China's highest scientific award for Pakistan's Dr Atta-ur-Rahman

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's renowned scientist, Professor Dr Atta-ur-Rahman, is set to receive China's highest scientific award by the Chinese president on January 10 at The Great Peoples Hall in Beijing.

A spokesperson for the International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), University of Karachi (UoK), said: "China International Science and Technology Cooperation Award" for the year 2020 was being conferred on Prof Dr Atta-ur-Rahman in recognition of his monumental contributions in the field of chemistry.

This top international award has previously been given to several of the world's leading scientists, including the Nobel Laureates Dr Carlo Rubbia (Nobel Prize in physics, 1984) and Dr Zhores I. Alferov (Nobel Prize in physics, 2000), the spokesperson added.

It is noteworthy that China and Malaysia have also established major research centres in his name to recognise his international eminence.

Currently, Prof Rahman is serving as the chairperson of the prime minister’s task force on science and technology, vice chair on the PM's task force on technology-driven knowledge-economy, and co-chairperson of the task force on information technology. He has also served as a federal minister for science and technology and the Higher Education Commission's (HEC) chairperson.

The professor is Pakistan's most decorated scientist, having won four civil awards, including Tamgha-i-Imtiaz, Sitara-i-Imtiaz, Hilal-i-Imtiaz, and Nishan-i-Imtiaz — the highest national award.

Prof Rahman obtained his PhD in inorganic chemistry from Cambridge University (1968). He has 1250 publications in several fields of organic chemistry, including 775 research publications, 45 international patents, 69 chapters in books, and 341 books published largely by major US and European presses. He is also the editor-in-chief of eight European chemistry journals.

Prof Rahman is the editor of the world's leading encyclopedic series of volumes on natural products, "Studies in Natural Product Chemistry," 62 volumes of which have been published under his editorship during the last two decades.

As many as 82 students have completed their PhD degrees under his supervision. He has also been awarded various national and international awards in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field of science and technology.