theories concerni ng hi s bi rthplace. Some hi stori ans put
Bengal asthe pl aceofhis birth, whi l e other hi stori ans bel i eve
that Sridhara was born in southern I ndi a. He i s famous for
hi s writi ngs on the practical appl i cati ons of al gebra, and he
was one of the first to give a formul a for solvi ng quadratic
equations.
Sri dhara i s known as the author of two mathematical
treatises, namely the Trisatika, someti mes cal l ed the
Pati gani tasara, and the Patiganita. However, at least three
other works have been attributed to hi m too. The Pati ganita
covers the mathematical operations of addition, su btraction,
multi pl i cati on, division, fi ndi ng squares, cubes and their
roots, fracti ons, proportions, and some geometrical
pri nci ples, but the last section i s lost. The Trisatika i s a brief
summary of the Pati ganita.
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What are Mahavira's contributions to mathe

matics?
M
ahavira was an I ndi an mathematician who
l ived i n the 9th century. He worked i n Mysore
in southern I ndia, where he was a member of a
school of mathematics. Mahavira made si gnificant
contri butions to the development of al gebra.
The only known book by Mahavira i s 'Ganita Sara
Samgraha,' dated 850 AD. It consi sted of ni ne
chapters, and i ncl uded al l the mathematical
knowledge of 9th century I ndi a.
There were many I ndi an mathematicians before
the ti me of Mahavi ra but perhaps, surprisingly, their
work on mathematics i s al ways contai ned i n texts
which di scuss other topics such as astronomy.
The Ganita Sara Samgraha by Mahavira i s the
earliest I ndi an text we possess, which i s devoted
entirely to mathematics. Mahavira also stressed the
i mportance of mathematics i n al l ki nds of di sci
pl i nes, i ncl udi ng cooki ng.
1 4
Tell Me Why
Terms for Numbers
Bhaskaracharya has
given the terms for
numbers in multiples of
ten. They are eka(1),
dasha(1 0), shata(1 00),
sahasra(1000),
ayuta(10,000),
laksha(100,000),
prayuta
(1 ,000,000=million) and
soon.
Great Indian Scientists
Why is Brahmadeva
considered one of the
immorals of mathematics?
B
rahmadeva was an
I ndian mathematici an
who wrote a commentary on
the work of Aryabhata. He
l i ved between 1 060 and 1 1 30
AD i n the Mathura di strict of
Uttar Pradesh.
Brahmadeva's commentary
i s i n ni ne chapters, and it
fol l ows the contents of the
ori gi nal work of Aryabhata,
i ncl udi ng the l ongitudes of
the pl anets, probl ems
rel ati ng to the dai l y rotation
of the heavens, ecl i pses of the
sun and moon, risi ngs and
setti ngs, the l unar crescent,
and conjunctions of the
pl anets.
Brahmadeva's commentary,
deal i ng partly with trigo
nometry and its appl ications
to astronomy, was parti cularly
popul ar in Madras, Mysore,
and Maharashtra.
Brahmadeva died at the age
of 70, but hi s reputation as a
sci enti st, mathemati ci an,
astronomer, and academi ci an
l ives on.
1 5
Why is Bhaskaracharya
considered a genius?
B
haskaracharya wasa geni us
i n mathematics, especi al l y
i n algebra and geometry. He
was born i n Sahyadri, and
headed the astronomi cal
observatory i n Ujjai n.
Bhaskaracharya also known as
Bhaskara I I (AD 1 1 1 4- 1 1 83), wrote
six books on arithmetic, al gebra,
trigonometr, cal cul us, geometry,
and astronomy. He suggested
si mpl e methods to calculate the
squares, square roots, cube, and
cube roots of big numbers.
The Pythagoras theorem was
proved by hi m in only two l i nes.
Bhaskaracharya wrote about the
gravitational force that hel ps to
keep the pl anets, the sun, and the
moon i n thei r respective orbits
much before the rest of the world
even thought about such an expla
nati on. His work on cal cul us
predates Newton and Lei bni z by
over half a mi l l enni um. He is partic
ul arly known for the discovery of
the pri nci ples of differenti al
cal cul us, and its appl ication to
astronomi cal probl ems and
computations. Hi s renowned works
are 'Li lavati' and ' Bijaganita'.
1 6
Bhaskarachara
Why is J.L. Bose
honoured to this day?
J
agadi sh Chandra
Bose, al so known as
J. e. Bose, was an I ndi an
physicist who pi oneered
the i nvestigation of radi o
and microwave optics.
He was educated at
Cal cutta, Cambri dge,
and London. He studi ed
physical science i n St.
Xavier's Col l ege at
Cal cutta, and the natural
sciences i n Engl and. He
then joi ned Presidency
Tell Me Why
Col l ege at Cal cutta i n 1 855 as assi stant
professor of physics. Most of hi s
i mportant physi cal and bi ol ogi cal
experiments were carried out at the
Presidency Col l ege l aboratory. The
Bri ti sh government kni ghted hi m i n
1 91 7.
Jagadish Chandra Bose
Jagadi sh Chandra Bose was one of
the pi oneers of modern science i n
I ndia. Hi s research was on the
properties of el ectro-magnetic waves.
He i s al so known for hi s experiments
demonstrati ng the sensitivity and
growth of pi a nts, for wh i ch he desi g ned
Great Indian Scientists
an extremel y sensitive
automatic recorder. He
found that pl ants shri nk
a l ittle duri ng the ni ght ,
and found out why
pl ants always grow
towards l i ght, even if
they have to bend. He
di scovered the reason
why some pl ants grow
straight, and some do
not. He expl ai ned that
thi s was due to the
'pul sati on' i n pl ants.
J.e. Bose is the
. i nventor of wi rel ess
telegraphy, but before
he coul d register hi s
patent, Gugl i el mo
Marconi secured hi s
patent on wi rel ess
tel egraphy, and the
latter's name appeared
in the world record as
the i nventor.
Jagadi sh Chandra
Bose founded i n
Cal cutta the 'Bose
I nstitute' in November,
1 91 7, with donati ons
from the publ ic. He
remai ned its di rector ti l l
hi s death on 23,d
November, 1 937.
1 7
Visvesvaraya
Why is M. Visvesvaraya a
remarkable Indian?
V
isvesvaraya was an engi neer
par excellence, a hi ghl y
respected statesman, and a
vi si onary. He was born i n Mysore
in 1 860. Hi s first job was as an
assistant engi neer i n the Publ i c
Works Department under the
government of the erstwhi le
Bombay Presidency. Later, he al so
served as the chi ef engi neer of the
erstwhi l e state of Mysore, as wel l as
the Dewan of Mysore for si x years.
M. Vi svesvaraya was the dri vi ng
force behi nd the construction of
manymajor dams andwater supply
schemes, i ncl udi ng the famous
Kri shnaraja Sagar dam. The use of
automatic sl uice gates, an
engi neeri ng i nnovation appl ied i n
many dams across the country, was
hi s i dea. He was i nstrumental in the
formation of Mysore University as
wel l as the Vi svesvaraya Col l ege of
Engi neeri ng and University of
Agri cul tural Sciences. He al so
played an i ntegral rol e i n setti ng up
the Mysore I ron and Steel Works,
and the Ba n k of Mysore, now known
as the State Bank of Mysore. He was
honoured with Bharat Ratna i n
1 955.
Tell Me Why
Why is P .C. Ray considered the
father of the Indian chemical
industry?
D
r. P.e. Ray, often referred to as
Acharya Praful l a Chandra Ray,
was a pioneer of chemical i ndustries
i n I ndi a. P.e. Ray was born on August
2nd 1 861 , in Bengal . Hi s father was a
rich landowner so he coul d afford to
send the young Praful l a to the UK for
higher educati on, where he got hi s
B.5e. i n 1 886, and D.5e. i n 1 887. He
returned to Kol kata, and became a
professor of chemi stry in 1 889 at
Presidency Col l ege.
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0rOlnurySClCn1|S1.
Great Indian Scientists
Dr. P.e. Ray
succeeded in isolati ng
mercurous nitrite.
Later, Ray and hi s
co-workers studied
compoundsofmetal l ic
el ements with organi c
su I ph u r derivatives. He
worked hard to set up,
at a surpri si ngl y low
cost, 'The Bengal
Chemi cal s and
Pharmaceutical Works
Ltd.' usi ng local l y
avai l abl e materi al s. He
i nspi red a generation
of young chemi sts in
I ndia, thereby bui l di ng
up an I ndi an school of
chemi stry.
19
Why is Ramanujan's life story an amazing one?
S
rinivasa Ramanujan's life story is an amazing one.
The chil d of very poor parents, he taught hi mself
mathematics from an el ementary Engl ish textbook. This
self-taught prodigy never graduated from a college, but
sent over 1 00 remarkable theorems that he had
di scovered, to a great mathematician i n Cambridge,
Godfrey Hardy. Soon, a regul ar correspondence
developed betweenthetwo, and in 1 91 4, Ramanujan
enrol l ed at Trinity Col lege, Cambridge. There,
Hardy and Ramanujan began col l aborati ng.
He made contributions to the analytical
theory of numbers, and worked on el l i ptic
functions, continued fractions, and infinite
series. As he had no formal trai ni ng i n
mathematics, he arrived at his results by
an al most mi racul ous intuition.
Ramanujan was elected as Fel l ow
of the Cambridge Phi losophical
Society, and Fellow of the Royal
Society of London i n 1 91 8 .
He died at an young age
i n 1 920.
Ramanujan
Tell Me Why
C.V.Raman
Who won the Nobel Prize for Physics in
TU

C
handrasekhara Venkata Raman , or Sir
C. V. Raman, as he is popul arl y known,
was born i n 1 888 i n Tami l Nadu. He obtai ned
a master's degree in physics in 1 907. He
topped the Fi nanci al Civi l Service Compet
itive Exami nation, and was appoi nted
deputy accountant general i n Cal cutta. He
later became professor of physics i n
Cal cutta, and i n 1 928, became the di rector
of the I ndi an I nstitute of Science, Bangal ore.
There i n 1 943, Raman founded hi s own i nstitute near Bangalore,
The Raman Research I nstitute.
C.V. Raman was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in
1 930, for his di scovery of the 'Raman Efect'. It opened up
the unknown routes to unveil the mysteries of l i ght
wave optics, acoustics, and col l oids.
C. V. Raman was conferred the hi ghest title of
'Bharat Ratna' in 1 954. He passed away i n
1 970, and to thi s day, i s honoured as one
of the greatest scientists I ndi a has
ever seen.
S.R. Kashyap
Professor Kashyap is called the Father of Indian bryology. He
was the first secretary of the Indian Botanical Society, and
president of Indian Science Congress in 1932. He is known
mainly for the work on Bryophyta, and discovered some new
genera and many new species of Bryophyta. Bryology is the
branch of botany concerned with the scientific study of
bryophytes (mosses, liverwors, and hornwors).
Great Indian Seien
22
Why is Professor Sahni called
the father of paleobotony?
D
r Bi rbal Sahni was the
founder of palaeobo
tani cal research i n I ndia, and i s
rightly cal led The father of
I ndi an pal eobotony'. He went
to Cambri dge University for
hi gher studies, obtai ned hi s
B.5e. degree from London
University, and started hi s
research under an i nspi ri ng
teacher, Si r Al bert Charl es
Seward. After returni ng to
I ndi a, he hel d faculty posi ti ons
at Banaras Hi ndu Uni versity,
Varanasi andPunjabUniversity,
and Lucknow University.
Sahni was a teacher par
excel l ence, and had great
passion for pal aeobotany. He
started teachi ng thi s subject
from a smal l corner in the
botany department, Lucknow
University, and ultimately
succeeded i n establ i shi ng a
wel l -recogni zed international
i nstitute for this subject.The
Bi rbal Sahni I nstitute of Paleo
botany establ i shed i n 1 946 i s
wel l known throughout the
world today.
Birbal Sahni
P rCC0uS
1Crn,nOCCOl
Tell Me Why
Dr. Pandurang
Sadashiv Khankhoje
Dr. Pandurang Sadashiv
Khankhoje was an
Indian revolutionary,
scholar, agricultural
scientist and historian.
He worked as an
agricultural scientist in
Mexico, on the Mexican
corn breeding project,
and was appointed
director to the Mexican
government's
department of
agriculture. Later, he
returned to India, and
settled in Nagpur.
Great indian St
Why is Prashanta Chandra
Mahalanobis a key figure in the
science of statistics?
P
rashantha Chandra
Mahal anobis was born i n
Calcutta i n 1 893. He studied i n Presi
dency College, Cal cutta and later i n
Cambridge, where he took mathe
matics and physics. Whil e in
Cambridge, he developed an
i nterest i n statistics that ended up
overtaki ng hi s first love, physics.
