Hindustan Antibiotics' former managing director and veteran chemical engineer Yashwant Gharpure (91) was awarded an honorary fellowship of the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers (IIChE) during CHEMCON 2024, an annual conference held in Jalandhar, Punjab. Gharpure is currently running his own business.

This recognition was given in acknowledgement of Gharpure’s contributions to the chemical engineering profession over the past seven decades, including scrutinising global tenders for technology, successfully implementing and commissioning several projects, reverse engineering two imported technologies and executing projects based on indigenously developed technologies, among other achievements.

Gharpure is also an avid writer, having published his first article on 'Space Travel' in his college magazine in 1955. Since then, he has written and published over 300 articles. Additionally, he has founded two NGOs: the Voluntary Executives Forum of India (VEFI) and the Technology Transfer Association (TTA). Last year, Gharpure was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Pune branch of the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers.