Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for 2020: 14 Scientists Won Highest Science Award
The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) on its 79th Foundation Day, announced awardees for Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize 2020 for Science & Technology. This award has been given away to 14 scientists from across the country for their significant contributions in science and technology.
The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize was named after the founder Director of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and is the country's highest science award within the country. Every year, scientists under the age of forty-five are chosen for the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award for their contribution across fields including Biological Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Engineering Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Medical Sciences, Physical Sciences, Earth, Atmosphere, Ocean and Planetary Sciences.
Biological Sciences:
Dr. Subhadeep Chatterjee
Dr. Subhadeep Chatterjee from the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD), Hyderabad, works on Molecular Microbiology and Host-Pathogen Interaction.
Dr Vatsala Thirumalai
Dr. Vatsala Thirumalai heads the Neural Circuits and Development Lab at National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bengaluru, shared the SSB award for Biology with Dr. Chatterjee. She heads the Neural Circuits and Development Lab at NCBS.
Chemical Sciences:
In the area of Chemical Sciences, the award has been given to Dr. Jyotirmayee Dash from the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Kolkata and Dr. Subi Jacob George from the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bengaluru.
Dr. Jyotirmayee Dash
Dr. Jyotirmayee Dash is a Professor and DBT/Wellcome Trust India Alliance Fellow working in the field of Organic and Bio-organic Chemistry at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Kolkata.
Dr. Subi Jacob George
Dr. Subi Jacob George, Professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru, is known for his work in Supramolecular organic chemistry.
Earth, Atmosphere, Ocean, and Planetary Sciences:
Dr. Abhijit Mukherjee
Dr. Abhijit Mukherjee from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, is an Associate Professor who specializes in the field of Groundwater Geology. Another awardee, Dr. Suryendu Dutta's work is primarily centered around Organic Geochemistry from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT). Bombay has also bagged the award in Earth's field Atmosphere, Ocean and Planetary Sciences.
Dr. Suryendu Dutta
Engineering Sciences:
Dr. Amol Arvindrao Kulkarni from CSIR- National Chemical Laboratory (NCL), Pune has been awarded for his contributions to the field of Multiphase reactors and Microreactors; Process Development and Scale-up; Process Intensification, and Industrial Flow Processes.
Dr. Kinshuk Dasgupta
Dr. Kinshuk Dasgupta from the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Mumbai, has been conferred with the prize for his work in Materials Engineering.
Medical Sciences:
Dr. Bushra Ateeq from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, and Dr. Ritesh Agarwal from the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh were awarded in the area of Medical Sciences.
Dr. Bushra Ateeq
Dr. Ritesh Agarwal
Dr. Bushra Ateeq's research is focused on Cancer Biology and Molecular Oncology. In contrast, Dr. Ritesh Agarwal's work is primarily centered around Allergic Bronchopulmonary Aspergillosis.
Physical Sciences:
Dr. Rajesh Ganapathy from the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bengaluru and his research focuses on Experimental Soft Condensed Matter Physics.
Dr. Rajesh Ganapathy
Dr. Surajit Dhara from the University of Hyderabad (UoH), Hyderabad, shared SSB Award with Dr. Ganapathy in the field of Physical Sciences. He worked in Liquid Crystal Colloids, Soft Matter Photonics, Rheology of Complex Fluids and Unconventional Liquid Crystals.
Dr. Surajit Dhara
Mathematical Sciences:
Dr. U K Anandhavardhanan's research is focused on Number Theory, Automorphic Forms and Representation Theory, and currently a Professor at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Mumbai.
Dr. U K Anandhavardhanan
Dr. Rajat Subhra Hazra, Assistant Professor of Theoretical Statistics and Mathematics Division at Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), Kolkata, was also awarded in the mathematical science category for his contributions in understanding Probability Theory and Stochastic Processes.
Dr Rajat Subhra Hazra