Dr Arcot Ramachandran,
after a brilliant academic career in Madras University, India, joined
Purdue University in the United States of America where he obtained
a Master’s degree and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering. On
return to India, he joined the newly established graduate programme
in mechanical engineering at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore,
as the first faculty member. During the period 1957-1967, he was
Head of the Departments of Mechanical Engineering and Industrial
Management and established a number of graduate programmes in mechanical
engineering and industrial management. He established a School of
Research in Energy, Heat and Mass Transfer, which attracted a number
of scholars and visiting professors. In 1967 he was invited to become
the Director of the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, one
of the higher Institute of technology established. During the period
1967-1973, he established Schools of Heat Transfer and of Energy
Research and also made the I.I.T., Madras, a center of excellence
for graduate studies and research in science and engineering. He
founded the Indian Society of Heat and Mass Transfer of which he
was the founder president. Later he organized the Regional Centre
for Energy, Heat and Mass Transfer for Asia and the Pacific.
To acknowledge his immense
contribution, he has been awarded the Padma Bhushan—one of
India’s highest civilian awards that recognizes distinguished
service of a high order to the nation in any field (January 2003).
His achievements attracted
the attention of international organizations and the national Government.
In 1973, he was invited to assume the position of Secretary to the
Government of India in the newly established Department of Science
and Technology and was later concurrently the Director-General of
the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research. The Department
is responsible for the planning and direction of Research and Development
in science, technology and environment through a network of research
laboratories, academic institutions and industry, in both the private
and public sectors. During his tenure as Secretary, Science and
technology Agency, the Environment Planning, Co-ordination and Research
Programme, the Science and Engineering Research Council, a New Energy
Sources Research and Development Programme, the National Information
System for Science and technology (NISSAT) and Central Electronics
Limited, an industrial undertaking for manufacturing ferrites, opto-electronic
instruments and solar cells.
He has played a significant
role in engineering education at the undergraduate and graduate
levels as chairman or member of various Boards. He was chairman
of the Preparatory Committee for the United Nations Conference on
Science and Technology for Development (1977-1978). He was also
chairman of the UNESCO Expert Group Meeting on Engineering Education,
the UNESCO International Conference on Education and Training for
Engineers and Technicians, the Association for Engineering Education
in South and Central Asia, the UNESCO Expert Group on Environmental
Aspects of Engineering Education, and the ESCAP Expert Meeting on
the Regional Centre for Transfer of Technology. Based on the recommendation
of this group, the U.N. ESCAP Regional Centre for Transfer of Technology
was established in Bangalore, India, in July 1977.
In October 1978, he was
appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations as Under
Secretary-General and Executive Director of the newly established
United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) with its global
headquarters in Nairobi. The Centre rendered technical assistance
to 106 countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific, West Asia, Latin
America and the Caribbean, besides conducting research and training
programmes in collaboration with the World Bank, universities and
institutions in Europe, the united States of America, Canada, Latin
America, the Caribbean, Africa and Asia. It established audio-visual
information centers in Amman, Bangkok, Budapest, Mexico City and
Toronto. He was also Administrator of the United Nations Habitat
and Human Settlements Foundation (a voluntary fund for contributions
by Governments, foundations and aid agencies). During his tenure
as Executive Director of UNCHS (Habitat), the United Nations Commission
on Human Settlements and the UN General Assembly approved his initiatives
viz. Observance of the World Habitat Day on the first Monday of
October; the 1987 International Year of Shelter for the Homeless;
and the Global Strategy for Shelter to the year 2000 with the Goal
of Adequate Shelter for All. In 1990 he launched the Sustainable
Cities Programme in 12 cities around the world. In 1992, the brown
Agenda, viz. Sustainable Human Settlements Developments was included
in the UNCED plan of Action at the Rio Earth Summit. He retired
from the U. N. in 1993.
Since 1994, he is Chairman,
Advisory Committees of the Ministry of Non-conventional Energy Sources,
the Department of Ocean Development urban physical planning system
and Housing set up by the Planning Commission and the Ministry of
Urban Affairs of the Government of India.
He is associated with
organizations dealing with Energy, Environment. Human Settlements,
Infrastructure development etc. He is President Solar Energy Society
of India.
He was conferred Honorary
Doctorates by Purdue University, Stuttgart University (Federal Republic
of Germany), University of Roorkee, Andhra University, J. N. Technological
University, Anna University, I.I.T. (Madras), Venice (Italy) and
honorary fellowship of the Indian Institute of Science. The Institution
of Engineers (India) elected him as Honorary Life Fellow of the
Institution.
He was awarded the 1986
Heat Transfer Memorial Award by the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers at Anaheim, California, in December 1986 and is the recipient
of a number of other awards. He is a Fellow of the American Society
of Mechanical Engineers, the Institution of Mechanical Engineer,
the Indian National Science Academy, the Indian Academy of Sciences,
and the Indian National Academy of Engineering. He is a member of
the editorial board of several technical journals. He has delivered
invited lectures in many countries on a variety of topics such as
environment, Human settlements, Resources management, Renewable
energy sources, Engineering education, Information systems Science
and Technology for development etc.
The Building and Social
Housing Foundation of U.K. presented the World Habitat Trophy on
19 February 1995 at Windsor Castle, England, ‘in grateful
recognition and appreciation of his invaluable work at UNCHS which
has brought new hope and new life to millions of homeless families
around the world’.
Sir S S Bhatnagar Gold
medal award for Science and Technology – January 3 1998 presented
by the Prime Minister on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee Year
by the Indian Science Congress at Hyderabad.
Chairman, International Jury set up by UNCHS (Habitat) and the United
Arab Emirates, Dubai Municipality for ‘Best Practices in improving
the Living Environment’ to be presented on World Habitat Day,
October 1998.
Keynote Address at the
International Conference on ‘Metropolitan Concentrations of
knowledge based industries, Ottawa, Canada, September 1997.
CHEC-UNCHS Common wealth
Heads of Govts meeting forum-Keynote address ‘Sustainable
communities through partnership’-Edinburgh, Scotland, October
1997
‘Science and Technology
for Sustainable Development’ Maharashtra Association for the
cultivation of Science, Pune, 1998.
President, National Institute
of Urban Affairs, New Delhi.
Chairman, Governing Council,
Tata Energy Research Institute, New Delhi.
Chairman, Science and
Technology Advisory Committee for SSS-Nire, M.N.E.S., Government
of India.
Hon. Visiting Professor,
National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore.
Chairman, Engineering
Staff College of India, Hyderabad.
Lifetime contribution
Award in Engineering for the year 1999 by the Indian National Academy
of Engineering, February 2000.
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