Mahal anobis was the founder of the
I ndi an Statistical I nstitute, or lSI, i n
1 93 1 . He al so started a new journal
i n statistics cal l ed 'Sankhya,' and
establ ished a division wi thi n the l SI
called the Nati onal Sampl e
Survey. This division, al ong with
Mahal anobis, playedan incredibly
vital role i n the creation of the
second five-year economic pl an
i n I ndi a. Mahal anobis' contribu
tions to statistics are quite
numerous, and hi s work coul d
always be associated with some
field of appl ication too. He
received one of the hi g hest civi l i an
awards - the Padma Vi bhushan
from the Government of I ndi a. He
was made a Fel l ow of the Royal
Society London ( FRS) i n 1 945.
Meghnad Saha
K.C.Mehta
K.C. Mehta was a
famous scientist
whose field of
specialization was
plant pathology. He
is known for his
research regarding
the recurrence of
rust- an infection
that affects plants.
His research showed
that the infection
spreads from the
Himalayas in the
Norh, and the
Nilgiri and Palany
Hills inthe South.
Who is Meghnad Saha?
M
eghnad Saha was an
outstandi ng I ndi an
sci enti st, who made remarkabl e
contributions to the fi el d of
astrophysics. In 1 91 3, he
graduated i n mathematics from
Presidency Col lege, Calcutta. I n
1 91 7, Meghnad Saha joi ned as a
lecturer at the University
Col l ege of Science i n Cal cutta.
He taught quantum physics.
In 1 91 9, the American Astro
physical Journal publ i shed a
research paper by Meghnad
Saha. I n thi s paper, he put
forward an ' i onization formul a,'
whi ch proved to be a break
through in astrophysics.
In 1 927, Meghnad Saha was
el ected as a Fel l ow of London's
Royal Society. He moved to
Al l ahabad and i n 1 932, estab
l i shed the Uttar Pradesh
Academy of Science.
In 1 947, Meghnad Saha
founded the I nstitute of Nucl ear
Physics, whi ch later was named
after him. He made the first
effort to i ncl ude nucl ear-physics
i n the curricul um of hi gher
studies of science.
D0n1 OlS1urO.
MyO0SSlSw0rklng
0n1hC b0S0n
1hC0ry.
Satendra Nath Bose
Why is Sathyendra Nath Bose
associated with Einstein?
I
ndi an physi ci st Satyendra Nath
Bose is known for working with
Al bert Ei nstei n.
I n 1 91 9, Bose and Saha prepared the
first Engl ish-l anguage book based on
German and French transl ati ons of
Al bert Ei nstei n' s ori gi nal , special, and
general relativity papers.
Bose's first article on theoretical
physics was on 'Equati on of State',
based on research conducted and
publ i shed joi ntly wi th Meghnad Saha.
I ncorporating the Theory of Relativity
propounded by Al bert Einstei n, thi s
equation expl ai ned many aspects of the
Bhatnagar Memorial
Award
After Shanti Swarup Bhatna
gar's death, the Bhatanagar
Memorial Award was instituted
in 1958. lt is awarded annually
by the CSIR for outstanding
research in diferent fields of
science, and is considered the
most prestigious scientific
award in India.
pressure, cubi c measure, and
temperature of gases. Thi s article
was publ i shed in 1 91 8.
Scientists now refer to it as the
'Saha-Bose Equati on'. Ei nstei n
systematical l y adapted Bose's
approach in his own work. That
i s why thi s parti cul ar field of
Bose's research has come to be
known as 'Bose-Einstein
Statistics'. Later, Bose got an
opportunity to meet Ei nstei n,
and substantiate hi s theories.
Quantum statistics, a wel l
known branch of sci ence today,
was yet to see the l ight of day.
Bose's theoretical exposition
developed this branch.
26
What were Shanti Swarup
Bhatnagar's contributions
to the nation?
S
hanti Swarup Bhatnagar
pl ayed a si gnificant role
in the bui l di ng of post-i nde
pendent I ndi a's sci ence and
technol ogy i nfrastructure and
i n the formul ation of I ndi a's
science and technol ogy
pol icies. He was the founder
di rector of the Counci l of
Scientific and I ndustri al
Research or CSI R, whi ch was
later to become a major
agency for research i n
i ndependent I ndi a. He was the
Tell Me Why
first chai rman of the University
Grants Commi ssi on.
Bhatnagar was a university
professor for 1 9 years, first at the
Banaras Hi ndu University, and
then at the Punjab University. He
had a reputati on as a very i nspi ri ng
teacher. Hi s research contri buti on
i n the areas of magneto chemi stry
and physi cal chemi stryofemul si on
were wi del y recogni sed. He al so
did consi derabl e work in appl ied,
and i ndustri al chemi stry. The first
i ndustrial probl em undertaken by
Bhatnagar was the development
of a process to convert bagasse
-peel i ngs of sugarcane- i nto food
cake for cattle. Bhatnagar, joi ntly
with K. N. Mathur, wrote a book
'Physi cal Pri nci pl es and Appl i ca
tion
sofMagnetoChemi stry' whi ch
i s
recogni sed as a standard work
on
the subject
In 1 936, the Bri ti sh Government
conferred on Bhatnagar the Order
Great Indian Scientists
Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar
of Bri ti sh Empi re, for hi s
excel l ent contri buti on to
pure and appl ied chemistry.
Bhatnagar was kni ghted i n
1 941 , i n recogni ti on of hi s
work for the war effort. He
was the president of the
I ndi an Chemi cal Society,
Nati onal l nstituteofSci ences
of I ndia, and the I ndi an
Nati onal Science Congress.
He was awarded the title
Padma Vi bhushan by the
President of I ndi a.
27
Fungus named
after a Scientist
W0wl11`S
uOOur0myCCSl
Subbarao never marketed his
work, and never sought fame or
recognition. But American
Cyanamid Company
honoured Subbarao by
naming a new fungus in his
name,/Subbaromyces
splendens' .
Salim Ali
28
Why was Salim Ali known as 'The
Birdman of India'?
K
nown as the 'Bi rdman of I ndia',
Dr. Sal i m Al i's name has become
synonymous with bi rds. One of the
greatest orni thol ogists and natural i sts
of al l ti me, he was one of the very first
scientists to carry out systemati c bi rd
surveys i n I ndi a and abroad. Sal i m Al i
publ i shed a research paper di scussi ng
the nature and activities of the weaver
bi rd in 1 930. The paper made hi m
famous, and establ ished hi s name i n
the field of orni thology. He travel led
widely to fi nd out more about diferent
species of bi rds, and publ i shed many
books, i ncl udi ng The Book of I ndi an
Bi rds.' based on hi s fi ndi ngs. The
Government of I ndi a honoured hi m
with the Padma Bhushan i n 1 958, and
the Padma Vi bhushan i n 1 976.
Tell Me Why
Y. Subbarao
Birth of a
Birdwatcher
Salim Ali's interst in birds
started at the age of 1 0.
He picked up a fallen bird
that looked like a house
sparrow but had a
yellowish throat. He
wanted to know what
kind of bird it was, so his
uncle took him to meet
W.S. Millard, the
Honorary Secretary of
the Bombay Natural
History Society. The
meeting was the turning
point in Salim Ali's life for
it sparked his interest in
birds and bird watching.
Great Indian Scientists
Why is . Subbarao
considered a world
class scientist?
Y
. Subbarao was an
I ndi an biochemist.
He spent most of hi s
career i n the US, and led
some of the most
i mportant medi cal
research duri ng World
War I I . He first became
famous with the di scovery of
an esti mati on of phosphorous
in body fl ui ds and ti ssues,
al ong wi th another scientist,
Cyrus Fi ske. Thi s method of
esti mati on came to be known
as the Fi ske- Subbarao
Method.
Subbarao's name entered
bi ochemi stry textbooks with
the di scovery of adenosi ne
tri phosphate and phospho
creati ne, or ATP, whi ch are the
sources of energy i n human
body. I n medi ci ne, Subbarao
di scovered many anti bi otics
and also hel ped to develop a
drug used i n the treatment of
cancer. He was recognized as
one of the most emi nent
medi cal mi nds of the l ast
century.
29
Why was K.S.Krishnan an
outstanding scientist?
K
.S. Krishnan was an I ndi an
physicist who worked with Si r
C.V. Raman, and played a si gnificant
role in the di scovery of the Raman
Effect. He was an outstandi ng
physicist as wel l as an erudite
schol ar in phi losophy, and has been
a rol e model of a teacher to a whol e
generati on of I ndi an scientists.
In the early 1 920s, Raman started
hi s studi es on the scatteri ng of l i ght
from vari ous materials, havi ng
al ready made a mark by hi s work i n
acoustics, especi al ly the behavi our
of I ndi an musi cal i nstruments. I n
1 928, K. 5. Kri shnan shared i n the
excitement of di scovering the
Raman Efect along with hi s mentor,
C.V. Raman. Later, Kri shnan used hi s
i nnovative experimental ski l l s to set
30
Tribute from
Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru paid
tribute to K.S. Krishnan by
declaring "he is a great
scientist but is something
much more. He is a perect
citizen, a whole man with an
integrated personality."
K.S. Krishnan
up a new method of
measuri ng the anisotropy
of magneti c suscepti bi l ity
in crystal s. These i nvestiga
tions of Kri shnan, in l i ght
scatteri ng and magnetic
measurements, were
considered so profound
that he was el ected to the
Fel l owshi p of the Royal
Society, London in 1 940, at
the relatively young age of
42 years. In 1 942, K.5.
Kri shnan was made the
professor and head of the
department of physics at
the Universityof Al l ahabad.
I n 1 947, he moved to Del hi
to become the Di rector of
the Nati onal Physical
Laboratory.
Tell Me Why
K.R. Ramanathan
K.R. Ramanathan was an Indian physicist and meteorologist.
He was the first director of the Physical Research Laboratory
in Ahmedabad. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1965,
and the Padma Vibhushan in 1976. He established Dobson
ozone spectrophotometer stations in India.
K.5. Kri shnan made
pioneering contribu
tions i n a number of
fiel ds of physics, and
had the abi l ity to
recognize and exploit
connection between
phenomena in
diferent fields of
physics. He al so
pl ayed an i mportant
role in the devel
op
ment of science
and technol ogy in
I ndia. He was deepl y
associated with the
premier scientific and
educational organiza
tion
s in the country
like
the Atom it Energy
Com
mission, the
Counci l of Scientific
a
nd
I ndustrial
Res
earch, and the
University Grants
Great Indian Scientists
Commission. He was kni ghted in 1 946
and awarded the Padma Bhushan by the
Government of I ndi a i n 1 954. He was al so
the first recipient of the presti gi ous
Bhatnagar Award i n 1 958. K. 5. Kri shnan
was perhaps a current day model of the
ancient sages or rishis, who made I ndia
great.
D0n`1w0rry,
hC|S1CS1|n

1hC
`Rumun- 1
|
C1
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31
32
Tiruvenkata
Rajendra Seshadri
Tiruvenkata Rajendra
Seshadri was an Indian
phytochemist who
published more than 1000
papers, and discovered
many chemicals from
plants. He was also a
model teacher who had
more than 150 PhD
students. He guided them,
helped them write their
theses, and even assisted
them financially if they
needed it. He was
awarded the Padma
Shushan in 1963.
T. R. Seshadri
Why is K.R. Rao
considered a pioneer in
NQR Spectroscopy?
K
.R. Rao, or Kotcher
.

l akotaRangadhama
Rao to give hi m hi s ful l
name, was an I ndi an
physicist who i s best
known for his work in the
fiel d of spectroscopy and
the development of the
nucl ear quadrupol e
resonance or NQR.
Dr. Rao conducted
research on atomi c
spectra at the I mperial
Col l ege of Science and
Technology i n London
under the guidance of
Professor A. Fowler. He
subsequently returned to
I ndi a to start research
work on the nucl ear
quadrupol e resonance i n
the l aboratories of the
Andhra University.
Dr. Rao's contri buti on
to the worl d of physi cs in
general ,andspectroscopy
in particular, i s i mmense.
Bei ng an emi nent name
Tel l Me Why
KR. Rao
i n the hi story of physics in the country,
he is remembered through awards and
honours named after hi m.
Apart from hi s rol e as physicist, Dr.
Rao has always been known as a
nati onal i st, for hi s si mple tastes i n
lifestyle and dress .
The Rangadhama Rao Memorial
Lecture Award was established by
the National Institute of Sciences of
India in 1979. lt is given for
outstanding contributions in the
field of spectroscopy.
Grea
t Indian Scientists
r !
34
Why is Kedareswar Banerjee remem
bered to this day?
