Suhas Pandurang Sukhatme obtained his Bachelors (Mechanical Engineering) (1958) from Banaras Hindu University (BHU). Subsequently, he did his postgraduate studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and received MSc (1960) and DSc (1964). Thereafter, he joined the Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Bombay (1965) as Assistant Professor, became Professor (1970), Head of the Department (1973-75), Deputy Director (1983-85) and Director (1995-2000), IIT Bombay. He was Visiting Professor at Iowa State University (1982-83). He served as Chairman of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (2000-05) and was conferred the DSc (hc) by BHU (2001).

Academic and Research Achievements: Professor Sukhatme is known for his outstanding contributions both in teaching and research, in the areas of heat transfer and energy. He contributed significantly to studies on heat transfer during condensation of liquid metal vapours, convective heat transfer in external flows, heat transfer in thermal insulation, heat transfer from fin arrays, thermodynamic and transport properties of various fluids and their mixtures, and heat transfer during condensation of refrigerants on integral-fin tubes. He guided nineteen students for their PhD and published more than 70 papers. He also authored two text books on Heat Transfer and Solar Energy which have been widely used.

Other Contributions: Sukhatme was instrumental in starting an inter-disciplinary postgraduate and research programme in Energy Systems Engineering at IIT Bombay in the early eighties. This programme has now evolved and grown into a separate Department of Energy Science and Engineering. He was also the driving force behind establishing the Shailesh J Mehta School of Management and the Kanwal Rekhi School of Information Technology during his tenure as Director of the IIT. He served on INSA Council (1998-2000).

Awards and Honours: Professor Sukhatme is the recipient of many awards, notably the Prince of Wales Gold Medal by BHU, SS Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology (1983), Padma Shri (2001) and was the first recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award of IIT Bombay. He was elected Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore (1986), Indian National Academy of Engineering (1987), and National Academy of Sciences (India), Allahabad (1999).