Dilip Kumar Choudhury

Eminent theoretical physicist Dilip Kr. Choudhury, recognized for his contributions to high-energy particle physics and for strengthening scientific scholarship in Assam, India, died on 9 November 2025 at his residence in Guwahati, India, at the age of 78 after a prolonged period of age-related ailments.

To honor Choudhury, I would like to recall George Bernard Shaw’s famous speech as a tribute to Albert Einstein at the Savoy Hotel, London, in 1930: “There is an order of men who … are not makers of empires, but they are makers of universes. … Ptolemy made a universe which lasted 1400 years; Newton also made a universe, which has lasted 300 years; Einstein has made a universe, and I can’t tell you how long that will last.” In that spirit, Choudhury too built a universe that will persist as long as the field of high-energy particle physics is taught and studied. In a 2023 paper by Sreerup Raychaudhuri (Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, India) titled “Indian Contributions to LHC Theory,” the works of Choudhury were cited nearly 56 times, reflecting their lasting significance in high-energy physics and marking India’s presence on the global scientific map. Choudhury’s work on the hadron/muon pair ratio received a key mention in John Ellis’s 1975 London Conference talk and was later referenced by Burton Richter in his 1976 Nobel Prize lecture at Stanford University, California. Although much of this science is beyond my understanding, such recognition speaks for the depth and influence of his research.

A native of Pokowa in Assam, Choudhury earned his undergraduate degree in physics from Cotton College and a master’s degree from Delhi University, where he completed his PhD under the eminent physicist Asoke Nath Mitra (recipient of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in 1969, then the highest scientific award in India). In 1971, Choudhury received the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 fellowship, London, which enabled him to pursue advanced work at Oxford University under R. H. Dalitz. He later joined the department of physics at Gauhati University in Assam, where he eventually served as professor and head of the department. Over his career, Choudhury held several distinguished appointments, including regular associate at ICTP, Trieste (1992–96); visiting scientist to French universities under the CSIR–CNRS Cultural Exchange Program (1985–86); visitor to Oxford University under the Indo-British Exchange Program (1990); national associate, UGC (1981); and senior associate at the Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Chennai (2002–06). He received multiple honors, among them the Kamal Kumari National Award (1994), the Dr. H. C. Bhuyan Award (1999), the V. D. Thawani Fellowship (1988), and was also declared the 2025 Lifetime Achievement Awardee in Scientific Research by the state of Assam.

Choudhury was equally influential in public science outreach. He authored several Assamese-language science books—including Moulik Kona (Fundamental Particles), Bigyan (Science), Bigyani aru Desh-Videsh (Scientists: Home and Abroad), Iswar Kanar Para Krishna Gohboroloi (From the ‘God Particle’ to the Cosmos), and Fifty Years of Quarks and Gluons—and contributed regularly to Assamese magazines. As mentor to more than 25 PhD scholars, he played a central role in shaping science education in Northeast India.

The passing of Choudhury is a profound loss for the Indian scientific community and for those he mentored. I feel fortunate to have known him closely and to have benefited from his guidance over many years, right up to his final days. What stood out the most was the consistency of his scholarly pursuits, reflected in how he continued to work with the same curiosity and intellectual discipline despite significant age-related illness. His wisdom, insight, generosity, and friendship will be deeply missed.

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