Padma Vibhushan Awardee Dr. RA Mashelkar Joins IIHMR University

IIHMR University, a leading health management research university in India, is proud to announce the appointment of Dr. RA Mashelkar as a distinguished professor, aiming to further elevate the institution’s academic quality, scientific research and innovative landscape.

Dr. Raghunath Anant Mashelkar has spoken on the future of the Indian Healthcare landscape at various platforms where his focus has been on “Indovation”- a concept where he believes that India needs innovation done by Indians for the Indian challenges considering the Indian conditions. He also firmly believes, achieving affordable excellence can help us upscale digital healthcare in India.

He has significantly contributed to academics, scientific research, science, technology, innovations, IPR leadership, and society.  He is renowned for his contributions in polymer science & engineering, for his transformative national research institution leadership, for his pioneering different movements such as evolving global systems for traditional knowledge protection, helping create strong yet balanced IPR systems, inclusive innovation movement based on the concept of   Gandhian Engineering that he pioneered.

Expressing his excitement upon the appointment, Dr. PR Sodani, President, IIHMR University shared, “We are fortunate to have Dr. R.A. Mashelkar as the Distinguished Professor at our University. His unparalleled expertise and visionary leadership in scientific research and innovation will significantly enrich our academic environment and inspire our community to strive for excellence. Dr. Mashelkar’s association with IIHMR University marks a new chapter in our commitment to advancing health management education and research, and we are confident that his contributions will have a lasting impact on our institution and beyond.”

Dr. Mashelkar, who is known for his world-class scientific research has been honoured with three of India’s highest civilian awards, Padmashri (1991), Padmabhushan (2000) and Padma Vibhushan (2014). With many firsts to his credit, he has also won the most prestigious TWAS-Lenovo Science Prize (2018), the highest science prize by the World Academy of Science. Another feather in his cap is the record of 47 honorary doctorates from universities around the world, from London to Pretoria to Wisconsin to Monash to Delhi.

Dr. R.A. Mashelkar’s illustrious professional journey is marked by his leadership and contributions to some of India’s most prestigious scientific and research institutions. He began as the Director of the National Chemical Laboratory (1989-95), where he laid the foundation for his transformative career. He then became the longest-serving head of three major organizations: Director General of CSIR (1995-2006), Chairman of the National Innovation Foundation (2000- 2018) and President of Global Research Alliance (2007-2017). Dr. Mashelkar also served as President of the Indian National Science Academy (INSA) and the Materials Research Society of India, both from 2004 to 2006, further cementing his influence in India’s scientific community. His academic leadership extends to roles as Chancellor of Assam University, Silchar (2003-2005), Chancellor of the Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (2013-2016), and currently, as Chancellor of the Institute of Chemical Technology (since 2010) and Jio Institute (since 2020). Throughout his career, Dr. Mashelkar has been a driving force in advancing scientific research, innovation, and education in India and beyond.

IIHMR University’s new professor has also co-authored influential books, “Leap Frogging to Pole Vaulting: Creating the Magic of Radical yet Sustainable Transformation’, which won the Best Business Book of the Year award at the Tata Lit Festival in 2019 and “Exprovement: Exponential Improvement through Converging Parallels”.