Indian Statistical Institute

2026-04-26T12:55:58Z

86.173.0.167:

{{Short description|Research Institution in Kolkata, India}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2022}}
{{Infobox university
| name = Indian Statistical Institute
| image = Indianstatisticalinstitutelogo.svg
| image_upright = 0.7
| motto = {{lang|sa|bhinneṣvaikyasya darśanam}}
| mottoeng = [[Unity in diversity]]
| top_free_label = Acronym
| top_free = ISI
| type = [[Public university]]
| established = {{start date and age|17 December 1931}}
| founder = [[Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis]]
| academic_affiliations = {{hlist|[[Association of Indian Universities|AIU]] | [[Institute of National Importance|INI]]}}
| budget = {{INRConvert|349.39|c|1|lk=on}} {{small|(2025{{ndash}}26)}}<ref>{{Cite web |date=1 Feb 2025 |title=DEMAND NO. 96, Demands for Grants, 2025-2026, MINISTRY OF STATISTICS AND PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION |url=https://www.indiabudget.gov.in/doc/eb/sbe96.pdf |access-date=1 Feb 2025 |website=IndiaBudget.gov.in |pages=5 |publication-place=[[New Delhi]]}}</ref>
| chairman = [[Koppillil Radhakrishnan]]
| president = [[Sankar Kumar Pal]]
| director = Amartya Kumar Dutta<ref>{{Cite news |last=Chowdhury |first=Subhankar |date=1 April 2026 |title=ISI, Calcutta, appoints mathematics professor as full-term director amid Bill row |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/kolkata/isi-calcutta-appoints-mathematics-professor-as-full-term-director-amid-bill-row-prnt/cid/2154086 |url-status=live |access-date=1 April 2026 |work=[[The Telegraph (India)]] 01.04.26, 07:16 AM |location=[[Kolkata]]}}</ref>
| faculty = 244 {{small|(2025)}}<ref name=nirf_stud>{{cite web |title=NIRF 2026 |url=https://www.isical.ac.in/isical_web/files/quicklinks/ISI_NIRF_2026.pdf |publisher=Indian Statistical Institute}}</ref>
| students = 1,513 {{small|(2025)}}<ref name=nirf_stud/>
| undergrad = 406 {{small|(2025)}}<ref name=nirf_stud/>
| postgrad = 835 {{small|(2025)}}<ref name=nirf_stud/>
| doctoral = 272 {{small|(2025)}}<ref name=nirf_stud/>
| city = [[Kolkata]]
| state = [[West Bengal]]
| country = India
| coor = {{coord|22|38|55.25|N|88|18|39.5|E|region:IN-WB_type:edu|display=title, inline}}
| campus = [[Metropolis]]
| free_label = Other campuses
| free = {{hlist | [[Chennai]] | [[Delhi]] | [[Bengaluru]] | [[Tezpur]] | [[Hyderabad]] | [[Pune]] | [[Giridih]]| [[Mumbai]]}}
| free_label2 = Journal
| free2 = [[Sankhya (journal)|The Indian Journal of Statistics]]
| colors = {{color box|#000080}} Navy Blue
| website = {{Official URL}}
| logo = Indian Statistical Institute Watermark logo.svg
}}

The '''Indian Statistical Institute''' ('''ISI''') is a [[public university|public]] [[research university]] headquartered in [[Kolkata]], India with centers in [[Chennai]], [[Bengaluru]], [[New Delhi]] and [[Tezpur]]. It was declared an [[Institute of National Importance]] by the [[Government of India]] under the Indian Statistical Institute Act, 1959.<ref name="unsd">{{cite web
|url = http://unstats.un.org/unsd/dnss/docViewer.aspx?docID=417
|title = UNSD Document – The Indian Statistical Institute Act 1959
|publisher = United Nations Statistics Division
|access-date = 14 November 2012
}}</ref> Established in 1931, it functions under the [[Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation]] of the [[Government of India]].<ref name="mospi">{{cite web |title=About Ministry |url=http://mospi.nic.in/Mospi_New/site/inner.aspx?status=2&menu_id=5 |access-date=19 November 2012 |publisher=[[Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (India)|Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation]] of the [[Government of India]]}}</ref>

Primary activities of ISI are research and training in statistics, development of theoretical statistics and its applications in various natural and social sciences. Key areas of research at ISI are [[statistics]], [[mathematics]], [[theoretical computer science]], [[information science]] and [[mathematical economics]].

Apart from the degree courses, ISI offers a few diploma and certificate courses, special diploma courses for international students via ISEC, and special courses in collaboration with [[Central Statistics Office (India)|CSO]] for training probationary officers of [[Indian Statistical Service]] (ISS).<ref name="isiprospectus" />

== History ==
ISI's origin can be traced back to the Statistical Laboratory in [[Presidency College, Kolkata]], set up by [[Mahalanobis]], who worked in the Physics Department of the college in the 1920s. During 1913–1915, he did his [[Tripos]] in Mathematics and Physics at the [[University of Cambridge]],<ref name=hist1013>{{harvnb|Ghosh|Maiti|Bera|2010|p=1013}}</ref> where he came across ''[[Biometrika]]'', a journal of statistics founded by [[Karl Pearson]].<ref name=hist1019>{{harvnb|Ghosh|Maiti|Bera|2010|p=1019}}</ref> Since 1915, he taught physics at Presidency College,<ref name=hist1013/> but his interest in statistics grew under the guidance of [[polymath]] [[Brajendranath Seal]].<ref name=hist1019/> Many colleagues of Mahalanobis took an interest in statistics and the group grew in the Statistical Laboratory. Considering the extensive application of statistics in solving various problems in real life such as analyzing multivariate [[Anthropometry|anthropometric]] data, applying [[Sampling (statistics)|sample surveys]] as a method of data collection, analyzing [[Meteorology|meteorological]] data, estimating crop yield etc., this group, particularly, Mahalanobis and his younger colleagues [[Subhendu Sekhar Bose|S. S. Bose]] and [[Harish Chandra Sinha|H. C. Sinha]] felt the necessity of forming a specialized institute to facilitate research and learning of statistics.<ref name=evoln22>{{harvnb|Ghosh|Maiti|Rao|Sinha|1999|p=22}}</ref>

On 17 December 1931, Mahalonobis held a meeting with Pramatha Nath Banerji (Minto Professor of Economics), Nikhil Ranjan Sen (Khaira Professor of Applied Mathematics) and Sir [[Rajendra Nath Mookerjee]].<ref name=evoln22/><ref name=obit>{{cite book | first = C. R | last = Rao | author-link = Calyampudi Radhakrishna Rao | year = 1973 | title = Prasantha Chandra Mahalanobis. 1893–1972 | publisher = Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society| volume = 19 | pages=454–492}}</ref><ref name=bio>{{cite book | last = Rudra | first = A | year = 1996 | title = ''Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis: A Biography'' | publisher = Oxford University Press}}</ref> This meeting led to the establishment of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), which was formally registered on 28 April 1932, as a non-profit distributing learned society under the Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860.<ref name=obit/><ref name=bio/> Later, the institute was registered under the West Bengal Societies Registration Act XXVI of 1961, amended in 1964.<ref name=hist>{{cite web|url=http://www.isical.ac.in/history.php|title=History of ISI|publisher=Indian Statistical Institute|access-date=22 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120805200815/http://www.isical.ac.in/history.php|archive-date=5 August 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> Mukherjee accepted the role of the president of ISI and held this position until his death in 1936.<ref name=hist/> In 1953,<ref name=hist1020>{{harvnb|Ghosh|Maiti|Bera|2010|p=1020}}</ref> ISI was relocated to a property owned by Professor Mahalanobis, named "Amrapali", in [[Baranagar]], which is now a municipality at the northern outskirts of Kolkata.

