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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashutosh Mukherjee | 1/3 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashutosh_Mukherjee | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T17:43:14.610596+00:00 | kb-cron |
Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee (anglicised, originally Asutosh Mukhopadhyay, also anglicised to Asutosh Mookerjee) (29 June 1864 – 25 May 1924) was an Indian mathematician, lawyer, jurist, judge, educator, and institution builder. A unique figure in Indian history, he made major contributions in the fields of mathematics, law, and higher education. A holder of Masters degrees in both Mathematics and Natural Sciences, he was one of the first Indians to publish research papers in British journals. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh at the age of 22, and was a Fellow or Member of various learned bodies in Europe and the United States. Mukherjee passed his law examination and built a successful law practice. He received an LL.D. and gave lectures on law at the university. He became a judge of the Calcutta High Court, and acted as a Chief Justice for couple of years. He established the University College of Law at the university. "It was his ambition that Calcutta should become a centre of learning and research," noted his obituary in Nature (1924). As the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calcutta (1906–1914 and 1921–23), Mukherjee transformed an examination conducting, degree granting body into one of Asia's top research universities. He started new departments for post graduate study in various disciplines, raised funds to create new chaired professorships and build facilities, hired outstanding professors in diverse fields of study (including Asia's first Nobel Prize winning scientist Sir C.V. Raman), and supported graduated students in their efforts to pursue advanced research. Mukherjee was the president of the inaugural session of the Indian Science Congress (1914). He played a major role in the foundation of the Bengal Technical Institute (1906), which later became Jadavpur University. He founded the Calcutta Mathematical Society (1908). The Ashutosh College was also founded under his stewardship in 1916. He is often called "Banglar Bagh" ('The Bengal Tiger') for his high self-esteem, courage and academic integrity. According to historian D. R. Bhandarkar, the epithet 'Vikramaditya' is also ascribed to Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee.
== Early life and family == Ashutosh Mukherjee was born on 29 June 1864 at Bowbazar, Calcutta (today's Kolkata) in a Hindu Brahmin family. His mother was Jagattarini Devi and father Dr. Ganga Prasad Mukhopadhyaya. His ancestral town was Jirat in Hooghly District, West Bengal. Among his ancestors were several distinguished Sanskrit scholars, including Pandit Ramchandra Tarkalankar, a professor of nyaya who had been appointed by Warren Hastings to that chair at the Sanskrit College in Kolkata. Mukherjee's grandfather Biswanath Mukhopadhyaya. His came to Jirat from another village named Digsui, situated also in the Hooghly District and settled down there. Father Ganga Prasad Mukherjee was born in Jirat on 16 December 1836. He came to Kolkata to study in Medical College with the help of the wealthy people of Jirat. Later he settled down in Bhawanipore area of Kolkata. He became a well-known doctor and founded the South Sub Urban School in Calcutta. Ganga Prasad took particular care of his son's education. Brought up in an atmosphere of science and literature at home, young Ashutosh went to the Sisu Vidayalaya at Chakraberia, Bhowanipore and showed an early aptitude for mathematics. When he was young, he met Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar who was a major influence on him. He was a student of Madhusudan Das. In November 1879, at the age of fifteen, Mukherjee passed the entrance exam of the Calcutta University in which he stood second and received a first grade scholarship. In the year 1880, he took admission at the Presidency College (now Presidency University) in Kolkata where he met P.C. Ray, Mahendranath Roy and Narendranath Dutta, who would later become famous as Swami Vivekananda. In 1883, Mukherjee topped the BA examination at Calcutta University to complete a postgraduate degree in mathematics. He was awarded the prestigious Premchand Roychand Fellowship in Mathematics and Physics, Pure and Applied. In 1883 Surendranath Banerjee wrote an article in the newspaper Bengalee against the orders of the Calcutta High Court and he was arrested in contempt of court. Protests and hartals erupted across Bengal and other cities, led by a group of students headed by Mukherjee at Calcutta high court. In 1884, he won the Harishchandra Prize for academic achievements, and completed an M.A. with first-class honours in mathematics in 1885. In 1885, he married Jogamaya Devi Bhattacharyya. In 1886, he was awarded a second Masters in Natural Sciences, making him the first student to be awarded a dual degree from Calcutta University. Next, Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee pursued a career in law. He received a Bachelor of Law degree in 1888 and enrolled as a vakil of the Calcutta High Court. In 1897, he received a Doctor of Law (LL.D.) and became the Tagore Professor of Law at the University of Calcutta. In 1904, he was appointed a puisne judge of the High Court, and subsequently served as its acting Chief Justice for a couple of years.