ENG - Indian Contributions To Science PDF
ENG - Indian Contributions To Science PDF
ENG - Indian Contributions To Science PDF
TO SCIENCE
Compiled By
Vijnana Bharati
Indian Contributions
To Science
Indian Contributions
To Science
Compiled by
Vijnana Bharati
All rights reserved. No part of the publication may be
reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the
written permission of the publisher.
Vijnana Bharati
C-486, Defence Colony,
New Delhi- 110 024
Preface...................................................................................................vii
Syllabus:
Junior group (Class VI- VIII): Chapters 1-7 & 9-12
Senior group (Class IX- XI): All Chapters (Chapters 1-19)
vi
Preface
viii
VIDYARTHI VIGYAN MANTHAN
(VVM EDITION – VII) 2018-19
“INDIA’S LARGEST SCIENCE TALENT SEARCH FOR
NEW INDIA USING DIGITAL DEVICES”
x
Acknowledgements
Pre-Independence
The history of scientific discoveries and development
in India dates back to the Vedic era. Aryabhatta, the famous
mathematician of the Vedic era, invented ‘zero’. It is believed
that ancient Indian scholars had developed geometric theorems
before Pythagoras had made them popular. The concept of
squares, rectangles, circles, triangles, fractions, and the ability
to express number 10 to the 12th power, algebraic formulae, and
astronomy have all had their origins in Vedic literature; some
are stated to have been known as early as 1500 BCE. The decimal
system was already in use during the Harappan Civilization.
This is evident in their use of weights and measures. Moreover,
the concepts of astronomy and metaphysics are all described in
the Rig Veda, an ancient Hindu text of the Vedic era.
From the complex layout of Harappan towns to the
existence of the Iron Pillar in Delhi, it is evident that India’s
indigenous technologies had been very sophisticated. They
included the design and planning of water supply, traffic flow,
2 Indian Contributions to Science
Water Management
Water has been the life blood of most major civilizations.
Criss-crossed by many great rivers, India is no exception to the
rule. Indians had been developing water management techniques
even before the Harappan time. Wells, ponds, lakes, dams and
canals have been constructed with advanced technologies
throughout the historic timeline of Indian civilization. Water
has been used for storage, drinking and purposes of irrigation.
It is estimated that even today, there are more than a million
man-made ponds and lakes in India.
Physics
The concept of atom can be traced to the Vedic times. The
material world was divided into five elements, namely, earth
(Prithvi), fire (Agni), air (Vayu), water (Jal) and ether or space
(Akasha). Paramanu (beyond atom) was considered to be the
smallest particle, which cannot be divided further. Nuclear
energy is produced today splitting the same.
Post-Independence
India has witnessed considerable growth in the field
of science and technology post Independence. Significant
achievements have been made in the areas of nuclear and space
science, electronics and defense. India has the third largest
scientific and technical manpower in the world. In the field
4 Indian Contributions to Science
Atomic Energy
The main objective of India’s nuclear energy programme is
to use it to generate power, and apply the technology for further
progress in agriculture, medicine, industry and research. India
is, today, recognized as one of the most advanced countries in
nuclear technology. Accelerators and nuclear power reactors
are now designed and built indigenously.
Space
Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is the
sixth largest space research organization in the world. It has
numerous milestones to its credit since its establishment in 1969.
India’s first satellite Aryabhatta was built by ISRO in 1975. It
was followed by many more. In 2008, Chandrayaan-1 became
India’s first mission to the moon. The Indian Space Research
Organization (ISRO), under the Department of Space (DOS),
is responsible for research, development and operation in the
India’s Contribution to Science and Technology 5
Oceanography
India has a coastline of more than 7,600 km and 1,250
islands. The Department of Ocean Development was established
in 1981 to ensure optimum utilization of living resources,
exploitation of non-living resources such as hydrocarbons and
minerals and production of ocean energy. Two research vessels,
FORV Sagar Kanya and FORV Sagar Sampada, are assessing and
evaluating the resource potential.
Biotechnology
India has been the frontrunner among the developing
countries in promoting multidisciplinary activities in this
area, recognizing the practically unlimited possibility of their
applications in increasing agricultural and industrial production,
and in improving human and animal life. The National
Biotechnology Board was formed in 1982. The Department of
Biotechnology was created in 1986. The areas which have been
receiving attention are cattle herd improvement through embryo
transfer technology, in vitro propagation of disease- resistant
plant varieties for obtaining higher yields and development of
vaccines for various diseases.
***
Follow Guide to Pronunciation
(Chapter 2 to 6)
2
Astronomy in India
Some of the rings stone found at Mohenjo-daro, with rows of small drilled
holes that appears to point to the sunset across the year.
(Courtesy: Erkka Maula)
The 27 nakṣatras, with the earth in the centre. (Courtesy: M.S. Sriram)
ṛtus or seasons of two months each. The Yajur-Veda also gave the
first list of 27 nakṣatras or lunar mansions, that is, constellations
along the path of the moon on the celestial sphere.
Because of the need to keep time for the proper conduct
of rituals, calendrical astronomy grew more sophisticated in
the late Vedic period, with the Vedāṅga Jyotiṣa of Lagadha as
its representative text (and, if we may call it so, the first extant
Indian scientific text). On the basis of its own astronomical data,
it has been dated between the 12th and the 14th centuries BCE
by most scholars. The length of the sidereal day (i.e. the time
taken by the earth to complete one revolution with respect to
any given star) it uses is 23 h 56 min 4.6 s, while the correct value
is 23 h 56 min 4.091 s; the tiny difference is an indication of the
precision reached in that early age. The Vedāṅga Jyotiṣa also
discusses solstices (ayanānta) and equinoxes (viṣuva) and uses
two intercalary lunar months (adhikamāsa) to catch up with the
solar calendar.* In some ways, this text remains the foundation
for India’s traditional luni-solar calendars.
*The solar year is about 365.24 solar days, while the lunar year is, at most,
360 days. After a few years, the difference between the two will grow so
much that a month needs to be added to the lunar year to restore a broad
coincidence between the two systems. This is the intercalary month.
