How many Indian scientists’ names can you recall? Science has advanced drastically over the years, but there are still some heroes who made incredible discoveries. Celebrating these brilliant minds will not only educate us but inspire future generations to make strides too. From electronics and sanitation systems to satellites and nuclear physics – they were trailblazers in their own right. Let’s take a moment now to go back through time; having an understanding of how India became one of the leading innovators on earth is something every single person needs today.
20 Famous Indian Scientists Names and their Inventions:
Let us remember the names of ten eminent Indian female scientists. Far fewer women than men have contributed to scientific advancement in India – but these illustrious ladies deserve to be counted among them too. Let’s find out more about these incredible heroes of science and broaden our intellectual horizons!
Female Scientists of India:
Asima Chatterjee:
Asima Chatterjee comes from West Bengal, India and is well known for her achievements in organic chemistry. This historian scholar of chemistry was the second woman to earn a doctoral degree form an Indian university in the discipline. Her early education was completed at University of Calcutta. It was there where she studied while developing anti-epileptic drug Ayush-56 and conducting extensive research on alkaloids; just to name a few things Asima became known for. Presently, this excellent mind has received numerous rewards from various organizations which include Padma Bhushan from the Indian Government and CV Raman and PC Ray awards too.
Chandrima Saha:
Dr. Chandrima Saha is an outstanding scientist who has made significant contributions to the field of science, especially in Biology and Molecular Parasitology. She successfully researched the possible transmission of leishmaniasis through sandflies which led to her being awarded with numerous prestigious prizes such as ICMR’s Shankuntala Amirchand Award and Certificate for Excellence from Society for Biological Chemists (India). To date she has published over eighty articles and she remains one of the most admired female scientists in India today!
Shuba Tole:
Dr. Shuba Tole is one of India’s most notable scientists in the field of neuroscience. She studied the neural regulation gene which had some control over brain function – specifically, the cortex, hippocampus and amygdala. She was awarded one of India’s highest honors when she was given the prestigious Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize in 2010 after publishing her discoveries about this important matter.
Darshan Ranganathan:
One Indian scientist, who will soon become well-known thanks to this passage is Darshan Ranganathan. Her research field has been in bioorganic chemistry, where she has done pioneering work on supramolecular assemblies, molecular design and synthesis of both functional hybrid peptides and nanotubes. She has also been honored for her achievements by being named a Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences back in 1991 as well as receiving an award from the Third World Academy of Science in 2000 for her accomplishments.
Paramjit Khurana:
Paramjit Khurana is an acclaimed scientist for her invention of All Weather Seeds. She has made it her mission to develop hybrids of rice, wheat, and mulberry that are drought resistant. This has helped farmers who depend only on weather conditions for their crops. The seeds have a higher capacity when it comes to temperature tolerance and ultraviolet radiation resistance – which makes them ideal for use in many climates around the world.
Mangala Mani:
You might know this name- Mangala Mani is India’s very first female scientist, and she has become well known as the Polar Woman of ISRO. This 23 member expedition saw her spend over a year in Antarctica, where she operated and maintained India’s research station located there.
Tessy Thomas:
Missile Woman of India, Tessy Thomas is the Director General of Aeronautical Systems and formerly the Project Director for Agni IV missile in Defence Research and Development Organization. As India’s first female scientist leading a major Missile program, she has earned fame particularly among younger generations after launching her most important work – the Agni Series. Her contribution to training up other young scientists on Missile design concepts and trajectories are noteworthy. She was awarded Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award along with being awarded the prestigious ‘Agni Self-Reliance Award posthumously.
Ritu Karidhal:
Ritu Karidhal became an accomplished astronaut during her time at Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) where she helped execute details for Chandrayaan-2. Her motherland has given her titles such as The Rocket Woman of India and Rockstar woman of Indian space research. She continues to do important work there as Chief Data Officer, National Design Center (NDC), Bangalore while also being active in other missions like Team Leader, Atal Biotechnology Industry Park; Coordination Executive Officer, Ministerial Task Force on Public Awareness & Promotion of Robotics Systems – NPC Task Force etc.
Charusita Chakravarty:
Charusita Chakravarthy is known for her significant contributions to understanding how changes in nucleobases affect DNA and its binding proteins. She specializes in the kinetic properties of liquids, and has been awarded prestigious prizes such as the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize and the BM Birla Science Award for her work.
