India, July 20 -- The first Jayant Narlikar Astronomy Ratna Award was presented to astrophysicist and professor R Srianand, director, Inter University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), at Maharshi Karve Stree Shikshan Sanstha in Pune on Saturday.

Srianand was honoured for his outstanding contributions in the field of cosmology and astrophysics, particularly his groundbreaking research on redshift evolution and the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMBR) that helped validate key predictions of the Big Bang Model.

"The questions that arise from curiosity form the foundation of research. Such research should be of global standards and must serve the people," said Srianand after receiving the award from Bhushan Patwardhan,...