Raja Ramanna, a stalwart of India's nuclear programme, died in Mumbai on September 23. He was 79.

Born in Tumkur, Karnataka, Ramanna graduated from Madras University and earned a doctorate in the United Kingdom. He returned and joined eminent scientist Dr Homi Jehangir Bhabha, the father of the Indian nuclear programme, at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.

Bhabha hand-picked Dr Ramanna to put the country on the world nuclear map in a short time after his theory of nuclear fission was established between 1965 and 1968. Dr Ramanna rose to become head of the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre at Trombay in Mumbai.

He reached the pinnacle of his glory in 1974 when he led the team that conducted the country's first nuclear test at Pokhran, Rajasthan. In recognition of his work, he was honoured with the Padma Vibhushan, the country's second highest civilian award.

Ramanna the scientist was also passionate about music and could play the piano and violin with dexterity.