Gagandeep Kang:
Dr. Gagandeep Kang, for whom getting rid of enteric infections in children is a lifelong mission, dedicates her life to Human Immunology research in India; she strives everyday as an Executive Director at Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI)in Faridabad and chairman of World Health Organization (WHO) Southeast Asia Immunization Technical Advisory Group – who even broke Indian grounds by being elected as Fellow of the Royal Society- which is the first woman scientist in this role.
Male Scientists in India:
Though there are many famous Indian scientist from India, we’ll take a look at just a few today. Starting from Sir Jamshedji Jeejeebhoy who was the first person in India to patent an invention all the way up to Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam and his contribution to rocket science; these are only two examples of how Indians can reach great heights when they apply themselves.
CV Raman:
CV Raman is renowned throughout India for his contributions to physics. His dedication to the field of light scattering has lead him to becoming the first Asian recipient of a Nobel Prize in Science. CV Raman was born in Tiruchirapalli and is well-known around the world because of his breakthrough discovery (that came to be commonly known as the ‘Raman Effect’) which he made while he was still at school.
Homi J Bhabha:
One other very influential Indian scientist whose contributions are internationally recognized is Homi Jehangir Bhabha. In order to help develop the field of Quantum Theory, he served as the chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission in India and began their nuclear program during a time when people were less informed on its effects. Still regarded as one of the fathers of Indian nuclear power today, Homi Bhabha’s contributions ranged from suggesting ways to use atomic power to tackle poverty. It is difficult not to respect this man after learning all he did!
Visvesvaraya:
Mokshagundam Visvesaraya was an influential Indian engineer and scholar of world fame. His name resonated throughout India for his bold vision to make it equal with other industrialized nations in both resources and power, bringing about change through innovation. His inventions of the automatic sluice gates and a revolutionary method of block irrigation became famous all over India; he received its highest honor – Bharat Ratna – from then-President Rajendra Prasad.
Venkatraman Radhakrishnan:
Venkatraman Radhakrishnan was an internationally renowned astrophysicist who researched the mysteries of interstellar clouds and celestial bodies. He studied them closely and devoted his life to understanding them. This Indian scholar was also a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and is often called RK.
Satyendra Nath Bose:
Satyendra Nath Bose is an Indian physicist who helped revolutionize quantum physics by discovering bosons, or particles in physics. Born in Calcutta and educated at Presidency College, he eventually published Planck’s Law and Hypothesis of Light Quanta under Albert Einstein’s supervision before going on to become one of India’s most celebrated scientists.
Meghnad Saha:
Most of us know Meghnad Saha from his architectural design of the Damodar Valley project. But do you know that he was also known for discovering an equation called the Saha Equation, which had a huge impact on astrophysics? Working on thermal ionization of elements and coming up with this discovery gave him fame beyond just being an architect.
Srinivasa Ramanujan:
Another very famous and celebrated scientist in India is Srinivasa Ramanujan. Raised in Tamil Nadu, Ramanujam was a well-respected Indian mathematician who contributed to number theory, fractions, infinite series, and mathematical analysis. Sadly, his life was cut short when he died at the too-young age of 32; but even since childhood it seemed that this genius could master just about any technique – mathematics included – after spending only 13 years studying it.
Jagadish Chandra Bose:
Jagadish Chandra Bose, an Indian born in West Bengal, was a physicist, biologist, polymath and botanist. JC Bose contributed to the study of radios and microwaves – it is said he helped invent them. To add to his list of achievements (which are many), he also began experimenting with plant life at the start of the 20th century. It seems only fitting that his name will forever be tied with some of India’s most iconic scientists – because he truly deserves recognition for all that he has done for this country.
Har Gobind Khorana:
Har Gobind Khorana is a celebrated Indian biochemist credited with winning Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine and changing the future course of medical research. In his time, he has given countless lectures on how important it is to understand our DNA in order to study diseases such as cancer – an illness he successfully battled at one point. With his discovery of DNA synthesis in living cells, he was able to create artificial genes which opened doors for biotechnology and gene therapy; paving the way for new treatments against a range of diseases from diabetes to leukemia.
Vikram Sarabhai:
Vikram Sarabhai is hailed as the Father of India’s space program. Sarabhai played a key role in founding ISRO and convincing Indian officials that they needed to invest in satellites, which then led him being awarded with prestigious honors such as Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan. He also helped establish other notable organizations including Nehru Foundation for Development and the Indian Institute of Management – Ahmedabad which has brought some positive changes to this country.
These Indian scientists are still well-known for their contributions to various aspects of science. Their dedication has given us many important inventions and discoveries which have helped change the very foundation of scientific studies worldwide.
