The Infosys Science Foundation awarded the winners of Infosys Prize 2011, in recognition of their outstanding achievements and contributions to the field of scientific research. The Guest of Honour, 11th President of India, Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam, felicitated the six laureates across five categories - Engineering and Computer Science, Life Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences and Social Sciences at a grand ceremony in Bangalore. The prize in each category comprises a 22-karat gold medallion, a citation certificate expounding the laureate's work and INR 50 lakh as prize money.
Expanding the scope of the awards with the aim to recognize research work being undertaken in other fields, the Infosys Science Foundation also announced the introduction of a sixth category for the Infosys Prize 2012. The new category - Humanities will cover Philosophy, History, Archaeology, Linguistics and Literary Studies. The Social Sciences category will continue to include Economics, Political Science, International Relations, Anthropology, Sociology and Psychology.
View Press Release | Read Dr. Abdul Kalam's Address
The Infosys Science Foundation along with the Mint, hosted a panel discussion on 'Resurrection: how Indian science and research can rise and shine' bringing together India’s best minds to deliberate upon solutions that have the potential to encourage the growth of science and research in the country. The discussion was moderated by Samar Halarnkar, Editor-at-large, Mint and the panelists comprised of Mr. N R Narayana Murthy, Trustee Infosys Science Foundation and Founder & Chairman Emeritus, Infosys Limited, Prof. Padmanabhan Balaram, Director Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Dr. Swami Manohar, Managing Director at LimberLink Technologies Pvt. Ltd, Educationist and Entrepreneur, Prof. Kannan Soundararajan, Professor of Mathematics and the Director of the Mathematics Research Center, Stanford University and Infosys Prize Winner 2011 for Mathematical Sciences and Dr. K VijayRaghavan, Director of the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore and Infosys Prize Winner 2009 for Life Sciences.
Click here to Read Article in the Mint and Watch Videos | View Images
![]() |
In a lecture organized by the Infosys Science Foundation at the Infosys Bangalore Campus on 7 December,2011, Prof. Shrinivas R. Kulkarni, Infosys Prize Physical Sciences Jury Chair, summarized the state of the field of astronomy (composition of the universe, the build-up of elements since the Big Bang, strong gravity) and then remarked on the future interplay between astronomy and technology. |
The Infosys Science Foundation, on the 16th of November,2011, announced the winners of the Infosys Prize 2011, recognizing outstanding contributions in scientific research across five categories - Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences, Engineering and Computer Science, Life Sciences and Social Sciences- Economics and Political Sciences & International Relations
View Press Release | More on the Infosys Prize 2011 Laureates
![]() |
Prof. Ashutosh Sharma, Infosys Prize 2010 Laureate in Engineering and Computer Science, in a lecture organized by the Infosys Science Foundation at the Infosys Bangalore Campus, explored the meaning and power of lateral thinking and scientific creativity by presenting some impersonal lessons from his personal voyages in nanotechnology and nature- inspired technologies. |
![]() |
Prof. Srinivasa Varadhan was honoured for his work in probability theory, especially his work on large deviations from expected random behaviour, which has revolutionised this field of study during the second half of the twentieth century and become a cornerstone of both pure and applied probability, said the White House in a statement. |
![]() |
The Infosys Science Foundation fondly remembers two well respected members of its Nomination Council |
![]() |
In a lecture organized by the Infosys Science Foundation and Infosys Labs at the Infosys Mysore Campus, Prof. Klaus von Klitzing, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics (1985), discussed how the convergence of nanoelectronics, silicon semiconductors and quantum phenomena will reshape our lives and work. |
![]() |
Routledge recently published Elite and Everyman- The Cultural Politics of the Indian Middle Classes edited by Infosys Prize - Social Sciences - Sociology laureate , Amita Baviskar and Raka Ray. This book examines the middle classes and their influence in shaping contemporary cultural politics in India. |
![]() |
The Infosys Science Foundation today announced the appointment of Professor Pradeep Khosla, Dean of the College of Engineering, and the Philip and Marsha Dowd University Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, USA, as the Jury Chair for the Infosys Prize for Engineering and Computer Science. |
The Infosys Prize 2010, on the 6th of January,2011, honored six scientists for their outstanding research in five categories: Engineering and Computer Science, Life Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences and Social Sciences - Social Anthropology and Sociology. At the awards ceremony in Mumbai, Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India, presented the laureates with a 24-karat gold medallion, a citation showcasing their body of work, and a cash prize of 50 lakh.
