President Donald Trump July 2 announced the recipients of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, with numerous Indian Americans among those selected, the White House said in a press release.

The PECASE is the highest honor bestowed by the United States government to outstanding scientists and engineers who are beginning their independent research careers and who show exceptional promise for leadership in science and technology.

Among the honorees, which were named by state and research institution, include in Massachusetts, Barna Saha of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, nominated by the NSF; and Yogesh Surendranath of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, nominated by the Department of Defense.

Others include California-based Sanjay Basu of Stanford University, nominated by the Department of Health and Human Services; Suveen Mathaudhu of U.C. Riverside, nominated by the National Science Foundation; Piya Pal of U.C. San Diego by the Department of Defense; and Padmini Rangamani of U.C. San Diego by the Department of Defense.

From Georgia, Dhruv Batra of Georgia Tech, nominated by the Department of Defense; and Subbian Panayampalli of the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, nominated by the Department of Health and Human Services, were named.

Vivek Agarwal of the Idaho National Laboratory, nominated by the Department of Energy, was named from Idaho.

In Illinois, Gaurav Bahl of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, nominated by the Department of Defense; and Prashant Jain of the University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign, nominated by the NSF, were named to the PECASE list.

Anish Thomas of the National Institutes of Health, nominated by the Department of Health and Human Services; and Varun Verma of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Physical Measurement Laboratory, nominated by the Department of Commerce, were named out of Maryland.

In Massachusetts, Barna Saha of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, nominated by the NSF; and Yogesh Surendranath of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, nominated by the Department of Defense, were named.

Bharat Jalan of the University of Minnesota at Twin Cities, nominated by the Department of Defense, was named out of the Midwest state.

From New Jersey, Amir Ahmadi of Princeton University, nominated by the NSF; and Arvind Narayanan of Princeton University, nominated by the NSF, were named.

Sandeep Mallipattu of Stony Brook School of Medicine, nominated by the Department of Health and Human Services; Priya Rajasethupathy of Rockefeller University, nominated by the Department of Health and Human Services; and Neville Sanjana of New York Genome Center, nominated by the Department of Health and Human Services, were named to the PECASE list.

Both awardees named to the cohort out of Rhode Island were Indian Americans. They were Sohini Ramachandran of Brown University, nominated by the Department of Health and Human Services; and Anita Shukla of Brown University, nominated by the Department of Defense.

Meenakshi Madhur of Vanderbilt University, nominated by the Department of Health and Human Services, was named in Tennessee.

And out of Virginia, Nitya Kallivayalil of the University of Virginia was named, being nominated by the National Science Foundation.

Established in 1996, the PECASE acknowledges the contributions scientists and engineers have made to the advancement of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education and to community service as demonstrated by scientific leadership, public education, and community outreach.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy coordinates the PECASE with participating departments and agencies.