President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday presented the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar- 2025 at an award ceremony held at Gantantra Mandap, Rashtrapati Bhavan.
In the second edition of the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar, 24 awards were presented to distinguished scientists in four categories – Vigyan Ratna, Vigyan Shri, Vigyan Yuva, and Vigyan Team.
The objective of the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar is to recognise the notable and inspiring contributions made by the scientists, technologists, and innovators individually or in teams in various fields of science, technology, and technology-led innovation.
Late Prof Jayant Vishnu Narlikar was posthumously awarded Vigyan Ratna.
Padma Vibhushan Late Prof Jayant Vishnu Narlikar was a renowned Indian astrophysicist and cosmologist known for his groundbreaking work in cosmology and for developing the Hoyle–Narlikar theory to unify gravitation and matter creation, providing a framework for a steady-state universe in the 1960s.
Prof Narlikar, with Fred Hoyle and Geoffrey Burbidge, proposed the Quasi-Steady State Cosmology model that helps in explaining cosmic background radiation and galaxy formation in a different way.
As the founder director of the Inter University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune, he helped in establishing a world-class research and education hub in India.
Under the Vigyan Shri category, the awards were given in the fields of Agricultural Science, Atomic Energy, Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Engineering Sciences, Environmental Science, Mathematics and Computer Science, and Space Science and Technology.