Contributions

ACHIEVEMENTS & CONTRIBUTIONS (As an individual)- Engineer/Scientist: Technical Leader: Educator

(i) Contributions as a Vice Chancellor at Defence Institute of Advanced Technology, Pune (Feb 2015 - March 2018)

Started new courses: Relevant to Ministry of Defence/DRDO in niche areas. Today there are total 27 specializations where M.Tech degrees are awarded. M.Sc in Food Technology & PGD in Fire Safety & Integrated Safety Management courses have also been started. New modular and specific courses have been arranged for DRDO & MoD-PSUs. Revised & upgraded the curriculum of all disciplines
Student intake strength increased from 100 in the year 2015 to 300 in 2017. DIAT is poised to have a total of around 850 to 1000 students, given at any time, in future.
Initiated creation of new facilities: Centre of Excellence for Radars, Nano Technology, Propulsion and AE.
Upgraded & renovated Electronics Engg., Aerospace Engg. & Mechanical Engg. Laboratories this included setting up of EMI/EMC chamber, Radar Centre, Navigation Laboratory, Underwater communication Lab, Wind tunnels (sub-Sonic, hypersonic & supersonic), Robotics Laboratory etc.
Received and installed various important equipment & components from DRDO Laboratories.
Signed many National and International MoUs.
Organized many important events such as INAE Annual Conclave, IEEE Antenna Week, PLMSS 2016 and other conferences, etc

(ii) Significant contributions to Science / Technology at ISRO

Dr. Pal, a Space Communication Technologist of repute, starting, at the inception of ISRO’s satellite activities , from scratch, is responsible for design, development and fabrication of space-borne telecommunication systems (TT&C & data transmitting systems) for all Indian scientific, remote sensing and communication satellites (Starting from Aryabhata to Chandrayaan). He has also pioneered the program of satellite-based navigation in India and was responsible for the following activities:

The GPS Aided & Geo Augmented Navigation (GAGAN), a satellite-based augmentation system for India, built over the GPS system, is expected to provide seamless navigation support over the Asia-Pacific regions.
Initiated an innovative unique concept of using geo-stationary satellite for navigation application is being implemented for India. The system is named as IRNSS (Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System), a regional self-reliant, all weather, 24-hour navigation support system over the Indian region (+1500 KMS) for land, air and sea users.

Dr Pal is responsible for design, development and fabrication of space-borne telecommunication systems, from the inception of Indian satellite Programme, for all Indian scientific, remote sensing and communication satellites.

Besides the various contributions to India’s Space programme, he has developed systems for India’s Defence Research & Development Organization and INMARSAT/ICO-UK. He has been a consultant to ITU on Regional African Satellite Communication and INMARSAT-UK for Project-21-LEO Mobile Satellite Definition. He had also developed satellite handheld telephone antenna systems at L,S & FPLMTS band for ICO. He has given courses on Satellite Communication at IISc under Proficiency Programme, published/presented more than 230 technical papers in national/international journals/conferences, guided 50 M.Tech and 10 PhD students for their dissertations. He is also a Distinguished Visiting Professor of INAE & Distinguished Lecturer, IEEE-AES. He has been on the editorial board of various technical journals and founder editor of the Journal of Spacecraft Technology. He is also co-editor of a book "Perspectives in Communications" published by World Scientific Publications, Singapore. He is an also examiner for various Indian technological institutions and Universities doctoral program. He has also been associated with the framing of the syllabus for Communication Systems at Post Graduate level.

(iii) President of IETE:

Formulating Curriculum/ Courses, new examination process, an introduction to new modern day relevant subjects to IETE & ICT-Ahmedabad University-academic curriculum including initiating new PG&UG- Study programmes, guiding & reviewing these time to time. Obtained NoC of Govt. of Manipur for starting IETE University of Technology.

