Prof. Suman Chakraborty has recently been awarded the 2026 TWAS Award in Engineering and Computer Sciences by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for his seminal work in micro and nanoscale flows, enabling innovations in diagnostic technologies and improving rural livelihoods and healthcare access for marginalized populations.
Prof. Suman Chakraborty is the Institute Chair professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department of the IIT Kharagpur, and a Sir J.C. Bose National Fellow of the Department of Science and Technology of India. Based on his outstanding research contributions, he has also featured in the list of top 100 Researchers across all disciplines in Asia in 2023. A recipient of the National Award for Teachers 2023, a Laureate of Infosys Prize-2022 and the winner of the most coveted Santi Swaroop Bhatnagar Prize, he is elected as a Fellow of the American Physical Society, Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, Fellow of the ASME, Alexander von Humboldt Fellow and a Fellow of all the Indian National Academies of Science and Engineering.
Dr. Suman Chakraborty joined IIT Kharagpur in 2002 as an Assistant Professor and has been a Senior Professor since 2008. He completed his undergraduate studies in Mechanical Engineering at Jadavpur University in 1996. After gaining some industrial experience, he pursued his Master’s in Engineering (ME) at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), securing the top rank in the nationally conducted Graduate Aptitude Test for Engineering (GATE-1997). During his ME program at IISc, he stood out as the faculty topper, earning a gold medal and Senate Commendation for his outstanding academic performance.
Following his ME, Prof. Chakraborty joined Jadavpur University as a lecturer. In 2000, he returned to IISc to pursue his doctoral research, where he earned his Ph.D. in 2002. His groundbreaking work on solid-liquid phase transition during the thermal processing of materials earned him the prestigious Institute-level Best Thesis Award, along with the “Best International CFD Thesis Award” for his exceptional contribution to computational fluid dynamics (CFD). This marked the beginning of a distinguished career in academia and research.
“This recognition will inspire me to pursue even greater scientific and technological milestones, focusing not merely on academic excellence but on creating innovative solutions to critical global challenges that benefit underserved communities. It will likely increase the visibility of my work on technology development aimed at improving health and well-being for disadvantaged populations. Additionally, it will foster collaboration that drives impactful technological innovations, enhancing quality of life on a global scale,” said Prof. Suman Chakraborty, Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Kharagpur
Prof. Suman Chakraborty has demonstrated significant leadership in various scientific and academic roles. He served as the Dean of Research and Development/Sponsored Research and Industrial Consultancy at IIT Kharagpur from August 1, 2019, to December 31, 2022, overseeing pivotal research initiatives and collaborations. Prior to this, he held the role of Associate Dean of Sponsored Research and Industrial Consultancy at IIT Kharagpur from August 1, 2017, to July 31, 2019, where he played a key role in advancing research partnerships with industry and funding agencies. Prof. Chakraborty was also the Head of the School of Medical Science & Technology at IIT Kharagpur from April 1, 2015, to March 31, 2019, where he led the development of interdisciplinary research and academic programs at the intersection of engineering and healthcare. In addition to his leadership in administrative roles, he has been the Principal Investigator for the ICMR Center of Excellence on Healthcare and the Principal Investigator for the Common Research and Technology Development Hub (CRTDI) on Affordable Health, funded by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), Government of India. These leadership positions highlight his influential role in advancing healthcare technology and research at both national and international levels. He has also incubated a start-up company to foster innovations in low-cost medical devices for the underprivileged.
Prof. Chakraborty has been associated with several impactful research projects and initiatives, primarily focused on healthcare technology and innovation. He serves as the principal investigator for various projects funded by prestigious organizations, including the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), Government of India, the Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC), and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Some of these projects include the “Common Research and Technology Development Hub on Affordable Healthcare” (2019-2025), the “Smartphone-enabled paper-based Hemoglobin sensor for Extreme-Point-of-Care Diagnostics” (2023-2025), and the “Development of a POC plasma glucose assay with the accuracy of gold standard by paper-based sensor” (2023-2025). Additionally, he is leading projects on developing point-of-care nucleic acid tests for real-time viral load detection, healthcare technology adoption at Primary Healthcare Centers, and validating Covid-19 testing methods and devices (2020-2025). He is also involved in cutting-edge research on kidney health analysis through urine sensing and pathology on spinning discs, with funding from the Ministry of Education and ICMR.
