Rajagopala Chidambaram, the architect of India's nuclear weapons programme who played a key role in the atomic tests at Pokhran in 1974 and 1998, passed away in Mumbai on Saturday morning. He was 88.
A world-class physicist and an astute science administrator, Chidambaram made legendary contributions to the field of nuclear physics, besides introducing innovative technologies to empower communities in rural India.
Chidambaram joined the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in 1962 and rose to become its director in 1990.
In 1993, he helmed the country's nuclear programme as chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission and as secretary in the Department of Atomic Energy, a post he held till 2000.
Post retirement, he was appointed as the principal scientific advisor (PSA) to the Government of India in 2001, a post he held till 2018.
He also served as chairman of the board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) (1994-1995).
As PSA, Chidambaram steered India's forays in the fields of nano-electronics, implemented the National Knowledge Network, and set up Rural Technology Action Groups (RuTAG) to find rural applications for advanced technologies.
He also championed initiatives in areas such as energy, healthcare and strategic self-reliance, and steered numerous projects that significantly advanced India's science and technology landscape.
Chidambaram will be best known for his contributions to India's nuclear weapons programme with which he had been associated since 1967, when peaceful nuclear explosion technology was much talked about globally.
He represented India at various global conferences organised by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
As part of Operation Smiling Buddha—the 1974 nuclear tests—Chidamaram was known to have personally brought the plutonium from Mumbai to Pokhran in Rajasthan.
He had famously donned army fatigues along with the then Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) chairman APJ Abdul Kalam while working on the Pokhran-II tests—dubbed Operation Shakti—in 1998.
Chidambaram was at the helm of India's atomic programme when five nuclear tests were conducted on May 11 and May 13 in 1998.
The then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee declared India as a nuclear weapons state.
Among the five nuclear tests was also the thermo-nuclear device, popularly known as the neutron bomb.
Vajpayee's visit to ground zero in Pokhran days after the nuclear tests were conducted also was a testimony to the fact that there was no radioactivity contamination at the site.
Over a decade later, when some scientists associated with the 1998 nuclear tests questioned the efficacy of the thermo-nuclear device, Chidambaram and his successor Anil Kakodkar led a stout defence of the outcome.
Born on November 12, 1936, in Chennai, Chidambaram did his initial schooling at the Sanatan Dharam High School in Meerut. From eighth standard onwards, he studied at the PS High School at Mylapore in Chennai and graduated from the Presidency College.
Chidambaram did his postgraduate studies at Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru.
He was honoured with prestigious accolades, including the Padma Shri in 1975 and the Padma Vibhushan in 1999. He also received honourary doctorates from several universities and was a fellow of eminent Indian and international science academies.
He is survived by wife Chella and daughters Nirmala and Nithya.
"Dr Chidambaram was a doyen of science and technology whose contributions furthered India's nuclear prowess and strategic self-reliance. His loss is an irreparable one for the scientific community and the nation," Ajit Kumar Mohanty, Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission, said.
Chidambaram will be remembered as a "trailblazer, an inspirational leader, and a dedicated mentor to countless scientists and engineers", he said.
