Radhanath Sikdar

Radhanath Sikdar (Bangla: রাধানাথ শিকদার) (1813–1870) was a Bengali Indian mathematician who calculated the height of Peak XV in the Himalaya and discovered it to be the tallest mountain above sea level. Peak XV was later named Mount Everest.

Sikdar worked for the Surveyor General of India, a division of the British Raj in India at that time. He joined the Great Trigonometric Survey in 1840 and was educated at the Hare School, and Hindu College (now called Presidency College) in Calcutta, India. In 1854, he started the journal "Masik Patrika", for the education and empowerment of women.

Some Indians, including the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, are of the opinion that Mount Everest should be renamed after Sikdar.

The Department of Posts, India, launched a postal stamp on June 27, 2004, commemorating the establishment of the Great Trigonometric Survey in Chennai, India on April 10, 1802. The stamps feature Radhanath Sikdar and Nain Singh, two significant contributors to society. The Great Arc refers to the systematic exploration and recording of the entire topography of the Indian subcontinent which was spear-headed by the Great Trigonometric Survey.

External links

* [http://www.hindu-school.com/ Hindu School, Kolkata - Web Site]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3193576.stm The man who 'discovered' Everest] , BBC Online.