In 1931, Mahalanobis was the only person working at ISI, and he managed it with an annual expenditure of Rs. 250. It gradually grew with the pioneering work of a group of his colleagues including S. S. Bose, [[Samarendra Kumar Mitra]] (Head of the Computing Machines and Electronics Laboratory and designer of India's first computer), [[J. M. Sengupta]], [[Raj Chandra Bose]], [[Samarendra Nath Roy]], [[K. R. Nair]], [[R. R. Bahadur]], [[Gopinath Kallianpur]], [[D. B. Lahiri]], and [[Anil Kumar Gain]]. [[Pitamber Pant]], who had received training in statistics at the institute, went on to become a secretary to the first prime minister of India, [[Jawaharlal Nehru]], and was a great source of help and support to the institute.<ref name=obit/>

The institute started a training section in 1938. In due course, many of the early workers left the ISI for careers in the United States or for positions in the public and private sectors in India. By the 1940s, the ISI was internationally known and was taken as a model when the first institute of statistics was set up in the United States by Gertrude Cox{{spaced ndash}}perhaps the only time an institute in a developing country was used as a model in a developed country.<ref name="cox">{{cite journal |author=Ghosh, JK |year=1994 |title=Mahalanobis and the Art and Science of Statistics: The Early Days |journal=[[Indian Journal of History of Science]] |volume=29 |issue=1 |page=90}}
</ref>

As asked by the government of India, in 1950, ISI designed and planned a comprehensive socio–economic national sample survey covering rural India. The organisation named National Sample Survey (NSS) was founded in 1950 for conducting this survey.<ref name=evoln1718>{{harvnb|Ghosh|Maiti|Rao|Sinha|1999|pp=17–18}}</ref> The field work was performed by the Directorate of NSS, functioning under the [[Ministry of Finance (India)|Ministry of Finance]], whereas the other tasks such as planning of the survey, training of field workers, review, data processing and tabulation were executed by ISI.<ref name=evoln1718/> In 1961, the Directorate of NSS started functioning under the [[Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (India)#Department of Statistics|Department of Statistics]] of government of India, and later in 1971, the design and analysis wing of NSS was shifted from ISI to the Department of Statistics forming the [[National Sample Survey Organisation]] (NSSO).<ref name=evoln1718/>

[[J. B. S. Haldane]] joined the ISI as a research professor from August 1957, and stayed on until February 1961, when he had a falling out with ISI Director P.C. Mahalanobis over Haldane's going on a much-publicized hunger strike to protest the United States pressuring U.S. National Science Fair winners [[Gary Botting]] and Susan Brown from attending an ISI banquet to which many prominent Indian scientists had been invited.<ref>"Haldane on Fast: Insult by USIS Alleged," ''Times of India'', 19 January 1961; "Protest Fast by Haldane: USIS’s Anti-Indian Activities," ''Times of India'', 18 January 1961; "Situation was Misunderstood, Scholars Explain," ''Times of India'', 20 January 1961; "USIS Explanation does not satisfy Haldane: Protest fast continues," ''Times of India'', 18 January 1960; "USIS Claim Rejected by Haldane: Protest Fast to Continue," ''Times of India'', 18 January 1961; "Haldane Not Satisfied with USIS Apology: Fast to Continue," Free Press Journal, 18 January 1961; "Haldane Goes on Fast in Protest Against U.S. Attitude," ''Times of India'', 18 January 1961; "Haldane to continue fast: USIS explanation unsatisfactory," ''Times of India'', 19 January 1961; "Local boy in hunger strike row," ''Toronto Star'', 20 January 1961; "Haldane, Still on Fast, Loses Weight: U.S.I.S. Act Termed 'Discourteous'," ''Indian Express'', 20 January 1961; "Haldane Slightly Tired on Third Day of Fast," ''Times of India'', 21 January 1961; "Haldane Fasts for Fourth Consecutive Day," ''Globe and Mail'', 22 January 1961</ref> Haldane helped the ISI grow in biometrics.<ref>{{cite journal|title=On Some Aspects of the Life and Work of John Burdon Sanderson Haldane, F.R.S., in India|first=Krishna R.|last=Dronamraju|journal=Notes and Records of the Royal Society of London|volume=41| issue=2|year=1987|pages=211–237 |doi=10.1098/rsnr.1987.0006 |pmid=11622022|doi-access=free}}</ref> Haldane also played a key role in developing the structure and content of the courses offered by ISI.

Until 1959, ISI was associated with the [[University of Calcutta]]. By 'The Indian Statistical Institute Act 1959' of the Parliament of India, amended in 1995, ISI was declared an institute of national importance,<ref name=unsd/> and was authorised to hold examinations and to grant degrees and diplomas in Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Quantitative Economics, and in any other subject related to statistics as identified by the institute from time to time.<ref name=unsd/> ISI is a [[public university]], as the same act also states that ISI would be funded by the Central Government of India.<ref name=unsd/>

ISI had by the 1960s started establishing special service units in [[New Delhi]], [[Chennai]], [[Bangalore]], [[Mumbai]] and [[Hyderabad]] to provide consultancy services to business, industry and governmental public service organisations in the areas of statistical process control, operations research and industrial engineering. Additionally, Bangalore had a [[Documentation Research and Training Centre]] (DRTC). In the early 1970s, the Delhi and Bangalore units were converted to teaching centres. In 2008, ISI Chennai was upgraded to a teaching centre.<ref>{{cite news
|url = http://www.hindu.com/2008/07/27/stories/2008072758580800.htm
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080730082813/http://www.hindu.com/2008/07/27/stories/2008072758580800.htm
|url-status = dead
|archive-date = 30 July 2008
|title = Pranab Mukherjee inaugurates Chennai centre of Indian Statistical Institute
|date = 27 July 2008
|newspaper = [[The Hindu]]
|access-date = 2008-10-01
}}</ref> In 2011, ISI added a new centre in [[Tezpur]].<ref>{{cite web
|url = http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-07-24/guwahati/29809485_1_indian-statistical-institute-pranab-mukherjee-union-minister
|archive-url = https://archive.today/20130103075540/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-07-24/guwahati/29809485_1_indian-statistical-institute-pranab-mukherjee-union-minister
|url-status = dead
|archive-date = 3 January 2013
|title = New life for Look East policy with Tezpur ISI
|date = 24 July 2011
|work = [[The Times of India]]
|access-date = 2012-11-13
}}</ref>