K
edareswar Banerjee or K. Banerjee
was a pi oneeri ng X-ray crystal l og
rapher and di rector of the I ndi an Associ
ation for the Cultivation of Science,
Kol kata. He was born i n 1 900 i n Dacca, and
i n 1 923, after a bri l l iant academic career,
joined the research groupofSi rC.V. Raman
at the I ndi an Association for the Culti
vation of Science or lACS. He worked i n
various i nstituti ons i ncl udi ng lACS, the
I ndi an Meteorol ogi cal Department, Dacca
University and Al l ahabad Uni versity. He
lr,1hCCrS1uS
urCrCuOylCuCh
mC S0mCCryS1u
hyS|CS.
retired as thedi rector ofl ACS
in 1 965.
Banerjee l ai ,q the
foundation of X-ra crystal
l ographi c research in I ndi a.
I n 1 924, when onl y a few
crystal structures had been
determined throughout the
world, Banerjee's work on
the determination of atomi c
arrangements i n crystal l i ne
naphthal ene and
. anthracene received inter
nati onal attention.
Apart from structural X-ray
crystal l ography, Banerjee's
research pursuits covered a
wi defield of crystal physics.
Tell Me Why
D0 y0ukn0w
1hu1hC|Su
1CS11uOC lun1?
rea
t Indian Scientists
Why is P. Maheshwari
considered a great botanist?
P
rof. P. Maheshwari was an
I ndi an botani st who i s
known worl dwi de for hi s
research on the embryology of
pl ants. He was born i n Jai pur i n
1 904.
Maheshwari i nvented the
techni que of test-tube ferti l i
zation of angi osperms. Ti l l then,
no one thought that floweri ng
pl ants coul d be ferti l ized i n test
tubes. As a result of thi s
techni que, more floweri ng
plants coul d now be cross-bred.
The techni que proved to be of
i mmense hel p to pl ant breeders,
and opened up new avenues i n
economi c appl i ed botany. Hi s
work, ' An I ntroduction to the
Embryology of Angi osperms' i s
a cl assi c i n that field.
I n 1 95 1 , he l aunched the I nter
nati onal Soci ety of Pl ant
Morphol ogi sts.
3S
Why is P.R. Pisharody called the
Father of Remote Sensing in
India?
P
.R.Pi sharody was born i n
Kerala and completed hi s
earl y education i n that state.
Duri ng the summer vacations he
used to work under Prof. C. V.
Raman at the I ndi an I nstitute of
Science, Bangalore. Pisharody
then joined the University of
Cal iforni a.
On hi s return to I ndia, Pi sharody
became the di rector of the Col aba
and Al i bag Magnetic Observa
tories i n 1 959, andfounderdi rector
of the I ndi
a
n I nstitute of Tropical
Meteorology, .Pune in 1 962.
Pi sharody served as the di rector,
Remote Sensing and Satel l ite
Meteorology, at ISRO Space Appli
cations Centre. He was entrusted
with the job of introduci ng remote
sensi ng technology i n I ndia. He
accepted the chal lenge, and hi s
pi oneeri ng experiment of
detection of coconut wi lt-root
di sease using Soviet ai rcraf and
US equipment was considered to
be the first success i n remote
sensing i n I ndi a, earning hi m the
title of 'Father of Remote Sensi ng
i n I ndia'.
Tell Me
Wh
y
Why will Subrahmanyan Chandrasekar
always be remembered?
S
Ubrahmanyan Chandrasekhar wasan
I ndian-born, Americanastrophysicist.
The nephew of Si r C.V. Raman, he was
educated i n Madras, before goi ng on to
Cambridge University, and later to the
USA, where he worked at the University of
Chicago, and the Yerkes Observatory. He
explored astrophysical subjects such as
stel l ar structure, the theory of white dwarf
stars, and the mathematical theory of bl ack
holes. He edited the Astrophysical Journal
for nearly 20 years, and i n 1 983, shared the
Nobel Prize for Physics with Wi l l i am A.
Fowler, for key di scoveries that l ed to the
currently accepted theory, on the later
evol uti onary stages of massive stars. Hi s
last book was 'Newton's Pri nci pia for the
Common Reader'.
NASA renamed their advanced X-ray
astrophysics faci l ity as the Chandra X-Ray
Observatory in hi s honour.
iI s Nath Kaul
Pro
fessor Kailas Nath Kaul was an Indian botanist, agron
omist, agricultural scientist, horiculturist, herbalist, and
n
atura
list. He established the National Botanical Gardens
at
Luck
now in 1948. He remained director of the Botanical
Gar
dens
till 1965.ln this period, the National Botanical
Gar
dens,
Lucknow, became one of the world's five best
botanical gardens.
Gr
e
at I
ndi
an
Scien
tists
37
G N. Ramachandran
38
Why is Homi Bhabha considered the
founder of India's atomic energy
programme?
H
omi Bhabha, whose ful l name was
Homi Jehangi r Bhabha, is a
famous I ndi an atomic sci enti st. With the
support of Jawaharl al Nehru, he l ai d the
foundati on for I ndia's scientific growth,
and was responsi ble for the creation of
two premi er i nstitutions, the Tata
I nstitute of Fundamental Research, and
Bhabha Atomi c Research Centre. He was
al so the first chai rman of I ndia's Atomi c
Energy Commi ssi on.
After graduati ng from El phi nstone
Col lege, and the Royal I nstitute of
Science i n Bombay, Bhabha went to
Cambri dge University. When World War
I I broke out, Bhabha, returned to I ndia.
Why are G.N. Ramachandran's contri
butions to science important?
G
. N. Ramachandran was a physi ci st
who won l aurel s for hi s work that
l ed to the creation of what i s known as
the Ramachandran Plot for under
standi ng peptide structure. Born i n
Keral a, he joi ned the I ndi an I nstitute of
Science, Bangalore in 1 942, where he
Tell Me Why
I n 1 939, he set up the Cosmi c Ray
Research Unit at the I ndi an I nstitute of
Science, Bangal ore, under C. V. Raman.
With the hel p of J.R.D. Tata, he estab
lished the Tata I nstitute of Funda
mental Research at Mumbai , i n 1 945.
He establ ished the Atomi c Energy
Commi ssi on of I ndia i n 1 948. Under
hi s gui dance, I ndi an scientists worked
on the devel opment of atomi c energy,
and the first atomic reactor in Asi a
went into operation at Trombay, near
Bombay, i n 1 956.
The cl i max of I ndi a' s atomic energy
programme came on May 1 8th, 1 974
when I ndi a exploded a nucl ear device
at Pokhran, Rajasthan, joi ni ng a select
club of nati ons. He died in 1 966 in a
pl ane crash i n Mont Bl anc, the hi ghest
mountai n i n the Al ps.
worked with C.V. Raman. Later, he went to Cambri dge and
aft
er compl eti ng hi s PhD, returned tothe i nstitute.
Usi ng X-ray diffracti on, Ramachandran, al ong wi th
Go
pi nath Kartha, proposed and publ i shed the tri pl e hel i cal
str
ucture of col l agen i n 1 954. After years of research, he
p
ubl i shed the Ramachandran Pl ot i n the Journal of Mol ecul ar
B
i
olo
gy. He founded the mol ecul ar biophysics unit at the
I ndi an I nstitute of Science, and was the recipient of the
B
h
atnagar Award, among the many other honours that he
r
e
ceiv
ed.
Gr
eat
Indian Scientists
39
C. R.Rao
40
Why is Vikram Sarabhai called 'The
Father of the Indian Space
Programme'?
D
r. Vikram Ambal al Sarabhai, the
father of the I ndi an space
programme has put I ndia on the
i nternati onal map i n the field of space
research. In 1 947, he was awarded a
doctorate by Cambri dge Uni versity,
and on hi s return to I ndi a, Dr.Sarabhai
founded the Physi cal
Research Laboratory known
as PRL. l n 1 962, he took over
the responsi bi l ity of organ
izi ng space research in I ndi a
as Chai rman of the I ndi an
Nati onal Committee for
Space Research. He di rected
the setting upofthe Thumba
Why is C.R. Rao internationally
renowned?
C
. R. Rao is an I ndi an-Ameri can
mathemati ci an and stati sti cian.
c. R. Rao caught the attenti on of the
worl d wi th hi s 'theory of esti mati on' .
He returned to I ndi a and joi ned | b| as a
professor. He placed emphasi s on the
trai ni ng section of the | bl , and al so
assumed responsi bi l ity as the assi stant
Tel l Me Why
Equatorial Rocket Launchi ng
Station at Thi ruvanan
thap
uram.
The establ i shment of the
I ndi an Space Research Organi
zati on, al so known as I SRO, was
one of hi s greatest achi eve
ments. Afer a remarkable
effort, the i naugural fl i ght was
l aunched on November 2Pt,
1 963. Sarabhai started a project
for the fabrication and l aunch
of an I ndi an satell ite, and the
first I ndi an satell ite, Aryabhata,
was put in orbit i n 1 975 from a
Russi an cosmodrome.
Dr. Sarabhai was a creative
scienti st, a successful and
forward-l ooki ng i ndustri al i st,
an i nnovator of the hi ghest
edi tor of Sankhya- the I ndi an
Journal of Stati sti cs. He l eft
l bl i n 1 978 to joi n the
Uni versi ty of Pi ttsburgh, but
came back and reti red as the
di r
ector of l SI .
After hi s reti rement, he
moved to Pennsylvani a. c.R.
Ra
o
has received the Padma
B
h
ushan, and i s a Fel low ofthe
R
oy
al Soci ety, UK.
Gre
at Indian Scientists
Vikram Sarabhai
order, an educati oni st, a
connoi sseur of arts, an entre
preneur of soci al change, a
pi oneeri ng management
educator, and so much
more.
R.P. Roy is a distinguished
scientist whose work in
cytogenetics, plant
breeding, tissue culture
and cytotaxonomy won
him many laurels. He was
president of the Indian
Science Congress in 1972.
41
Why are Har Gobind Khorana's scien
tific contributions important?
H
ar Gobi nd Khorana i san I ndian-born,
Ameri can organi c chemi st and
bi ochemist. He was awarded a Ph. D i n
organic chemi stry by Liverpool Uni versity,
and was a research fel low at Cambri dge
before movi ng to Vancouver as head of
the department of organi c chemi stry.
Khorana's early work was on the
bi ochemi stry of enzymes, but i n the 1 960s,
he turned to the nucl ei c aci ds and the
geneti c code. I n the early 1 970s, he was
one of the first to artifi ci al l y synthesize a
gene, i niti al l y from yeast, and then later,
from the bacteri um escheri chi a col i . Har
Gobi nd Khorana i s best known for devel
opi ng chemi cal methods to determi ne the
nucleotide sequence of ri bonucl ei c acid or
RNA, and for deciphering the geneti c code.
For thi s, he shared the 1 968 Nobel Prize for
Physiology or Medi ci ne, with Marshal l
Ni renberg and Robert Hol ley.
K.S. Chandrasekhar
Har Gobind Khorana
o
K.S. Chandrasekhar was a founding faculty member of the
School of Mathematics, Tata Institute of Fundamental
Research. He is known for his work in number theory and
summability, and was given numerous awards.
Chandrasekhar persuaded mathematicians from all over the
wolld, to visit TI FR, and deliver courses of lectures.
42
Tell Me Why
Why is Harish Chandra considered
to
be an extraordinary mathema
tici
an?
H
ari sh Chandra was an I ndi an
Ameri can mathematici an and
physicist who i s famed for the funda
mental work he carried out i n what i s
known as Representation Theory.
After getti ng hi s master's degree i n
1 943, he worked with Homi Bhabha at
the I ndi an I nstitute of Sci ence,
Bangal ore. Later, he moved to the
Cambri dge, Harvard and Col umbi a
Universities.
It was in Col umbi a University, duri ng
the period from 1 950 to 1 963 that he
carried out studi es on 'Semi si mpl e Li e
Cm|S|ml C
L|C|0u
D|ug|um.
Gr
eat
Indian Scientists
Harish Chandra
Group Al gebra,' whi ch
were considered to be
hi s best research.
I n 1 973, he became a
Fel low of the Royal
Society. The I ndi an
National Science Academy
i n 1 974 awarded hi m the
Ramanujan Medal . I n
1 981 , he was made a
Fel l ow of the Nati onal
Academy of Sci ences i n
the US .
Hari sh Chandra's
contri butions to the
'Representation Theory
of Lie Groups' , harmoni c
analysis, and related
areas lef researchers a
legacy that
nues to this day.
43
What is A.K. Sharma famous for?
A
.K. Sharma i s a professor at the
Centre of Advanced Study on Cel l
and Chromosome Research,
Department of Botany, University of
Cal cutta. He has been deeply i nterested
in the areas of cytogenetics, cytochem
istry and cel l biol ogy.
Sharma i s famous for hi s work on new
techni ques for studyi ng the physi cal
and chemi cal nature of chromosomes,
whi ch is now adopted al l over the world
for pl ant, ani mal , and human systems.
