Bibha Chowdhuri highlighted as unsung hero of Indian physics

Key facts

• Bibha Chowdhuri was a pioneering Indian physicist in cosmic ray research.
• She published three consecutive papers in Nature alongside Debendra Mohan Bose.
• Chowdhuri completed her PhD at the University of Manchester under Nobel laureate P. M. S. Blackett.
• She became the first woman researcher at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) in 1949.
• Later she joined the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) at Ahmedabad and worked on the Kolar Gold Mine experiments.
• Despite her contributions, she received no national awards or major scientific fellowships.