Sood Ajay Kumar

Sood is the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India (PSA to GoI) since April 2022. He is also the Chairperson of the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology & Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC). Sood is also a Distinguished Year of Science Professor at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore. He had also served as a Member of Scientific Advisory Council (SAC) to the Prime Minister of India from 2009-14. Sood has a doctorate in Physics from IISc Bangalore. His research interests include the physics of nanosystems and soft matter. He has published more than 450 papers in peer-reviewed journals and holds several patents. His work has been recognised by many awards, including the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award in India; President of the Indian National Science Academy (2017–19); President of the Indian Academy of Sciences (2010–12); and Secretary-General, TWAS, (2013–18). He was elected to the Fellowship of the Royal Society, UK (FRS) in 2015. He has received the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, the G.D.Birla Award for Scientific Research, TWAS Prize in Physics and Homi Bhabha Medal of Indian National Science Academy.