BENGALURU: Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, chairperson and managing director, Biocon, has become the first Indian woman to be elected as the foreign member in the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). Shaw has been elected in the Washington-based academy for her contribution in the development of affordable biopharmaceuticals and biotech industry in India.
“I owe it to my entire team at Biocon and Syngene,” Shaw said in a tweet. The NAE has elected 86 new members and 18 foreign members, which brings the total US membership to 2,297 and the number of foreign members to 272, it said.
“Election to the NAE is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer. Academy membership honours those who have made outstanding contributions to “engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature” and to “the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing or implementing innovative approaches to engineering education,” it said in a statement.
Bengaluru-based Biocon manufactures generic active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) that sold in more than 120 countries across the globe, including the developed markets of the US and Europe.