Indian scientist awarded Legion d' Honneur

Noted scientist Goverdhan Mehta has been honoured with the Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) award by the French government.

French Ambassador to India Dominique Girard will confer the award on Mehta, the former Director of the Indian Institute of Science, at a function in New Delhi Tuesday, a French embassy release said.

Mehta has been honoured with the award "in recognition of his talents and major contribution to Indo-French ties", it said.

During his tenure at the IISc, the Indo-French cyber university based on the cutting edge satellite technology was set up between the institute and Toulouse.

The Indo-French scientific collaboration reached a new high during his stint at the IISc and several projects in Mehta's area of specialisation -- Organic Synthesis and Solid State Chemistry -- were initiated by the institutes in the two countries.

Besides the Padma Shri (2001), Mehta has been honoured with the C V Raman Medal (2003), the G D Birla and Pandit Nehru National Award for Excellence in Science in 1992 and 1994.

Mehta, an editorial board member of nine scientific journals, was also appointed the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research Bhatnagar fellow by the Indian government.