He al so cl arified the chemi cal nature of
pl ant chromosomes through speci al l y
evolved techni ques, and has many other
research achievements to hi s credit. I n
addition, he has co-authored many
books. He was conferred the SS
Bhatnagar Prize i n 1 976, in additi on to
many other honours, i ncl udi ng the
Padma Bhushan.
The Harish Chandra Research
Institute, also known as HR', is
dedicated to research in mathe
matics and theoretical physics. It is
located at Allahabad, and is funded
by the Deparment of Atomic
Energy.
Tell Me Why
M.S. Swaminathan
Y0uSh0ul O
c0nSul 1Dr.M..
wum|nu1hun u1
1hCCurl |CS1l
Gr
eat
Indian Scientists
Why is M.S. Swaminathan
associated with the 'Green
Revolution' in India?
M
. b. Swami nathan is a
scientist who hel ped
redi rect I ndi a's future i n
agri culture. Hi s work led to the
devel opment of new varieties of
wheat and rice that yielded
larger-than-usual amounts of
grai n. Thi s was a pri mary factor i n
I ndia's Green Revol ution, whi ch
set i n motion fundamental
changes i n agri cultural
production.
Withi n two years of the i ntro
ducti on of Swami nathan's
Japanese-Mexican wheat hybrid,
I ndi an wheat production rose
from 1 0 mi l l i on tonnes a year to
1 8 mi l l i on tonnes.
Sci enti sts under Swami
athan's di rection made
si mi l ar breakthroughs
wi th rice. U.b. sci enti st
Wi l l i am Gaud coi ned the
term 'Green Revol uti on'
to describe Swami
nathan' s breakthrough
and the term i s used to
thi s day.
-
-
Why is Raja Ramanna considered the Father of Indian Nuclear
Programme?
R
aja Ramanna was an I ndi an physicist and nucl ear sci enti st
whoi sofencal i edthe' Fatherof l ndian Nucl ear Programme,'
for his di rection and l eadershi p of I ndi a's nucl ear programme for
over 40 years. He joi ned the programme in 1 964, and worked
under Dr. Homi Bhabha. Later, hedi rectedthe programme hi msel f,
whi l e expandi ng and supervisi ng scientific research on nucl ear
weapons.
Raja Ramanna was the first di recti ng ofcer of the smal l team of
scientists that supervised and carried
out the test of the nucl ear device,
under the code name ' Smi l i ng
Buddha', i n 1 974. He was al so the man
mai nly responsi ble for desi gni ng and
i nstal l i ng the country's first seri es of
nucl ear reactors, Apsara, Ci rus and
Purni ma.
Ramanna al so i nitiated the i ndus
trial defence programmes for the
I ndi an armed forces. Raja Ramanna
was the Uni on Mi ni ster for State for
Defence in 1 990, and i n 1 997, became
Raja Ramanna
a Member of Parl iament through the
upper house, the Rajya Sabha.
Raja Ramana was a multifaceted personality- an eminent
nuclear physicist, a gifed musician, and a scholar of Sanskrit
literature. He was a connoisseur of music, and has writen a book
about music too. He studied western classical music, and gave
several concers that bore testimony to his musical talent.
46
Teli Me Wh
Vainu Bappu
Why is Vainu 8appu called the Father of Indian
astronomy in independent India?
V
ai nu Bappu has
contributed much to the
revival of opti cal astronomy i n
I ndia. Bappujoi nedthe Harvard
University on a schol arshi p.
Soon after thi s, he di scovered a
comet, and it was named
Bappu- Bok-Newkirk after hi m
and hi s col l eagues, Bart Bokand
Gordon Newkirk.
Later, Bappu joi ned the
Pal omar University, and with
another astronomer, Col i n
Wi l son, made an i mportant
observation about the
l umi nosity of a particul ar ki nd
of stars - and thi s came to be
known as the Bappu - Wi l son
Effect.
Bappu returned to I ndia i n
1 95
3, and played a major role i n
bUi l di ng the Uttar Pradesh State
Grea
t Indian Scientists
Observatory in Nai nital .
I n 1 986, he establ i shed
an observatory i n
Kaval ur, Tami l Nadu. I t
was named the Vai nu
Bappu Observatory after
hi m.
w| nkl C1w|nkl C
l |11lCS1u|S.M0w
1w0nOC|whu1
47
s. Ramaseshan
S. Ramaseshan
was an Indian
scientist who is
renowned for
his work in the
field of crystal
lography. The
nephew of
Nobel Laureate
Sir C. V. Raman,
and a cousin of
Subramanyan
Chandrasekhar,
Ramaseshan
was the director
of the Indian
Institute of
Science, and a
Padma Bhushan
g recipient.
Why is M.O.P . Iyengar referred to as the
'Father of Algology in India'?
M
.G.P. Iyengar was an I ndi an
botanist and phycologist who
devoted hi s l ife to studying the structure,
cytology, reproduction, and taxonomy of
a major group of al gae. He spent a good
part of his l ife teachi ng at the Presidency
Col lege, Madras, and was later professor
atthe university research laboratory.
Before Iyengar's time, knowledge of
I ndi an al gal flora was mi ni mal . Iyengar's
earlier studies began with the volvocales,
and these provided the material for hi s
publ icati ons. He establ ished the School of
Al gol ogy in the University of Madras, and
had several firsts to hi s credit throughout
hi s career. He was the first recipient of the
presti gi ous ' Bi rbal Sahni Medal ' for
outstandi ng work in the field of botany,
and the first recipient of 'The Sunder Lal
Hora Medal ' from the I ndi an Nati onal
Science Academy.
M.O.P. Iyengar's pioneeri ng contribu
tions to the fi el ds of botany, al gol ogy and
phycology were so wel l appreciated by
the scientific community in I ndi a, that he
was referred to as the 'Father of Al gol ogy
i n I ndia'.
M.G.K. Menon
Why is M.G.K. Menon considered a
scientist par excellence?
P
rof. M.G. K. Menon is a di sti nguished
physi cist who has pl ayed a key role i n
thedevel opmentofscienceandtechnol ogy
i n l ndia.
Prof. Menon has had a role i n al most every
facet of sci ence and technol ogy devel
opment in the country, but the i mportant
one was in nurturi ng the Tata I nstitute of
'
Fundamental Research whi ch hi s mentor
Homi J. Bhabha founded in 1 945. He joi ned
the TI FR in 1 955. He became the di rector of
the i nstitute in 1 966, fol lowi ng Bhabha's
unti mel y death. Hi s abl e di rectorshi p ofthe
TI FR l asted unti l 1 975.
Prof. M. G. K. Menon's research achieve
ments i ncl ude the devel opment of hi gh
preci si on measurement techni ques for
cosmi c rays. He al so i nitiated hi gh-altitude
cosmi c ray studi es near the geomagnetic
equator, usi ng bal l oon flights. Thi s, by its
abi l ity to carry X-ray and gamma ray
telescopes as payloads, marked the genesi s
of space-based astronomy i n the country.
He was al so i nvolved in the cosmi c ray
studi es i ni tiated i n 1 964 in the mi nes at
Kolar Gol d Fi el ds.
Prof. Menon has won numerous awards,
and the asteroid 7564 Gokumenon was
named in hi s honour in late 2008.
49
50
What are the contributions of Arvind
Bhatnagar?
P
rof.Arvi nd Bhatnagar is known i nter
nati onal ly for hi s si gnificant contri bu
ti ons to sol ar astronomy. He was the found
er-di rector of the Udai pur Sol ar Observatory.
Arvind Bhatnagar obtained hi s Ph. D. in sol ar
physics i n 1 964. He worked abroad for
several years, and then returned to I ndi a to
establ i sh a uni que i sl and sol ar observatory
in the mi ddl e of Lake Fatehsagar in Udai pur.
Dr. Bhatnagar co-authored a fasci nati ng
book on sol ar physics entitled 'F u nda menta I s
of Sol ar Astronomy'. He was a founder
memberofthe Astronomi cal Society of I ndia,
and a member of the Internati onal Astro
nomi cal Uni on.
Dr. Bhatnagar was the founder di rector of
the Nehru Pl anetari um, Mumbai from 1 976
to 1 978, and advisor to many pl anetaria i n
the country. He passed away on May 1 8th,
2006.
Telescope City
The Vainu Bappu Observatory is owned
and operated by the Indian Institute for
Astrophysics, which was also founded by
Vainu Bappu.lt is located in the Vellore
district of Tamil Nadu, and is referred to as
'Telescope City'.
Tell MeWhy
Why is Shreeram Shankar
Abhyankar considered a
great mathematician?
S
hreeram Shankar
Abhyankar i s an I ndian
Ameri can mathematici an,
who took hi s PhD from
Harvard i n 1 955. He i s known
for his contributions to
algebrai c geometry, and hi s
research also covered
commutative algebra, l ocal
al gebra, and val uation theory,
theory of functions of several
compl ex vari abl es, quantum
el ectrodynami cs, ci rcuit
theory, combi natorics,
computer-ai ded design, and
robotics. Combi natorics i s a
branch of mathematics.
Abhyankar, who headed
the University of Purdue's
mathemati cs department
from 1 978 to 1 985, had
founded Bhaskaracharya
Prati shthana in Pune to
cul tivate the i nterest of
teachers and students i n
mathematics.
Shreeram Shankar
Abhyankar passed away on
2
nd November, 201 2.
Gr
eat
Indian Scientists
Shreeram Shankar
Abhyankar
0| n10
OCO |1S0mC
|0Ol CmS|S
1unny.
51
Chandrasekhar Limit
The term 'Chandrasekhar Limit' was coined after Subrah
manyan Chandrasekhar, who predicted it in 1930, at the
age of 19.1t is the maximum mass of a stable white dwar
star. A white dwarf star's mass is comparable to that of the
sun and the volume is comparable to that of the Earh.
Why is E.C.G. Sudarshan considered
an outstanding scientist?
E
.c.G. sudarshan, an I ndi an physi ci st,
author, and professor at the
UniversityofTexas, has made si gnificant
contri buti ons to several areas of physics.
Born in Kerala, he obtai ned his master's
degree from Madras Chri sti an Col l ege,
and then moved to the Tata I nstitute of
Fundamental Research before goi ng to
the USA.
He discovered the V - A theory of weak
i nteractions whi l e worki ng on hi s Ph D
thesi s under Robert E. Marshak. He has
made remarkable di scoveries i n many
fields of physics, i ncl udi ng quantum
optics, tachyons, quantum zeno efect,
non-i nvariance groups, positive maps of
density matrices and computatipn.
In 2007, Sudarshan was awarded the
Padma Vi bhushan. Sudarshan has been
passed over for the Physics Nobel Prize
on more than one occasi on, leadi ng to
controversy in 2005, when several physi
ci sts wrote to the Swedi sh Academy,
52
E.C.G Sudarshan
protesti ng
Sudarshan shou
have been awarded
share of the Prize
the Sudarsha
representation)
quantum optics.
Gl auberwonthe
prize i n 2005.
Tel l Me Wh
Subhas Mukherjee
Gre
at Indian Scientists
What was Subhas Mukher
jee's outstanding contri
bution?
D
r. Subhas Mukherjee,
an I ndian physi ci an
from Cal cutta, made news
when he became the fi rst
physi ci an i n I ndi a to perform
the first 'in- vitro ferti l izati on '
resulti ng i n a test- tube baby
' Durga' . He wi l l al ways b
e
remembered as an unsung
hero, who di scovered the
easiest and most successful
way of produci ng a test-tube
baby.
On 3,d October 1 978, Subhas
Mukherjee along with Sunit
Mukherjee, a cryobi ol ogi st,
and gynaecol ogist Dr. Saroj
Kanti Bhattacharya,announced
the bi rth of I ndi a's first, and the
worl d's second test-tube
baby, i n Cal cutta. The
announcement came 67 days
afer the bi rth of the first
test-tube baby in Engl and.
Today, more than three
mi l l i on test-tube babi es
worl dwi de see the l i ght of day
from Dr. Subhas Mukherjee
di scovered method. "
53
UR. Rao
54
Whyis U. R. Rao'snamesynonymous
with satellite technology in India?
P
rof. U. R. Rao, a space scientist
and former chai rman of the
I ndi an Space Research Organization,
started his career as a cosmi c ray
scientist under Dr. Vi kram Sarabhai .
He was the first to establ i sh the
conti nuous nature of the sol ar wi nd
and i ts efect on geomagneti sm, and
undertook the responsi bi l ity of estab
l i shi ng of satel l ite technol ogy in I ndi a
i n 1 972.
Over 20 satell ites were desi gned and
l aunched for providi ng communi
cation, remote sensi ng, and meteoro
l ogi cal services under hi s guidance,
begi nni ng with the Aryabhata i n 1 975.
As Chai rman, Space Commi ssi on
and Secretary, Department of Space,
Rao accel erated the devel opment of
rocket technol ogy, resulti ng in the
successful l aunch of the ASLV rocket i n
1 992.