== Campuses ==
The major objectives of the ISI are to facilitate research and training of Statistics, to indulge in development of statistical theory and in application of statistical techniques{{spaced ndash}}in the scenarios of planning at national level and in theoretical development of natural and social sciences, to participate in the process of data collection and analysis, to operate related projects in planning and improvement of efficiency of management and production.<ref name=obj>{{cite web|url=http://www.isical.ac.in/objectives.php|title=Welcome to Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata|website=isical.ac.in|access-date=17 March 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141123173808/http://www.isical.ac.in/objectives.php|archive-date=23 November 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The Sanskrit phrase भिन्नेष्वैक्यस्य दर्शणम् (Bhinneswaykyasya Darshanam), which literally means the philosophy of unity in diversity, is incorporated in the logo of the institute, and is the motto of ISI.<ref name=obj/> ISI Kolkata is the headquarter with centers at Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, New Delhi.<ref name="campuslist">{{cite web|title=Campus|url=http://www.isical.ac.in/campus.php|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141206054045/http://www.isical.ac.in/campus.php|archive-date=6 December 2014|access-date=11 November 2012|publisher=Indian Statistical Institute}}</ref> Tezpur, the 4th center of ISI was inaugurated in 2011.<ref>{{cite web|title=About our Institute|url=http://www.isine.ac.in/index.html|access-date=13 November 2012|publisher=Northeast centre at Tezpur, Indian Statistical Institute}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size: 93%"
|+Indian Statistical Institute
! scope="col" style="width:143px;" |Center
! scope="col" style="width:80px;" |City
! scope="col" style="width:105px;" |State
! scope="col" style="width:30px;" |Founded
! scope="col" style="width:130px;" |Type
!Notes
|-
|ISI Kolkata
|[[Kolkata]]
|[[West Bengal]]
|1931
|HQ
|
|-
|ISI Chennai
|[[Chennai]]
|[[Tamil Nadu]]
|1960
|Centre
|
|-
|ISI Bangalore
|[[Bengaluru]]
|[[Karnataka]]
|1966
|Centre
|Started as unit in 1954
|-
|ISI Hyderabad
|[[Hyderabad]]
|[[Telangana]]
|1974
|Centre
|The second year of the MSQMS course is conducted here.
|-
|ISI Delhi
|[[New Delhi]]
|[[Delhi]]
|1974
|Centre
|
|-
|ISI Tezpur
|[[Tezpur]]
|[[Assam]]
|2011
|Centre
|-
|}

=== ISI, Kolkata ===
[[File:Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.jpg|thumb|Main Building of the Indian Statistical Institute, [[Kolkata]]]]
[[File:Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata board.jpg|thumb|300px|ISI Kolkata board on the gate 205.]]
[[File:CV Raman Hall, ISI Kolkata.jpg|thumb|300px|CV Raman Hall, ISI Kolkata.]]

ISI Kolkata has a campus consisting of six addresses at 201 through 206 [[Barrackpore Trunk Road]], [[Bonhooghly]] ([[Baranagar]]).

ISI Kolkata campus is eco-friendly, as conceived by [[Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis|Mahalanobis]]. Hollow bricks that protect from heat and noise were used with minimum use of reinforced concrete, to avoid radiation. There was no use of bitumen-basalt combination at the roads inside ISI campuses. This helps in reduction of radiation and preservation of rain-water to maintain equilibrium in ground-water level.

The Kolkata campus offers bachelor's level degree course in Statistics (B. Stat), Statistical Data Science (BSDS), master's degree course in Statistics (M.Stat), Mathematics (M.Math), Computer Science (MTech), Cryptology & Security (MTech), Quality Reliability and Operations Research (MTech) and Quantitative Economics (M.S.).<ref name="prog" /> Major divisions and units are: Statistics and Mathematics Unit (SMU), Human Genetics Unit (HGU), Physics and Applied Mathematics Unit (PAMU), Geological Studies Unit (GSU), Advanced Computation and MicroElectronics Unit (ACMU), Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Unit (CVPRU), Machine Intelligence Unit (MIU), Electronics and Communication Sciences Unit (ECSU), Applied Statistics Unit (ASU), Economic Research Unit (ERU), Linguistic Research Unit (LRU), Sociology Research Unit (SRU), Psychometry Research Unit (PRU) and Population Studies Unit (PSU).

The Kolkata campus houses the International Statistical Education Centre (ISEC), which opened in 1950. This centre provides training in statistics to sponsored students mainly from the Middle East, South and South East Asia, the Far East and the Commonwealth Countries of Africa. The centre also offers various short-term courses in statistics and related subjects.

The Center for Soft Computing Research: A National Facility, an associate institute of Indian Statistical Institute and established in Kolkata in 2005, is unique in the country. Apart from conducting basic research, it offers a 3-month course and promotes less endowed institutes by providing fellowships and research grants.

The Central Library of ISI is located at Kolkata with branches at the other facilities. The library has over 200,000 volumes of books and journals with a special emphasis on the field of statistics and related studies. The main branch also has a collection of official reports, reprints, maps, and microfilms. The library receives over a thousand new technical and scientific journals every year. The Library has databases on CD-ROM and is working on further digitization of the collection. The library has a separate collection of works on the topics of mathematics and statistics called the Eastern Regional Centre of [[National Board for Higher Mathematics|NBHM]] collection, funded by grants from the [[National Board for Higher Mathematics]]. It also looks to set up research unit in artificial intelligence<ref>{{Cite news |date=2019-02-10 |title=ISI looks to set up research unit for artificial intelligence |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/isi-looks-to-set-up-research-unit-for-artificial-intelligence/articleshow/67923636.cms |access-date=2024-10-17 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref>

=== ISI, Delhi Campus ===
<gallery>
Image:Main road of ISI Delhi.JPG|Main road inside the Institute
Image:Near main entrance of ISI Delhi.JPG|Gardens near the main entrance
Image:Part of ISI Delhi campus near A9-A14.JPG|Night view of the campus
Image:ISI Delhi canteen at night.JPG|Canteen
Image:ISI Delhi Hostel.JPG|Hostel
Image:ISI Delhi library building.JPG|Library
</gallery>
The ISI campus at New Delhi was established in 1974 and was shifted to the present campus in 1975.<ref name="isidhist">{{cite web|title=Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi Center|url=http://www.isid.ac.in|access-date=18 November 2012|publisher=Indian Statistical Institute}}</ref>

The Delhi campus offers Bachelor of Statistical Data Science (BSDS), Master of Science in Quantitative Economics (MSQE), Master of Statistics (MStat) and doctoral programs.<ref name="prog" />

=== ISI, Bangalore ===
<gallery>
Image:ISI Bangalore main building 2.JPG|Main building
Image:ISI Bangalore main hostel.JPG|Main hostel
Image:ISI Bangalore Guest House.JPG|Guest House
Image:ISI Bangalore auditorium.JPG|Auditorium
</gallery>
The Bengaluru centre of ISI started with a Statistical Quality Control and Operations Research (SQC & OR) unit in 1954.<ref name="evoln24">{{harvnb|Ghosh|Maiti|Rao|Sinha|1999|p=24}}</ref> The Documentation Research and Training Centre (DRTC) here became operational from 1962 with honorary professor [[S. R. Ranganathan]] as the head.<ref name="docencyclo">{{cite book|last=Wedeworth|first=Robert|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HSFu99FCJwQC&q=indian+statistical+institute+ranganathan&pg=PA697|title=World Encyclopedia of Library and Information Services|publisher=American Library Association|year=1993|isbn=9780838906095|edition=3|page=697|access-date=23 December 2012}}</ref> Prof. Mahalanobis planned of starting a full-fledged centre of ISI here around the mid-sixties. In 1966, the then [[Government of Karnataka]] granted ISI 30 acres of forest land full of [[eucalyptus]] trees, next to the upcoming campus of the [[Bangalore University]], located on the [[State Highway 17 (Karnataka)|Mysore Road]] on the outskirts of the city.<ref name="isibhome">{{cite web|title=Home page, Indian Statistical Institute, Bangalore Centre|url=http://www.isibang.ac.in|access-date=18 November 2012}}</ref>

However, after death of Prof. Mahalanobis in 1972, the project of establishing Bengaluru centre got temporarily shelved. The project was again revived during 1976–78. Concrete proposals were made to the [[Government of India]] to get grants for the development of the land already in possession of ISI, along with the construction of an academic block with a library and offices.<ref name="isibhome" />

In the meantime, a building was rented on Church Street, in Bengaluru downtown, and various activities of the Bengaluru centre started in September 1978. The Economic Analysis Unit (EAU) and the Statistics and Mathematics Unit were established. The SQC&OR Unit and the DRTC unit, which were functioning from other rented buildings at that time, joined this new Centre.

