Associate professor of Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Kolkata, Dibyendu Das, has been selected for the prestigious ‘Vigyan Yuva Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award’ under the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar (RVP) 2025, officials said on Saturday.

Das, an associate professor in the department of chemical sciences, is internationally recognised for his pioneering contributions to the emerging field of systems chemistry, where his laboratory investigates how life-like functions can emerge from simple chemical building blocks.

His research addresses fundamental questions such as how living-matter-like materials can be artificially created, whether concepts of "Life 2.0" can be realised in the laboratory, and how chemistry can illuminate the origins of life.

Confirming the news, Das said, "It was scheduled to be announced on August 22, but was delayed for a few months." An IISER Kolkata official said, "The award in chemistry for the year 2025 was announced by the government of India under the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar in recognition of Das’ pioneering discoveries, internationally acclaimed publications and leadership in shaping the rapidly growing discipline of systems chemistry." The RVP is positioned as one of the highest recognitions in India for contributions in science, technology and technology-led innovation.

Earlier, IISER Kolkata faculty including Soumitro Banerjee (2003, Physical Sciences), Biswarup Mukhopadhyaya (2003, Physical Sciences), Swadhin Kumar Mandal (2018, Chemical Sciences), and Rahul Banerjee (2018, Chemical Sciences) were also conferred the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award for their innovative work, officials said.

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