Dr R Chidambaram, former head of the Atomic Energy Commission, was a nuclear scientist. Born in 1936, Dr Chidambaram was an alumnus of Presidency College, Chennai, and IISc, Bengaluru. He played a key role in India's first successful nuclear weapon test Operation Smiling Buddha (1974) and Operation Shakti (1998). He also served as Principal Scientific Adviser to the Indian government.