A Sivathanu Pillai is an Indian

scientist A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...

who formerly served as Honorary Distinguished Professor at

Indian Space Research Organisation The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO; ) is the national space agency of India, headquartered in Bengaluru. It operates under the Department of Space (DOS) which is directly overseen by the Prime Minister of India, while the Chairman ...

(2015-2018) and an honorary professor at

IIT Delhi The Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi is a public institute of technology located in New Delhi, India. It is one of the 23 IITs created to be Centres of Excellence for training, research and development in science, engineering and technolo ...

in the Department of Mechanical Engineering (2015-2016) and a Visiting Professor at

Indian Institute of Science The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is a public, deemed, research university for higher education and research in science, engineering, design, and management. It is located in Bengaluru, in the Indian state of Karnataka. The institute wa ...

(2014-2015). He is the President of Project Management Associates and is the former chairperson of the board of governors of the

National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra (NIT Kurukshetra or NITKKR) is a public technical and research university located in Kurukshetra. In December 2008, it was accredited with the status of Institute of National Importance (INI). It i ...

. He formerly served as Chief Controller of Research and Development from year 1996 to 2014 and held the rank of "Distinguished Scientist" from year 1999 to 2014 at the

Defence Research and Development Organisation The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) (IAST: ''Raksā Anūsandhān Evam Vikās Sangaṭhan'') is the premier agency under the Department of Defence Research and Development in Ministry of Defence of the Government of India ...

at the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

of the

Republic of India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. He is also the founder-

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

and

managing director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of the

BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited The BrahMos Aerospace is an Indo-Russian multinational aerospace and defense corporation, with core manufacturing concentrations in Cruise missiles. Headquartered in New Delhi, India, it was founded as a joint venture between the India's Defen ...

. He also previously served as Vice President of International Project Management Association and as Special Secretary representing India in the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military-Technical Cooperation.

Early life and education

Apathukatha Sivathanu Pillai was born in

Nagercoil Nagercoil, also spelt as Nagarkovil ("Temple of the Nāgas", or Nagaraja-Temple), is a city and the administrative headquarters of Kanyakumari District in Tamil Nadu state, India. Situated close to the tip of the Indian peninsula, it lies on an ...

Kanyakumari District Kanniyakumari district is one of the 38 districts in Tamil Nadu state and the southernmost district in mainland India. It stands second in terms of population density among the districts of Tamil Nadu. It is also the richest district in Tamil Nad ...

Tamilnadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language— ...

on 15 July 1947. He completed his schooling at D.V.D. Higher Secondary School, Nagercoil,. He earned his

Bachelor of Electrical Engineering Bachelor of Electrical Engineering (B.E.E. or BEE) is an undergraduate academic degree offered to a student who completes three to five years of study in electrical engineering at a university or college. Many institutes offer Bachelor of Science ...

from

Thiagarajar College of Engineering Thiagarajar College of Engineering (TCE) is a Government-aided institution located in Thiruparankundram, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is affiliated to Anna University, Madurai. History Thiagarajar College of Engineering is one of several edu ...

in 1969. In 1991, he attended the six-week Advanced Management Program at

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

. He then earned

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

in Technology Management from

Savitribai Phule Pune University Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU), formerly the University of Poona, is a collegiate public state university located in the city of Pune, India. It was established in 1949, and is spread over a campus in the neighbourhood of Ganeshk ...

in 1996. Pillai is a close and personal friend of Former President of India

APJ Abdul Kalam Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (; 15 October 193127 July 2015) was an Indian aerospace scientist and statesman who served as the 11th President of India from 2002 to 2007. He was born and raised in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu and studied phy ...

Career

Academia

Pillai currently serves as Honorary Distinguished Professor at

and an honorary professor at

in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and a Visiting Professor at

. He also formerly served as the chairperson of the Board of Governors of the

ISRO and DRDO

Pillai joined the Defence Research and Development Service and has four decades of experience in

ISRO The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO; ) is the national space agency of India, headquartered in Bengaluru. It operates under the Department of Space (DOS) which is directly overseen by the Prime Minister of India, while the Chairman ...

and

DRDO The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) (IAST: ''Raksā Anūsandhān Evam Vikās Sangaṭhan'') is the premier agency under the Department of Defence Research and Development in Ministry of Defence of the Government of India, ...

and has worked with

Vikram Sarabhai Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai (12 August 1919 – 30 December 1971) was an Indian physicist and astronomer who initiated space research and helped develop nuclear power in India. He was honoured with Padma Bhushan in 1966 and the Padma Vibhushan ...

Satish Dhawan Satish Dhawan (25 September 1920 – 3 January 2002) was an Indian mathematician and aerospace engineer, widely regarded as the father of experimental fluid dynamics research in India. Born in Srinagar, Dhawan was educated in India and ...

and

. He joined DRDO in 1986 and was the Programme Director of IGMDP under the leadership of

A. P. J. Kalam Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (; 15 October 193127 July 2015) was an Indian aerospace scientist and statesman who served as the 11th President of India from 2002 to 2007. He was born and raised in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu and studied phy ...

. He contributed to the successful development of SLV III as a core team member and to the evolution of PSLV configuration for ISRO.

Brahmos Aerospace

In August 2007 he was given a third extension of his retirement date by the

Appointments Committee of the Cabinet The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) appoints several top posts within the Government of India. The committee is composed of the Prime Minister of India (''ex-officio'' Chairman) and the Minister of Home Affairs. Originally the Minis ...

. Pillai is regarded as the ''Father of BRAHMOS'', the joint venture between India and Russia to design, develop, produce and market the supersonic cruise missile BrahMos and he is the chief executive and managing director of BrahMos Aerospace. In 2007, under his leadership as CEO of Brahmos Aerospace, the company bought

Kerala Hitech Industries Limited Kerala Hitech Industries Limited (KELTEC) was an Indian aerospace company in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. Its product-mix included systems required for the launch vehicles, satellite and non-rotating systems of turbojet aircraft engines. KELTEC ...

. It has been then converted into Brahmos Aerospace Trivandrum Limited, the second missile making unit of BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited for a world-class missile facility with system integration and testing.

Awards and honours

Books, research papers and journals

Sivathanu Pillai is a published author and coauthor of several books, research papers and journals. * * * * * * * *

References

External links

Official Website
* *
Pillars of BrahMos

Others

India primes for growth in defence electronics
*
Tipu Sultan the first to use missile technology

Humans will soon inhabit other planets: Sivathanu Pillai

Hypersonic missiles to replace ballistic missiles

India should have its own computer operating system: Pillai

Nanotechnology will change lives: Sivathanu Pillai
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pillai, A. Sivathanu Living people 1947 births Tamil scientists Scientists from Tamil Nadu People from Kanyakumari district Savitribai Phule Pune University alumni IIT Delhi faculty Indian Institute of Science faculty Indian Space Research Organisation people Indian chief executives People from Nagercoil Defence Research and Development Organisation English-language writers from India Recipients of the Padma Shri in science & engineering Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in science & engineering 20th-century Indian engineers Indian electrical engineers Engineers from Tamil Nadu Businesspeople from Tamil Nadu