Young people in India must believe in the pursuit of the sciences, says Narayana Murthy
Infosys co-founder NR Narayana Murthy wants the Bharat Ratna to go to Professor Manjul Bhargava, the young, Indian-origin academician who has won the Fields Medal - otherwise known as the "Nobel Prize of Mathematics".
"Since there is so much debate on who should get the Bharat Ratna - here is a man who deserves it," Mr Narayana Murthy told NDTV. "But it is so sad, we did not recogniae Ramanujan (mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan). We have more than 200 years of proven record that we have potential in the field of math."
"Young people in our country must believe in the pursuit of mathematics and the sciences," and a Bharat Ratna for Bhargava will inspire them, Mr Narayana Murthy said.
After last year's debate over cricketer Sachin Tendulkar versus hockey player Dhyan Chand, the fresh names being tossed around for the big award include freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, former Andhra Pradesh chief minister NT Rama Rao and "Metro man" E Sreedharan.