View Press Release | More on the Infosys Prize 2010 Laureates | Read Prime Minister's Speech
An article in the Indian Express (Delhi), describes what Dr. Imran Siddiqi, Laureate - Infosys Prize 2011 in Life Sciences, is working in the area of asexual reproduction in plants, which has the potential to revolutionize agriculture for poor farmers. The article quotes both Dr. Siddiqi and Dr. Inder Verma, Jury Chair of the category, detailing out the work and the significance of this research.
Read More
In an article in The Hindu, Mr. Narayana Murthy, Trustee of the ISF and Chairman Emeritus, Infosys, is quoted stating "Education and research institutions must spend more time in interacting with the industry". "As long as there is culpability in the corporate sector, certainly I think the corporate sector will have to answer questions".
Read More
In an article published in the journal Current Science, Prof. Ashutosh Sharma, Laureate - Infosys Prize 2010 in Engineering & Computer Sciences, shares his personal experiences in the field of research in nanotechnology and comments on the status of nanotechnology research in India on the world scene.
Read More
In an article in the Deccan Chronicle, the contributions to research that the Infosys Science Foundation honored when it gave away India's equivalent of the Nobel Prize to six world-leading researchers, were published. It also quoted Trustee - ISF and Infosys Chairman Emeritus, N.R. Narayana Murthy who said the prizes were part of a broader effort "to encourage higher education and research".
Read More
An article in the Deccan Chronicle announces the prize presentation of the Infosys Prize 2011 and details the work for which the awardees were recognized and rewarded for. Nobel laureate Prof. Amartya Sen and jury chair for the Social Sciences category, is quoted stating "It is important that we make young people in India feel that research is recognized and appreciated. The Infosys Prize is an attempt in this regard".
Read More
In a Q&A with S. Gopalakrishnan, Trustee - ISF and Co-Chairman - Infosys, in the Business Standard shared the reasons behind instituting the awards and also about technologies that are expected to steer the IT industry forward.
Read More
In an article in The Hindu Business Line, Prof. Shrinivas Kulkarni, Infosys Prize Physical Sciences Jury Chair, highlighted the job options available to software professionals in alternate fields like astronomy. He is quoted stating "Twenty years ago, if you got into electronics, you could do research. Software is today in the same boat".
Read More
Published with permission of The Hindu Business Line
In an article in The Times of India, Dr. Imran Siddiqi, Infosys Prize 2011 Life Sciences Laureate explains his pathbreaking work and is quoted stating "Apomixis can be introduced not only in food crops but also in vegetable plants. We have shown that it is possible to get genetically identical seeds in all respects. So, from what is cultivated, the farmer can use the same seeds to get the consistently rich crops".
Read More
Published with the permission of The Times of India
In "their views" section of the Mint, Prof. Pradeep Khosla, Jury Chair for the Infosys Prize for Engineering and Computer Science, emphasizes on the need for India to optimize its intellectual assets and thereafter creating sustainable economic development.
Read More
Published with permission of Mint
This article in The Indian Express, by Prof. Shrinivas Kulkarni, Infosys Prize Physical Sciences Jury Chair, outlines how with the Indian government pushing for participation in several international projects, astronomy is witnessing resurgence in India. The article also highlights some of the work being undertaken by Prof. Kulkarni in partnership with the Indian universities and the government.
Read More
Published with permission of The Indian Express
In an article in the Times of India, Prof. Avinash Dixit, Juror of the Social Sciences Category for 2011 and Professor Emeritus of Economics at Princeton University, states that a well-designed research institute will create channels to identify, encourage and nurture promising mavericks, giving them a real chance to prove themselves. It will provide resources to pursue novel approaches and experiment at the initiative of the persons or groups that come up with ideas, while being ruthless about terminating projects that fail to live up to their initial promise after a reasonable amount of time.
Read Article in The Times of India Here
Published with permission of The Times of India
Competitions in scientific and mathematical thinking will encourage the youth to think critically and independently with a research-oriented mindset, is a gist of what Mr. N. R. Narayana Murthy, Trustee of the ISF and Chairman Emeritus of Infosys Limited said in an article published in The Hindu.
Read Article in The Hindu Here
Published with permission of The Hindu
An article in BioSpectrum focused on how after years of intensive research, the research group at ICGEB headed by Dr. Chetan Chitnis, Infosys Prize 2010 Life Sciences Laureate, cracked the puzzle on processes involved in invasion of malaria parasite in red blood cells thereby streamlining the development of first viable vaccine against malaria.
Read Article in BioSpectrum Here