He was al so responsi bl e for the
successful l aunch of I NSAT satel l ites
whi ch provided telecommunication
l i nks to the remote corners of I ndi a.
Dr. U. R. Rao, i s the first I ndi an space
sci enti st to be i nducted i nto the
Satel l ite Hal l of Fame, and he has
received many honours and awards,
i ncl udi ng the Padma Bhushan.
Tell MeWhy
Which famous
scientist became
President of India?
D
r. A.P.J. Abdul
Kal am wi l l go
down i n hi story as a
d i s t i n g u i s h e d
scientist and admi ni s
trator who became
the 1 1 th president of
I ndi a.
He was born i n
October 1 93 1 , i n
Rameswaram. Even
as a young boy, he
had admi red the fl i ght.
of bi rds, and developed a fascination forthe subject
offl i ght. He therefore opted for a course in aeronau
ti cal engi neeri ng at the Madras I nstitute of
Technology, or MIT.
In the 1 960s, Kal am joi ned the Vi kram Sarabhai
Space Centre i n Keral a. He played a major role i n
the centre'sevol uti on to a key hub of space research
in I ndia. Kal am pl ayed a pivotal rol e in I ndia's
Pokhran-I I nucl ear test i n 1 998. I n 1 981 , the
Government of I ndi a awarded hi m, the Padma
Bhushan and then, the Padma Vi bhushan i n 1 990,
and the Bharat Ratna i n 1 997.
Apart from bei ng a notable scientist, he is a man
of vision, who i s always ful l of ideas ai med at the
development of the country which i s why he i s
often referred to as the 'mi ssi l e man of I ndia.'
Great Indian Scientists 55
56
Roddm Narasimha
Ramanujan
Number
The number 1729 is
knownas the
Ramanujan Number.
Once Professor
G.H.Hardy told
Ramanujan that 1729
was the number of the
taxi cab in which he
came to the hospital.
Ramanujan at once
pointed out that it is
the smallest number
that can be expressed
as the sum of two
cubes in two diferent
ways.
What do we know about
Roddam Narasimha?
D
r. Roddam Nara
si mha i san honorary
professor i n the
engi neeri ng mechanics
unit at the Jawaharl al
Neh ru Centrefor Adva nced
Scientific Research.
Professor Roddam
Narasi mha hol ds a Ph.D.
from the Cal i forni a I nstitute of
Technology, and a master's
degree from the I ndi an I nstitute
of Science. He joi ned the I ndi an
I nstitute of Science i n 1 962, and
was associated with the
Department of Aerospace
Engi neeri ng i n vari ous capac
ities ti l l 1 999.
Prof. Narasi mha's research
has been chi efly concerned
with aerospace and atmos
pheri c fl ui d dynamics. Prof.
Narasi mha i sthe author of more
than 250 research publ i cations,
'ostly on fl ui d mechanics,
aerospace science, and atmos
pheri c dynamics. Hi s di sti nc
ti ons i ncl ude the Bhatnagar
Prize, the Ramanujan Award,
and the Padma Bhushan.
Tel l Me Why
ProfRao
Great Indian Scientists
What are the contributions of
C.N.R Rao in solid state
chemistry?
P
rof. C. N. R. Rao is one ofthe
gi ants of I ndi an science.
The founder of the Jawaharl al
Nehru Centre for Advanced
Scientific Research i n Bangal ore,
he has al so been the chai rman of
the science advisory counci l to
the prime mi ni ster for several
years.
Prof. Rao is one of the world's
foremost solid state and
materials chemi sts. Prof.
Rao is known for hi s
research into supercon
ductivity, and the
chemical properties of
s u p e r c o n d u c t i v e
material s. He i s al so a
foundi ng member of the
Thi rd Worl d Academy of
Sciences. He was awa rded
the Hughes Medal by the
Royal Society in 2000, and
i n 2004, he became the
first recipient of the I ndi a
Science Award. He has
al so received the Padma
Shri and Padma Vi bhushan
Awards.
57
58
Bose and Boson
In 2012, the European Council for
Nuclear Research, announced the
possible discovery of the Higgs
boson. The term 'boson' honours
the work of Calcutta-based, Bengali
physicist Satyendra Nath Bose.
Who is Vinod Johri?
V
i nod Johri i s a disti n
guished astrophysicist
and cosmol ogi st. He has spent
over 45 years researchi ng in
cosmol ogy, acti ng as a research
guide and pri nci pal i nvestigator
of vari ous research projects of
Counci l of Scientific and I ndus
tri al Research, Deparment of
Science and Technol ogy, and
the University Grants
Commi ssi on of I ndi a.
Hi s major contri buti ons i n
cosmol ogi cal research i ncl ude
'power law i nflation, genesi s of
qui ntessence fields of dark energy
and phantom cosmol ogi es'.
Prof. Johri has edi ted a book 'The
Early Uni verse'. He has been elected
a Fel low of the Royal Astronomi cal
Soci ety of London.
VinodJohri
Tell Me Why
Why is Dronamraju Krishna Rao
famous?
D
ronamraju Kri shna Rao i s an I ndi an
born geneticist who i s deeply
i nvolved in promoti ng close cooperation
between the USA and I ndi a in science
and technology. Dronamraju i s president
of the Foundation for Geneti c Research,
Houston, Texas. He i s al so an advi sor to
the White House.
Early in his research career, he
di scovered the first case of a gene i n the
human `T`chromosome, and publ i shed a
paper i n 1 960. Hi s contri buti ons to the
mechani sms of speci ati on i n pl ants and
pl ant-pol l i nator i nteraction, and al so the
pol l i nati ng behavior of butterfl i es are
consi dered quite si gnificant.
In recent years, Dronamraju's research
focused on the hi story of genetics and
human as wel l as medi cal genetics,
resulti ng in the publ i cati on of several
books.
Raman Effect
The Raman Efe is the change in the
wavelength of light that occurs when a
light beam is defleced by molecules. It
is named afer Sir C.V. Raman, who won
a Nobel Prize for his work on the
scatering of light, and for the
discovery of the Raman Efe.
Grat Indian Sntis
Dronamraju
Krishna Rao
59
60
Raj Reddy
0rryb0SS,
1`mOuSy
u| nRu_n|S
m0v|CT0b0l'
Why is Raj Reddy considered a
brilliant scientist?
P
rf. Raj Redy is one of the
pi oneers I n computer
sci ence and artifici al intel l igence.
He studied i n I ndi a and Austral ia,
and received hi s doctorate i n
computer science from Stanford
University i n 1 966.
Dr. Reddy's research i nterests
i ncl ude the study of human
computer i nteraction, and
artifi ci al i ntel l i gence. Hi s current
research projects i ncl ude speech
recognition and universal di gital
l i braries, where al l creative works
of the human race are avai l able
to anyone, anywhere.
In 1 994, he received
the most presti gi ous
award i n computer
science, the Turi ng
Award, joi ntly with
r,f, f . 7 KEdward Fei genbaum.
Prof. Raj Reddy was
awarded the Padma
Bhushan i n 2001 .
Tell Me Why
Jayant V. Narlikar
Pioneer of Aviation
Technology
Acharya Bharadwaj,
an ancient Indian
sage, authored the
'Yantra Sarvasva,'
which includes aston
ishingand
outstanding discov
eries in aviation
science, space
science, and flying
machines. His
designs and descrip
tions have stunned
even modern- day
aviation engineers.
Great Indian Scientis
Why is Jayant Narlikar one of
India's outstanding scientists?
J
ayant V. Narl i kar i s a
renowned astrophysi ci st. He
was born i n 1 938 i n Maharashtra.
After his hi gher studi es in at
Cambridge, Dr. Narl i kar returned
to I ndia to joi n the Tata I nstitute
of Fundamental Research.
In 1 988, he was i nvited by the
University Grants Commi ssi on as
founder di rector to set up the
proposed I nter-University Centre
for Astronomy and Astrophysics,
or the I UCAA.
Dr. Narl i kar is i nternationl Iy
known for hi s work i n cosmology.
Si nce 1 999, he has been headi ng
an i nternational team i n
pi oneeri ng experiments
desi gned to sampl e ai r for micro
organi sms in the atmosphere at
hei ghts of up to 41 km. Studi es of
the samples col l ected i n 2001
and 2005 led to the fi ndi ngs of
l ive cel l s and bacteria, thus
openi ng up the i ntrigui ng possi
bi l ity that the Earth is bei ng
bombarded by mi croorgani sms,
some of whi ch mi ght have
seeded l i fe itself here.
Dr. Jayant Narl i kar was
decorated with Padma Shushan.
61
Father of Cosmology
Another ancient Indian sage, who lived
in UUU BC, is called 'he Father of
Cosmology'. He was Acharya Kapil, and
his works threw light on the nature and
principles of the ultimate soul, primal
matter, and creation.
Why is Govindrajan Padmanabhan
renowned?
G
ovi ndrajan Padmanabhan, a
renowned biochemi st and
pi oneer i n I ndi an biotechnol ogy, i s a
former di rector ofthe I ndi an I nstitute of
Sci ence, from where he earl i er took hi s
PhD i n 1 966.
He bel ongs to the Tanjore di strict of
Tami l Nadu. He i s settled in Bangal ore,
and is an honorary professor i n the
department of bi ochemi stry at l i Se.
In the early years of his research, he
worked i n the transcripti onal regulation
of eukaryotic genes in the l iver. Hi s
group di scovered the heme-biosyn
thetic pathway in the mal ari al parasite.
Prof. Padmanabhan i s the reci pient of
the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award for
Sci ence and Technology, as wel l as the
Padma Shri and Padma Bushan awards
of the Government of I ndi a.
62
Govindrajan
Padmanabhan
Tell Me Wh)
Grea
t Indian Scientists
Who was Ganapathi Thanikaimoni?
G
anapathi Thani kai moni , a
reputed botani st, is remem
bered for hi s i mportant contri buti ons
to the fi el d of palynology.
He joi ned as a scientist at the French
I nstitute of Pondi cherry i n 1 960. Hi s
research with the enl i sted species
were publ ished in journal s that were
brought out by the French I nstitute of
Pondi cherry from ti me to ti me.
Though Ganapathi Thani kai moni
worked on a particul ar set of species
withi n the pl ant kingdom, he did not
fl i nch from working on al l other pl ants
as wel l . In fact, he i nsi sted that al l
species must be studied, if accurate
results are to be achieved for a
pari cul ar set of plants, because behav
i oural patterns of different species are
i nterrelated. I n the year 1 972, he
received worldwide recogni ti on when
hi s compi l ati on of morphol ogy of
angi osperm pol l en was publ i shed.
Dr. Ganapathi Thani kai moni was
not only i nvolved i n the study of
pol l en, but al so tried hi s best to
contri bute to the wel l -bei ng of
society, and to educate government
authorities to take proper care of
coastl i nes as wel l as to rehabi l itate
ari d areas across I ndi a. He died on
September 5th, 1 986.
63
Indian
Mathematics
India is considered
to be the home of
mathematics- and
algebra, trigo
nometry, and
calculus, all had
their roots here.
Quadratic
equations were
first explained by
Sridharacharya in
the TT'"century.
Thelargest
numbers the
Greeks and the
Romans used were
TU",whereas
Indians used
numbers as big as
TUThese
numbers even had
specific names as
early as the Vedic
period.
6
Why is Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan
a remarkable scientist?
D
r. Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan
has been at the hel m of the I ndi an
space programme, and i s presently a
member of the Pl anni ng Commi ssi on. He
was di rector of the I SRO Satellite Centre,
the project di rector for I ndi a' s first two
experimental Earth observation satel
l ites, and al so responsi bl e for overal l
di rection of the first operati onal I ndian
remote sensing satel l ite. As an astro
physi ci st, Dr. Kasturirangan' s i nterest
i ncl udes research in hi gh energy X-ray
and gamma ray astronomy, as well as
What do we know
about Srikumar
Banerjee?
D
r. Sri kumar
Banerjee i s a
metal l urgi cal engi neer
and nucl ear scientist.
He is one of the leadi ng
experts i n material s
science and
technol ogy i n I ndia,
and has made
outstandi ng contri bu
tions in this fiel d. He
has publ i shed more
Tell Me Why
optical astronomy. He has publ ished
more than 200 papers, both in inter
nati onal and nati onal journal s in the
areas of astronomy, space science,
space appl ications and has edited si x
books. Under hi s l eadershi p, as
chai rman, I SRO, the space programme
has witnessed several major
mi l estones.
Dr. Kasturirangan i s a member of
several i mportant sci entific
academi es, both withi n I ndia, and
Kasturirangan
abroad. He has won several awards
i ncl udi ng the Shanti Swarup
Bhatnagar Award i n Engi neeri ng, and has been conferred the
Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Vibhushan awards.
than 300 papers on this subject,
and some of these have received
worldwide recogn ition as la nd ma rk
contri buti ons to science.
