Satyanarayana Gangaram Pitroda (or Dr. Sam Pitroda) is a famous inventor, entrepreneur and policy maker. He is currently the Chairman of India's National Knowledge Commission and Advisor to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Innovation and Public Information Infrastructure. He was also a consultant to the United Nations.

His biography, "Sam Pitroda: A Biography", was published in 1992. It remained on The Economic Times bestseller list for five weeks. His distinguished services to the telecom sector are widely covered in media and television across the globe.

He was born on May 4, 1942 in Titlagarh (Orissa), India to his parents from Gujarat. He migrated to Orissa after the birth of his son. They were deeply influenced by Gandhian philosophy and sent their children to Gujarat to learn Gandhi's philosophy.

Pitroda did his schooling in Vallabh Vidyanagar, Gujarat and completed his Masters in Physics and Electronics at Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara. Later he went to America and received his Master's degree in Electrical Engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) in Chicago. In 2010, the University of Illinois at Chicago awarded him an honorary degree.

Pitroda is credited with starting the Indian telecom revolution. He has spent more than 40 years in the world of telecommunications, helping to bridge the global communication gap. His career was divided between Europe, Asia and North America. His strategy of using telecommunication in nation building was widely praised.

He was involved in the development of digital switching technology in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s. These systems continued to be based on global networks integrating voice and data. CompuCards, his computer-themed card game, he created in 1983. On the advice of Mrs. Indira Gandhi, he returned to India in 1984 and established the Center for Development of Telematics.

In the 1980s, he was appointed as an advisor to Rajiv Gandhi. His efforts helped transform India's information technology infrastructure and telecommunications. He was responsible for setting up public call offices in all parts of India.

Pitroda, who devoted most of his life to the development of telecom, served as the first chairman of the Telecom Commission of India. He was also responsible for overseeing the National Technical Missions in India related to drinking water, literacy, immunization, oilseeds and dairying. He was instrumental in changing India's development policies and philosophy.

He worked in Europe in the 1990s and worked with the ITU to develop telecom infrastructure in developing countries to bridge the global gap in telecommunications. Pitroda is an entrepreneur who owns and operates several companies in America and Europe. He holds 75 patents worldwide. In 1975, he invented the electronic diary and introduced microprocessors to telephone switches.

Founded and currently CEO of C-SAM, Inc. OneWallet is a patented mobile transaction technology he created. It has offices in London and Tokyo as well as offshore development centers in Mumbai and Vadodara, India.

In 1993, Pitroda founded the Foundation for Revitalization of Local Health Traditions (FRLHT) near Bangalore, India. It is the maximum utilization of India's diverse and rich traditional medicinal knowledge. Pitroda is also a member of the IIT International Board of Overseers.

Pitroda was recently awarded the World Telecommunication and Information Society Award by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Pitroda is the first Indian to receive this prestigious award. It is in recognition of his commitment to information, communication and technology as a tool to improve human life and promote economic and social empowerment.

Sambalpur University honored Mr. Pitroda in 2010. In 2009, Rajiv Gandhi received the "Global Indian Award". In 2009, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contribution to science and engineering. For his contribution to India's telecom and IT revolution, he was awarded the Scotch Challenger Lifetime Achievement Award. He was also awarded the DataQuest IT Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002.

Pitroda was honored by the All India Vishwakarma Mahasabha for his services to the Vishwakarma community. In 2008, he was selected as the World's Leading Leader by the World Network of Young Leaders and Entrepreneurs WNYLE.

Pitroda is currently the chief advisor to the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal. Mamata's state development document 'Resurgent Bengal'. It is planning to start a barbarism in a Left-ruled state. Pitroda will help Banerjee's team to create a Knowledge City in the state capital, Kolkata.