PGIMER’s 11th Annual Research Day, which concluded today, reaffirmed the institute’s commitment to translating research discoveries into real-world healthcare solutions. The event featured nearly 400 best research publications from the past year, with 48 researchers recognized for ‘Top-rated Research Publications’ in surgical, medical, and basic sciences. Additionally, 40 researchers were honored in the ‘Innovations’ category for their ground-breaking contributions.
A landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between PGIMER, Chandigarh, and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, to foster collaborative research with societal impact.
Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood , Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India and Chairperson of the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC), was the esteemed Chief Guest. Prof. Sundar Swaminathan, Inaugural Chair, Department of Nephrology at IISc Bengaluru, was the Guest of Honour.
Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, renowned for his pioneering research in quantum materials and nanotechnology, emphasized the pivotal role of interdisciplinary research in his address themed as “Our Way Forward for the Techade : Opportunities & Challenges”.
Speaking online from New Delhi, Prof. Sood emphasized that India is at the top of the technology pyramid. For example, out of 69 critical technologies, India is in the top 5 ranking, in 45 of them. He explained that the convergence of technologies will enable techno-strategic autonomy for India in its journey towards Viksit Bharat. Prof. Sood outlined the extensive work being led by his office towards the Healthcare sector including One Health, pandemic preparedness, mission mode approach for cell & gene therapy, and the role of artificial intelligence in healthcare."
Addressing the gathering, Prof. Swaminathan, a distinguished nephrologist and bio-engineering expert, emphasized the importance of translational research in bridging the gap between laboratory breakthroughs and clinical applications. An alumnus of PGIMER, he lauded the institute’s research excellence, stating, “Every doctor is inherently a researcher, but impactful discoveries require thinking beyond and above.”
Welcoming the dignitaries, Prof. Vivek Lal, Director, PGIMER, commended the overwhelming response to the event. Highlighting PGIMER’s robust research ecosystem, he stated, “Despite our rigorous work schedules, research thrives at PGIMER because it is ‘for the patient, with the patient, and by the patient’.”
Prof. R.K. Ratho, Dean (Academic), set the tone for the event, underpinning PGIMER’s relentless pursuit of excellence in medical education, patient care, and cutting-edge research.
Prof. Sanjay Jain, Dean (Research), highlighted PGIMER’s research milestones, including securing ?109 crores in funding and executing 915 projects in 2023-24. He noted that the Best Institutional Research Excellence Award 2024 at the DHR-ICMR Health Research Excellence Summit in New Delhi affirmed PGIMER’s leadership in medical innovation.
During the recent year (2023-24) alone, the Institute conducted 542 national-level projects and 31 internationally-funded projects. Additionally, PGIMER supported 141 projects through its intra-mural research scheme, designed to encourage young researchers to apply for competitive extramural grants. The total number of 714 projects within a single year is truly impressive. 
The extra-mural research projects were predominantly funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research (271 projects, Rs 43 crores); Department of Science & Technology (82 projects, Rs 8 crores); Council for Scientific & Industrial Research (8 projects, Rs 9 crores). Department of Biotechnology (30 projects, Rs 4 crores) and other prestigious national agencies (43 projects, Rs 17 crores). 
There were 36 projects funded by prestigious international agencies including the World Health Organization, European Union agencies, and prestigious highly-ranked foreign Universities. The total Grants from such agencies exceed Rs 14 crores. Besides these, over 100 drug trials were also initiated in the same year. The total extra-mural grants by the Institute received exceeded Rs 92 crores. The Institute has published a total of over 40,000 research papers in prestigious national and international journals.
During the Annual Research Day function, about 400 faculty members from various medical, surgical, and basic sciences departments presented their latest research findings through posters and oral presentations.
The event featured 48 outstanding innovations, demonstrating PGIMER's dedication to fostering a culture of creativity and problem-solving in medical research. Several Faculty members demonstrated prototypes and designs of their innovations. Several were hi tech products designed for life saving applications in operating rooms and intensive care units. 
Some of the innovations were related to cutting edge technologies, including a novel method to generate neuronal cells from fibroblasts. This innovation by Dr. Maryada Sharma has great potential in experimental neurological problems. 
