RADHANATH SIKDAR’S BIRTH BICENTENARY CELEBRATION

RADHANATH SIKDAR’S BIRTH BICENTENARY CELEBRATION

ORGANISED BY:

FORUM OF SURVEY ENGINEERS & TECHNOLOGISTS, WEST BENGAL

OBJECTIVES OF FOSET, WB

Forum of Survey Engineers & Technologists, West Bengal (FOSET, WB) an organization of Surveyors and survey technologists employed in the different departments of the Government of West Bengal and other civic bodies was initiated on 24^th August 2010 and registered under the societies act on the 15^th of September 2011 with the major objectives being:

(i) To put an end to the age old practice of deprivation subjected to the entire cadre of surveyors.

(ii) To put an end to the practice of non-utilization of the Departmental surveyors.

(iii) To put an end to the practice of avoiding Intermediate Survey & Post Survey even in the Government Departments.

(iv) To eradicate the pay disparity with supervising cadres of the State government and to increase scopes of departmental promotion. 

(v) To fight for the up gradation of survey education & to cater for modernized survey education.

(vi) To provide a platform for development in academics of Survey including Geo-Technical Science, GIS, Remote Sensing and such related subjects.

(vii) To urge Central Organizations like Survey of India to absorb candidates with a graduate background in Survey only, rather than any Science graduates.

FOSET, WB also has the objective of upholding and preserving the history of the Great Trigonometric Survey of India and the doyens associated. It would be noteworthy to mention that the legacy of deprivation of the surveyors since the days of Babu Radhanath Sikdar, who measured the height of Mt. Everest, is still continuing. Some glaring instances of the deprivation need mention.  

Radhanath Sikdar joined the Great Trigonometric Survey in 1831 December as a "computor”. Compiling data about Peak XV from six different observations, he eventually came to the conclusion that the Peak XV was the tallest in the world. The norm, strictly followed was that while naming a peak, the local name should be preferred. But in this case, Col. Waugh who was the Director after retirement of Everest made an exception. He paid a tribute to his ex-boss by proposing that the peak be named after Everest. Everest agreed, and Sikdar was conveniently forgotten.

In 1851 a voluminous Survey Manual by Capt. H. L. Thullier and Capt. F. Smyth was published by the Survey Department. The preface to the Manual clearly and specifically mentioned that the more technical and mathematical chapters of the Manual were written by Babu Radhanath Sikdar. The Manual proved to be immensely useful to surveyors. However, the third edition, published in 1875 (i.e., after Sikdar’s death) did not contain that preface, so that Sikdar’s memorable contribution was de-recognized which was referred to as 'robbery of the dead'.

To pay the dues to the doyen of mathematics and spherical trigonometry, Babu Radhanath Sikdar, FOSET, WB has taken the decision to commemorate Radhanath Sikdar’s Birth Bicentenary during 2013 and 2014.

PROPOSAL FOR CELEBRATION OF RADHANATH SIKDAR’S BIRTH BICENTENARY AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE SURVEY TRADE AND SURVEYORS

The following proposals were unanimously accepted by the members of the Executive Committee of FOSET, WB to observe the Bicentenary of Radhanath Sikdar.

1)    FOSET, WB intends to propose for the creation of an Honorary Professor Chair in the subject of “Classical Mathematical Science” in Presidency College in the name of Radhanath Sikdar, as well the creation of another Honorary Professor Chair at Asiatic Society in the “Atmospheric & Oceanic Science Committee” in the name of Radhanath Sikdar to commemorate his membership in this Society in the year of 1853. Radhanath's mathematical expertise won him in 1864 a Corresponding Membership of the Society of Natural History, Bavaria - a rare honour in those days to be awarded to a foreigner by the highly conservative German Philosophical Society.

2)     FOSET, WB intends to propose to the concerned authorities to rename “WOOD STREET”, on which lies the Survey of India Campus at Kolkata as “RADHANATH SIKDAR SARANI” to keep his memory alive.

3)     FOSET, WB intends to install a statue of Radhanath Sikdar at Survey of India Campus at Wood Street, and to donate a portrait of Radhanath to the Asiatic Society for display there.

4)     FOSET, WB intends to produce a documentary film on Radhanath Sikdar to commemorate the achievements of the forgotten mathematician and surveyor who has remained mostly unknown even to his countrymen.

5)     FOSET, WB intends to restore Radhanath’s dilapidated house at Gondalpara, Chandannagar.

6)     FOSET, WB has planned to initiate the task of familiarization of modern survey instruments among Pass-out Surveyors & Employed Surveyors.

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