Infosys Science Foundation announces winners of 2022

Bengaluru: The Infosys Science Foundation (ISF) on Tuesday announced the winners of the Infosys Prize 2022 in six categories – Engineering and Computer Science, Humanities, Life Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences and Social Sciences. The Infosys Prize celebrates the achievements of the recipients and awards them for their contributions to science and research impacting India. The prize for each category comprises a gold medal, a citation, and a prize purse of USD 100,000 (or its equivalent in Rupees). The event was held at the Infosys Science Foundation's new office, in Bengaluru. Panels of accomplished jurors comprising world-renowned scholars and experts shortlisted the winners of the Infosys Prize 2022 from 218 nominations. Among those in attendance at the event were the trustees of the Infosys Science Foundation— Kris Gopalakrishnan, Narayana Murthy, Srinath Batni, K Dinesh, Mohandas Pai, Salil Parekh, and S D Shibulal.

The President, Infosys Science Foundation, Kris Gopalakrishnan said, "The Infosys Prize is promoting stellar research in India by identifying and rewarding individual scholars." Elaborating on the importance of funding science and research in India, Narayana Murthy, Founder – Infosys, Trustee – Infosys Science Foundation, said, "There is an urgent need for both government and private sectors to invest more in science and research. This is the best way forward to solve the many problems that confront us as a nation and humanity as a whole. Winners of the Infosys Prize have gone on to do useful work'­ .

Engineering and Computer Science

Infosys Prize 2022 is awarded to Suman Chakraborty, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, and Dean of Research and Development, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur for his pioneering work in elucidating the interaction of fluid mechanics, interfacial phenomena, and electromechanics at the micro- and nanoscale.

Humanities

Sudhir Krishnaswamy, Vice Chancellor, National Law School of India University, Bengaluru for his insightful understanding of the Indian Constitution, especially his carefully argued account of the importance of the landmark 'basic structure doctrine' adopted by the Supreme Court in 1973 that guides and constrains various efforts to amend it, while also ensuring its stability in the face of executive and legislative outcomes in India's political life.

Life Sciences

Vidita Vaidya, Professor and Chairperson, Department of Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai for her fundamental contributions to understanding brain mechanisms that underlie mood disorders such as anxiety and depression, including signals engaged by the neurotransmitter serotonin in causing persistent changes in behaviour induced by early life stress and the role of serotonin in energy regulation in brain cells.

Mathematical Sciences

Mahesh Kakde, Professor of Mathematics, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru for his outstanding contributions to algebraic number theory. Prof. Kakde's deep work on the non-commutative Iwasawa main conjecture, his work on the Gross-Stark conjecture (with Samit Dasgupta and Kevin Ventullo), and his work on the Brumer-Stark conjecture (with Samit Dasgupta), resolves outstanding conjectures at the heart of modern number theory.

Physical Sciences

Nissim Kanekar, Professor, National Centre for Radio Astronomy, Pune for his study of galaxies in an era - the so-called "high noon" period - in which stars were being formed at a maximum rate. Separately, his careful astronomical investigations have placed the strongest limit on possible secular variation of the fine structure constant and the electron-to-proton mass ratio. Prof. Kanekar's work has put India's radio astronomy capabilities on the world map.

Social Sciences

The Infosys Prize 2022 in Social Sciences is awarded to Rohini Pande, Henry J Heinz II Professor of Economics and Director, Economic Growth Center, Yale University for her outstanding research on subjects of key importance, including governance and accountability, women's empowerment, the role of credit in the lives of the poor, and the environment. Her empirical findings, based on diverse methodologies, offer major promise and potential for policy design in emerging economies, including India.