Dr. Banerjee has hel d several
i mportant positions, i ncl udi ng that
of the di rector of the Bhabha
Atomi c Research Centre, chai rman,
Atomi c Energy Commi ssi on,
secretary, Department of Atomi c
Energy, and Homi Bhabha Chai r
Professor at the Bhabha Atomi c
Research Centre. He i s the reci pi ent
of several awards as wel l , i ncl udi ng
the Bhatnagar Award, and the
I
ndi an Nucl ear Society Award.
Great Indian Scientists
Srikumar Banerjee
65
66
Gurdev Khush
Dr. Gurdev Singh Khush
is an agronomist and
geneticist. In 1 966, he
received the World Food
Prize, along with his
mentor Dr. Henry
Beachell. The prize was
awarded for his achieve
ments in enlarging and
improving the global
supplies of rice during a
time of population
growth.
Gurdev
Khush
Why is Patcha
Rao considered a pia
the area of rapid " n1
cation?
D
r. Patcha Ramachandra
Rao was a world famous
scientist and admi ni strator.
I nteresti ngly, he was the only
vice chancel l or of the Benares
Hi ndu University who had al so
studied and worked there as a
member of the faculty.
Dr. Rao pi oneered research
activities in the area of rapid
sol i dificati on- the first person
outside the US, to conduct
research in thi s technol ogi cal ly
i mportant area. Many
noteworthy contri buti ons made
by Dr. Rao and his students
col l eagues have put I ndi a in a
key position i n the field of rapid
sol i dification studi es.
Dr. Rao al so focused on a new
area of i nvesti gati on cal led
bi omi metics, and worked on
cerami c materi al s and thei r
production by self-propagati ng
. hi gh temperature synthesis.
Bi omi metics is the study of the
structure and function of
bi ol ogi cal systems as model s for
the desi gn and engi neeri ng of
materi al s and machi nes.
Tell MeWhy
Anil Kakodkr
h|Sw| l l OC
u SuCCCSS.
Great Indian Scientists
hat are Anil Kakodkar's contrib -
D
r. Ani l Kakodkar, a di sti ngui shed
nucl ear sci enti st, joi ned the
Bhabha Atomi c Research Centre or
BARC i n 1 964, and pl ayed a key role i n
the desi gn and construction of the
Dhruva reactor. He was a part of the
core team of architects of I ndia's
peaceful nucl ear tests in 1 974 and
1 998. Duri ng hi s career spanni ng four
and a half decades, he has bui lt a
competent team of hi ghl y speci al ized
sci enti sts and engi neers for the
reactor programme.
I n the year 1 996, Ani l Kakodkar
became the youngest di rector of the
BARC afer Homi Bhabha hi mself. From
the year 2000 onwards, he has been
l eadi ng the Atomi c Energy
Commi ssi on of I ndia, and has been the
secretary to the Department of Atomi c
Energy.
Dr. Ani l Kakodkar has been playi ng a
cruci al part in demandi ng sovereignty
for I ndia's nucl ear tests. He is known
for bei ng a strong advocate of I ndia's
self-rel iance by empl oyi ng thori um as
a fuel for nucl ear energy. He has
publ i shed over 250 research papers,
and is the reci pi ent of the Padma Shri,
"
Padma Bushan, and Padma Vi bhushan,
awards.
67
Si va S. Banda
Dr. Siva S.Banda is
the director of the
Control Science
Center of Excellence,
and senior scientist
for Control Theory
for the Air Vehicles
Directorate at the
United States Air
Force Research
Laboratory at
Wright-Patterson Air
Force Base. He
performs and directs
research and devel
opment activities at
the AFRL Center of
Excellence in Control
Science, and is
responsible for the
transition of basic
research results from
control theory to the
aerospace industry.
68
Why is G. Madhavan Nair's contri
bution to the growth of ISRO
important?
D
r. G. Madhavan Nai r joi ned the
Thumba Equatori al Rocket
Launchi ng Station i n 1 967. He was
responsi bl e for charti ng the road map for
the future devel opment of I SRO's activ
ities, especi al l y in the l aunch vehi cl e area,
targeti ng low cost access to space. Dr.
Madhavan Nai r has led the way towards
the development of futuristic technol
ogies to enhance the space systems
capabi l ities as wel l as to reduce the cost
of access to space. A major thrust area
was in the exploration of outer space
usi ng the ASTROSAT and the
Chandrayaan or moon mi ssi ons. He has
accompl i shed 25 successful mi ssi ons
duri ng hi stenureofsi xyears as Chai rman,
I SRO and Secretary, DOS.
Dr. Madhavan Nai r has pl ayed an
i mportant role in evol vi ng appl ication
programmes such as tel e-education and
tel emedi ci ne for meeti ng the needs of
soci ety at l arge. In the i nternati onal arena,
Dr. Madhavan Nai r has l ed the I ndi an
del egati ons for bi l ateral cooperation and
negotiati ons with many space agencies
and countries, especi al l y with France,
Russi a, and Israel . Dr. Madhavan Nair has
received both the Padma Bhushan and
Padma Vi bhushan awards.
at Indian Scientists
Ravi Gomatam
Ravi Gomatam is
one of the
pioneers in the
field of
consciousness
studies. He hits a
distinguished
background in
both science and
religion. He holds
a master's degree
in electronics
engineering, and
a Ph D. in founda
tions of quantum
mechanics. He
was the director
of the
Bhaktivedanta
Institute and
Institute of
Semantic Infor
mation Sciences
and Technology.
69
70
Ratan Kumar Sinha
Dr. Ratan Kumar Sinha
took over as the
chairman of the
Atomic Energy
Commission and
secretary,
Deparment of Atomic
Energy in April 2012.
The programmes that
Dr. Sinha has been
associated with
include the advanced
heavy water reactor,
and the Indian high
temperature reactor.
Why is Jagadish Shukla
famous?
D
r. Jagadi sh Shukl a was
born in 1 94 in a smal l
vi l l age i n Uttar Pradesh, I ndi a.
After worki ng at the I ndi an
I nstitute of Tropical Meteor
ology in Pune, he received a
Ph. D. from Benares Hi ndu
University, and then l eft forthe
USA, where he received a Ph. D.
PremChand
Pandey
What do we know about Prem
Chand Pandey?
D
r. Prem Chand Pandey has
done sterl i ng work i n the
fields of satel l ite oceanography,
remote sensi ng, atmospheri c
sci ence, and cl i mate change. I n
1 977, he joi ned the Space Appl i ca-
Tell Me Why
i n Meteorol ogyfromtheMassachusetts I nstituteofT echnol ogy.
He opted for a career in the atmospheric sciences in the USA.
Dr. Shukla's contri buti ons to the understandi ng of the predict
abi l ity of weather and cl i mate i ncl ude the Asi an monsoon
dynamics, deforestati on and desertification. He hel ped
establ i sh weather and cl i mate research centres in I ndia, and
also established research i nstitutions i n Brazil, and the USA.
Dr. Shukla has been associated with the World Cl i mate
Research Programme si nce its i nception, and founded the
Center for Ocean-land-Atmosphere Studies. He has estab
l i shed the Gandhi Col l ege in his vi l l age for the educati on of
rural students, especial ly women.
ti ons Centre or SAC of I SRO, and
became the founder head of
the Oceani c Sciences Di vi sion/
Meteorology and Oceanog
raphy Group/ Remote Sensi ng
Appl i cati ons Area. He worked
for the next twenty years at
SAC. In the 1 980s, he was al so a
research associate at the NASA
- Jet Propul si on Laboratory,
Pasadena, where he worked on
the Upper Atmosphere
Research Satel l ite, and SEASAT
programmes. He was the
foundi ng di rector of the
Nati onal Centre for Antarctic
and Ocean Research, and al so
Prem Chand Pandey was
visiting professor at l iT
Kharagpur. At present he is a
professor at l iT Bhubaneswar.
YCCh..ll01
CnCw|OCCl
the K. Banerjee Centre of Ocean __-
and Atmosphere Studi es. Dr.
Great Indian Scientists 71
72
Why is Vijay P. Bhatkar considered
a pioneer in India's IT industry?
D
r. Vijay P. Bhatkar is best known
as the architect of I ndia's first
supercomputer, and as the founder
executive di rector of C-DAC, I ndi a's
nati onal i nitiative i n supercom
puti ng. He is, without doubt, one of
the most accl ai med IT leaders of
I ndi a. He is best known as an architect
of the PARAM series of supercom
puters, GI ST m u I ti l i ng ual tech nol ogy,
and Education-To-Home, or ETH
mi ssi on. Dr. Bhatkar is al so widely
recognized for his noteworthy
contri buti ons in bri ngi ng ICT to the
masses through a seri es of path
breaki ng i nitiatives. He has authored
and edited 1 2 books, and 80 research
and techni cal papers.
For hi s contributi ons to IT i n I ndi a,
he was conferred with the Padma Shri
award, and the Maharashtra Bhushan
award, the hi ghest recogni tion of the
Government of Maharashtra. Dr.
Bhatkar i s a Fel l ow of the Computer
Society of I ndi a, Member of the New
York Academy of Sciences, and is
active in several leadi ng national and
i nternational professional societies
and task forces, hol di ng key positions
i n manyofthem.
Viay P. Bhatkar
Tell Me Why
What do we know about M.R.S.
Rao?
P
rof M.R.S. Rao graduated from
the Department of Biochem
istry, I ndian I nstitute of Science
Bangalore, and obtained his
postdoctoral trai ni ng from Baylor
College of Medicine, USA, after
which he returned to the I ndian
I nstitute of Science. He is a Fel low of
al l the science academies i n I ndia as
wel l as the Academy of Sciences for
the Developing World Trieste in
Italy. He has been a member and
chairman of several scientific
advisory committees as wel l .
Prof. Rao is actively engaged i n
research on non-coding RNA i n
development and diferentiation,
cancer biol ogy, and chromatin
biology. He is also the team leader
oftheCSI R's NMITLI Network Project
on cancer genomics, particul arly on
Gl iobl astoma. Prof. Rao has
publ ished more than 1 30 papers i n
international journal s. He currently
di rects the Jawaharl al Nehru Centre
for Advanced Scientific Research,
Bangal ore, and has received several
recognitions i ncl udi ng the Shanti
Swarup Bhatnagar award and
Padma Shri award.
Great Indian Scientists
MR.S. Rao
73
74
Why is K. Radhakrishnan an
extraordinary person?
D
r.K. Radhakri shnan, the current
Chai rman of Space
Commi ssi on Secretary, Department
of Space, Government of I ndia and
Chai rman of I SRO, started hi s career
as an avionics engi neer in 1 971 at
I SRO's Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre,
Trivandrum. He has hel d several
decisive positions in I SRO. Currently,
as chief of the country's space
programme, he has been spear
headi ng the ISRO saga forward. As
the di rector of the Vi kram Sarabhai
Space Centre, he played a cruci al role
in the first I ndi an l unar missi on - the
Chandrayaan. His flai r for l eadershi p
has been proved by the successful
l aunch of Cartosat-2B, and four
Shivram Bhoje
Dr. Shivram Bhoje is a distin
guished nuclear scientist from
India. He has worked in the field
of fast breeder nuclear
technology for forty years, and
has been honoured with the
Padma Shri award in 2003.
Tell Me Why
co-passenger satel l ites by PSLV-C1 5 withi n j ust three months
of the unsuccessful fl i ght testi ng of the indigenous cryogeni c
stage i n GSLV-D3, and the i mpetus gi ven to the setti ng up of
the I ndi an I nstitute of Space Science and Technol ogy for
human capital devel opment.
Under his stewardship, four more successful l aunches of
Pol ar Satell ite Launch Vehi cl e PSLV were realised and 20 satel
l ites (i ncl udi ng Cartosat-2A, I ndi an
Mi ni Satel l ite-1 , RI SAT-2, Oceansat-2,
and two major foreign commercial
satellites and 1 4 forei gn Nano-satel
l ites) were placed precisely i nto the
desi red orbits.
Duri ng 2000-05, Dr. Radhakrishnan
had a stint i n the Mi nistry of Earth
Sciences as the founder di rector of
the I ndi an National Centre for Ocean
I nformation Services. I n addition, he
was the first project di rector of the
K. Radhakrishnan I ndi an National Tsunami Warni ng
System.
Great Indian Scientists
Arun Netravali
Arun Netravali, an Indian-American
computer engineer, is well known
for his contributions to the field of
digital technology. He has been
president of Bell Laboratories, and
chief scientist for Lucent Technol
ogies.
75
What do we know about Abhay Ashtekar?
