Science and technology company, Merck, has invited applications for the third edition of the Merck Young Scientist Award 2023. The company will conduct a roadshow at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mumbai to invite registrations.
The roadshow is an important leg of the nomination process, where a team from the Merck India, will visit the RGCB campus to call in for registrations from scientists on campus, as well as answer their queries regarding the awards, an official release said.
The Merck Young Scientist Award aims to nurture scientific innovation and recognise the contributions of young scientists who are making a significant impact on society. The awards will provide a platform for researchers to present their cutting-edge work in the fields of Biological Sciences, Chemical Sciences, and Sustainability Research, which includes green chemistry, renewable/alternate energy, sustainable materials, and manufacturing.
The application processfor the award is currently open and will continue until August 16, 2023. The initiative aims to honour 10 young scientists for their scientific contributions to human progress. To be eligible for the 2023.
This year’s award programme will welcome applications from three distinct categories, namely:
o Biological Sciences
o Chemical Sciences
o A special category dedicated to Sustainability Research (green chemistry, renewable/alternate energy, sustainable materials and manufacturing), reflecting the growing significance of environmental consciousness in scientific research
A total of 10 scientists will be awarded the 2023 Merck Young Scientist Award; two winners each in the fields of biological and chemical sciences and one winner in sustainability research. Additionally, there will be five runner-up recipients. The winners will receive a prize of Rs 350,000 and the runners-up will be awarded Rs 100,000.
“This year, we have chosen to focus on sustainability apart from the disciplines of Chemistry and Biology since we believe as an organisation that sustainability is a key pillar of scientific research. Bringing this up as a highlight will also make it evident to the industry and academics how central sustainability is as a theme as we all work towards human progress. While the primary objective is to continue to identify and honour the talented young scientists across India, we also want to take this opportunity to make sustainability a buzzword to create awareness for the same through an award that is well known amongst the scientific fraternity,” Dhananjay Singh, head, Science and Lab Solutions, Merck Life Science, said.
The jury for the 2023 Merck Young Scientist Award consists of three distinguished chairs: Anurag Agrawal, dean of Ashoka University; Radha Rangarajan, director of CSIR-CDRI; and Srinivas Reddy, director of CSIR-IICT. The applications will be reviewed by a panel of 10 members from respected institutes. This esteemed panel includes experts from NCL, IISc, IIT-Bombay, JNU, BITS-Pilani, NBRC, IIT Kharagpur, CSIR-IGIB, CCMB, and NIRRH.
Merck Young Scientist Award, researchers must be associated with a research institute with less than 10 years of post-Ph.D. research experience and must reside in India. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on November 24, 2023.