12 Indian Contributions to Science
*Because they were using a geocentric system, early Greek and Indian
astronomers could not explain the planets’ occasional retrograde
motion (as seen from the earth); they assumed that the planets moved
along smaller orbits, called epicycles, whose centres revolved around
the earth along larger circles (the planets’ mean orbits).
Astronomy in India 13
Atomism in Vaiśeṣika
Although it did not translate into actual chemistry, the
Indian notion of atomism deserves a brief mention. Atomism,
or the concept that matter is ultimately made of indivisible
building blocks, appeared in India a few centuries BCE as part
of philosophical speculations, in particular in the Vaiśeṣika, one
of the six philosophical systems of ancient India. The author of
the Vaiśeṣika Sūtras came to be known as Kaṇāda (literally ‘eater
of particles’) and may have lived any time after 500 BCE. In this
system, all substance was seen as an aggregated form of smaller
units called atoms (aṇu or paramāṇu), which were eternal,
indestructible, spherical, supra -sensible and in motion at the
primordial state; they could form pairs or triplets, among other
combinations, and unseen forces caused interactions between
them. The Vaiśeṣika system identified nine types of substance
(dravya): (1 to 5) the five elements (earth or prithvi, water or
ap, fire or tejas, wind or vāyu, ether or ākāśa), (6) time (kāla),
(7) space or direction (dik), (8) the mind (manas), and (9) the
spirit or knower (ātman). Besides, substance had twenty-four
different qualities (guṇas), including fluidity, viscosity, elasticity
and gravity. While fluidity was related to water, earth and fire,
viscosity was unique to water, and gravity to earth. Distinctive
characteristics of sound, heat and light were also discussed,
which often came close to later discoveries of physics, although,
lacking a mathematical apparatus, they did not evolve into
scientific theories.
Chemistry in India: A Survey 23
A representation of the koṣṭhi yantra (left) and the dolā yantra (right)
(Courtesy: National Science Centre, New Delhi)
A representation of the ādhana yantra (left) and the dhūpa yantra (right)
(Courtesy: National Science Centre, New Delhi)
drill teeth and remove decay 8,000 to 9,000 years ago. Study
of fossils from Mehrgarh, now in Pakistan, revealed tiny holes
drilled into teeth on the biting surface of male molars. Evidence
has also been unearthed from Harappa and Lothal revealing
an ancient surgical practice on a Bronze Age skull dating back
to nearly 4,300 years ago. Trepanation, a common means of
surgery practised in prehistoric societies starting with the Stone
Age, involved drilling or cutting through the skull vault, often
to treat head injury or to remove bone splinters or blood clots
caused by a blow to the head.
An evolving pharmacopoeia
The practice of medicine in Ayurveda is based on the
principle that there is no substance in the world that does not
potentially have medicinal property. The evolution of Ayurvedic
pharmacopoeia represents a continuous and unfinished quest
for discovering new medicines from natural resources. About
1,500 medicinal plants have been described and formulated into
thousands of medicines in the tradition of Ayurveda. Hundreds
of animals and animal products have also been mentioned in the
texts. Around the 6th century in the Common Era, the branch of
medicine specializing in the use of minerals and metals known
as Rasaśāstra developed and established itself, especially in
the North of India. The older tradition of herbal medicines
continued to be practised in India’s southern states. In Tamil
Nadu, the system of Siddha medicine (traditionally regarded as
having been founded by eighteen ‘Siddhars’ or realized beings,
but in practice similar to Ayurveda) added to its pharmacopoeia
drugs metallic and mineral components.
the two streams of the folk and classical expressions. India has
a rich tradition of folk medicine, which was organized into a
paramedical force of health practitioners, bonesetters, poison
healers and birth attendants who delivered primary healthcare
for the people. Many of these traditions have survived into
modern times. Today India is perhaps the only country in
the world that officially recognizes a pluralistic healthcare
system patronizing medical systems like Ayurveda, Yoga and
Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy.
Cross-cultural interactions
Ayurveda benefited from cross-cultural interactions and
spread out of India into neighbouring countries like China, Sri
Lanka, Tibet, Thailand and Indonesia. Buddhism played a major
role in the spread of Ayurveda outside India. When Alexander
the Great invaded India in 325 BCE, he was so impressed by the
snakebite healers and Ayurvedic physicians that he invited them
to Greece. There is historical evidence indicating interactions
between the physicians of Greek medicine and Ayurveda.
Important textbooks of Ayurveda like Caraka Saṃhitā, Suśruta
Saṃhitā and Aṣṭāṇga Hṛdaya were translated into Tibetan,
Persian and Arabic languages in the Middle Ages.
Travellers from China and the Middle East narrated in
their accounts the advanced state of medical practice in India.
Sources
Arthasastra of Kautilya contains very interesting passages
relating to the harvesting and management of crops and crop
diseases and very many aspects of agroforestry. Brhat Samhita
of Varahamihira composed in the 6th Century CE has an entire
chapter devoted to Vrksayurveda. Agni Purana also includes
a chapter on the topic. Cakrapanidatta, a commentator of the
celebrated Ayurvedic text, Caraka Samhita, puts forth the
theory that plants have feelings and cognitive abilities. There
40 Indian Contributions to Science
Scope
Ayurvedic literature refers to plants and their classification
into forest trees, other trees, shrubby plants and herbs. Shrubby
plants are either climbers or shrubs as such and herbs are
flowering and non- flowering. Flowering and an non-flowering
trees are also distinguished. Vrksayurveda includes topics like
collection, selection and storage of seeds, germination and
sowing, various techniques of plant propogation and grafting,
nursing and irrigation, testing and classification of soil, selection
of soils suitable for various plants, types of plants, manuring,
Preparation of extract from neem kernels to treat crops against pests and
diseases. (Courtesy: Centre for Indian Knowledge Systems, Chennai)
Preparation of extract from garlic, ginger and chilli to treat crops against
pests and diseases. (Courtesy: Centre for Indian Knowledge Systems,
Chennai)
42 Indian Contributions to Science
Validation
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has
documented 4,879 indigenous practices in the field of traditional
plant science. A set of 111 indigenous technical practices were
selected and subjected to experimental testing and validation
in efforts that were conducted by several ICAR institutes and
state agricultural departments and universities across the
country. These pertain to various topics such as pest control,
crop protection, farm implements, weather forecasting etc., and
it was shown that slightly more than 80% of these practices were
valid and about 6% were partly valid. Vrksayurveda promises
many new areas for fresh research initiatives like the study
of meteorological conditions (tithi, naksatra) that are suitable
for various agricultural operations in the cultivation of crops,
increasing plant growth and yield, testing and classification
of soil and use of plants as indicators for water, minerals and
weather.