76
D
r. Abhay Ashteker, is a world-renowned physicist
and the leader of a worldwide effort to reconci l e
Ei nstein's Theory of Rel ativity wi th the pri nci pl es of
quantum mechani cs. He is one of the founders of l oop
quantum gravity, and its subfield, loop quantum
cosmol ogy. He has had appoi ntments i n Oxford, Pari s,
and Syracuse, before settl i ng in Pennsylvani a. I n 1 992,
Penn State University created the Center for Gravita
ti onal Physics and Geometry specifical ly for hi m. He
has written a number of descriptions of l oop quantum
gravitythat are accessi bl e to non-physi ci sts. At present,
he i s the Eberly Professor of
Physics, and the Di rector of
the I nstitute for Gravitati onal
Physics and Geometry at
Pennsylvani a State
University.
Abhay Ashtekar
Tell Me Why
RA. Mashelkar
Great Indian Scientists
What are the contributions of
Mashelkar?
D
r. RA Mashelkar was the Di rector
General of Counci l of Scientific and
I ndustri al Research al so known as CSI R. It is
the l argest chain of publ i cl y funded i ndus
trial research and development i nstitutions
in the world, with thi rty-seven l aboratories,
and about 20,000 empl oyees.
Afer obtai ni ng hi s Ph D. from Bombay
Uni versity in 1 969, Dr. Mashel kar occupied
vari ous academic positi ons in Europe and
USA. He joi ned NCL as a scientist i n 1 976.
He rose to the position of Head, Chemi cal
Engi neeri ng Di vi si on i n October 1 978, and
became the sixth di rector of NCL i n 1 989.
Dr. Mashel kar's research i nterests are in
theareaofnon-newtonianfl ui dmecharks,
polymer reaction engi neeri ng, gel science,
and pol ymer rheology. His work combines
experi ment and theory, and provides a
framework for understandi ng many
physi cal phenomena i n compl ex fl ui ds.
Dr. Mashel kar has won over 40 awards
and medal s. In August 1 997, Business I ndia
named Dr. Mashelkar as bei ng among the
50 path-breakers in post- I ndependent
I ndia. In 1 998, Dr. Mashel kar won the JRD
Tata Corporate Leadershi p Award, the first
scientist to win it. The President of I ndi a
honoured Dr. Mashel kar wi th Padmashri
and with the Padmabhushan i n recognition
of his contribution to nation bui l di ng.
77
Arun Majumdar
78
A
run Majumdar was i n the
spotl i ght as Presi dent Barack
Obama's nomi nee for the Undersec
retary of Energy between November
30t
h
, 201 1 , and May 1 5t
h
, 201 2. A
materi al s scientist, engi neer, and
I ndian I nstitute of Technology,
Bombay graduate, he is a leadi ng
scientist i n the fields of thermoelectric
materi al s, heat and mass transfer,
thermal management, and waste heat
recovery.
Dr. Majumdar was the associate
laboratory di rector for Energy and
Envi ronment at Lawrence Berkeley
Nati onal Laboratory, and a professor of
Mechani cal Engi neeri ng and Material s
Science and Engi neeri ng at the
University of Cal ifornia, Berkeley. Hi s
hi ghl y di sti ngui shed research career
i ncl udes the science and engi neeri ng
of energy conversi on, transport, and
storage rangi ng from mol ecul ar and
nanoscale level, to l arge energy
systems. Dr. Majumdar hel ped shape
several strategic initiatives in the areas
of energy efficiency, renewabl e energy,
and energy storage. Additional ly, he
has served as an advisor to startup
compani es and venture capital firms in
the Si l icon Val l ey.
Tell Me Why
lanaki Ammal
Great Indian Scientists
Why is Janaki Ammal one of the most
respected of Indian botanists?
J
anaki Ammal i s a name that evokes
respect among botani sts for her
work i n the fiel ds of cytogenetics and
geography. She col lected pl ants of
medi ci nal and economi c i mportance
from the rai nforests of Kerala, and is
renowned for her research on sugar cane
and the eggpl ant.Janaki Ammal did her
hi gher studies and research abroad, but
returned to I ndi a in 1 951 to reorganize
the Botanical Survey of I ndi a. She worked
for the Government of I ndi a in different
positions in the Central Botanical
Laboratory at Al l ahabad, the Regi onal
Research Laboratory i n Jammu, and the
Bhabha Atomic Research Centre at
Trombay, before settl i ng down i n Madras
i n November 1 970 as an Emeritus
Sci enti st at the Centre for Advanced
Study in Botany, University of Madras.
Duri ng her years abroad, Janaki Ammal
di d chromosome studi es on a wi de range
of garden pl ants. She has been honoured
with the Padma Shri award, and a
nati onal award of taxonomy in her name
has been establ i shed. With her passion
for pl ants, Janaki Ammal defi ned for
herself her goal s and purpose, and her
mi ssi on i n l ife. Havi ng done that, she kept
her mi ssion above everythi ng else, and
was faithful to it al l her l ife.
79
D. R. Kaprekar
80
Why was D.R. Kaprekar an
amazing mathematician?
O
.R. Kaprekar was an I ndi an
mathematici an who made a
name for hi mself in mathemati cs
despite havi ng noformal trai ni ng in
the fi el d. He was a school teacher
who publ ished extensively on topics
l i ke recurring decimals, magi c
squares, and integers wi th special
properties. Kaprekar di scovered a
numberof results i n numbertheory,
and described vari ous properties of
numbers. The Kaprekar constant
and the Kaprekar numbers were
named afer hi m. Did you know that
the number, 61 74 is also known as
the Kaprekar Constant?
Kaprekar al so descri bed self
numbers or Devl al i numbers, the
Harshad numbers and Deml o
numbers. He constructed certai n
types of magic squares related to
the Coperni cus magi c square.
Kaprekar became renowned when
Mari n Gardner wrote about
Kaprekar i n hi s March 1 975 col umn
of Mathematical Games for Scien
tific American-and today, the world
acknowledges that this humbl e
school teacher was i ndeed a
mathematical wizard.
Tell MeWhy
Drug Designer
Tej P. Singh, one of
India's leading
biophysicists, has
played an active role
in the development
of researches on
drug design in the
fields of tubercu
losis, inflammation,
cancer, epilepsy, and
arhritis in India. He
has published more
than 350 research
papers, and has
submitted the
highest number of
protein structures in
India in the protein
data bank.
Great Indian Scientists
Why is Ashok Gadgil
is considered a
successful scientist?
A
ShOk Gadgi l is
the di rector of
the Energy and
E n v i r o n m e n t a l
Technol ogi es Division
at Lawrence Berkeley
Nati onal Laboratory,
and professor of Civi l
and Environmental
Engi neeri ng at the University of
Cal iforni a. He i s best known for hi s
work wi th two developi ng-world
technologies. They are the 'UV Water
works' - a si mpl e, effective and
i nexpensive water di si nfection
system- and the Berkeley-Darfur
Stove, whi ch i s a low-cost stove that
saves fuel wood. He i s al so conducti ng
experimental and model i ng research
in i ndoor ai rflow and pol l utant
transport. In recent years, he has
worked on ways to i nexpensively
remove arsenic from Bangladesh's
dri nki ng water. I t i s his substanti al
experience i n technical , economic,
and pol icy research on energy
efficiency and its i mpl ementation
that has made hi m one of the most
successful scientists of our ti me.
81
82
Ajith lal vani
Ajith Lalvani is the most cited TB
researcher in the world. He is Chair
of Infectious Diseases, Imperial
College London. Dr. Lalvani
founded, and directs the Tubercu
losis Research Unit, a leading
multi-disciplinary research group
in the world. His work forms the
basis of new guidelines for TB screening and prevention
throughout the world.
Venkatraman
Ramakrishnan
cvN0lh
Why has Venkatraman
Ramakrishnan made India proud?
V
enkatraman Ramakrishnan , an
I ndi an born, British structural
biol ogist, was awarded the Nobel Prize
for Chemi stry al ong with Thomas A.
Steitz and Ada Yonath i n 2009, for his
research i nto the atomic structure and
function of cel l ul ar particles cal led
ribosomes. Dr. Ramakrishnan hol ds a
dual American and British citizenshi p.
Al though Dr. Ramakri shnan's i nitial
academic background prepared him
for a career i n theoretical physics, his
i nterests later shifted toward mol ecul ar
bi ol ogy. He conducted hi s postdoc
toral research from 1 978 to 1 982 at
Tell MeWhy
Nagendra Kumar Singh
Dr. Nagendra Kumar Singh, an
eminent Indian agricultural scientist,
is widely known for his research in the
area of plant genomics and biotech
nology. His contributions include the
decoding of rice, tomato, and pigeon
pea genomes, as well as the mapping
of genes for salt tolerance and
basmati quality traits in rice. He has
also done a comparative analysis of
rice and wheat genomes.
Yale University i n New Haven,
Connecticut.
From 1 983 to 1 995, Dr. Ramakri shnan
was a bi ophysi ci st at Brookhaven
Nati onal Laboratory in New York. In 1 999,
he took a posi tion i n the Medi cal
Research Counci l Laboratory of
Mol ecul ar Bi ol ogy at the Uni versity of
Cambri dge i n Engl and. The fol l owi ng
year, he publ i shed a seri es of ground
breaki ng sci entific papers.Dr.
Ramakri shnan was elected a member of
the U.S. National Academy of Sci ences i n
2004, and was el ected a forei gn member
of the I ndi an Nati onal Sci ence Academy
in 2008. He i s the reci pi ent of many
honours, i ncl udi ng a kni ghthood, and
the Padma Vi bhushan.
Geat Indian Sientists
M| | 1 um
VCnku1|umun
Rumuk||Shnun.
83
Why is Gautam
Radhakrishna Oesiraju
well known in his field?
G
autam Radhakri shna
Desiraju i s an I ndi an
chemi st who works at the
School of Chemi stry,
University of Hyderabad. He
has i nitiated and carri ed out
research i n crystal
engi neering, and has had a
major i mpact on the devel
opment of thi s subject,
whi ch has grown vastly with
nearly 200 i ndependent research groups
now worldwide. Desi raju is recognized as
one of the founders of thi s subject, whi ch
l ies atthe i ntersection of organic chemi stry,
i norganic chemi stry, crystal l ography,
supramol ecul ar chemi stry, sol id-state
chemi stry, and materi al s sci ence. He,
among others, has al so been responsi ble
in recent ti mes for the acceptance of the
theme of weak hydrogen bondi ng in struc
tural and supra mol ecul ar chemi stry.
Desi raju's work is very hi ghl y cited, and i s
considered to have a major i mpact on
modern chemi stry. He has been recognized
by a number of awards such as the
Alexandervon Humbol dt Forschungspreis,
and the TAS award in chemi stry.
Tell Me Why
Gajendra Pal Singh Raghava
Gajendra Pal Singh Raghava has
developed a number of web serers for
application in computational biology,
paricularly in protein modeling. His work
in this field has made him one of the most
well known specialists in bio-informatics
in India.
Why is Samir K. Brahmachari an important fgure on the scien
tific stage in India?
Samir K.
Brahmachari
Great Indian Scientists
S
ami r K. Brahmachari is an I ndi an
biophysicist whose core expertise i s i n
structural and computati onal bi ol ogy. On
1 1 t h August 1 997, he was appoi nted as the
di rector of CSI R-Center for Bi ochemi cal
Technol ogy al so known as CBT. As
'
the
di rector of CBT, he was i nstrumental in
re-establ i shi ng it as the CSI R-I nstitute of
Genomi cs and I ntegrative Bi ology.
Prof. Brahmachari has al so contri buted to
the discovery of anti-viral mi cro RNA, and
used computational genome analysi s to
i dentiqfundamental pri nci pl es of protei n
structure. He was the first to market the
novel, global ly competitive bi o-informatics
sofware products from CSI R. He has 1 38
research publ ications, 1 0 patents, and 1 4
sofware copyrights to hi s credit. Prof.
Brahmachari is the reci pi ent of the J.C Bose
Fellowshi p Award, among many other
honours that he has received.
85
Sandip Trivedi
Prof. Sandip Trivedi, an Indian
theoretical physicist, is well
known for his contributions to
the string theoq. He works at
the Tata Institute of Funda
mental Research, Mumbai.
Professor Trivedi's research
forges imporant connections
between superstring theory,
cosmology and paricle
physics.
nchddo
M00C
h|Sbag | S| l lC
w|1hhyS|CS
1hC0|iCSl
DipanGhosh
Prof. Dipan Ghosh, a
theoretical
physicist, is famed
for his exact
enumeration of the
ground state of a
Heisenberg anti
ferro magnet. He is
currently Professor
Emeritus at liT
Bombay.
What are Sunil Mukhi's
areas of research?
D
r. Suni l Mukhi i s an
I ndian theoretical
physicist who earned a
Ph. D. in theoretical physics
i n 1 981 from the State
University of New York at
Stony Brook. He has worked
at the lata I nstitute of
ndamental Research i n
86
Mumbai, si nce 1 984. I n
November, 201 2 he joi ned
Tell Me Why
Sunil Mukhi
the I ndi an I nstitute of Sci ence
Educati on and Research,
Pune. Dr. Mukhi has made
si gnificant contri buti ons i n
the fiel ds of stri ng theory,
quantum field theory, and
parti cl e physics.
