The honour comes in recognition of his contributions to materials research. The award was presented on Monday in Trieste.

The award, being given for the first time by the Academy of Sciences of the Developing World, carries a purse of one lakh dollars, a medal and a citation. Prof. Rao delivered a lecture on his research contributions on the occasion.

Firodia life-time achievement award was conferred on Prof Rao, a few days ago.