Sources
Hayayurveda of Salihotra is an ancient textbook of
veterinary medicine that classifies horse and describes
Plant and Animal Science in Ancient India 43
Scope
The diversity of animal life has been well captured in the
ancient literature of India. The canons of Caraka and Susruta
classify animals on the basis of their habitat and predatory
behaviour. Animals are classified on the basis of habitat into
terrestrial, underground, aquatic, aerial and marshy types.
Animals are prey snatchers (prasaha), peckers (viskira) or
attackers (pratuda). In different text, animals have been classified
44 Indian Contributions to Science
Current status
Gajayurveda is still practiced by traditional experts in
states like Kerala. Veterinary herbal medicines are manufactured
and marketed by pharmaceutical firm in India.
First Steps
India’s first urban development, the Indus or Harappan
civilization (2600-1900 BCE), involved a high degree of town
planning. A mere glance at the plan of Mohenjo-daro’s acropolis
(or upper city), Dholavira (in the Rann of Kachchh) or Kalibangan
(Rajasthan), reveals fortifications and streets generally aligned
to the cardinal directions and exhibiting right angles. Specific
proportions in the dimensions of major structures have also
been pointed out. All this implies a sound knowledge of basic
geometric principles and an ability to measure angles, which
the discovery of a few cylindrical compasses made of shell, with
slits cut every 45°, has confirmed. Besides, for trading purposes
Mathemathics in India 47
The first layer of one kind of śyenaciti or falcon altar described in the
Śulbasūtras, made of 200 bricks of six shapes or sizes, all of them adding up
to a specified total area.
Numerals as they appeared in early inscriptions, from the 3rd century BCE
to the 1st century CE. Note that they do not yet follow a decimal positional
system; for instance, in the first column, 40 is written as ‘20, 20’, 60 as ‘20,
20, 20’. (Adapted from INSA)
Mathemathics in India 51
then thickly coated with clay; once fired (which caused the wax
to melt away or be ‘lost’), the clay hardened into a mould, into
which molten bronze was later poured.
Harappans also used gold and silver (as well as their joint
alloy, electrum) to produce a wide variety of ornaments such
as pendants, bangles, beads, rings or necklace parts, which
were usually found hidden away in hoards such as ceramic or
bronze pots. While gold was probably panned from the Indus
waters, silver was perhaps extracted from galena, or native
lead sulphide.
Iron Metallurgy
While the Indus civilization belonged to the Bronze Age,
its successor, the Ganges civilization, which emerged in the
first millennium BCE, belonged to the Iron Age. But recent
excavations in central parts of the Ganges valley and in the
eastern Vindhya hills have shown that iron was produced there
possibly as early as in 1800 BCE. Its use appears to have become
widespread from about 1000 BCE, and we find in late Vedic texts
mentions of a ‘dark metal’ (krṣnāyas), while earliest texts (such
as the Rig-Veda) only spoke of ayas, which, it is now accepted,
referred to copper or bronze.
Whether other parts of India learned iron technology from
the Gangetic region or came up with it independently is not easy
to figure out. What seems clear, however, is that the beginnings
of copper-bronze and iron technologies in India correspond
broadly with those in Asia Minor (modern Turkey) and the
Caucasus, but were an independent development, not an import.
Wootz Steel
Instead, India was a major innovator in the field, producing
two highly advanced types of iron.
The first, wootz steel, produced in south India from about
300 BCE, was iron carburized under controlled conditions.
Exported from the Deccan all the way to Syria, it was shaped
there into ‘Damascus swords’ renowned for their sharpness and
toughness. But it is likely that the term ‘Damascus’ derived not
from Syria’s capital city, but from the ‘damask’ or wavy pattern
characteristic of the surface of those swords. In any case, this
Indian steel was called ‘the wonder material of the Orient’. A
Roman historian, Quintius Curtius, recorded that among the
gifts which Alexander the Great received from Porus of Taxila
(in 326 BCE), there was some two-and-a-half tons of wootz
steel — it was evidently more highly prized than gold or jewels!
Later, the Arabs fashioned it into swords and other weapons,
and during the Crusades, Europeans were overawed by the
superior Damascus swords. It remained a favoured metal for
weapons through the Moghul era, when wootz swords, knives
A typical sword made of wootz steel (about 18th century); the hilt is of iron
and coated with a thick layer of gold. (Courtesy: R. Balasubramaniam)
64 Indian Contributions to Science
Zinc
Indian metallurgists were familiar several other metals,
of which zinc deserves a special mention because, having a
low boiling point (907°C), it tends to vaporize while its ore is
smelted. Zinc, a silvery-white metal, is precious in combination
with copper, resulting in brass of superior quality. Sometimes
part of copper ore, pure zinc could be produced only after a
sophisticated ‘downward’ distillation technique in which the
vapour was captured and condensed in a lower container. This
technique, which was also applied to mercury, is described in
Sanskrit texts such as the 14th -century Rasaratnasamuccaya.
Social Context
We should finally note that most of India’s metal
production was controlled by specific social groups, including
so-called tribes, most of them from the lower rungs of Indian
society.
For instance, the Agarias of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya
Pradesh are reputed iron smiths, and there are still such
Introduction
In many parts of India, communities have inherited the
rich tradition of love and reverence for nature through ages.
Religious preaching, traditions and customs have played a
big role in this regard: Indian religions have generally been
the advocates of environmentalism. They campaigned for
such guidelines to the commoners that ensured an intimate
contact and sense of belonging in nature. It came in the form of
directives to the believers to perform certain rites and rituals,
so that it became a way of their life. Sometimes the messages
of environmental protection and conservation are in a veiled
form. Today, when the world is undergoing a serious crisis of
ecological imbalance and environmental degradation, it is all
the more important for us to understand such traditions.
