A. S. Arya

Anand Swarup Arya (1931-2019) was an Indian structural engineer, known for his expertise in the soil and foundation engineering and earthquake disaster management. He is a former chairman of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) Committee on Earthquake Engineering and a recipient of the United Nations Sasakawa Disaster Prevention Award of 1997. The Government of India awarded him the Padma Shri, the country’s fourth-highest civilian honour, in 2002.

Biography

Arya was born in a small Uttar Pradesh village of Ambehta in Saharanpur district on 13 June 1931 and secured his graduate degree (BE) in civil engineering and master's degree (ME) in Structural engineering (1954) from University of Roorkee (present-day Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee). Joining the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in 1959, he secured a doctoral degree in 1961. He started his career as a member of faculty at the University of Roorkee where he served for 36 years till his superannuation 1989. During his career, he rose in ranks to become a professor and the head of the department of Earthquake Engineering and finally, the Pro-vice chancellor of the university. After his retirement, he was made the Emeritus Professor of the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee. He is a former chairman of the Committee on CED 39 on Earthquake Engineering Codes of the Bureau of Indian Standards and a sitting member of the Bihar State Disaster Management Authority (BSDMA). He has been National Seismic Advisor of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) sponsored Earthquake Vulnerability Reduction Programme and headed the National Seismic Zoning Committee. Arya has published three books, Guidelines for Earthquake Resistant Non-engineered Construction, Masonry & Timber Structures Including Earthquake Resistant Design and Earthquake Disaster Reduction: Masonry Building, Design, and Construction on structural design and earthquake-resistant construction techniques. He is also the founder of Anand Swaroop Arya Saraswati Vidya Mandir, Roorkee school. In this school, he wants the students to gain knowledge of Indian culture and sacraments. He has also co-authored Design of Steel Structures along with J. L. Ajmani and Response of Arches Under Earthquake Excitation with S. K. Thakkar.

Awards and honours Arya is an elected Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE) and the Institution of Engineers (India). The Government of India included him in the 2002 Republic Day honours list for the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian award. The National Institute of Disaster Management, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Home Affairs, awarded him the Disaster Mitigation Award in 2006.