Remembering Prof Madhav N Kulkarni

In sudden and untimely demise of young Prof. Madhav Kulkarni, Indiahas lost the best and boldest geodesists. Proud of the glorious past, he wanted that independent SOI should achieve GREAT of its own. For his reverence to Everest, he was trying to achieve the new 21st century Indian Geodetic System as “Everest 2007”. Since meeting him first time during the 1992 GPS satellite symposium in Columbus, Ohio, I always admired his determination to “accomplish” for India. To pay REAL homage to Madhav, let us realize the Everest Geodetic System 2007 and start DSMs and OSMs with 21st century format, which would lead India to be the BEST in the world.

-Muneendra Kumar, Ph.D.

This is to convey our deep condolences on the sudden demise of Prof Madhav Kulkarni. We have indeed lost an excellent academician and a very good friend. He was a man of great insight and personality, and his death is a great loss for IIT and the entire GPS community.

-Trimble Navigation

India Pvt. Ltd. and their Distribution Partners.

Dr Madhav N Kulkarni was Professor of Geodesy & Remote Sensing at IIT Bombay. He joined faculty of the Geodesy & Remote Sensing Division of Civil Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, in June 1999, after taking voluntary

retirement from Army Engineers, as Lt Co. An Alumnus of IIT Kharagpur, Dr Kulkarni served in Survey of India, a Department under DST, for 20 years, on deputation from Army. He carried out and supervised extensive Geodetic survey operations from the Himalayas to Kanyakumari, for diverse applications. He did his Masters and PhD in Space Geodesy at The Ohio State University, USA, in a NASAfunded project, on a study leave, and received two international awards. His areas of specialization include Space Geodesy, Satellite-based Surveying & Mapping techniques, Earthquake Studies using Geodetic Techniques, and Global Positioning System (GPS).

Dr. Kulkarni was also an Adjunct Professor at the Indian Institute of Geomagnetism, Mumbai, and member of several National committees, including the National GPS Expert Group. He has over 50 technical publications to his credit. Prof. Kulkarni was also an advisor for Coordinates since its inception.

Prof Kulkarini’s views on Indian Geodetic Datum was published in Feb 07 issue of Coordinates.

(https://www.mycoordinates.org/thedatumdebate-feb2007-1.php)