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P. C. Mahalanobis
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P. C. Mahalanobis

Statistician who founded the Indian Statistical Institute

29 June 1893 – 28 June 1972 India Verified by our editors
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Lived
78 yrs
1893 – 1972
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Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis was a scientist and statistician who founded the Indian Statistical Institute, devised the Mahalanobis distance and set up India’s system of large-scale sample surveys. He also designed the industrial strategy of the Second Five-Year Plan. He died in 1972.

Biography

Physicist turned statistician

Mahalanobis studied physics at Presidency College, Calcutta, and at King’s College, Cambridge. On the voyage back to India he became fascinated by the journal Biometrika and taught himself statistics, applying it to anthropology, meteorology and floods in Bengal and Odisha.

The Indian Statistical Institute

In 1931 he founded the Indian Statistical Institute in a room at Presidency College; it grew into a leading centre of statistics with campuses across India. In 1936 he introduced the Mahalanobis distance, a measure still used in data science and machine learning.

Sample surveys

He pioneered large-scale sample surveys, showing that carefully chosen samples could estimate crop yields across Bengal accurately and cheaply. In 1950 he set up the National Sample Survey, and he helped found the Central Statistical Organisation.

Planning and legacy

As a member of the Planning Commission, he designed the model behind the Second Five-Year Plan (1956), which stressed heavy industry. He was a close friend of Rabindranath Tagore. He received the Padma Vibhushan in 1968 and died on 28 June 1972; his birthday, 29 June, is celebrated as India’s Statistics Day.

Timeline

  1. 1893

    Born in Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India (now Kolkata)

  2. 1931

    Founds the Indian Statistical Institute

  3. 1936

    Introduces the Mahalanobis distance

  4. 1945

    Fellow of the Royal Society

  5. 1950

    Sets up the National Sample Survey

  6. 1956

    Second Five-Year Plan

  7. 1968

    Padma Vibhushan

  8. 1972

    Dies in Calcutta

  9. 1972

    Died, aged 78

Awards and honours

  • Fellow of the Royal Society

    1945

  • Padma Vibhushan

    1968

Did you know?

  1. 1

    He taught himself statistics from a journal he read on a ship.

  2. 2

    India celebrates Statistics Day on his birthday.

  3. 3

    He was a close friend of Rabindranath Tagore.

Connections

Related people

Frequently asked

Who is P. C. Mahalanobis?

Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis was a scientist and statistician who founded the Indian Statistical Institute, devised the Mahalanobis distance and set up India’s system of large-scale sample surveys. He also designed the industrial strategy of the Second Five-Year Plan. He died in 1972.

When did P. C. Mahalanobis die?

P. C. Mahalanobis died on 28 June 1972 at the age of 78.

Where is P. C. Mahalanobis from?

P. C. Mahalanobis was born in Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India (now Kolkata).

What is P. C. Mahalanobis known for?

P. C. Mahalanobis is best known for Mahalanobis distance; Indian Statistical Institute; National Sample Survey; the Second Five-Year Plan.

What awards has P. C. Mahalanobis received?

Notable honours include Fellow of the Royal Society (1945), Padma Vibhushan (1968).

References

  1. Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis — Wikipedia. Wikipedia. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
  2. Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis — Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
  3. Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis — Hindi Wikipedia. Wikipedia (Hindi). Retrieved 27 October 2026.
  4. Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis (Q561478) — structured data. Wikidata. Retrieved 27 October 2026.

Includes material from the Wikipedia article “Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. That text is available under the same licence. Learn more

External links

Wikipedia
Filed under Indian Statistical InstitutePlanning CommissionStatistics PhysicistStatistician

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“P. C. Mahalanobis.” TrackFame, last updated 28 October 2026. https://trackfame.com/person/p-c-mahalanobis

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