Infosys institutes five Rs50-lakh awards for science research

Infosys Technologies Ltd today announced the setting up of 'Infosys Science Foundation', a not-for-profit trust to promote science research in the country. The Infosys foundation will honor outstanding contributions and achievements by Indians across various sciences with an annual award of Rs50 lakh for each category.

The Infosys Science Foundation will be funded by a corpus of Rs21.5 crore contributed by Infosys executive board members and an annual grant from Infosys Technologies Ltd.

The `Infosys India Prize' categories include: physical sciences (physics and chemistry), mathematical sciences (mathematics and statistics), engineering sciences (all branches of engineering), life sciences (biology and medicine) and social sciences and economics (economics, history, sociology, political sciences and other social sciences).

The jury panel for each area will consist of eminent international personalities in each area selected by the trustees of the foundation.

Announcing the award N R Narayana Murthy, chief mentor and chairman of the board, Infosys Technologies Ltd, said, ''India needs bright minds across all areas of academics, government, business and society to strive for global excellence. We need to encourage research in India to address our developmental problems. This award will honor outstanding researchers who will make a difference to India's future.''