Quick Facts
VirgoBiography
Koppillil Radhakrishnan (born 29 August 1949) is an Indian scientist. He is chairman of the Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, having taken the position in December 2014, and is chairman for the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology. Radhakrishnan previously served as chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) between 2009 and 2014. He is a life fellow of the Indian Geophysical Union and is also an accomplished vocalist (Carnatic music) and Kathakali artist.
Personal life
Radhakrishnan hails from Irinjalakuda in Thrissur district, Kerala. After his studies from Christ College, Irinjalakuda, he completed his B.Sc. degree in Electrical Engineering in 1970 from the Government Engineering College, Thrissur. He started his career in the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) as an Avionics Engineer at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Trivandrum, in 1971.
While at ISRO, he joined the masters programme in management at Indian Institute of Management Bangalore. He received his master's degree in management in 1976. In 2000, he obtained his doctorate from the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. Radhakrishnan is a Carnatic music and Kathakali enthusiast. He has excelled in music, dance and other art forms during his educational period. He himself has given vocal stage performances.
Positions held
He has held several key positions in ISRO and was one of the key people behind India's Chandrayaan-1 moon mission. He has held the following positions:
- Director, RRSSC (Regional Remote Sensing Service Centres) under the umbrella of National Natural Resources Management System (1989–1997).
- Director, BEA-ISRO (Budget and Economic Analysis) (1987–1997).
- National Mission Director, Integrated Mission for sustainable Development and a Deputy Director of the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA) (1997–2000).
- Project Director, Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (2000–2005)
- Vice Chairman - Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO (2001–2005)
- Founding Chairman, Indian Ocean Global Ocean Observing System (IOGOOS) (2001–2006)
- Regional Coordinator, Indian Ocean for the International Argo Project (2001–2005)
- Director, National Remote Sensing Agency, Department of Space (2005–2008)
- Member of the Indian delegation to the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Use of Outer Space (2006)
- Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, India (2007–2009)
- Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation, Bangalore, India (2009-2014)
- Chairman, Indian Institutes of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, India (2014–present)
Awards and honors
- 2014: Radhakrishnan received the Padma Bhushan Award for his contribution to Science and Engineering, especially in the field of Space Science and Technology.
- 2014: Named one of Nature's ten "people who mattered" of 2014 on December 18, 2014, along with Maryam Mirzakhani, Radhika Nagpal, and others.