John C. Martin

(7th May, 1951 – 30th March, 2021)

John C Martin was a scientist, innovator and a visionary philanthropist. He made major contributions to the development of antiviral drugs to treat viral infections, many life-threatening, such as HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B and, Influenza that impacted on the lives of millions of people across the world. His creativity expressed itself not only in the area of pharmaceutical chemistry, but also in innovating strategies for ensuring access to life saving drugs by every citizen, irrespective of geography, gender and socio-economic status. He was an industry leader par excellence. He steered the wheel of growth of Gilead Sciences, nearly from scratch to it becoming a global pharmaceutical major. As a visionary and a philanthropist, he contributed immensely to the development of the Indian Institute of Liver and Digestive Sciences as well as the Center for Liver Research and Innovation that bears his name.