Dr Narendra Kumar is a former Director and DRDO fellow (Ministry of Defense, Govt. of India). He has a PhD in Organometallic Chemistry from Delhi University and has wide experience in working on a variety of advanced materials, including organometallics, liquid crystals, conducting polymers, and nanomaterials. Dr Kumar has published more than 110 research papers, four books, and holds 12 patents. For his pioneering R&D work on advanced materials for defense applications, he received the prestigious DRDO Technology Cash Award (1996) and Scientist of the Year Award (2005). He is also a member of several professional societies, including the American Chemical Society and the Material Research Society. He has been recently nominated as the President of the Jodhpur chapter of Marudhara Vigyan Bharti, an Indian organization for promoting science and technology in the rural areas of the country.