A dangerous optimist, Mashelkar is uniquely multifaceted. In 1998, this scientist received J.R.D. Tata Corporate Leadership Award, an exclusive honour reserved for Indian Corporates. In 1998, he was also elected Fellow of Royal Society, the topmost honour reserved for world’s pathbreaking scientists. But then he also pioneered `Gandhian Engineering’ -`More from less for more people’ – catering to the needs of the poor. And why? Mashelkar says, as a poor boy, he studied under streetlights. He understands the pains of poverty.

Mashelkar valiantly fought and revoked the wrong US patents on turmeric and Basmati rice based on India’s traditional knowledge. But to US multinationals, he licensed patents based on modern knowledge of Indian laboratories, pioneering the trend of reverse transfer of technology.

He is a Director on boards of India’s leading companies, from Tatas to Reliance. 42 global universities have bestowed honorary doctorates upon him. The Government’s trust in him shows through the twelve high-powered Mashelkar Committees, many of them on contentious issues.

As its leader, Mashelkar transformed CSIR, the world’s largest chain of laboratories-heralded as one of the top ten achievements of Indian Science & Technology in the 20th century.

The President of India honoured Dr.Mashelkar with Padma Vibhushan (2014), Padmabhushan (2000) and Padmashri (1991), three of the highest civilian honours, in recognition of his contribution to nation building. 

In fact, he has received accolades from across the world. Dr.Mashelkar is only the third Indian engineer to have been elected (1998) as Fellow of Royal Society (FRS), UK in the twentieth century. He is the first Indian to be elected (2017) as a fellow of National Academy of Inventors (NAI), US. In addition, he was elected Foreign Associate of National Academy of Science (USA) in 2005; Associate Foreign Member, American Academy of Arts & Sciences (2011); Foreign Fellow of US National Academy of Engineering (2003); Fellow of Royal Academy of Engineering, UK (1996); Foreign Fellow of Australian Technological Science and Engineering Academy (2008); and Fellow of World Academy of Art & Science, USA (2000).

In August 1997, Business India named Dr.Mashelkar among the 50 path-breakers in post – independent India. In 1998, Dr.Mashelkar became the first scientist to win the JRD Tata Corporate Leadership Award. On 16 November 2005, he received the Business Week (USA) award of ‘Stars of Asia’ at the hands of George Bush (Sr.), the former President of USA. He was the first Asian Scientist to receive it. Forty two universities have honoured him with honorary doctorates, which includes Universities of London, Salford, Pretoria, Wisconsin and Delhi.

Dr.Mashelkar has won over 50 awards and medals, which include S.S. Bhatnagar Prize (1982); Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Technology Award (1991); G.D. Birla Scientific Research Award (1993); Material Scientist of Year Award (2000); IMC Juran Quality Medal (2002); HRD Excellence Award (2002); Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award for Excellence in Public Administration and Management Sciences (2002); World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO) Medal of Engineering Excellence, Paris (2003); Lifetime Achievement Award by Indian Science Congress (2004); the Science Medal by the Academy of Science for the Developing World (2005); AshutoshMookherjee Memorial Award by Indian Science Congress (2005); many more.