(For more details see ANNEXURE ‘A’)

(iv) Chaired Scientific International Conference / Symposia and delivered invited lecture in India / Abroad;

Chaired – Indian Antenna Week 2017 held at DIAT, Pune.
Co-chaired, International Radar Symposium IRSI- 2017
Co-chaired, 6th International Conference on Product Life Cycle Modeling, Simulation and Synthesis (PLMSS), held at DIAT, Pune.
Organizing chair - INAE Annual Convention 2015 held at DIAT
Chaired a Technical Session: “Satellite and Space Applications and Trends in Enhancement of Operational Security” at DEFCOM 2017 Seminar jointly organised by Indian Army and CII at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi.
Convener of International Seminar on Measurements and Robotics 2009
Organizing Chair, International Microwave Symposium, ISM-2004, 2010
Co-convener, International Radar Symposium IRSI-2005,2007,2009, 2011, 2013,2015, 2017.
Vikram Sarabhai Memorial Lecture: GNSS – A Vast System of Systems, IETE Mid Term Symposium – 2007

(v) Chaired / Member Technical Committees / positions at various Academic/R&D Institute

Chaired - Board of Management (BoM), Academic Council, Finance Council and DIAT Council of DIAT, Pune and was the member secretary – Governing Body (GB) chaired by Chancellor (Hon’ble Raksha Mantri, Govt of India) of DIAT and Governing Council chaired by Secretary Dept. of Defence R&D, MoD
Member DRDO: AEW&C – National Review Committee Headed by Dr Atre till 2016.
DRDO/RAC Electronics Board Chairman 2010 to 2016
Chaired - Lab Research Council for various DRDO Laboratories; Vehicle Research & Development Establishment (VRDE), Ahmednagar ; Research & Development Establishment (R&DE), Pune; Microwave Tube Research & Development Center (MTRDC), Bangalore ; Defence Scientific Information & Documentation Centre (DESIDOC), Delhi ; Institute of Nuclear Medicine & Allied Sciences (INMAS), Delhi
Chaired Screening committee -DRDO Chairs, DRDO Distinguished Fellowships,
Reviewer of various projects of DRDO, MIT
Governing Body Member of Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai
Former Member AICTE – Governing Council (2012 – 2014)
Aditya Birla Chair – 2013, BKBIET, Pilani (Rajasthan)
Honorary Professor – AMITY University, Noida (UP).
Hon. Emeritus Professor Techno Vision India University Kolkata
Senior Adviser CIS Bangalore
Senior Adviser – ICT Ahmadabad University
Satish Dhawan Memorial Lecture-2009 for Aeronautical Society of India
Distinguished Lecturer, IEEE-AES Society, USA
On the GNSS Expert Panel of UN Office of Outer Space, Vienna
Distinguished Visiting Professor of INAE (2003 to 2006)
Gave courses on Advanced Communications at Indian Institute of Science, under Proficiency Programme (1999, 2000,2001,2002,2003)
Ministry of Information Technology, Govt. of India (Chairman, Working group on Information Infrastructure 2000-2002)
ITU – Geneva for Regional African Satellite Communication Definition (1989-90)
Indo-UK REC Project at MREC Jaipur (1998)
INMARSAT/ICO-UK on LEOSAT Definition Project-21& development of Mobile satellite Handheld Antenna (1993-96)

Details of Patents

1. A multiband Antenna System for operating at L,S and UHF Band, US patent No. 08/378171, European Patent no. 94308939.1

2. Ultra low side lobe antenna array, Patent document No. 243123 (Indian Patent)

Guided PhD scholars for their dissertations/Thesis

1. Studies relating to characterization, Analysis and synthesis of curvilinear antenna arrays

D Ganesh Rao, 1995, Rani Durgavati Vishwavidyalaya, Jabalpur (M.P.)

2. Investigations on Ultra-low side lobe microstrip patch arrays

V K Lakshmeesha, 1997, Rajasthan University, Jaipur

3. Studies on surface acoustic wave filters and correlators for satellite communication

Rebbapragada Ramabrahmam, 1998, IISc, Bangalore

4. Data Quality analysis of the digitally modulated suppressed carrier signals in real time data

Reception from remote sensing satellites.

P K Jain, 2005, Osmania University, Hyderabad

5. Investigations on PSK spectrum shaping techniques for space communications applications

D Venkataramana, 2005, IISc, Bangalore

6. Novel design techniques in planar active and passive circuits at microwave frequencies

Kamaljeet Singh, 2009, Rajasthan University, Jaipur

7. Investigations in the area of high bit rate data transmitting system for remote sensing satellites

V Sambasiva Rao, Year 2010, BITS, Pilani

8. On some novel defected ground structures to improve radiation characteristics of microstrip antennas

Chandrakanta Kumar, Calcutta University

9. Deep Space Network

VV Srinivasan (ISRO, Rajasthan University, 2017)

Two more scholars are perusing their PhD at IIT, Madras and DIAT, Pune.

Dr. Surendra Pal

Contributions