Nature
The culture of conservation of nature dates back to the
ancient Vedic Period. The four Vedas- Rig Veda, Sama Veda,
Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda are full of hymns dedicated to
the supremacy of various natural entities. The Rigvedic hymns
refer to many gods and goddesses identified with sun, moon,
thunder, lightening, snow, rain, water, rivers, trees etc. They
have been glorified and worshipped as givers of health, wealth
and prosperity. The rain–god Indra has the largest number of
hymns attached to him.
70 Indian Contributions to Science
Sacred Groves
The tradition of sacred groves was also common in
the ancient period and is still practised by folk and tribal
communities. A sacred grove consists of a bunch of old trees,
generally at the outskirts of a village, which were left untouched
when the original settlers cleared the forest to establish the
village. Such groves were regarded as the abodes of gods and
goddesses or spirits and hence protected with utmost care. The
cutting of trees was prohibited in these areas and nobody dared
to disobey the injunction, partly because of religious faith and
partly due to the fear of facing the wrath of the gods, goddesses
and spirits. In many sacred groves, villagers perform sacrifices
and offerings to the gods during festivals and other occasions.
This tradition of sacred groves could be matched with the
contemporary notion of biosphere reserves.
Indian Traditional Knowledge on Environmental Conservation 73
Wildlife
Wild animals and even domesticated ones were
also given pride of place and respect in the ancient
tradition. Many Hindu gods and goddesses have
some particular animal
or bird as their vehicles
or vāhana. These include
lion, tiger, elephant, bull,
horse, peacock, swan, owl,
vulture, ox, mouse, etc. The
association of wild animals
with peoples’ religious beliefs
played a significant role in
their preservation for so
very long in India, until the
colonial rule indulged in
intensive hunting. The feeling
Seals from the Indus civilization depicting a bull, an elephant, and two
unicorns (a mythical animal with a single horn)
on either side of a papal tre. (Courtesy: ASI)
During the Vedic period, the cow was considered a very
valuable animal; Aditi, the mother of the gods in the Rig-Veda,
was often called ‘the divine cow’. In the Mahabharata, the whole
earth is compared to a cow which humans, gods and demons,
trees and mountains all milked to get what they desire out of
her. Many of the sastras prescribed the unnecessary killing of
animals. Later, the Mauryan ruler Asoka also prohibited in his
edicts hunting and cruelty to animals; his edict at Girnar in
Gujarat (left) also ordered medical treatment for them when
necessary.
76 Indian Contributions to Science
Tradition of resistance
The nineteenth and twentieth centuries saw more examples
of resistance against forest cutting. Most of those movements
were largely against unjust colonial forest laws which affected
the livelihood of the local people, especially tribals: the creation
of government-protected forests by the colonial government
was disastrous for the tribals, who were purely dependent on
forest produce. The tribal communities were thus the worst hit
by governmental forest departments.
9
Ayurveda for Life, Health and Well-
being: A Survey
WHAT IS AYURVEDA?
Definition of Ayurveda- Ayurveda is made up of two
words — ayus meaning life and veda meaning knowledge.
Ayurveda is thus knowledge of life or Life Science. A classical
text defines Ayurveda as the knowledge that describes the
wholesome (hitam), unwholesome (ahitam), happy (sukham)
and unhappy (asukham) life as well as that which informs what
is wholesome and unwholesome for life and longevity.
We can see from the above definition that the goal of
Ayurveda is to promote both individual and social well-being at
all levels of experience. Ayurveda aims to establish the highest
level of health that a human being is capable of achieving and
its scope is not restricted to curing diseases. Health is a state of
physiological, psychological and spiritual well-being.
Several thousands of years ago, the tradition of Ayurveda
anticipated the most modern definition of health that has been
trumpeted by the World Health Organization: ‘Health is a
state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and
not merely absence of disease or infirmity.’ Ayurveda also
adds the spiritual dimension to health and points out that the
human being is three-dimensional and needs to be healthy in
body, mind and self. Health is a tool to achieve the four-fold
goal of life: pursuit of spiritual and material well-being through
resources obtained by righteous activity — dharma, artha, kāma
and mokṣa.
82 Indian Contributions to Science
This diagram depicts the correspondence between the materials that make
up the external world and the living body, as well as the transformation of
food into the tissues of the body.
by earth (prthvī), water (ap), fire (tejas), air (vāyu) and space
(ākāśa). To simplify, they denote space and the solid, liquid,
thermal and gaseous states of physical matter and correspond
to the five sense perceptions of sound, smell, taste, colour and
touch. Everything in the visible universe including the human
body is made up of the five elements in various permutations
and combinations. Thus, the imbalance in the human body can
Ayurveda for Life, Health and Well-being: A Survey 85
In this painting from Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, 19th century, the position of
the cakras is related to an anatomically correct spine as well as to various
divinities. (Courtesy: National Museum, New Delhi)
Ayurveda for Life, Health and Well-being: A Survey 87
3. SUBRAHMANYAN CHANDRASEKHAR
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar was born on 19 October
1910 in Lahore. His father, Chandrasekhara Subrahmanya Iyer
was an officer in Indian Audits and Accounts Department.
His mother Sitalakshmi
was a woman of high
intellectual attainments.
Sir C.V. Raman, the
first Indian to get Nobel
Prize in science, was his
paternal uncle. Till the age
of 12, Chandrasekhar was
educated at home by his
parents and private tutors.
In 1922, at the age of 12,
he attended the Hindu
High School. He joined the
Madras Presidency College
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 93
5. VENKATARAMAN RAMAKRISHNAN
Venkataraman Ramakrishnan was born in Chidambaram,
a small town in Cuddalore district in Tamil Nadu in 1952. His
parents C.V. Ramakrishnan and Rajalakshmi were lecturers
in biochemistry at Maharaja Sayajirao University in Baroda,
Gujarat. Venky, as he is popularly known, did his schooling
from the Convent of Jesus and
Mary in Baroda. He migrated
to America to do his higher
studies in physics. He then
changed his field to biology
at the University of California.
He moved to Medical
Research Council Laboratory
of Molecular Biology,
Cambridge, UK. It was there
he cracked the complex
functions and structures of
ribosomes, which fetched him
Nobel Prize for Chemistry in
2009, along with Thomas
E. Steitz, USA and Ada E. Yonath, Israel. He became the
fourth scientist of Indian origin to win a Nobel Prize after
Sir C.V. Raman, Har Gobind Khurana and Subrahmanyan
Chandrasekhar.