As construction of the administrative block at the new campus got completed, the various units moved to the new campus in May 1985.

The Bengaluru centre was formally declared as a centre of ISI in September 1996.<ref name="isibhome" />

The Systems Science and Informatics Unit (SSIU) was established in 2009<ref name="isibhome" />

The Bengaluru centre has by now became an institution for academic activities in Mathematics, Statistics, Computer Science, SQC and Operations Research, Library and Information Science, and Quantitative Economics.<ref name="isibhome" />

The Bengaluru campus offers bachelor level course Bachelor of Statistical Data Science (BSDS), Bachelor of Mathematics (B.Math), master level courses Master of Mathematics (M.Math), Master of Science (M. S.) in Library and Information Science and Master of Science (M. S.) in Quality Management Science, and doctoral programs.<ref name="prog" />

== Academics ==
[[File:Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata 2005.jpg|thumb|New Academic Building, ISI Kolkata]]
[[File:ISI Delhi main building - front (day).JPG|thumb|Main building, ISI Delhi Campus]]
[[File:ISI Bangalore main building.JPG|thumb|Main building, ISI Bangalore Campus]]
Traditionally, ISI offers fewer programs (and admits fewer students) than most other degree granting academic institutions. Following the empowerment for granting degrees in the subject of Statistics as per the ISI Act 1959, in 1960, ISI initiated bachelor level degree program Bachelor of Statistics and master level degree course Master of Statistics, and also began awarding research level degrees such as PhD and DSc.<ref name=sbrao/> Later, ISI started offering Master of Technology (MTech) courses in Computer Science and in Quality, Reliability & Operations Research (QR&OR); these courses got recognition from [[All India Council for Technical Education]] (AICTE).<ref name=sbrao/> As ISI Act of 1959 was amended by the Parliament of India in 1995, ISI was empowered to confer degrees and diplomas in subjects such as Mathematics, Quantitative Economics, Computer Science, and other subjects related to Statistics and Operations Research as determined by ISI from time to time.<ref name=sbrao/> Apart from the degree courses, ISI offers few diploma and certificate courses, special diploma courses for international students via ISEC, and special courses in collaboration with [[Central Statistical Organisation|CSO]] for training probationary officers of [[Indian Statistical Service]] (ISS).<ref name=isiprospectus>{{cite web | url = http://www.isical.ac.in/~deanweb/GENPRSP2K12.pdf | title = Prospectus, 2012–13 | publisher = Indian Statistical Institute | access-date = 1 December 2012}}</ref>

=== Research Divisions and Centers ===
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto;"
|-
! Division !! Units
|-
| Statistical Sciences ||
* Applied and Official Statistics Unit, TEZPUR
* Applied Statistics Unit, KOLKATA
* Applied Statistics Unit, CHENNAI
* Interdisciplinary Statistical Research Unit, KOLKATA
* Sampling and Official Statistics Unit, KOLKATA
* Statistical Sciences Unit, DELHI
|-
| Biological Sciences ||
* Agricultural and Ecological Research Unit, KOLKATA
* Agricultural and Ecological Research Unit, GIRIDIH
* Biological Anthropology Unit, KOLKATA
* Human Genetics Unit, KOLKATA
|-
| Computer and Communication Sciences ||
* Advanced Computing and Microelectronics Unit, KOLKATA
* Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Unit, KOLKATA
* Cryptology and Security Research Unit, KOLKATA
* Computer Science Unit, CHENNAI
* Electronics and Communication Sciences Unit, KOLKATA
* Machine Intelligence Unit, KOLKATA
* Systems Science and Informatics Unit, BANGALORE
|-
| Physics and Earth Sciences ||
* Geological Studies Unit, KOLKATA
* Physics and Applied Mathematics Unit, KOLKATA
* Theoretical and Applied Sciences Unit, TEZPUR
|-
| Theoretical Statistics and Mathematics ||
* Theoretical Statistics and Mathematics Unit, KOLKATA
* Theoretical Statistics and Mathematics Unit, BANGALORE
* Theoretical Statistics and Mathematics Unit, CHENNAI
* Theoretical Statistics and Mathematics Unit, DELHI
|-
| Social Sciences ||
* Documentation Research and Training Centre, BANGALORE
* Economic Research Unit, KOLKATA
* Economic Analysis Unit, BANGALORE
* Economics and Planning Unit, DELHI
* Linguistic Research Unit, KOLKATA
* Population Studies Unit, KOLKATA
* Psychology Research Unit, KOLKATA
* Sociological Research Unit, KOLKATA
* Socio-Economic Research Unit, TEZPUR
* Sociological Research Unit, GIRIDIH
|-
| Statistical Quality Control and Operations Research ||
* SQC & OR Unit, KOLKATA
* SQC & OR Unit, DELHI
* SQC & OR Unit, BANGALORE
* SQC & OR Unit, CHENNAI
* SQC & OR Unit, MUMBAI
* SQC & OR Unit, PUNE
* SQC & OR Unit, HYDERABAD
|}

* R C Bose Centre for Cryptology and Security
* Center for Soft Computing Research
* Center for Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
* Technology Innovation Hub
* Centre for Research on Economics and Data Analysis

=== Degree courses ===
ISI offers three undergraduate programs, viz. Bachelor of Statistics (Honours) (B.Stat), Bachelor of Mathematics (Honours) (B. Math) and Bachelor of Statistical Data Science (Honours)<ref name="prog">{{cite web |title=Prospectus |url=https://www.isical.ac.in/~admission/Documents/IsiAdmission2024/ISI-Prospectus-2024.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240716050224/https://www.isical.ac.in/~admission/Documents/IsiAdmission2024/ISI-Prospectus-2024.pdf |archive-date=16 July 2024 |access-date= |publisher=Indian Statistical Institute}}</ref> eight graduate programs, viz. Master of Statistics (M. Stat), Master of Mathematics (M. Math), Master of Science in Quantitative Economics (MSQE), Master of Science in Library and Information Science (MSLIS), Master of Science in Quality Management Science (MSQMS), Master of Technology in Computer Science (MTech–CS), Master of Technology in Cryptology & Security (MTech-CrS) and Master of Technology in Quality, Reliability and Operations Research (MTech–QROR).<ref name=prog/>

ISI also offers four PG Diploma programs, viz. Postgraduate Diploma in Agricultural and Rural Management with Statistical Methods [PGDARSMA], Postgraduate Diploma in Statistical Methods & Analytics [PGDSMA], Post Graduate Diploma in Business Analytics [PGDBA] and PG Diploma in Applied Statistics [PGDAS].

B.Stat (Hons) and B.Math (Hons) courses are of 3 years duration, BSDS (Hons) course is of 4 years duration and the master's level courses of 2 years of duration. For all undergraduate and graduate level courses, the academic year is divided in two semesters.<ref name=isiprospectus/> Except for sponsored candidates of MTech courses, ISI students are not required to pay any tuition fees.<ref name=isiprospectus/> Conditional to performance beyond a threshold, all students and research fellows receive stipends, fellowships and contingency/book grants.<ref name=isiprospectus/> Students demonstrating outstanding performances are rewarded at the end of the semesters.<ref name=isiprospectus/> ISI campuses provide hostel accommodations with recreational facilities and limited medical facilities available free of cost.<ref name=isiprospectus/>

=== Admissions ===
Applicants of all degree courses are required to go through written admission tests and/or interviews.<ref name=isiprospectus/> ISI conducts the written tests at various examination centers across India.<ref name=isiprospectus/> Only in few cases, candidates may get called for the interview directly, viz. applicants of MTech Computer Science course having a [[Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering|GATE]] score above a threshold.<ref name=isiprospectus/> Candidates applying to doctoral research programmes who have been awarded (or qualified for) a Junior Research Fellowship by UGC / [[Council of Scientific and Industrial Research|CSIR]] / [[National Board for Higher Mathematics|NBHM]] etc. are also required to clear the ISI admission test or an equivalent separate test and interview conducted by the relevant JRF selection committee of the institute if they wish to obtain a PhD from the Indian Statistical Institute. Candidates applying to B. SDS are admitted via math percentile in [[Joint Entrance Examination – Main|JEE Main]] and/or [[Common University Entrance Test|CUET-UG]].

