Gerbert Aleksandrovich Efremov (Russian: ??????? ????????????? ???????, born 15 March 1933) is a Russian design engineer and Professor of Technical Sciences. The recipient of state awards from the former Soviet Union and elsewhere, including the Padma Bhushan from India, he co-founded the Indo-Russian joint venture BrahMos.He played a leading role in the design and construction of several sensitive military missile systems and space stations, and his identity and role in these projects was treated as a state secret for several years.