The Alchemist

S.S. BHATNAGAR (1894—1955) India’s father of science and technology

Credited with establishing 12 national research laboratories in India, internationally acclaimed chemist and scientist Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar is more famously known as the ‘father of science and technology’, and there is a reason for that. As the Founder Director, and later as Director General, of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), a scientific organisation conceived and developed by him, he played a key role in promoting scientific

research for the industrial revolution in independent India. A Padma Bhushan awardee, it was through his guidance and application of scientific and engineering knowledge that he could make a significant contribution to the development of national industries in India, which is quite relevant today, keeping in view the ‘Make in India’ campaign launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

His research contributed to several areas of chemical sciences including emulsions, colloids and industrial chemistry. However, his pioneering research in the field of magnetochemistry is acclaimed throughout the world. Today’s chemical industry is an important part of the Indian economy, and a lot of credit goes to this pioneer for solving the industrial problems. But he refused to take any personal monetary benefit; these instances show us how much respect he gave to science.