=== International Statistical Education Centre ===
In 1950, ISI, in collaboration with [[International Statistical Institute]], [[UNESCO]] and Government of India, had set up International Statistical Education Centre (ISEC) to impart knowledge of theoretical and applied statistics to participants from Middle East, East and South-East Asia, the Far East and Commonwealth countries of Africa.<ref name=sbrao/> The main training course offered by ISEC is meant for international students, preferably graduates with proficiency in English and Mathematics.<ref name=itec>{{cite web
|url = http://itec.mea.gov.in/specialisedcourses.html#24
|title = List of ITEC/SCAAP Empanelled Institutes
|publisher = [[Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation]] (ITEC) Programme, Technical Cooperation Division, [[Ministry of External Affairs (India)|Ministry of External Affairs]], Government of India
|access-date = 20 November 2012
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121024131838/http://www.itec.mea.gov.in/specialisedcourses.html#24
|archive-date = 24 October 2012
|url-status = dead
}}</ref> ISEC, located in Kolkata campus of ISI, functions with support from the [[Ministry of External Affairs (India)|Ministry of External Affairs]] and the [[Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (India)|Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation]] of the Government of India.<ref name=isec>{{cite web |url = http://www.isical.ac.in/~isecweb/main.html |title = Preface
|publisher = International Statistical Education |access-date = 20 November 2012}}</ref>

=== Publications ===
''[[Sankhya (journal)|Sankhya]]'', the statistical journal published by ISI, was founded in 1933, along the lines of [[Karl Pearson]]'s ''[[Biometrika]]''.<ref name=obit/> Mahalanobis was the founder editor.<ref name=sbrao>{{cite web
|url = http://pib.nic.in/feature/fe0799/f0207991.html
|title = Indian Statistical Institute – A Tradition
|author = S. B. Rao
|author-link = S. B. Rao
|publisher = [[Press Information Bureau]], Government of India
|access-date = 19 November 2012
}}</ref> Each volume of ''Sankhya'' consists of four issues; two of them are in Series A, containing articles on theoretical statistics, [[probability theory]] and [[stochastic process]]es, and the other two issues form the Series B, containing articles on applied statistics, i.e. applied probability, applied stochastic processes, [[econometrics]] and statistical computing.<ref name=sankhya>{{cite web | url = http://sankhya.isical.ac.in/index.html | title = Sankhya Home | access-date = 23 November 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130110051211/http://sankhya.isical.ac.in/index.html | archive-date = 10 January 2013 | url-status = dead }}</ref>

=== Rankings ===
According to India Education Review, no Indian university is in the world's top 200 universities, as of 2012.<ref name=ier>{{cite web
|url = http://www.indiaeducationreview.com/news/no-indian-institute-worlds-top-200-qs-rankings-2012
|title = No Indian university in world's top 200: QS Rankings 2012
|publisher = India Education Review
|date = 12 September 2012
|access-date = 18 November 2012
|url-status = dead
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121010163030/http://www.indiaeducationreview.com/news/no-indian-institute-worlds-top-200-qs-rankings-2012
|archive-date = 10 October 2012
}}</ref> The ascribed ranking of ISI is 186.<ref name=unirank.org>{{cite web
|url = http://www.topuniversities.com/institution/indian-statistical-institute
|title = Indian Statistical Institute – Top Universities
|year = 2011
|publisher = QS Top Universities
|access-date = 18 November 2012
}}</ref> The web ranking of this institute, according to uniRank.org, is 1693.<ref>{{cite web
|url = https://www.unirank.org/in/uni/indian-statistical-institute/
|title = Indian Statistical Institute – Ranking & Review
|publisher = unirank.org
|year = 2012
|access-date = 18 November 2012
}}</ref> According to the web ranking published by [[Webometrics Ranking of World Universities]], ISI currently holds the world rank of 1352.<ref name=webometrics>{{cite web
|url = http://www.webometrics.info/en/Asia/India
|title = India – Ranking Web Universities
|publisher = [[Webometrics Ranking of World Universities|Webometrics]]
|access-date = 31 July 2018
}}</ref> In the subject-wise academic world ranking of Computer Science, the Indian Statistical Institute features in 101—150 category.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.shanghairanking.com/SubjectCS2015.html|title=Academic Ranking of World Universities in Computer Science – 2015 – 2015 Top 200 Universities in Computer Science – ARWU-SUBJECT 2015|website=shanghairanking.com}}</ref> The Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata is ranked 2nd in Computer Science research by mean citation rate, p-Index, h-index among all universities in India.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.isical.ac.in/~pnc_ccsd/1320-5291-1-PB.pdf|title=Ranking of Indian Institutions Contributing to Computer Science Research, 1999-2008}}</ref> The [[National Institutional Ranking Framework|NIRF]] (National Institutional Ranking Framework) ranked it 75th overall in India in 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |title=2024 NIRF Ranking |url=https://www.nirfindia.org/nirfpdfcdn/2024/pdf/Report/IR2024_Report.pdf}}</ref>

==Student life==
=== Student Fest ===
{{main|Integration (festival)|l1 = Integration}}
Integration is the annual techno-cultural fest of the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata usually held during the first and second weekend of January each year.

Chaos is the annual techno-cultural fest of the Indian Statistical Institute, Bangalore usually held during the last weekend of March each year.

=== Placement ===
Alumni of ISI{{spaced ndash}}including recipients of PhD degree{{spaced ndash}}are employed in government and semi–government departments, industrial establishments, research institutions, in India and other countries.<ref name="isiprospectus" /> There is a placement cell in ISI Kolkata that organizes campus interviews by prospective employers in various campuses of ISI.<ref name="isiprospectus" /> Since recent past, a high percentage of ISI alumni gets absorbed into jobs in [[analytics]], banking, finance and software industry.<ref name="htanalytics">{{cite news | url = http://www.hindustantimes.com/HTEducation/GreatCareers/The-number-crunchers/Article1-477250.aspx | title = The number crunchers | last = Bano | first = Rahat | newspaper = [[The Hindustan Times]] | date = 17 November 2009 | access-date = 15 December 2012 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140417044935/http://www.hindustantimes.com/hteducation/greatcareers/the-number-crunchers/article1-477250.aspx | archive-date = 17 April 2014 }}</ref>

