Who is Dr Anil Koul? The scientist PM Modi personally urged to return to India

Prof. Dr. Anil Koul is widely regarded as one of India’s leading biomedical scientists and pharmaceutical research experts, with a career spanning more than 25 years across academia, biotechnology, and global drug discovery. With more than two decades of experience in academia and the pharmaceutical industry, Prof. Dr. Anil Koul has emerged as one of India's foremost experts in infectious disease research. His scientific achievements have been recognised worldwide.

His journey has taken him from Kashmir and Delhi to Germany, Belgium, the United Kingdom, and back to India, where he has made significant contributions to infectious disease research and drug development.

Academic foundation

Born in Kashmir, Koul pursued his higher education at the University of Delhi before moving to Germany for doctoral research at the renowned Max Planck Institute. His early scientific work focused on molecular biology, infectious diseases, and the identification of novel drug targets.

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Rise in global pharmaceutical research

After completing his PhD, he worked with biotechnology companies in Germany before joining the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson (J&J) in Belgium in 2004. At J&J, Koul steadily rose through the ranks and eventually became Senior Director and Head of Respiratory Infections Discovery.

Breakthrough discovery

Dr. Koul played a crucial role in the discovery and development of Bedaquiline, the first new treatment approved for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in more than four decades. The breakthrough medicine transformed TB treatment worldwide and was later included in the World Health Organization’s list of essential medicines. For this achievement, Koul and his team received the prestigious American Chemical Society's Heroes of Chemistry Award.

Modi’s appeal and return to India

Koul recently came into the spotlight after Mankind Pharma Vice Chairman and Managing Director Rajeev Juneja recalled a story on a podcast with Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath. According to Juneja, Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally encouraged Koul to return to India while he was working in Belgium, telling him that the country needed scientists of his calibre.

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Inspired by the appeal, Koul later returned to India and served as Director of the CSIR-Institute of Microbial Technology (IMTECH) in Chandigarh from 2017 to 2019. During his tenure, he strengthened infectious disease research, expanded virology and medicinal chemistry programmes, and promoted collaboration between academia and industry.

Current role at Mankind Pharma and Bharat Serums

Following his stint in India, Koul returned to global pharmaceutical research, serving as Vice President and Head of Global Public Health Discovery & Partnerships at Johnson & Johnson. In 2025, he joined Bharat Serums & Vaccines and Mankind Pharma as Group Chief Scientific Officer, where he now leads innovation and next-generation drug development, furthering his mission to advance India’s biomedical research ecosystem.