Experts from Oral Health Sciences collaborated with Ophthalmologists to create a user-friendly eye prosthesis imprinted with braille. Prof Anish Bhattacharya of Nuclear Medicine Department described a novel method of radio tagging white blood cells to detect infections.
The event concluded with the award ceremony wherein 48 researchers were conferred awards in the surgical, medical, and basic sciences fields for ‘Research publications’ and 40 researchers in the ‘Innovations’ category  The awards were based on the H Index which measures both the productivity and citation impact of the publications.
In the category of Medical Specialties, Prof. Ajay Kumar Duseja from the Department of Hepatology secured the 1st Prize, followed by Prof. Shankar Prinja from Community Medicine and School of Public Health with the 2nd Prize, and Prof. Ritesh Agarwal from Pulmonary Medicine winning the 3rd Prize. Among Additional Professors, Dr. Poonam Khanna (Community Medicine and School of Public Health) claimed the 1st Prize, Dr. Anmol Bhatia (Radiodiagnosis and Imaging) received the 2nd Prize, and Dr. Karthi Nallasamy (Paediatric Medicine) secured the 3rd Prize. The Associate Professor category saw Dr. Sahajal Dhooria (Pulmonary Medicine) take the 1st Prize, Dr. Jayanta Samanta (Gastroenterology) win the 2nd Prize, and Dr. Nipun Verma (Hepatology) awarded the 3rd Prize. Among Assistant Professors, Dr. Valliappan Muthu (Pulmonary Medicine) achieved the 1st Prize, Dr. Arka De (Hepatology) won the 2nd Prize, and Dr. Kapil Goel (Community Medicine and School of Public Health) secured the 3rd Prize.
Among Surgical Specialties, Prof. Kajal Jain (Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care) received the 1st Prize, followed by Prof. Nidhi Bhatia (Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care) with the 2nd Prize. The 3rd Prize was jointly awarded to Prof. Pravin Sulanke (Neurosurgery) and Prof. Sushmita Kaushik (Ophthalmology). Among Additional Professors, Dr. Kamal Kajal (Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care) was awarded the 1st Prize, Dr. Harjeet Singh (GI Surgery, HPB and Liver Transplantation) secured the 2nd Prize, and Dr. Girdhar S Bora (Urology) received the 3rd Prize. In the Associate Professor category, Dr. Sandeep Patel (Orthopaedics) was awarded the 1st Prize, Dr. Manojkumar A. Jaiswal (Oral Health Sciences – Dental) took the 2nd Prize, and Dr. Shyam Charan Meena (Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care) won the 3rd Prize. Among Assistant Professors, Dr. Shipra Gupta (Oral Health Sciences – Dental) secured the 1st Prize, Dr. Manu Saini (Ophthalmology) took the 2nd Prize, and Dr. Aakriti Gupta (Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care) received the 3rd Prize.
In the Pre-Clinical and Para-Clinical Specialties category, among Professors, Prof. Lekha Saha (Pharmacology) received the 1st Prize, Prof. Bikash Medhi (Pharmacology) was awarded the 2nd Prize, and Prof. Shivaprakash M Rudramurthy (Medical Microbiology) secured the 3rd Prize. Among Assistant Professors, Dr. Seema Chhabra (Immunopathology) won the 1st Prize, Dr. Lekha Rani (Immunopathology) took the 2nd Prize, and Dr. Debajyoti Chatterjee (Histopathology) secured the 3rd Prize.
There were separate awards for resident doctors and students. Dr. Divakar P Reddy (Internal Medicine) was awarded the 1st Prize in the Junior Resident category. 
Among Senior Residents/Senior Demonstrators, Dr. Piyush Aggarwal (Nuclear Medicine) secured the 1st Prize, followed by Dr. Dev Desai (Paediatric Medicine) with the 2nd Prize. In the PhD Research Scholars, Pool Officers, and Research Associates category, Dr. Savitesh Kushwaha (Community Medicine) won the 1st Prize, while the 2nd Prize was jointly awarded to Dr. Sanghamitra Machhua (Paediatrics) and Dr. Harvinder Singh (Translational Medicine).