== Statistical Quality Control and Operations Research units ==
Since mid-forties, ISI pioneered in research and application of [[Statistical process control|Statistical Quality Control]] (SQC) in India.<ref name="evoln24" /> [[Walter A. Shewhart]], the statistician known as ''the father of SQC'', and other experts of this field visited ISI over the years.<ref name="sbrao" /> The first Statistical Quality Control and Operations Research (SQC & OR) unit of ISI was set up in Mumbai in 1953, followed by Bangalore and Kolkata units in 1954.<ref name="evoln24" /> In 1976, this unit was transformed into the SQC & OR Division,<ref name="hist1032">{{harvnb|Ghosh|Maiti|Bera|2010|p=1032}}</ref> which now operates seven units, located at various industrial centres in India{{spaced ndash}}Kolkata, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Pune, Mumbai and Vadodara.<ref name="isidivs">{{cite web|title=Division and Units|url=http://www.isical.ac.in/departments.php|access-date=26 November 2012|publisher=Indian Statistical Institute}}</ref> These units partake in technical consultancy with public and private organisations, in addition with performing research and training activities.<ref name="sbrao" /> The branch at [[Giridih]] was set up in 1931 and it has two operational units, viz. the Sociological Research Unit and the Agricultural Research Unit.<ref>{{cite news|author=Vishvendu Jaipuriar|date=30 June 2012|title=ISI Giridih a sorry statistic – Research roadblock in cradle|newspaper=[[The Telegraph (India)|The Telegraph]]|location=India|url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120630/jsp/jharkhand/story_15673895.jsp|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130203114208/http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120630/jsp/jharkhand/story_15673895.jsp|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 February 2013|access-date=26 November 2012}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size: 93%"
|+Statistical Quality Control(SQC) and Operations Research (OR) Units
! scope="col" style="width:443px;" |Units
! scope="col" style="width:80px;" |City
! scope="col" style="width:105px;" |State
! scope="col" style="width:30px;" |Founded
! scope="col" style="width:145px;" |Focus Area
!Website
!Notes
|-
|
|[[Hyderabad]]
|[[Telangana]]
|1931
|
|[http://www.isihyd.ac.in/ isihyd.ac.in/]
|
|-
|ISI Mumbai
|[[Mumbai]]
|[[Maharashtra]]
|1953
|
|i [https://www.isimumbai.co.in/ isimumbai.co.in/]
|
|-
|ISI Giridih
|[[Giridih]]
|[[Jharkhand]]
|1931
|Agricultural Research Unit
|
|
|-
|ISI Pune
|[[Pune]]
|[[Maharashtra]]
|
|
|[http://sqcpune.org/ sqcpune.org/]
|
|-
|ISI Vadodara
|[[Vadodara]]
|[[Gujarat]]
|
|
|
|
|}

== Achievements ==
Over the years, researchers of ISI made fundamental contributions in various fields of Statistics such as [[Design of Experiments]], Sample Survey, [[Multivariate statistics]] and [[Computer Science]]. Mahalanobis introduced the measure [[Mahalanobis distance]] which is used in multivariate statistics and other related fields.<ref name="hist1023">{{harvnb|Ghosh|Maiti|Bera|2010|p=1023}}</ref> [[Raj Chandra Bose]], who is known for his contributions in [[coding theory]], worked on Design of Experiments during his tenure at ISI, and was one of the three mathematicians, who disproved [[Leonard Euler|Euler]]'s conjecture on [[Graeco-Latin square|orthogonal Latin squares]].<ref name=hist1020/> [[Anil Kumar Bhattacharya]] is credited with introduction of the measures [[Bhattacharyya distance]] and [[Bhattacharyya distance#Bhattacharyya coefficient|Bhattacharya coefficient]]. Samarendra Nath Roy is known for his pioneering contributions in multivariate statistics.<ref name="mardiasnroy">{{cite web|author=Kanti V. Mardia|date=23 January 2008|title=On S.N. Roy's Legacy to Multivariate Analysis|url=http://www1.maths.leeds.ac.uk/statistics/research/reports/2007/STAT07-07.pdf|access-date=10 December 2012|publisher=Department of Statistics, [[University of Leeds]]}}</ref> Among colleagues of Mahalanobis, other notable contributors were K. R. Nair in Design of experiments, [[J. M. Sengupta|Jitendra Mohan Sengupta]] in Sample Survey, Ajit Dasgupta in Demography and Ramkrishna Mukherjea in Quantitative Sociology.<ref name=hist1020/> C. R. Rao's contributions laid the foundation of modern statistics during his association with ISI include multiple theorems known as Rao's Quadratic Entropy, Rao's F-Approximation,<ref>{{cite journal | pmc=10137715 | date=2023 | last1=Nielsen | first1=F. | title=A Simple Approximation Method for the Fisher–Rao Distance between Multivariate Normal Distributions | journal=Entropy | volume=25 | issue=4 | page=654 | doi=10.3390/e25040654 | doi-access=free | pmid=37190442 | arxiv=2302.08175 | bibcode=2023Entrp..25..654N }}</ref> Rao's Distance,<ref>{{cite journal | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25050283 | jstor=25050283 | title=Rao's Distance Measure | last1=Atkinson | first1=Colin | last2=Mitchell | first2=Ann F. S. | journal=Sankhyā: The Indian Journal of Statistics, Series A (1961-2002) | date=1981 | volume=43 | issue=3 | pages=345–365 }}</ref> [[Multivariate statistics|Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA)]], [[Score test|Rao's score test]], [[Cramér–Rao bound|Cramér–Rao inequality]] and [[Rao-Blackwell Theorem]], and introduction of [[orthogonal array]]s in Design of Experiments. [[Anil Kumar Gain]] is known for his contributions to the [[Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient]] with his colleague Sir [[Ronald Fisher]] at the [[University of Cambridge]].<ref name=hist1023/>

In 1953, India's first indigenous computer was designed by Samarendra Kumar Mitra who headed the Computing Machines and Electronics Laboratory at ISI Calcutta. The Indian Statistical Institute was also hosted the first two digital computers in South Asia; the HEC-2M from England in 1956, and the URAL from the Soviet Union in 1959. These were also among the earliest digital computers in Asia (outside Japan).<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Menon|first=Nikhil|date=2018|title='Fancy Calculating Machine': Computers and planning in independent India|journal=Modern Asian Studies|volume=52|issue=2|pages=421–457|doi=10.1017/S0026749X16000135|s2cid=148820998}}</ref>

During 1953 – 1956 distinguished scientists, like [[Ronald Fisher]], [[Norbert Wiener]] and [[Yuri Linnik]] visited ISI. [[Norbert Wiener]] collaborated with [[Gopinath Kallianpur]] on topics including [[ergodic theory]], [[prediction theory]] and generalized [[harmonic analysis]].<ref name="Norbert Wiener">{{cite web|title=Norbert Wiener and Probability Theory|url=http://www.ias.ac.in/resonance/Jan1999/pdf/Jan1999p32-34.pdf|publisher=[[Indian Academy of Sciences]]}}</ref> In 1962, during his month-long visit to ISI, Soviet mathematician [[Andrey Kolmogorov]] wrote his notable paper on [[Kolmogorov complexity]], which was published in Sankhya, 1963.<ref name="hist103132">{{harvnb|Ghosh|Maiti|Bera|2010|pp=1031–1032}}</ref> Other distinguished scientists including [[Jerzy Neyman]], [[Walter A. Shewhart]], [[W. Edwards Deming]] and [[Abraham Wald]] have visited ISI during the tenure of [[P. C. Mahalanobis]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Sarma|title=Statistics Made Simple Do It Yourself on Pc 2Nd Ed|publisher=PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd|page=3}}</ref>

