| Ray, Prafulla Chandra
(1861-1944) scientist, educationist, nationalist visionary. Born on
2 August 1861 in a landed family of Raruli, a village in a part of the
district of Jessore that is now in Khulna, Prafulla Chandra was the third
son of Harish Chandra Ray, a petty zamindar known for his liberal views.
After his childhood education in his village school, Prafulla Chandra
moved to the Hare School (Calcutta) in 1870, but could not continue his
education there for more than two years due to ill health. After a lapse
of two years he started again at the Albert School from where he passed
the Entrance Examination in 1878. He joined the Metropolitan Institution
(now renamed Vidyasagar College), from where he passed the First Arts
Examination in 1880. In 1882 he joined the University of Edinburgh where
he obtained the BSc degree in 1885 and DSc degree in Chemistry in 1887.
Prafulla Chandra then entered the Bengal Education Service and joined
the presidency
college, Calcutta, as a temporary Assistant Professor of Chemistry
in 1889.
In 1902, Prafulla Chandra published his famed History of Hindu
Chemistry, which came out in a revised and enlarged form in
1904. The immense popularity of the book led him to stretch it
to a second volume, published in 1909. As a scientist Prafulla
Chandra was particularly esteemed among his peers for his seminal
contributions to mercurous nitrites preparation. In 1912, the
University of Durham conferred on him the Honorary Degree of DSc
in recognition of his contributions to scientific investigations.
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Prafulla Chandra Ray |
The British Government first honoured him with the imperial
title of CIE (Companion of the Indian Empire); and then with the Knighthood
in 1919. In 1916 Prafulla Chandra left the Presidency College and joined
the newly founded Calcutta University College of Science as a Professor
of Chemistry. In 1920, he was elected General President of the Indian
Science Congress. The Universities of Calcutta, Benaras and Dhaka successively
conferred on him the Honorary DSc Degrees in recognition of his contributions
to the development of science. In 1932, the first volume of his autobiography,
Life and Experiences of a Bengali Chemist, was published, and a
second volume in 1935. In 1936, at the age of 75, he retired from Calcutta
University as Palit Professor of Chemistry but continued as an Emeritus
Professor until his death on 16 June 1944.
Beyond the realm of science Prafulla Chandra Ray took
great interest in social work and cultural activities. He was an exponent
of the cultivation of arts and sciences through one's mother tongue. He
himself wrote a lot in Bangla and encouraged others to write in the mother
tongue. Many schools and colleges received financial and other help from
him. As a nationalist he also wanted that the Bengalis should come up
in the world of enterprise. He himself set an example by establishing
a chemical firm called the Bengal Chemical and Pharmaceutical Works (1901),
which was one of the pioneering industrial concerns launched and managed
by Bengalis.
[Syed Ali Imam] |