Dr. Mukhi i s a Fel low of the
I ndi an Academy of Sciences,
and the I ndi an Nati onal
Sci ence Academy. He i s a
reci pi ent of the S.5. Bhatnagar
Award for Physi cal Sci ences,
1 999, and the J.e. Bose
Fel l owshi p, 2008. He has been
an editor oftheJournal of Hi gh
Energy Physics si nce its
i ncepti on.
Great Indian Scientists
EMAIL Man
In 1978, VA Shiva
Ayyadurai developed a
computer programme,
which replicated the
features of the inter
ofice, inter-organiza
tional paper mail
system. He named his
programme 'EMAI L'.
However, there is now a
lot of controversy over
who actually invented
e-mail.
87
Pranav Mistr
Pranav Mistry, an
Indian computer
scientist, is
passionate about
integrating the
digital informa
tional experience
with our real-world
needs,and has
several inventions
to his credit. These
include intelligent
sticky notes, called
Quickies that can
be searched and
can send
reminders, and a
pen that draws in
3. He invented
the 'Sixth Sense', a
device that enables
interactions
between the real
world and the
world of data.
Why is Ashoke Sen considered a
brilliant scientist?
P
rof. Ashoke Sen, a theoretical
physi ci st, has made a
number of major ori gi nal contri
buti ons to the subject of string
theory. He studied at the
presti gi ous I ndi an I nstitute of
Technology, Kanpur, and got a
doctorate from the State
University of New York, Stony
Brook. Professor Sen, now at the
Hari sh-Chandra Research I nstitute
Who developed Karmarkar's
algorithm?
N
arendra Kri shna Karmarkar,
a famous I ndi an mathema
ti ci an, i s renowned for devel
opi ng Karmarkar' s al gori thm. An
al gori thm i s a step-by-step
sol uti on to a probl em. I t i s l i ke a
cooki ng reci pe for mathemati cs.
Karmarkar's al gorithm hel ped to
sol ve probl ems i n l i near
programmi ng i n a novel way. He
i nvented hi s famous al gori thm
and publ i shed the results whi l e he
i n Al l ahabad, is famous, among other
thi ngs, for his pi oneering stri ng-theoretic
approach to bl ack holes, and for his ideas
about the begi nni ng of the universe. He
has authored, and co-authored, many
i mportant papers on string field theory.
Of hi s nearly 200 research papers, as
many as 47 papers have over 1 00 citations
Ashoke Sen
each. Prof. Sen was one of the wi nners of
the first Fundamental Physics prize
started by Russi an bi l l ionai re Yuri Mi l ner. He and ei ght other
scientists got $3 mi l l i on each- double of what i s given with the
Nobel prize. He i s also the recipient of the Padma Bhushan and
Bhatnagar Awards, among many other awards.
was worki ng for Bell Laboratories i n
New Jersey.
Karmarkar received hi s B.Tech i n
Electrical Engi neeri ng from l iT Bombay,
M.s. from the Cal iforni a I nstitute of
Technol ogy, and Ph. D. i n computer
science from the Uni versity of
Cal iforni a, Berkeley. On hi s return to
I ndia, Karmarkar joi ned the Tata
I nstitute of Fundamental Research,
Mumbai . He i s currently worki ng on a
Narendra
new archi tecture for supercomputi ng. Krishna Karmarkar
He i s the recipient of many awards, and
the Association for Computi ng Machi nery awarded hi m the
prestigi ous Paris Kanel l aki s Award i n 2000.
Great Indian Scientists
89
Mrinal Thakur
Why is Mrinal Thakur associated
with the Nobel Prize?
D
r. Mri nal Thakur, a polymer
expert, hol ds many patents
on electrical l y conductive
polymers. A former student of
Vi shwabharati University, DrThakur
left for the US for further studi es. He
hol ds M.s. and Ph. D. degrees from
Case Western Reserve Uni versity.
He has been recommended by
diferent i nstitutions si nce 2002 for
the Nobel Prize for Chemi stry- but
has proved to be unl ucky so far. I n
fact, he cl ai ms that the 2000 Nobel
Prize for chem istryto Al a n J. Heeger,
Al an MacDi armi d and Hideki
Shi rakawa, for the discovery and
development of conductive
polymers, was wrongly awarded
for a scientific result he di sproved
in 1 988.
90
Manindra Agrawal
Manindra Agrawal,
professor at the
deparment of
computer science and
engineering and the
Dean of Faculty Afairs
at the Indian Institute
of Technology, Kanpur,
was the recipient of the
first Infosys Prize for
mathematics. He has
also been honoured
with the Bhatnagar
award, and a Padma
Shri. He has been active
over the past ten years
in the fields of decision
theory, complexity,
and the relation
between the geometry
of sets and their infor
mation content.
Tell M N0y
P. Balaram
Great Indian Scientis
What do we know about P.
Balaram?
D
r. P. Bal aram, an I ndi an
bi ochemi st, i s a professor of
mol ecul ar biophysics, and currently
the di rector of the I ndi an I nstitute of
Sci ence, Bangalore. He received hi s
M.Sc. from l iT Kanpur, and Ph.D. i n
chemi stry from Carnegi e-Mel l on,
Pittsburgh, USA. Hi s mai n research
i nterests are in bio-organic chemi stry
and mol ecul ar bi ophysics. He i s the
author of over 400 research papers.
Dr. Bal aram i s a Fel l ow of the I ndi an
Academy of Sciences, I ndi an National
Science Academy, and the Thi rd
World Academy of Sci ences, Trieste,
Italy. He has received many awards
and honours in recogni ti on of hi s
work, of whi ch menti on must be
madeofthe Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar
award, and the Padma Shri . Dr.
Bal aram has del ivered a number of
lectures and has served on the
editorial boards of journal s, both
nati onal and i nternati onal . He has
served on many committees of the
Government of I ndi a, and i s currently
a member, Sci ence Advisory
Committee to the Uni on Cabi net, and
Scientific Advisory Counci l to the
Pri me Mi ni ster, among others.
91
92
Which Indian scientist is
considered a pioneer in nanote
chnology?
P
ul ickel Ajayan, Professor in
Engi neering at Rice
University, is a pioneer i n the field
of nanotechnol ogy. Hi s early
education was i n Keral a, I ndia.
Duri ng the past two decades, Prof.
Ajayan has publ ished more than
400 papers on various aspects of
carbon nanostructures. I n August
2007, he was in the news for
creating an energy storage device
on a piece of paper, cal led the
paper battery. He i s al so interested
in the development of various
material s for environmental appl i
cations and, l ast year, thi s group
developed a hybrid material
capable of effectively removi ng
contaminants from water.
Hi s present research interests
i ncl ude nanocomposites, layered
materials, 3D nanostructured
materials, and smart material
systems. Prof. Ajayan has received
several awards. He is on the
advisory editorial board ofseveral
l eadi ng journal s, and sits on the
boards of several nanotech
nol ogy companies.
Pulickel Ajayan
Tell Me Why
L
Great Indian Scientists
Guinness Records
Prof. Ajayan has two Guinness Book of
World Records to his credit. The first is for
creating the smallest brush, and second is
for inventing the darkest material- a
carpet of carbon nanotubes that reflects
only 0.045 percent of light.
Why is Anil Bharadwaj a space
scientist par excellence?
D
r. Ani ! Bharadwaj is a pl anetary
and space scientist worki ng at
the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, I SRO,
Trivandrum, I ndi a. Dr. Bharadwaj
i nitiated the research i n pl anetary
sci ence at SPL or Space Physics
LaboratoryatVSSC, and has contributed
to the development of pl anetary
sci ence activities and pl anni ng of
pl anetary mi ssi ons in I ndi a. He has been
the pri nci pal investigator on many
observation programs. Dr. Bhardwaj
has written a Chapter for Encyclopedia
of the Sol ar System, edited five books
and has over 90 publ icati ons. He al so
col l aborates with several research
projects bei ng conducted in many
research i nstitutes i n USA, Europe, and
Asi a. He hol ds many awards, i ncl udi ng
the Bhatnagar Award.
93
What are George Joseph's contributions to the Indian space
programme?
94
D
r. George Joseph i s consi dered the pi oneer of satellite based
i magi ng sensors in I ndi a. In 1 973, Dr. Joseph joi ned the
George Joseph
Space Appl icati ons centres at
Ahmedabad. He has been the gui di ng
force i n the desi gn and development of
al l the Earth observation cameras on
board I ndi an remote sensi ng satel l ites
and I NSAT. A novel detector system
designed by hi m was flown on the first
I ndi an satell ite 'Aryabhata' to detect sol ar
neutrons. Dr. Joseph was awarded the
'Padma Bhushan' by the Government of
I ndi a i n 1 999.
Tell MeWhy
Sangamagrama
Madhava
The Kerala school of
Mathematics was
founded in the
1 4th
century by Sangama
grama Madhava,
sometimes called the
greatest mathematician
astronomer of medieval
India. Although almost
all of Madhava's original
work is lost, he is referred
to in the work of later
mathematicians as the
source for several infinite
series expansions,
including the sine,
cosine, and tangent.
Rajesh
Gopakumar
Rajesh Gopakumar is a
theoretical physicist at
the Harish-Chandra
Research Institute in
Allahabad. He has been
primarily interested in
understanding better
the relation between
string theories and
quantum field theories.
M. Radhakrishna Pillai
Dr. M. Radhakrishna Pillai, is the Director of
the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology
at Thiruvananthapuram. He has a PhD in
tumour immunology and a post-doctoral
fellowship in molecular biology and immunopharma
cology from the University of Arizona. For his outstanding
contributions to cancer research and medical biotech
nology, he was honoured with National Bioscience Career
Award.
K...
Great Indian Scientists
95
WHO.S 9
WHO .
Here's a contest in which
our readers. have to identif four
famous Indian scientists, from the
three dues given for each ofthem.
All you need to do is send us an email
naming each scientist with the
proper number.
You are also welcome to send your
answer by post.
Five winners will be awarded prizes.
In case there are more than fve
correct entries, the winners will be
chosen by lot.
last Date to receive entries:
! J"
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INDIA. Pin -601.
96
1 . This scientist pi oneered
research on radi o waves
and microwave optics.
2. Thi s scientist i s known for
experiments demonstrating
sensitivity and
growth of
plants.
3. The Bri ti sh
Government
knighted this
scientist i n 1 91 7.
Tell Me Why
1 . Thi s scientist
was a self-taught
mathematici an.
2. Thi s scientist sent
remarkable theorems
tothe great
mathematici an
Godfrey Hardy . .
3. The number
1 729 is known
by thi s
scientist's
name.
1 . Thi s sci enti st worked
under H.J. Bhabha on
I ndi a's nucl ear
programme.
2. Thi s sci enti st di rected
the team of sci enti sts
who supervised the
nucl ear test 'Smi l i ng
Buddha'.
3. Thi s scientist was
Uni on Mi ni ster of
State for Defence i n
1 990.
1 . Thi s scientist is ofen
cal led the Father ofthe
I ndi an Space Programme.
Great Indian Scientists
2. I SRO is one ofthi s
sci enti st's great
achi evements.
3. This sci enti st headed the
l aunch of the first I ndi an
satell ite Aryabhata.
97
N000f
q0et|000ft0eY00t0
Send us your questions
E mail : childrensdlvision@mmp.in
Why are rain clouds black?
Cl ouds are formed of ti ny water dropl ets and ice crystal s
that float i n the ai r. General ly, cl ouds appear white i n col our
becauseofthe scatteri ng ofsunl ight. As you know, sunl i ght
consi sts of the seven col ours of a rai nbow. When l ight
passes through cl ouds, al l the seven col ours are scattered
by the water dropl ets and ice particles and together they
produce a white appearance.
Rai n cl ouds, however, are densel y packed with water
dropl ets, ice and snow particles. So, l i ght cannot penetrate
them. Thus we do not see the rays from the sun and thi s
results i n a dark efect.
If we l ook from an ai rcraf flying at a hi gh altitude, these
dark cl ouds wi l l l ook white. This i s due to the reflection of
l i ght fal l i ng on them. That means the same cl ouds appear
both dark and white at the same ti me!
lwln8oIg8
MANORAMA Tll ME WHY - GREAT INDIAN SCIENTISTS
Editor: Ammu Mathew Editor-in-(harge: A.V. Harisanker
Printed and Published by V. Sajeey George, on behalf of M.M. Publications Ltd, P.B. No. 226, Kottayam - 686001
at M.M. Publications Ltd, P.B.No. 226, Kottayam-686001 and Malayala Manorama Press, Kottayam- 686039
and published from M.M. Publications Ltd, P.B. No. 226, Kottayam - 686 001 .
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