Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Ph.D., received his B.Tech degree from IIT, Kanpur, and his MS and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Maine. From 1979 to 1981, he was with Washington State University as Assistant Professor. Since 1981, he has been teaching at IIT, Madras, where he leads the Telecommunications and Computer Networks group (TeNeT). This group works with industry in the development of technologies relevant to India. It has incubated several technology companies which work in partnership with TeNeT group to develop Telecom and Banking products for Indian Urban and Rural Markets. He chairs Rural Technology and Business Incubator (RTBI) at IIT Madras and Mobile Payment Forum of India (MPFI).
Dr. Ashok Jhunjhunwala has been awarded Padma Shri in the year 2002. He has been awarded Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in 1998, Dr.Vikram Sarabhai Research Award for the year 1997, Millennium Medal at Indian Science Congress in the year 2000 and H. K. Firodia for “Excellence in Science & Technology” for the year 2002, Shri Om Prakash Bhasin Foundation Award for Science & Technology for the year 2004, Awarded Jawaharlal Nehru Birth Centenary Lecture Award by INSA for the year 2006, IBM Innovation and Leadership Forum Award by IBM for the year 2006, awarded Honorary Doctorate by the Institute of Blekinge Institute of Technology Sweden and Excellence in Science and Technology Award and recently awarded “Bharat Asmita Vigyaan –Tantragyaan Shresththa Award” for the best use of Science & Technology through Innovation by MIT Group of Institutions. He is a Fellow of World Wireless Research forum, IEEE and Indian academies including INAE, IAS, INSA and NAS.
Dr. Jhunjhunwala is a Director in the Board of State Bank of India, TTML, Polaris, 3i Infotech, Sasken, Tejas, IDRBT, Tata Communications and Exicom. He is a member of Prime Minister’s Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC-PM).