PINAKI MAJUMDAR
Jamshedpur, May 12: Tata Steel today remembered geologist Pramatha Nath Bose on his 167th birth- anniversary.
Senior company officials and union representatives paid homage to Bose at his memorial opposite the Armoury Ground at Northern Town Area in Bistupur at 8.30 am.
Bose had played an instrumental role in setting up Tata Steel in Jamshedpur.
The bust was decked up with flowers. Those who attended the function paid rich floral tributes. Notably, no functions were organised during the last two years due to the pandemic.
The chief guest at today’s function was DB Sundara Ramam, vice-president, of Raw Materials, Tata Steel while the guest of honour was Sanjeev Kumar Choudhary, president, of Tata Workers’ Union.
A commemorative message issued by Tata Steel remembering the contributions of PN Bose said, among those visionaries was the geologist Pramatha Nath Bose whose most outstanding achievement was the discovery of iron ore deposits in the hills of Gorumahisani in the state of Mayurbhanj in the modern-day Odisha.
After the discovery, Bose wrote a historic letter to J N Tata on February 24, 1904, which led to the setting up of the Tata Iron and Steel Company (TISCO) at Sakchi. The group, led by Jamsetji’s sons, set out to prove his findings, and Bose’s prediction was proved right. Odisha continues to be the largest producer of iron ore in the country.
It is well known that it was he who could see the great potentialities of iron ore in and around the place where Jamsetji Tata founded his Iron and Steel Works.
Bose was born on May 12, 1855, in Gaipur, some 60 km northeast of Kolkata. After his education in Krishnagar College and later at St. Xavier’s College, Bose went on to graduate in science from London University before returning in 1880 to become the first Indian graded officer in the Geological Survey of India (GSI).
While initially, he focused on the Siwalik fossils, what he did at GSI over the next two decades included the discovery of petroleum in Assam, and several mineral and coal deposits across India and modern Myanmar. He even helped in setting up the first soap factory in India!
India’s first President Rajendra Prasad eulogised Bose: and later recall Bose’s contribution: “He could even at that age foresee great potentialities for industrial expansion by the development of geological resources, particularly of coal, iron and steel.”
P N Bose remains an icon of inspiration and pride. In India, he will always be remembered in the annals of history as the geologist who paved the way for steel for the nation.
To make India self-sufficient in terms of natural resources aided with the development of scientific and technical skills, P N Bose truly pioneered ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’, as far as the industrialisation of India is concerned.
