The COVID-19 pandemic is upon us! The nation has been through prolonged lockdowns, yet the rising case numbers have kept up the relentless demand on testing.

We all remember the early days when the news of the COVID-19 pandemic was being discussed over chai. Months have passed since the pandemic has turned into a worldwide crisis bringing daily routines to a grinding and extended halt.  In a country that numbers over a billion, the second most populated nation of the world, India was standing at a precipice, staring down at an unimaginable healthcare crisis fearing morbidity and mortality. Then came the lockdown and the slow ticking of the numbers on the ever-climbing graph of COVID-19 cases.

Prof. Upinder S. Bhalla has been awarded the SASTRA-Obaid Siddiqi Award 2020 for his contributions to the Life Sciences. On National Science Day, 28th February 2020, he delivered a lecture to students at Sastra University titled: “Molecules, memory & math models”. He emphasised some of Prof Obaid Siddiqi's qualities of being positive and adventurous in his science and his career choices.

On 13th February 2020, Prof Smita Srinivas delivered a keynote speech at the National Law School of India University on "Global South Classification Challenges in Economic Development Plans". The keynote was part of the international seminar at the NLSIU's Institute for Public Policy and a project led by Dr. Anjali Karol, funded by the Urban Studies Foundation with Indian and Colombian scholars looking at urban, regional, and national considerations of planning and policy.

The NCBS Annual Talks 2020 were held from 14th January to 17th January, 2020. Annual talks mark an important event in the campus calendar when everyone comes together, perhaps for the only time in the year, to hear fellow researchers talk about their science. The idea of looking back at the achievements, and the glimpses of the future has been consistent. However, the history of this event has been quite dynamic. The current form of the annual talks has evolved over the years.

This press release is in reference to media reports that grossly misrepresent the facts concerning a study of bats in Nagaland. We are issuing this statement to correct the record, in the public interest. We strongly appeal to the media, stakeholders, and the public, to only obtain information from reliable and verified sources, and to help prevent the spread of misinformation and panic during a global public health crisis.

It is with deep sadness that we acknowledge the passing of Dr M K Bhan on 26th January 2020, in Delhi.

Dr Dimple Notani of the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore has been selected as one of the first life scientists from India to join the European Molecular Biology Organization’s Global Investigator Programme.

Prof. Satyajit Mayor, Director of the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS-TIFR) was conferred the distinguished Chevalier de l’Ordre national du Mérite (National Order of Merit), by the Ambassador of France to India, Mr. H.E. Emmanuel Lenain on 19th November, 2019.

Dr Anjana Badrinarayanan has been selected for the Har Gobind Khorana-Innovative Young Biotechnologist Award 2019.

The Innovative Young Biotechnologist Award (IYBA), initiated in 2005, is a career-oriented award to identify and nurture outstanding young scientists with innovative ideas and desirous of pursuing research in frontier areas of biotechnology.