=== Planning Commission ===
The [[Five-Year plans of India#Second Five-Year Plan .(1956.–.1961)|second five-year plan of India]] was a brainchild of Mahalanobis. The plan followed the [[Mahalanobis model]], an [[economic development]] model developed by Mahalanobis in 1953. The plan attempted to determine the optimal allocation of investment between productive sectors in order to maximise long-run economic growth . It used the prevalent state of art techniques of operations research and optimisation as well as the novel applications of statistical models developed at ISI. This second five-year plan shifted the focus from agriculture to industrialisation, with an objective of attaining self-reliance by economy of India. Domestic production of industrial products was encouraged in this plan, particularly in the development of the [[public sector]].<ref name="Das88">{{cite book|last=Das|first=Gurcharan|title=India Unbound From Independence to the Global Information Age|publisher=Penguin Books|year=2002|isbn=9780143063018|page=88}}</ref> The two-pronged strategy devised in this plan targeted rapid growth of the [[heavy industry]], keeping emphasis on growth of small and cottage industries.<ref>{{cite web|author=Indira Gandhi|author-link=Indira Gandhi|date=29 December 1981|title=The Indian Path of Development|url=http://www.isical.ac.in/~isiaa/ISIAA%20Golden%20Jubilee%20Volume.pdf|access-date=16 November 2012|publisher=Golden Jubilee Souvenir, ISI Alumni Association|pages=9–10}}{{dead link|date=November 2017|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>

[[Bagicha Singh Minhas|B. S. Minhas]] and [[Kirit Parikh|K. S. Parikh]], both from the Planning Unit of ISI Delhi, played key roles in the [[Planning Commission (India)|Planning Commission of the Government of India]]. Minhas, who joined the Planning Unit in 1962 and retired as a distinguished scientist in 1989, was a member of the Planning Commission during 1971–74.<ref name="planlist">{{cite web|title=List showing names of Members of Planning Commission|url=http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/history/past_memb.doc|access-date=30 November 2012|publisher=Planning Commission, Government of India|archive-date=28 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170428035957/http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/history/past_memb.doc|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="minhasobit">{{cite news|author=T. N. Srinivasan|author-link=T. N. Srinivasan|date=15 September 2005|title=B S Minhas: Down-to-earth policy analyst|newspaper=Business Standard India|url=http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/b-s-minhas-down-to-earth-policy-analyst/223642/|access-date=30 November 2012}}</ref> Parikh, who was a member of the Planning Commission during 2004–09,<ref name=planlist/> chaired Integrated Energy Policy Committee of the commission,<ref name="direc2010">{{cite web|title=Dr. Kirit S. Parikh – DIREC (2010)|url=http://www.direc2010.gov.in/pdf/kirit-s-parikh.pdf|access-date=30 November 2012|publisher=Delhi International Renewable Energy Conference (DIREC) 2010|archive-date=27 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180127225707/http://www.direc2010.gov.in/pdf/kirit-s-parikh.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> was a member of the [[Economic Advisory Council]] of India during the tenure of five prime ministers,<ref name=direc2010/> also played a role in the [[Department of Atomic Energy (India)|Department of Atomic Energy]] establishment, and was a key advisor to the government on energy issues.<ref name=direc2010/>

=== Computer science ===
In India, the first analog computer was designed by [[Samarendra Kumar Mitra]] and built by [[Ashish Kumar Maity]] at ISI in 1953, for use in computation of numerical solutions of simultaneous linear equations using a modified version of Gauss-Siedel iteration.<ref name="csi">{{cite web|author=Devaprasanna Sinha|date=August 2012|title=Glimpsing through Early Days of Computers in Kolkata|url=http://www.csi-india.org/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=015efaaf-c6d4-4734-8b84-9240b906daa6&groupId=10616|access-date=17 November 2012|publisher=[[Computer Society of India]]|pages=5–6}}{{dead link|date=November 2017|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> In 1955, the first digital computer of India was procured by ISI.<ref name=csi/> This machine was of a model named HEC-2M, manufactured by [[British Tabulating Machine Company]] (BTM).<ref name=csi/> As per the agreement with BTM, ISI had to take care of the installation work and maintenance of it,<ref name=csi/> before it became operational in 1956.<ref name="dq">{{cite web|date=30 December 2006|title=50 Years of IT: Disrupting Moments: 1956–1965: The Beginning|url=http://archive.dqindia.com/content/50yrsIT/DisruptingMoments/2006/106123005.asp|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130121151604/http://archive.dqindia.com/content/50yrsIT/DisruptingMoments/2006/106123005.asp|archive-date=21 January 2013|access-date=18 November 2012|publisher=[[Dataquest]] magazine, India}}</ref> Though this HEC-2M machine and the URAL-1 machine, which was bought in 1959 from [[Russia]],<ref name=csi/> were operational until 1963,<ref name=csi/> ISI began development of the first second-generation digital computer of India in collaboration with [[Jadavpur University]] (JU).<ref name=csi/> This joint collaboration led by the head of the Computing Machines and Electronics Laboratory at ISI, Samarendra Kumar Mitra, produced the transistor-driven machine ISIJU-1, which became operational in 1964.<ref name=dq/> The first annual convention of the [[Computer Society of India]] (CSI) was hosted by ISI in 1965.<ref name=csi/><ref name=dq/> The Computer and Communication Sciences division of ISI produced many eminent scientists such as Samarendra Kumar Mitra (its original founder), [[Dwijesh Dutta Majumdar]], [[Sankar Kumar Pal]], [[Bidyut Baran Chaudhuri]], Nikhil R. Pal, Bhabani P. Sinha, Bhargab B. Bhattacharya, Malay K. Kundu, Sushmita Mitra, Bhabatosh Chanda, [[Chivukula Anjaneya Murthy|C. A. Murthy]], [[Sanghamitra Bandyopadhyay]] and many. ISI is regarded as one of the top most centres for research in computer science in India.<ref>{{cite web|author1=Anup Kumar Das|author2=Aruna Karanjai|year=2002|title=Institutional Distribution in Computer Science Research in India|url=http://eprints.rclis.org/bitstream/10760/7211/1/Das_Karanjai_ALIS_02.pdf|access-date=2012-11-13|publisher=Annals of Library and Information Studies 49,1|pages=23–27}}{{dead link|date=November 2017|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>

The Knowledge-based Computer Systems project (KBCS), funded jointly by [[Department of Electronics and Information Technology]] (DoE), Government of India and [[UNDP]] since 1986, has a nodal centre at ISI Kolkata.<ref name="fas">{{cite web|author=Krithi Ramamritham|date=8 November 1995|title=Computer Science Research in India|url=http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/india/agency/krithi2.html|access-date=16 November 2012|publisher=Federation of American Scientists (www.fas.org)}}</ref> This unit is responsible for research in the area of image processing, pattern recognition, computer vision and artificial intelligence.<ref>{{cite book|author=Utpal Kumar Bannerjee|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QCYEJXzmbpQC&q=KBCS+UNDP+DOE+ISI&pg=PA248|title=Computer Education in India: Past, Present and Future|date=1 January 1996|publisher=Concept Publishing Company|isbn=9788170226093|page=248|access-date=16 November 2012}}</ref>

=== Social sciences ===
[[Ratan Lal Brahmachary|R. L. Brahmachari]], known for his work in many fields like agricultural sciences, zoology, botany, biometrics, did much of his work at ISI.

The institute has done some pioneering work and research in anthropology and palaeontology. A trove of dinosaur fossils was discovered by a team led by ISI researchers in the early 1960s. The scattered fossils were recovered and the partial skeleton was reconstructed at ISI's Baranagar campus. It turned out to be a unique species and was named the ''[[Barapasaurus]] tagorei'', after Rabindranath Tagore and was mounted in the Geology Museum at the Kolkata Campus of the institute.

