Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri

Dr Raychaudhuri was born in a Baidya family coming from Barisal, (now in Bangladesh), on 14 September 1923, to Surabala and Sureshchandra Raychaudhuri. He was just a child when the family migrated to Kolkata. He had his early education in Tirthapati Institution and later completed matriculation from Hindu School, Kolkata. In a documentary film made just before his death in 2005, AKR reveals that he was extremely passionate about mathematics right from his schooldays and solving problems would give him immense pleasure. May be the fact that his father was a mathematics teacher in a school also inspired him. At the same time, as his father was not so 'successful' so to say, he was discouraged to take up mathematics, his first choice, as honours subject in college.[6]

He earned B.Sc. from the Presidency College in 1942 and M.Sc. in 1944 from Rajabazar Science College campus of Calcutta University and he joined Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS) in 1945 as a research scholar. In 1952, he took a research job with the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), but to his frustration was required to work on the properties of metals rather than general relativity. Despite these adverse pressures, he was able to derive and publish the equation which is now named for him a few years later.

Some years later, having learned that his 1955 paper was highly regarded by notable physicists, such as Pascual Jordan, Raychaudhuri was sufficiently emboldened to submit a doctoral dissertation, and received his Doctor of Science degree at the University of Calcutta (with one of the examiners, Prof John Archibald Wheeler recording special appreciation of the work done) in 1959.

In 1961, Raychaudhuri joined the faculty of his alma mater, Presidency College then affiliated with the University of Calcutta, and remained there until his superannuation. He became a well-known scientific figure in the 1970s, and was the subject of a short documentary film completed shortly before his death.[7]

• He was elected member of the International Committee on General Relativity and Gravitation for the period 1974–83.
• During 1980–82, he was President of the Indian Association of General Relativity and Gravitation[8]
• He was elected Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences in 1982.[9]
• UGC Emeritus Fellow from 1986 to 1988.
• He was elected Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy in 1987.[10]
• Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences.[11]
• Honorary Fellow of the Astrophysical Society of India[10]
• Awarded Professor A.C. Banerji Memorial Lecture Award (1989) by National Academy of Sciences.[12]
• Honorary Fellow of Inter-University Centre of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune.[10]
• He was Indian National Science Academy Senior Scientist (1988–91).
• He was conferred Vainu Bappu Memorial Award (1991) by Indian National Science Academy.[13]
• Honoris causa from Burdwan University, Kalyani University and Vidyasagar University.[8]
• Honorary Visiting Professor, Jadavpur University, Kolkata.

• Dadhich, Naresh (2005), "Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri (1923–2005)" (PDF), Current Science, 89: 569–570
• Narlikar, J. V. (January 2006), "Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri" (PDF), Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy: 169, retrieved 4 July 2013
• Sen, Parongama (April 2008), "The Legacy of Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri", Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy: 309–309
• Interview with Professor Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri (2003), Part 1 & Part 2
• http://www.insaindia.res.in/BM/BM30_0608.pdf