Prof. Suman Chakraborty is also contributing to advanced projects like “Highly Parallelized Solver for Multiphase Micro-Hydrodynamics” (2021-2024) under the National Supercomputing Mission, as well as the development of clean coal research and biotechnology applications. He is also leading joint research projects under India-Netherlands collaboration on innovative biopsy tools, funded by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India. Along with his research, Dr. Chakraborty is also consulting on various industry-academia projects, including technology-driven initiatives for cancer governance and collaborative industry projects in the UAE. His work is pivotal in the development of low-cost medical devices and diagnostic technologies aimed at enhancing healthcare accessibility and efficiency. [Read :https://kgpchronicle.iitkgp.ac.in/national-award-for-prof-suman-chakraborty-on-teachers-day-2023/]
Prof. Chakraborty’s research focuses on micro/nano-scale fluid dynamics, miniaturization, and sustainable technologies aimed at promoting health and well-being, especially for underprivileged populations. His fundamental discoveries include surface roughness-aided slippery flow, amplified ionic pumping in confined water, sticky water flow on hydrophobic surfaces, and the manipulation of tiny droplets along arbitrary paths. He has also investigated antibiotic resistance mechanisms and developed low-cost, bio-inspired tools for studying blood flow in microvasculature and cancer progression.
He is the also the creator of ‘Paper and Pencil Microfluidics,’ a technology for creating miniaturized devices without sophisticated fabrication, enabling low-cost medical diagnostics, water desalination, and energy harvesting. His innovations in medical diagnostics for underserved populations include a reagent-free screening method for anemia, a portable spinning disc for complete blood count tests, and a hand-held imaging device for early cancer detection. His nucleic acid test technology, COVIRAP, has been certified and commercialized for infectious disease detection, including COVID-19.
He has successfully translated lab innovations into rural healthcare, with devices proven effective in harsh conditions. Prof. Chakraborty leads the Common Research and Technology Development Hub (CRTDH), funded by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Government of India, which focuses on affordable healthcare solutions and precision manufacturing. The hub aims to minimize import-dependence, commercialize healthcare technologies, create rural jobs, and empower rural women with skills for healthcare delivery, driving sustainable livelihoods and self-employment.
Dr. Suman Chakraborty has collaborated with a distinguished group of global leaders in science and engineering which includes:
- Prof. Rohit Karnik from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
- Prof. Aluru Narayan from the University of Texas at Austin, USA
- Prof. Jonathan Cooper from the University of Glasgow, UK
- Prof. Chaouqi Misbah from CNRS, France
- Prof. Amiroudine Sakir from the University of Bordeaux, France
- Prof. Sandip Ghosal from Northwestern University, USA
- Prof. Ivan C. Christov from Purdue University, USA
- Prof. Marc Madou from the University of California Irvine, USA
- Prof. Xunli Zhang from the University of Southampton, UK
- Prof. Dalton Harvie from the University of Melbourne, Australia
- Prof. Franz Durst from FMP Technology GmbH, Erlangen, Germany
- Prof. Ulrich Ruede from Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany
- Prof. Steffen Hardt and Prof. Cameron Tropea from Technische Universität Darmstadt, Germany
- Prof. BoHung Kim from the University of Ulsan, South Korea
- Prof. James Sprittles from the University of Warwick, UK
- Prof. Sushanta Mitra from the University of Waterloo, Canada
- Prof. Anupam Sengupta from the University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg
- Prof. Prashant Waghmare from the University of Alberta, Canada
Prof. Suman Chakraborty has made significant contributions to the academic community through his editorial activities in several prestigious international journals. He serves as an Editorial Board Member for Scientific Reports (Nature), which publishes high-quality, peer-reviewed research across all areas of science. Additionally, he is the Associate Editor for the IEEE Transactions on Computer-Aided Design of Integrated Circuits and Systems, where he specializes as the area editor for “Microfluidics.” He is also an Associate Editor for Frontiers in Sensors (Lab-on-a-Chip Devices), focusing on cutting-edge sensor technologies.