The Linguistic Research Unit (LRU) of ISI was involved in the study of speech pathology. [[Đorđe Kostić]] of this laboratory was a distinguished scientist. He invented a unique hearing aid, called SAFA (Selective Auditory Frequency Amplifier) that simulates frequency-range according to the need of the particular hearing impaired person.<ref name="kostic">{{cite web|title=Đorđe Kostić|url=http://www.serbian-corpus.edu.rs/ns/history/djk2/djko.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140928220142/http://www.serbian-corpus.edu.rs/ns/history/djk2/djko.htm|archive-date=28 September 2014|access-date=30 November 2012|publisher=Institute for Experimental Phonetics and Speech Pathology, Belgrade}}</ref>

== Administration ==
ISI functions as an autonomous institute under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI), which is the nodal ministry of the Government of India that ensures the functioning of ISI in accordance with The Indian Statistical Institute Act 1959.<ref name="mospi" /> ISI Council is the highest policy–making body of the institute.<ref name="isicouncil">{{cite web|title=Office Bearers|url=http://www.isical.ac.in/officebearers.php|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111207032145/http://www.isical.ac.in/officebearers.php|archive-date=7 December 2011|access-date=15 December 2012|publisher=Indian Statistical Institute}}</ref> Members of this council include the president of ISI, the chairman of ISI, representatives of the Government of India including one representative of [[Reserve Bank of India|RBI]], scientists not employed in ISI including one representative from the [[Planning Commission (India)|Planning Commission of India]] and one representative of the [[University Grants Commission (India)|UGC]], representatives of scientific and non-scientific workers of ISI, and representative from academic staff of ISI, including the director of ISI and the Dean of Studies of ISI.<ref name="isicouncil" /> [[Bimal Kumar Roy]] was the director until 10 June 2015; in a move unique in the history of the institute, he was removed from his post via a notice posted on the web site of the Ministry of Statistics and Planning. He was sacked over financial and administrative irregularities<ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-06-12 |title=ISI director sacked over 'financial, administrative irregularities' |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/kolkata/isi-director-sacked-over-financial-administrative-irregularities/ |access-date=2024-10-17 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref><ref name="mospi-10-06-2015">{{cite web|title=Termination Letter|url=http://mospi.nic.in/mospi_new/upload/appoint_Dir_isi_10june15.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150614135525/http://mospi.nic.in/mospi_new/upload/appoint_Dir_isi_10june15.pdf|archive-date=14 June 2015|access-date=10 June 2015|publisher=Ministry of Statistics and Planning}}</ref> The list is the following:<ref>{{cite web|title=Presidents, chairmen and directors of the ISI|url=https://www.isical.ac.in/~repro/history/public/?page=chairman|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200703060032/https://www.isical.ac.in/~repro/history/public/?page=chairman|archive-date=3 July 2020}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="width:100%"
! scope="col" style="width:25%" | President
! scope="col" style="width:8%" | Term
! scope="col" style="width:25%" | Chairman
! scope="col" style="width:8%" | Term
! scope="col" style="width:25%" | Director
! scope="col" style="width:8%" | Term
|-
| [[Rajendra Nath Mookerjee]]|| 1932-35 || [[B. Rama Rao]] || 1954 || [[Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis|P. C. Mahalanobis]] || 1931–1972
|-
| [[Edward Charles Benthall|E. C. Benthall]]|| 1936-37 || [[D. N. Mitra]] || 1955-63 || [[C. R. Rao]] || 1972–1976
|-
| [[James Reid-Kay]]|| 1938 || [[K. P. S. Menon]] || 1964-70 || [[Gopinath Kallianpur]] || 1976–1978
|-
| [[Badridas Goenka]]|| 1939-41 || [[S. C. Roy]] || 1971 || [[B. P. Adhikari]] || 1979–1983
|-
| [[Nalini Ranjan Sarkar]] || 1942-43 || Atma Ram || 1972 || [[Ashok Maitra]] || 1984–1987
|-
| [[C. D. Deshmukh]] || 1944-63 || [[P. N. Haksar]] || 1973-97 || [[Jayanta Kumar Ghosh|J. K. Ghosh]] || 1987–1992
|-
| [[Y. B. Chavan]] || 1964-66 || [[Bimal Jalan]] || 1998-2001 || [[B. L. S. Prakasa Rao]] || 1992–1995
|-
| [[Satyendra Nath Bose]] || 1967-74 || [[N. R. Madhava Menon]] || 2002-03 || [[S. B. Rao]] || 1995–2000
|-
| [[Subimal Dutt]] || 1976-89 || [[Pranab Mukherjee]] || 2004-12 || [[Kalyan Bidhan Sinha|K. B. Sinha]] || 2000–2005
|-
| [[M. G. K. Menon]] || 1990-2012 || [[A. K. Antony]] || 2012-May 2014 || [[Sankar Kumar Pal|S. K. Pal]] || 2005–2010
|-
| [[C. Rangarajan]] || 2012 || [[Arun Shourie]] || 2014-2016 || [[Bimal Kumar Roy]] || 2010–2015
|-
| [[Bibek Debroy]]<ref name="council">{{cite web|title=Council Members 2018-2020|url=https://www.isical.ac.in/sites/default/files/councilmember_2018_2020%20-AFTER%2030.04.2019.pdf|website=Indian Statistical Institute}}</ref> || 2018-till date || [[Goverdhan Mehta]]<ref name="council" /> || 2018-till date || [[Sanghamitra Bandyopadhyay]] ||2015 – 2025
|}

== Visits by Heads of states ==
[[USSR|Soviet]] premier [[Nikita Khrushchev]] visited ISI during his visit to [[India]] in 1955.<ref name="Norbert Wiener" /> [[Zhou Enlai]], the [[Premier of the People's Republic of China|Prime Minister of China]], and [[Ho Chi Minh]], the [[President of Vietnam]], during their visit to [[India]] specifically visited ISI respectively on 9 September 1956 and 13 February 1958.<ref>{{cite web|last=Naithani|first=Pankaj|title=Remembering Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis|url=http://www.mainstreamweekly.net/article1533.html|access-date=25 July 2009|publisher=The Mainstream weekly}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
{{Refbegin}}
*{{cite journal
|last1 = Ghosh
|first1 = J. K.
|author-link1 = Jayanta Kumar Ghosh
|last2 = Maiti
|first2 = P.
|last3 = Rao
|first3 = T.J.
|last4 = Sinha
|first4 = B.K.
|title = Evolution of Statistics in India
|journal = International Statistical Review
|date = April 1999
|volume = 67
|issue = 1
|pages = 13–34
|url = http://library.isical.ac.in/jspui/bitstream/10263/3935/1/Evolution%20of%20Statistics%20in%20India.pdf
|doi = 10.1111/j.1751-5823.1999.tb00378.x
|s2cid = 122512401
|url-status = dead
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130810073937/http://library.isical.ac.in/jspui/bitstream/10263/3935/1/Evolution%20of%20Statistics%20in%20India.pdf
|archive-date = 10 August 2013
}}
*{{cite book
|editor1-last=Dasgupta
|editor1-first=Uma
|title=Science and Modern India: An Institutional History, C. 1784–1947
|publisher=Pearson Education India
|year=2010
|isbn=978-8131728185
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lrx3wLz4itkC&q=Uma+Dasgupta
|chapter=Indian Statistical Institute: Numbers and Beyond, 1931–47 (chapter 33)
|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lrx3wLz4itkC&q=Indian+Statistical+Institute+Numbers+and+Beyond&pg=PA1013
|last1=Ghosh
|first1=Jayanta
|author-link1=Jayanta Kumar Ghosh
|last2=Maiti
|first2=Pulakesh
|last3=Bera
|first3=Anil
|author-link3=Anil K. Bera
|access-date=9 December 2012
}}
{{Refend}}

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