Father of India's nuclear fusion – Professor Predhiman Krishan Kaw dies at 69

Image courtesy: Institute for Plasma Research (IPR)

New Delhi: Known as the father of India's nuclear fusion reactor program, Padma Shri Prof Predhiman Krishan Kaw breathed his last late on Sunday night at his Ahemdabad residence.

He was the founder director of Institute for Plasma Research (IPR), Gandhinagar, an institute that catapulted India to being one among the seven member entities that is building the world's largest fusion experiment — the US $ 14 billion International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER).

During his reign as director of IPR (1986-2012), India established its position on the prestigious LIGO project and became a full partner in the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project.

“It is a national loss,” said Prof Amita Das, his associate of 26 years and a senior professor at IPR. “He was a multi-faceted personality. His passion was physics and plasma research, but his interests included philosophy and understanding consciousness,” Prof Das recalls melancholically, Daily News and Analysis (DNA) reported.

According to the report, Dr Kaw was suffering from Parkinson's disease and had recently undergone a bypass surgery. Prof Das says he was an active scientist right till the end. “He understood the requirements of an active scientist and created environment for young scientists,” she recalls. He held the post of DST Professor at IPR till the last day.

In 2015, Professor Kaw was named the laureate of the Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar Prize for "outstanding contributions" in the field of plasma physics.

He has authored some 308 research papers. Among the 15 awards and fellowships he had won in his lifetime Kaw cherished the SS Bhatnagar award he received in 1986 and the Indian National Science Academy's Young Scientists Award of 1974, which was conferred on him by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, the Times of India reported.

Professor Kaw is widely respected for his significant contributions to Theoretical Plasma Physics. “India became a part of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) largely due to his efforts,” Prof Das said.

He was 69 at the time of his death.