96 Indian Contributions to Science
***
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 97
1. Sushruta
An ancient Indian
surgeon dating back to
almost 2,500 years ago,
Sushruta made numerous
contributions to the field
of surgery. Sushruta is
regarded as the Father of
Surgery. In his book Sushruta
Samhita, he described over
300 surgical procedures, 120
surgical instruments and
classified human surgery
categories. He lived, taught and practiced his art on the banks
of the Ganges which is now called Varanasi in North India.
Some of his contributions include surgical demonstration
of techniques of making incisions, probing, extraction of foreign
bodies, alkali and thermal cauterization, tooth extraction,
excisions, and so on. He also described removal of the prostate
gland, urethra, hernia surgery, caesarian section, and so on.
He classified details of six types of dislocations, 12 varieties of
fractures and types of bones and their reaction to injuries. He
has written about 76 signs of various eye diseases, symptoms,
prognosis, medical/surgical interventions and cataract surgery.
There is also description of a method of stitching the intestines
98 Indian Contributions to Science
2. Bhaskara II
Bhaskara II, also known as Bhaskaracharya, was born in
1114 CE near Vijjaydavida or present-day Bijapur in the state of
Karnataka. Born to a family of scholars, he learnt mathematics
from his astrologer father Mahesvara. A leading mathematician
of twelfth century, he wrote his first work on the systematic use
of the decimal number system. He also headed the astronomical
observatory at Ujjain, a leading mathematical centre of ancient
India.
His main work Siddhanta
Shiromani, which has four
parts, namely, Lilavati,
Bijaganita, Grahaganita
and Goladhaya deals
with arithmetic, algebra,
mathematics of the planets
and spheres, respectively.
Bhaskara is particularly
known for the discovery of
the principles of differential
calculus and its application
to astronomical problems and computations. While Newton
and Leibniz have been credited with differential and integral
calculus, there is strong evidence to suggest that Bhaskara was
a pioneer in some of the principles of differential calculus. He
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 99
3. Aryabhatta
Aryabhatta is the earliest known mathematician and
astronomer of India. The birth place of Aryabhatta, who lived
between circa 476–550 CE, is still a mystery. While many believe
that he was born in
Pataliputra in Magadha,
present-day Patna in
the state of Bihar, others
are of the view that he
was born in Kerala and
lived in Magadha at the
time of the Gupta rulers.
His works include the
Aryabhatiya (499 CE,
when he was 23 ) and
the Arya Siddhanta.
His most famous work, Aryabhatiya is a detailed text on
mathematics and astronomy. The mathematical part of the
Aryabhatiya covers arithmetic, algebra and trigonometry. It
also contains continued fractions, quadratic equations, sums of
power series and a table of sines. Aryabhatta is believed to have
written at least three texts on astronomy and wrote some free
stanzas as well. Aryabhatta was a genius and all his theories
100 Indian Contributions to Science
Birbal Sahni
The renowned paleobotanist, Birbal Sahni, was born
on 14 November 1891 at Shahpur district, now in Pakistan.
He was the third son of Ishwari Devi and Lala Ruchi Ram
Sahni. He studied at the
Government College,
Lahore and Punjab
University and graduated
from Emmanuel College,
Cambridge in 1914.
After completion of his
education, Birbal Sahni
came back to India and
worked as professor of
botany at Banaras Hindu
University, Varanasi and
Punjab University for
about a year. In 1920, he
married Savitri Suri, who took an interest in his work and was
a constant companion.
He studied the fossils of the Indian subcontinent. He was
the founder of Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow.
Palaeobotany is a subject that requires the knowledge of both
botany and geology. Birbal Sahni was the first botanist to study
extensively about the flora of Indian Gondwana region. Sahni
also explored the Raj Mahal hills in Bihar, which is a treasure
house of fossils of ancient plants. Here he discovered many new
genus of plants.
104 Indian Contributions to Science
P.C. Mahalanobis
A well-known Indian statistician and scientist, Mahalanobis
is greatly popular for introducing new methods of sampling.
His most significant contribution in the field of statistics
was the ‘Mahalanobis Distance’. Besides, he had also made
pioneering studies in the field
of anthropometry and had
founded the Indian Statistical
Institute.
Originally, the family
of Mahalanobis belonged
to Bikrampur, Bangladesh.
As a child, Mahalanobis
grew up in an environment
surrounded by socially active
reformers and intellectuals.
He had his initial education
from Brahmo Boys School in
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 105
Meghnad Saha
Meghnad Saha was an astrophysicist, best known for his
development of the Saha equation, used to describe chemical
and physical conditions in
stars. Meghnad Saha was
born on the 6 October 1893
in a village near Dhaka
in Bangladesh. His father
Jagannath Saha had a grocery
shop in the village. His
family’s financial condition
was very bad. He studied in
the village primary school
while attending the family
shop during free time. He
got admitted into a middle
school which was seven miles away from his village. He stayed
in a doctor’s house near the school and had to work in that house
to meet the cost of living. He was ranked first in the Dhaka
middle school test and got admitted into Dhaka Collegiate
School.
Saha graduated from Presidency College with major
in mathematics and got the second rank in the University of
Calcutta whereas the first one was bagged by Satyendra Nath
Bose, another great scientist of India. In 1915, both S.N. Bose and
Meghnad ranked first in MSc examination, Meghnad in applied
mathematics and Bose in pure mathematics. Meghnad decided
to do research in physics and applied mathematics. While in
college, he got involved with the freedom struggle and came
in contact with great leaders of his time like Subhash Chandra
Bose and Bagha Jatin.
Meghnad Saha made remarkable contribution to the field
of astrophysics. He went abroad and stayed for two years in
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 107
Panchanan Maheshwari
Born in November 1904 in Jaipur, Rajasthan, Panchanan
Maheshwari is a famous biologist. During his college days, he was
inspired by Dr W. Dudgeon, an American missionary teacher.
