Agricultural scientist M.S. Swaminathan and theoretical physicist and cosmologist Thanu Padmanabhan have been selected for the Kerala Sastra Puraskaram, 2021, an award instituted by the Government of Kerala to honour distinguished scientists of Kerala origin.
Prof. Swaminathan was chosen for the award considering his lifelong achievements in agriculture research while Prof. Padmanabhan’s accomplishments in theoretical physics helped him win the top recognition of the State, an official release here on Tuesday said.
The award instituted by the State Science and Technology Department in association with the Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment comprises a cash prize of ₹2 lakh, citation, and plaque.
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Paying respects to the two scientists, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, in a Facebook post, described Prof. Swaminathan as the master-brain behind the Green Revolution that helped to revive the flagging agriculture sector in India through modern scientific methods.
He said Prof. Padmanabhan had opened new vistas in scientific research through his work in Gravitation, Structure formation in the universe and Quantum Gravity.