Dr Chandrakant Lahariya honoured with prestigious Wiley Research Heroes Prize 2025
New Delhi: Former World Health Organization (WHO) staff member, Dr Chandrakant Lahariya, has been awarded the prestigious Wiley Research Heroes Prize 2025 for his outstanding research contributions and research for policy impact, titled ‘Impact Beyond Academia’.
The role of research in advancing knowledge in any field is widely recognised and proven beyond doubt. Research plays a role in improving the health and well-being of any societies.
Conducting research that impacts policy and influences the lives of millions of people is something that has been rated highest in the hierarchy of research impact (as also flagged by the Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research in a paper published in Sept 2025).
Dr Chandrakant Lahariya is one of India’s leading health policy researchers, an academician, and a medical practitioner. His research impact has been recognised for a long time. As early as the year 2020, the first year when that ranking was released, Dr Lahariya has been recognised as a top 2% researchers across the world in areas of clinical/internal medicine and Paediatrics by Elsevier led analysis, conducted by researchers based at Stanford University in United States.
Dr. Chandrakant Lahariya has been actively engaged in research since 2004, when he joined Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi, India, as Resident Doctor.
Dr Lahariya, a former WHO staff, has been recognised among five researchers from around the world awarded the ‘Wiley Research Heroes Prize’ 2025 for outstanding research contributions and research for policy impact, titled as ‘Impact Beyond Academia’.
Dr Chandrakant Lahariya is a leading public health physician, who has done primary research in the area of vaccination, conditional cash transfers for mother and child health services and on primary healthcare. His program evaluation work on vaccine introduction (especially hepatitis B vaccination), on conditional cash transfer, as well as on integrated management of neonatal and childhood illnesses, has resulted in programmatic revision and, in the years to follow, resulted in the introduction of around 6 new and underutilised vaccines in immunization programs.
It is his research and program initiatives that India now has 12 of 13 WHO-recommended vaccines in the national program, and 13th antigen, the HPV vaccine, is being actively considered. Alongside, the full vaccine coverage in India for childhood vaccines has increased from meagre 55% in 2005 to around 94% in 2023.
Dr Lahariya’s work across Indian states on designing and strengthening primary healthcare models. He was involved in a number of models, including Mohalla or Community Clinics of Delhi and Basthi Davakhana of India.
He has received awards and accolades for his work, including the Government of India/ Indian Council of Medical Research had conferred him with Dr BC Srivastava Foundation Award for ‘Translating community health research into policy practice’ in 2012. He received a certificate of appreciation in 2014 from the then Director General of WHO. He is clearly amongst selected academicians and researchers, whose work is being applied in policy practice and real world.
His work focuses on cardiometabolic diseases and parenting and child development. He is also the founder director of Foundation for People-centric Health Systems, a not-for-profit based out of New Delhi.
Speaking to the media on receiving the Wiley Research Heroes Prize 2025, Dr Lahariya said,'' I am deeply honoured. This award is special because it recognises work that goes beyond academic publications and touches people’s lives. Public health is ultimately about impact on communities, especially the most marginalised, and this prize affirms that the years of field research, policy engagement and collaborative efforts have made a meaningful difference.''
Explaining the focus of his research, Dr Lahariya stated, ''My research focuses on strengthening health systems so that quality, affordable care reaches every individual. Practically, this has meant working on vaccination policy, conditional cash transfers for maternal and child health, and models of primary healthcare. I study what works on the ground, generate evidence, and help translate that evidence into policy and large-scale programs.''
Replying to what first inspired him to take this path, Dr Lahariya said, ''I realised that a single policy change can improve the lives of millions — far more than what any one clinician can do alone.''
Speaking about how his research made a difference outside the academic world, Dr Lahariya said, ''My work has contributed to shaping national immunisation policies and the redesign of primary healthcare services across Indian states. Evidence from my evaluations supported the introduction of six new and under-utilised vaccines into India’s immunisation programme and helped improve full immunisation coverage from about 55% in 2005 to nearly 94% by 2023.''
When asked about his future priorities, Dr Lahariya added, ''The next frontier is strengthening comprehensive primary healthcare and making preventive health the centre of health systems. I also see a major opportunity in science communication — fighting misinformation, building public trust, and empowering citizens with simple, science-based guidance. The goal is the same as always: to ensure that evidence leads to action, and action improves lives, especially for the poorest and most marginalised.''
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