Maheshwari invented the technique of test-tube fertilization
of angiosperms. Till then no one thought that flowering
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 111
B. P. Pal
B.P. Pal, the famous agricultural scientist, was born in
Punjab on 26 May 1906. His family later moved to Burma
(presently known as Myanmar), then a British colony, to work as
a medical officer. Pal studied at St. Michael’s School in Maymyo,
Burma. Apart from being a brilliant student, Pal was fond of
gardening and painting.
In 1929, Pal qualified for Masters in Botany at Rangoon
University where he also won the Matthew Hunter Prize
for topping all science streams at the University. He was
awarded a scholarship which permitted him to pursue his
postgraduate education at Cambridge. Dr Pal worked with
Sir Frank Engledow on hybrid vigour in wheat at the famous
Plant Breeding Institute. This provided the basis for the design
of the Green Revolution, essentially based on the commercial
exploitation of wheat hybrids.
In March 1933, Dr Pal was appointed Assistant Rice
Research Officer in the Burmese Department of Agriculture. In
October, the same year, he moved to Pusa, Bihar, to become the
Second Economic Botanist at the Imperial Agricultural Research
Institute, which was renamed the Indian Agricultural Research
Institute (IARI) in 1947. IARI was earlier located in Pusa, Bihar,
but after a severe earthquake which damaged its main building,
the institute was shifted to New Delhi in 1936. Dr Pal was the
first Indian Director of the IARI in New Delhi, and the institute
was named Pusa in 1950. He continued to serve in that capacity
until May 1965, when he became the first Director General of the
Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). He held this
position from May 1965 to January 1972, during which period
the Green Revolution was launched with outstanding success.
Dr Pal’s major contribution to the scientific aspects of
the Green Revolution was in the area of wheat genetics and
breeding. He observed that rust disease was largely responsible
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 113
It was at Bangalore,
under the direct guidance
of Nobel laureate, Dr C.V.
Raman that he started
setting up observatories in
Bangalore, Pune and the
Himalayas. Soon after the
war was over, he returned
to UK for a while. Sarabhai
received a PhD from
Cambridge University for
his pathbreaking work.
His real work began in 1947 along with meteorologist, K.R.
Ramanathan, who helped him establish the Physical Research
Laboratory, Ahmedabad. Initially, it consisted of rooms at
the Science Institute of the Ahmedabad Education Society.
Analys`ing and studying cosmic rays and atmospheric physics,
the scientists set up two dedicated teams at the site. Sarabhai’s
team realized that evaluating the weather was not enough to
comprehend variations in the cosmic rays; they had to relate it
to variations in solar activity. He was the pioneer researcher in
the field of solar physics.
With such a big breakthrough in hand, Sarabhai soon
received financial support from the Indian Council of Scientific
and Industrial Research and the Department of Atomic
Energy. And the support did not just end there. He was
asked to organize the Indian programme for the International
Geophysical Year of 1957. Around this time, the erstwhile
Soviet Union launched Sputnik-1. India, not too far behind,
decided to set up the Indian National Committee for Space
Research chaired by Sarabhai.
The visionary scientist set up India’s first rocket launching
station, TERLS in Thumba on the coast of the Arabian Sea on
21 November 1963 with the support of Homi Bhabha from the
Atomic Energy Commission. In 1966, Sarabhai was appointed as
Chairman of the Indian Atomic Energy Commission following
Bhabha’s untimely demise. Sarabhai’s greatest achievement was
116 Indian Contributions to Science
Varghese Kurien
Fondly called the ‘Milk Man of India’, Varghese Kurien
was born on 26 November 1921 in Kozhikode, Kerala. His father
was a civil surgeon in Cochin. He graduated in physics from
Loyola College, Madras in 1940, and then did BE (mechanical)
from the University of
Madras. After completing
his degree, he joined
the Tata Steel Technical
I n s t i t ut e , Ja m s h e d p u r ,
from where he graduated
in 1946. He then went to
USA on a government
scholarship to earn his
Masters in metallurgical
engineering from Michigan
State University.
He is famously known
as the architect of Operation Flood, the largest dairy development
programme in the world. Kurien helped modernize the Anand
model of cooperative dairy development and thus engineered
the White Revolution in India, and made India the largest
milk producer in the world. He is the founder of the Gujarat
Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation, the cooperative
organization that manages the Amul food brand. Amul is a
globally recognized Indian brand and involves millions of
Indians and gives direct control to farmers. Kurien and his team
were pioneers in inventing the process of making milk powder
and condensed milk from buffalo’s milk instead of cow’s milk.
Quality packed milk is now available in more than 1000 cities
throughout the length and breadth of India. And this milk is
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 117
M.S. Swaminathan
Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan was born on
7 August 1925 in Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu. This famous
geneticist is known as the man behind India’s ‘Green Revolution’,
a programme, which
revolutionized India’s
farming scenario by
introducing high
yielding crops. The Time
magazine placed him in
the Time’s 20 list of most
influential Asian people
of the twentieth century.
He is the Founder and
Chairman of the M.S.
Swaminathan Research
Foundation.
His physician father was an ardent follower of Gandhi and
it instilled a sense of patriotism in him. In college, he rejected
more lucrative professions and studied agriculture. He almost
became a police officer, but a 1949 fellowship to study genetics
in the Netherlands changed his career path. In 1952, he earned
his PhD in genetics from Cambridge University and then did
further studies at the Wisconsin University. There he turned
down a professorship. He was clear about coming back to India
and working here for the betterment of our country’s poor food
scenario.
He nurtured a vision to see a world devoid of hunger and
poverty and advocated the cause of sustainable development.
He also emphasized on the preservation of biodiversity.
Swaminathan brought into India seeds developed in Mexico
by the US agricultural guru, Norman Borlaug, and, after cross-
breeding them with local species, created a wheat plant that
118 Indian Contributions to Science
A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
Born on 15 October 1931 at Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu,
Dr Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam is a man of great
distinction. Known as the Missile Man of India worldwide, he
also became very popular as India’s eleventh president.
Kalam had inherited
his parent’s honesty and
discipline which helped him
in his life. He specialized in
Aeronautical Engineering
from the Madras Institute of
Technology. Before becoming
the President of India, he
worked as an aerospace
engineer with the Defence
Research and Development
Organization (DRDO).
