Former WHO Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan appointed principal advisor for National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme

New Delhi: The Union Government has appointed Prof Dr Soumya Swaminathan, former Chief Scientist of the World Health Organization (WHO), as the principal advisor for its National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme on a pro bono basis.

As the Principal Advisor for the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme, Prof. (Dr.) Soumya Swaminathan will provide technical advice on the overall strategy to achieve program goals, suggest policy directions and necessary course corrections for optimal outcomes, and advise on research strategy.  

Prof Swaminathan was the former Chief Scientist of the World Health Organization and has also served as the Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) previously.

Dr Swaminathan is a paediatrician and a globally recognized researcher on tuberculosis and HIV, she brings with her 30 years of experience in clinical care and research and has worked throughout her career to translate research into impactful programmes. She was Secretary to the Government of India for Health Research and Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research from 2015 to 2017. In that position, she focused on bringing science and evidence into health policy-making, building research capacity in Indian medical schools and forging south-south partnerships in health sciences.  

From 2009 to 2011, she also served as Coordinator of the UNICEF/UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases in Geneva. 

She received her academic training in India, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America, and has published more than 350 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters. She is an elected Foreign Fellow of the US National Academy of Medicine and a Fellow of all three science academies in India.