Mahalanobis

              

When a great hero was born Zero get discovered and numbers overwhelmed. It appeared to be chaotic, then the science of statistics steps in. It brings around the patterns hidden behind these numbers, persons, and events.

We use the idea of statistics in our daily life without being aware of it. Statistics is used in the vast area from the government to big business, in sampling, research, pattern recognition, genetics voice analysis, cryptography, electronics, economics, health, agriculture, Software reliability, manufacturing and quality control, weather forecasting, finance, sales, social market.

The man who made it happen in India is Prashant Chandra Mahalanobis.

This great Indian scientist and applied statistician were born on 29 June 1893 in Kolkata, West Bengal, India.

The two most important contributions by Mahalanobis for the nation were:

1.  Setting up the Indian Statistical Institute. (ISI)
2.  Founding of the journal Sankhya. (meaning: number)

Contribution to statistics are:

1. Mahalanobis Distance: It is used in cluster analysis and classification techniques.
2.  Large-scale sample survey: For this, he designed a method called Fractile graphical analysis.

Honors:

Fellow of Indian Academy of Sciences(1935), Fellow of Indian National Science Academy(1935), Officer of the order of the British Empire(Civil Division 1942), Weldon Memorial Prize(1994), Fellow of the Royal Society(1945), President of Indian Science Congress(1950), Fellow of Econometric Society(1951), Fellow of the Pakistan Statistical Association(1952), Honorary Fellow of Royal Statistical Society(1954), Sir Deviprashad Sarvadhikari Gold Medal(1957), Foreign member of the Academy of Sciences of USSR(1958), Honorary Fellow of King's College, Cambridge(1959), Fellow of American Statistical Association(1961), Durgaprashad Khaitan Gold Medal(1961)

• Padma Vibhushan(1968)

• Srinivasa Ramanujan Gold Medal(1968)

The professor, PC Mahalanobis was the father of statistical movement of India. The 'Mahalanobis Era' in statistic ended on 28th June 1972. Indeed he will always be remembered as he is one of the world leaders in statistics who had the uncanny sense of figures and could detect errors easily. 

To remember him the government of India celebrates his birthday as National statistical Day.