Noted scientist Prof Janardan Nanda was conferred the prestigious Biju Patnaik Award for Scientific Excellence for the year 2011 here on Friday.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik gave away the award to Prof Nanda at a function organised by the Odisha Bigyan Academy (OBA).
Nanda was given the award for his research on power system analysis; stability, control and optimisation of large scale electrical power systems and powering smart grids, micro grids with non-conventional energy sources. The award carries a citation and `2 lakh as cash prize.
Speaking on the occasion, Naveen said the State Government was committed to creating a policy for efficient tapping of the State’s natural resources.
He applauded the innovation and research done by the scientists of the State to bring forth a change. Since Odisha is a mineral-rich State with 500 km coastal line, much was left to be done to tap these natural resources. “Scientists play a major role in devising mechanisms to tackle poverty, provide access to safe drinking water and global warming,” Naveen said.
The OBA felicitates eminent scientists and individuals who have made exceptional contributions in the field of science, every year. Eleven scientists were felicitated on this occasion for the year 2011.
Nrusingh Charan Panda was honoured with Senior Scientist Felicitation. Panda pioneered the identification of sal fruit as a source of fat or oil and also studied the effect of tannin found in tea and coffee on human health.
Four scientists were awarded the the ‘Samanta Chandra Sekhar Award.’ Shreerup Goswami for Physical Sciences, Sanjeeb Kumar Sahoo for Life Sciences, Saroj Kumar Singh for Engineering and Technology and Jyotirmayee Mohanty for being an outstanding Odia scientist working outside Odisha.
The four were awarded a medal, a citation and cash prize amounting to Rs50,000 each.
Three young scientists were awarded the ‘Odisha Young Scientist Award.’ They are Archana Mallik (for her work in the field of Engineering and Technology), Dilip Mishra (in the field of Physical Sciences) and Manas Ranjan Swain (in Life Sciences). Kamalakanta Jena and Mina Kumari Nanda were given away the ‘Pranakrushna Parija Popular Scientists Award’.
Science and Technology (S & T) department minister Ramesh Chandra Majhi, S & T department secretary Shurendra Kumar, OBA president Umacharan Mohanty and secretary Rekha Das were also present at the event.