Meet Tathagar Avatar Tulsi who earned PhD at 21, became an IIT professor at 22 but is now unemployed
Meet Tathagar Avatar Tulsi who earned PhD at 21, became an IIT professor at 22 but is now unemployed
Tathagat Avatar Tulsi, once hailed as a prodigious talent in the world of physics, is now confronting a challenging phase of unemployment. Tulsi, born on September 9, 1987, in Bihar, demonstrated extraordinary academic abilities from a very young age. By the age of 9, he had already completed his schooling. His academic journey continued at Patna Science College, where he earned a BSc degree at 11 and an MSc by 12. When Tulsi was just 17 years old, he went to the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bangalore and started pursuing his PhD programme and completed it when he was 21.
His early career appeared promising. In 2010, he was appointed as an Assistant Professor at IIT Mumbai on a contract basis. However, his career took a downturn in 2019 when he claims his employment was terminated following a lengthy medical leave. Tulsi’s health issues began in 2011 with a severe fever later identified as an allergy. This condition led to a four-year hiatus from his role at IIT Mumbai and a relocation to Patna by 2013. His official dismissal came in 2019, leaving him without a job.
Tulsi’s academic achievements have always been noteworthy. At 17, he started his PhD program at IISc, where he was well-regarded by the faculty for his dedication and amiable nature. His doctoral research focused on “Generalizations of the Quantum Search Algorithm,” and he co-authored a paper with Lov Grover titled “A New Algorithm for Fixed-point Quantum Search,” although it was never published. In August 2021, his application for a different position was rejected by then-President Ramnath Kovind.
Once considered among Asia’s most gifted children, Tulsi was dubbed “Superteen” by Science, “Physics Prodigy” by The Times, and “Master Mind” by The Week. Tulsi now finds himself shifting his focus. In an effort to navigate this difficult period, he has turned his attention to studying law, aiming to forge a new path in his professional life.