Kalam’s contribution in the
development of ballistic missiles and space rocket technology is
noteworthy. He also played a pivotal organizational, technical
and political role in India’s Pokhran-II nuclear tests in 1998.
120 Indian Contributions to Science
Sam Pitroda
Satyanarayan Gangaram Pitroda, popularly known as Sam
Pitroda, was born on 4 May 1942 at Titlagarh, Odisha. His parents
were originally from Gujarat
and were strict Gandhians. So
Pitroda was sent to Gujarat to
imbibe Gandhian philosophy.
He completed his schooling
from Vallabh Vidyanagar in
Gujarat and his Masters in
physics and electronics from
Maharaja Sayajirao University
in Vadodara. He went to the
US thereafter, and obtained
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 121
Anil Kakodkar
Dr Anil Kakodkar, the famous Indian nuclear scientist, was
born on 11 November 1943 in Barawani, a village in Madhya
Pradesh. His parents Kamala Kakodkar and P. Kakodkar
were both Gandhians. He did
his schooling in Mumbai and
graduated from the Ruparel
College. Kakodkar then joined
Veermata Jijabai Technological
Institute, Mumbai, in 1963 to
obtain a degree in mechanical
engineering. In 1964, Anil
Kakodkar joined the Bhabha
Atomic Research Centre
(BARC), Mumbai.
122 Indian Contributions to Science
G. Madhavan Nair
Dr G. Madhavan Nair was born on 31 October 1943 in
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. This former Chairperson of the
India Space Research Organization (ISRO) is known as the
man behind Chandrayaan, India’s first unmanned mission to
the moon.
Nair did his
graduation in electrical and
communication engineering
from the University of Kerala
in 1966. He then underwent
training at Bhabha Atomic
Research Centre (BARC),
Mumbai. He joined the
Thumba Equatorial Rocket
Launching Station (TERLS)
in 1967. During his six years’
tenure at ISRO, as many as 25
Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin & Inspiring Lives of Scientists ..... 123
Vijay Bhatkar
Dr Vijay Pandurang Bhatkar is one of the most acclaimed
scientists and IT leaders of India. He is best known as the
architect of India’s first supercomputer ‘Param’ and as the
founder Executive Director of C-DAC, India’s national initiative
in supercomputing. He is credited with the creation of several
national institutions, notably amongst them being C-DAC,
ER&DC, IIITM-K, I2IT, ETH Research Lab, MKCL and India
International Multiversity.
As the architect of India’s Param series of supercomputers,
Dr Bhatkar has given India GIST multilingual technology and
several other pathbreaking initiatives. Born on 11 October
124 Indian Contributions to Science
A wind farm
136 Indian Contributions to Science
Medicinal Plants
Ayurveda and medicinal plants are synonymous. In rural
India, 70 per cent of the population depends on traditional
medicines or Ayurveda. Many medicinal herbs and spices are
used in Indian style of cooking, such as onion, garlic, ginger,
turmeric, clove, cardamom, cinnamon, cumin, coriander,
fenugreek, fennel, ajwain, anise, bay leaf, hing (asafoetida) and
black pepper. Ayurvedic medicine uses all of these either in diet
or in the form of medication. Some of these medicinal plants
have been featured on Indian postage stamps also.
As per the National Medicinal Plants Board, India has
15 agro climatic zones and 17,000–18,000 species of flowering
plants. Out of this, 6000–7000 species are estimated to have
medicinal usage. About 960 species of medicinal plants are
estimated to be in trade, of which 178 species have annual
consumption levels in excess of 100 metric tonne.
Medicinal plants are not only a major resource base for
the traditional medicine and herbal industry but also provide
144 Indian Contributions to Science
Indigenous Agriculture,
Biotechnology and Nano –technology
Agriculture
‘India is an agrarian country’. This statement today remains
as true as it was 69 years ago in spite of agriculture not making
up the largest part of our economy. As our economy stands now,
the major growth and portion of the national income comes
from the services sector, but the largest part of our working
population is engaged in agriculture and related activities.
Most Indians still make their livelihoods from the country’s
farmland. There are two aspects to what makes the agricultural
sector important to our country. One is the need to feed our
ever-growing population without depending on food imports.
The other is about the basic strength of any economy. While
short-term growth spurts can be achieved by economic activities
based on value addition (like the services sector), for the long-
term health of an economy and for it to have strong basics,
primary sectors that generate products (such as agriculture)
need to be strong.
After Independence, our agricultural sector was suffering
from many ills including lack of irrigation facilities, inequitable
distribution of land and almost zero use of technology to
improve production. As such, at that point too, we were heavily
dependent on importing grains to feed our population. In the
1960s, this situation was not unique to India. Several Third
150 Indian Contributions to Science
earth’s dimensions, and the idea that our sun was no different
from the countless other stars in the night sky.
Somewhere during the Middle Ages, progress in the field
of astronomy stood still and an admixture of astronomy and
astrology arose. With colonization, the European school of
astronomy displaced our own. The last remarkable astronomer
in pre-Independence India was Samanta Chandrasekhara. His
book Sidhant Darpana and his use of simple instruments in
getting accurate observations earned him praise even from the
British.
In our present era, the Indian space programme stands on
the contributions made by two giants in the field of physics—
Homi J Bhabha and Vikram Sarabhai. It was their tireless efforts,
which initiated work in space research under the Department
of Atomic Energy.
Over this period of time, India also produced some
remarkable astronomers and astrophysicists. Meghnad Saha
and Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar are two world renowned
names in astrophysics. On the side of the observational
Kavalur Observatory
Traditional Wisdom of Astronomy 157
Samrat Yantra
The Samrat Yantra may be described as a gigantic sun dial.
Literally, it means the king of all the instruments. It is not only
the biggest of all the yantras but is also the most extraordinary
in accuracy and excellence of its construction
160 Indian Contributions to Science
Ram Yantra
Misra Yantra
The Delhi observatory has one feature, the Misra Yantra,
which is not included at any of the other sites. In fact, this is the
only part of the Jantar Mantar structures that was not created
162 Indian Contributions to Science
by Jai Singh II. The Misra Yantra is thought to have been added
by Jai Singh II’s son, Maharaja Madho Singh, who continued
his father’s efforts towards modernization.
