Distinguished astrophysicist and scientific communicator Dr Jayant Vishnu Narlikar passed away today, Tuesday, May 20, in Pune.
According to his family, Narlikar, who was 87, died peacefully in his sleep, PTI reports.
Dr Narlikar was a Padma Vibhushan awardee who helped establish various scientific institutions in India. He pioneered cosmology and is credited with popularising science. He is survived by his three daughters.
Dr Vishnu Narlikar was born on July 19, 1938, and attended Banaras Hindu University (BHU) for his early schooling. His father, Vishnu Vasudeva Narlikar, was the head of the university's Mathematics Department at the time. Following that, Narlikar attended the prestigious Cambridge University for higher education, where he excelled.
When Narlikar returned to India, he joined the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and managed the growth of the Theoretical Astrophysics Group, which achieved global acclaim.
Narlikar established the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) and served as its founding director. In 1988, the University Grants Commission (UGC) invited him to establish the college.
Narlikar was an Emeritus Professor at IUCAA, where he led the institute to global acclaim for its studies in astronomy, physics, and astrophysics.
Apart from his academic career, Narlikar has published science fiction novels and worked as a science communicator. He had appeared on countless television and radio shows and published numerous science articles.
Narlikar had received numerous prizes and medals. In 1996, UNESCO presented him with the Kalinga Award for popular science publications.
Prior to this, he was granted the Padma Bhushan in 1965, at the age of 26, followed by the Padma Vibhushan in 2004. In 2011, the government of his home state, Maharashtra, presented him with the Maharashtra Bhushan, the state's highest civilian honour.