In addition to his editorial roles, Dr. Chakraborty has served as a Guest Editor and Guest Associate Editor for several renowned journals, including Biosensors, Biomicrofluidics (AIP), ASME Journal of Heat Transfer, and Thermal Science and Engineering Applications (ASME). His editorial contributions reflect his leadership in advancing research in the fields of microfluidics, sensors, thermal science, and biomedical engineering.
With an h-index of 67, Prof. Suman Chakraborty has published more than 525 articles in reputed international journals (including high-impact interdisciplinary journals such as Advanced Materials, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences – USA, Physical Review Letters, Nano Letters, ACS Nano and large numbers of articles in prestigious topical Journals such as Lab-on-a-Chip, Physical Review, Physics of Fluids and Journal of Fluid Mechanics).Till now 50 Ph.D. students have graduated under his supervision. He has around 25 numbers of patented technologies,[53] several of which have been transferred to Companies and commercialized, as a reflection of high-impact translational outreach. These translated and commercialized technologies include premium innovations on nucleic acid based point-of-care rapid molecular diagnostic technology (COVIRAP), hand-held oral cancer screening device, paper- and compact-disc based blood test kits, rapid screening platform for antibiotic resistance, among several others.
Beyond his fundamental and translational research, Prof. Chakraborty has authored original fundamental texts and monographs in classical as well as emerging areas of scientific and technological pursuit. He developed several Internationally acclaimed video courses, under the National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) and has also established a research-inspired teaching lab of microfluidics, the first of this kind where innovated frugal open-source bench-top experimental rigs have subsequently been advanced to develop industrial products.
Dr. Suman Chakraborty has received numerous prestigious national and international awards and honors throughout his distinguished career. He was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (UK) in 2018, the American Physical Society in 2017, the American Society of Mechanical Engineering (ASME) in 2015, and the Asian Union of Thermal Science and Engineering in 2021. Nationally, he has been honored with the Sir J.C. Bose National Fellowship by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, in 2018, and elected as a Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy (INSA), the Indian Academy of Sciences (IAS), and the Indian National Academy of Sciences (NASI) in 2016 and 2009. He is also a Fellow of the National Academy of Engineering (INAE), elected in 2008. His major awards include the Infosys Prize in Engineering and Computer Science (2022), the Santi Swaroop Bhatnagar Prize by CSIR, Govt. of India (2013), and the National Award for Teachers (2023) from the President of India. He has also received recognition as a leader in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in India by Research.com (2023) and received the National Academy of Sciences India-Reliance Industries Platinum Jubilee Award for Application-Oriented Research in 2021. He was awarded the G.D. Birla Award for Scientific Research in 2020 and the Indian National Academy of Engineering’s “Outstanding Teacher Award” in 2021.
Other honors include the Rajib Goyal Prize in Physical Sciences (2021) and the Virendra Nath Malti Mital Award from IIT Roorkee (2021). Earlier in his career, he received several accolades such as the Scopus Young Scientist Award in 2008, the K.N. Seetharamu Medal and Prize in 2011, and the Platinum Jubilee Young Scientist Award by the National Academy of Sciences in 2007. He was also a recipient of the prestigious Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship (2005) and the Best International CFD Thesis Award in 2002. Dr. Chakraborty has been recognized for his excellence in research and teaching, holding the Institute Chair Professor Award in 2017 and 2023, and being honored with the Distinguished Alumnus Award from Jadavpur University in 2017. His early career achievements include ranking 1st in the GATE examination (1997) and 17th in the State Higher Secondary Examination (1992).
Click the link below for the complete list of his journals and publications:
https://sites.google.com/site/sumanchakrabortymicrofluidics/home
Interview of Prof. Suman Chakraborty
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