Five separate instruments make up the Misra Yantra,
including a smaller scale Samrat or sun dial. Two pillars
adjoining the Misra Yantra indicate the year’s shortest and
longest days. The giant device could also show when it was
noon in a number of cities around the world.
into the Arab world. He also theorized that all bodies with mass
are attracted to the earth.
Varahamihira (505 CE):Varahamihira was an astronomer
and mathematician who studied Indian astronomy as well as the
many principles of Greek, Egyptian and Roman astronomical
sciences. His Panchasiddhantika is a treatise and compendium
drawing from several sources.
Bhaskara I (629 CE): His works on astronomy are
Mahabhaskariya, Laghubhaskariya and Aryabhatiyabhashya (629
CE), a commentary on the Aryabhatiya. Baskara devised methods
for determining the parallax in longitude directly, the motion
of the equinoxes and the solstices, and the quadrant of the sun
at any given time.
Lalla (eighth century CE): His work Uisyadhivrddhida
corrects several assumptions of Aryabhatiya. The Sisyadhivrddhida
of Lalla deals with planetary calculations, determination of the
mean and true planets, three problems pertaining to diurnal
motion of Earth, eclipses, rising and setting of the planets,
various cusps of the moon, planetary and astral conjunctions and
complementary situations of the sun and the moon. The second
part, titled Goladhyaya (Chapters XIV–XXII), deals with graphical
representation of planetary motion, astronomical instruments,
spherics, and emphasizes on corrections and rejection of flawed
principles. Lalla also authored the Siddhantatilaka.
Bhaskara II (1114 CE): His two works are Siddhantasiromani
and Karanakutuhala (Calculation of Astronomical Wonders). He
reported his observations of planetary positions, conjunctions,
eclipses, cosmography, geography, mathematics and the
astronomical equipment used in his research at the observatory
in Ujjain, which he headed.
Sripati (1045 CE):Sripati was an astronomer and
mathematician who followed the Brahmagupta school and
wrote Siddhantasekhara (The Crest of Established Doctrines) in 20
chapters, thereby introducing several new concepts, including
moon’s second inequality.
Mahendra Suri (fourteenth century CE): Mahendra Suri
authored the Yantra-raja (The King of Instruments, written in
164 Indian Contributions to Science
The Beginning
Though India today is considered as one of the prominent
countries conducting many space activities, the Indian space
programme began in a modest way with the formation of the
Indian National Committee on Space Research by the Government
of India in1962. The programme formally began on 21 November
1963 with the launch of a 28-feet long American ‘Nike- Apache’
Sounding Rocket from Thumba, near Thiruvananthapuram.
It carried a small French payload (scientific instrument)
India in Space: A Remarkable Odyssey 167
Earth also takes 24 hours to spin around its own axis once, the
satellite’s speed is synchronized with the Earth’s spin, hence the
name ‘geosynchronous orbit’. A satellite in such an orbit placed
over the equator is called a geostationary satellite.
In the late 1970s and early 80s, ISRO scientists also built
the Rohini series of satellites and gained additional experience
in building satellites. Rohini satellites were launched by India’s
first indigenous launch vehicle SLV-3.
Discovering Samgamagrama
Madhavan
Introduction
It is without doubt that mathematics today owes a
huge debt to the outstanding contributions made by Indian
mathematicians over many hundreds of years divided into
ancient (Apastamba, Baudhayana, Katyayana, Manava, Panini,
Pingala and Yajnavalkya); classical (Vararuchi, Aryabhata,
Varahamihira, Brahmagupta); medieval (Narayana Pandita,
Bhaskaracharya, Samgamagrama Madhavan, Nilakanda
Somayaji, Jyestadeva, Acyuta Pisaradi, Melpathur Narayan
Discovering Samgamagrama Madhavan 181
Key Facts
The nanometer-sized sensor was made using zinc-
oxide (ZnO) nanostructure on a silicon wafer substrate. Tiny
polystyrene beads were also used on the wafer. These beads
were first added on the on the oxidised silicon wafer arrange
themselves into what is called a hexagonal close-packed
structure.
Reasonable level of vacuum is maintained between the
wafer and beads. When a high voltage is applied, it etches away
the surfaces of the beads until a gap of desired thickness is
formed between adjacent beads. Then ZnO is deposited on the
system. This occupies the spaces between the beads, forming a
honeycomb like nano-mesh that can function as a nanosenor.
Significance
The nanometre-scale CO sensor is able to detect a
difference in CO level as low as 500 parts per billion (ppb). It
can selectively respond to CO even in the presence of other
gases. It also significantly cuts down the time and cost involved
in making nanostructured gas sensors.
Cycas
Cycas are one of the most ancient plants whose fossils date
to the Jurassic period. They are often referred to as living fossils.
They have evolved on the earth as the first seeded plants and
they grow very slowly, adding only a few centimetres every
year. Nearly 65% of Cycas are threatened. There are over 100
species of Cycas found across the globe.
Key Facts
Initial studies on the lone Cycaspschannae tree revealed
that it was Cycas, a gymnosperm. Further research based on its
anatomical and morphological characters led to the discovery
of new species of Cycaspschannae and later Cycasdharmrajii
in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Cycasdharmrajii is characterised by the abnormal
branching habit of its giant trunk and its swollen base. It
has well-defined 10 to 28 hook-like structures in the apex
of the mega sporophyll which makes it distinct from other
Latest Achievement July 2016 Onwards 193
Key Facts
The AAE-1 project is a combination of leading telecom
service providers from Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
It will seamlessly link with other cable systems and fibre
networks to deliver direct access to all global markets.It will
feature diversified Points of Presence (PoP) in Asia (Hong
Kong and Singapore), with three onward connectivity options
in Europe (France, Ital and Greece). The cable system will pass
through critical hubs, serving the demand for video centric
data bandwidth that supports all types of communications,
applications and content within India and beyond.
The advanced design and route of AAE-1 system will offer
one of the lowest latency routes between Hong Kong, India,
Middle East and Europe. Using it, Reliance Jio will provide the
Network Operations & Management for AAE-1 Cable System.
194 Indian Contributions to Science
Its Network Operations Center (NOC) will use a state of the art
facility in Navi Mumbai.