The winners in the Systematic Reviews with Meta-Analysis category included Dr. Jogender Kumar (Paediatric Medicine) securing the 1st Prize, Dr. Vishal Sharma (Gastroenterology) receiving the 2nd Prize, and Dr. Jaivinder Yadav (Paediatric Medicine) awarded the 3rd Prize.
PGIMER’s enabling culture and research eco-system paved the way for several ground-breaking biomedical innovations. Forty top innovators were conferred awards during the ceremony including 40 distinguished faculty members and researchers at PGIMER Chandigarh were awarded under this category for their contributions to innovation.
In the Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care, Dr. Kiran Jangra (Additional Professor), Dr. Sunil Kumar Bijarania (PhD Scholar), and Dr. Babita Ghai (Professor) were recognized. In Cardiology, Dr. Basant Kumar (Associate Professor) was awarded. From the Community Medicine and School of Public Health, Dr. Ravindra Khaiwal (Professor) received recognition. Dr. Rama Walia (Additional Professor) from Endocrinology was also honored for innovations. Dr. Monu Kumari (PhD Scholar) from the Department of Experimental Medicine and Biotechnology was awarded.
In Nuclear Medicine, Dr. Jaya Shukla (Professor) was recognized. In Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Dr. Girija Shankar Mohanty (Assistant Professor) was awarded. The Department of Oral Health Sciences (Dental) had two awardees, Dr. Vinay Kumar (Associate Professor) and Dr. Umesh Kumar (Associate Professor). Dr. Sandeep Patel (Associate Professor) from Orthopaedics was recognized, along with Dr. Maryada Sharma (Associate Professor) from Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery. In Paediatric Medicine, Dr. Shalini Dhiman (PhD Scholar) was honored under this category.
Additionally, several professionals were identified for their potential contributions to future innovations. In Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care, Dr. Nidhi Bhatia (Professor) and Dr. Tanvir Samra (Additional Professor) were recognized. Dr. Sakshi Bansal (PhD Scholar) from Anatomy and Dr. Shalmoli Bhattacharya (Professor) from Biophysics were also included. From Clinical Hematology and Medical Oncology, Dr. Pankaj Malhotra (Professor) was acknowledged. Dr. Sonu Goel (Professor) from Community Medicine and School of Public Health received recognition.
From the Department of Experimental Medicine and Biotechnology, Dr. Deepak Kumar (Senior Demonstrator), Dr. Sheetal Sharma (Associate Professor), and Dr. Sagarika Haldar (Associate Professor) were recognized. In Haematology, multiple awardees included Dr. Pulkit Rastogi (Assistant Professor), Dr. Dikshat Gopal Gupta (PhD Scholar), and Dr. Atul Kumar Jain (Senior Resident). Dr. Nipun Verma (Associate Professor) from Hepatology and Dr. Yashwant Kumar (Professor) from Immunopathology were also honored.
In Neurosurgery, Dr. Dhandapani SS (Professor) and Dr. Sushant Kumar Sahoo (Associate Professor) were awarded. Dr. Anish Bhattacharya (Professor) from Nuclear Medicine was recognized. The Department of Oral Health Sciences (Dental) had Dr. Bhavita Wadhwa (Assistant Professor) included in the list. In Orthopaedics, Dr. Siddhartha Sharma (Additional Professor) was acknowledged. Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery had two awardees: Dr. Jaimanti Bakshi (Professor) and Dr. Ramandeep Singh Virk (Professor).
From Radiodiagnosis and Imaging, Dr. Pankaj Gupta (Associate Professor), Dr. Akshay Kumar Saxena (Professor), and Dr. Vikas Bhatia (Associate Professor) were awarded. Lastly, in Translational and Regenerative Medicine, Dr. Harvinder Singh (Research Associate) and Dr. Gaurav Sharma (Assistant Professor) were recognized for their potential contributions to future innovations.
These awards celebrate the outstanding research contributions of PGIMER’s faculty and students, reinforcing the institute’s position as a leader in medical innovation and scientific excellence.
PGIMER’s 11th Annual Research Day once again underscored the institute’s dedication to medical research and innovation, reinforcing its position as a leader in healthcare advancements.