Pioneer of break-through technologies
After attaining his M.Sc., Mukesh completed his PhD in Physics from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. After working at IITD for five years, he migrated to Australia in 1989 to join The University of Western Australia Perth.
In 1994, an opportunity arose at a high technology start-up research company committed to develop and commercialise its medical device. Thus it was in 2000 that Mukesh completed M.Eng.Sc. in Micro-electronic Engineering and a Grad. Dip. Business in Management in 2001. The same year, he joined Nidek Japan on a senior executive position and in 2003, was appointed Chief Operating Officer and Executive Director of a UK listed Biotech company.
In his own words, Mukesh’s passion “is to develop and produce something in a highly ethical way which can be beneficial to the wider community and make clients happy. I am highly driven by new ideas and technologies.”
This passion is what led him to acquire CV Laser Pty Ltd Australia, a Biotech company pioneering the development of patented solid state ablation laser for Laser Vision Correction field.
Myopia is one of the common eye disorders in the world. The prevalence of Myopia is about 30-40 percent in Europe and the United States, and up to 80 percent or higher in the Asian population, especially China. With an aging world population, the number of patients needing vision correction of all kinds will grow exponentially over the coming years, with laser-based procedures becoming further established as the best tools for the job. It has been predicted that by 2050, half of the world population will be myopic. Lasers currently used in Laser Vision Correction (LVC) are mainly excimer lasers, which suffer from many disadvantages and high running cost. To overcome the issues associated with the excimer lasers, Mukesh’s company has developed a unique solid-state laser for correcting the vision.
“With the total investment of nearly Aus$ 70 million, the company has developed and tested a technology that does not need to remove fluids from the eye during surgery. The cornea keeps getting oxygen during the surgery which is not possible with the excimer lasers being used now. The aim of our company is not only to make surgeries affordable to the world but also to make the technology commercially advantageous, clinically superior and scientifically better. After testing in 24 countries and 48 locations worldwide, I plan to commercialise this technology,” says Dr Jain who is also the company’s Chairman and CEO. To benefit his own homeland people, he is working to raise funds to set up a manufacturing facility in India.
Some of Dr Jain’s strengths that helped him in his success are innovative thinking, courage, honesty and integrity. According to him, “there were lots of variables and sometimes my decisions did not give me the outcome I wanted, and that was the time for me to be positive, patient, and adapt to the situation.”
Mukesh has written seven book chapters, two books, around 80 research papers, and delivered more than 400 lectures worldwide. He has been a member and leader of various community organizations, including a position as President of an Indian organisation which represented 44 different Indian associations and 55,000 West Australian Indians at state and federal levels. In 2019, he received the prestigious ISWA Lakhwara Award in recognition of his community work. Dr Jain has also been invited for a business dinner with both the Australian and the Indian Prime Ministers in Melbourne. Lastly, he has been selected in The Top 100 Australian Professional 2021 AU by The Top 100 Magazine USA.
Speaking about how he manages to be a perfect family man in addition to being a thorough professional, Mukesh says, “It is a challenge to balance the personal-professional when one is involved in the development of unique technologies and travelling internationally nearly half of the year. However with the support of my family, this balance has been achieved. I spent 30 days a year travelling with my family allowing immersion 24 hours a day. This is the best way to know your children who grow so fast. I learnt to cook and share the kitchen work with my wife equally. I also make it a point to engage my family in my ideas which gives them a sense of pride in our family’s achievements.”
Dr Mukesh Jain’s journey began in an idyllic town of Uttar Pradesh. Born in Delhi, he was raised by his uncle in UP, where he completed his education. His uncle, a teacher, instilled high moral values in Mukesh which saw him navigating the business world ethically and honestly in the years to come.
