Sankar Kumar Pal

Sankar Kumar Pal (born 1950) is a computer scientist and the President (& former Director) of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), Kolkata. He is also a National Science Chair, Government of India. Prof. Pal is a computer scientist with an international reputation on pattern recognition, image processing, fuzzy neural network, rough fuzzy hybridization, soft computing, granular mining, and machine intelligence. He pioneered the development of fuzzy set theory, and neuro-fuzzy and rough-fuzzy computing for uncertainty modelling with demonstration in pattern recognition, image processing, machine learning, knowledge-based systems and data mining. Prof. Pal is widely recognized across the world for his pioneering and extraordinary contributions in Machine Intelligence, Fuzzy Logic, Soft Computing and Pattern Recognition. This has made India a leader in these disciplines in international scenario. He founded the Machine Intelligence Unit in 1993, and the Center for Soft Computing Research: A National Facility (the first of its kind in the country) in 2004, both at the ISI. In the process he has created many renowned scientists out of his doctoral students.

He is a recipient of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize in 1990. He was awarded Padma Shri in Science and Engineering on 5 April 2013 by the President of India Pranab Mukherjee in recognition of his work in machine intelligence.

Education and career
SK Pal studied at the University of Calcutta for his BSc in physics (1969), and BTech (1972) and MTech (1974) in radio physics and electronics. He received a PhD in radio physics and electronics from the Rajabazar Science College campus of University of Calcutta in 1979 as a student of Indian Statistical Institute, and another PhD in electrical engineering along with Diploma of the Imperial College from Imperial College, University of London, in 1982. After completing PhD at Imperial College, London as a Commonwealth Scholar, he did post-doctoral research there during 1982 to 1983 as a UK Medical Research Council Fellow. Subsequently, he worked at the University of California, Berkeley and University of Maryland, College Park from 1986 to 1987 as a Fulbright Fellow; NASA Johnson Space Center from 1990 to 1992 and in 1994 as a US NAS-NRC Senior Research Associate; and US Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C. in 2004 as a visiting scientist. Besides, he had been a Distinguished Visitor of IEEE Computer Society (USA) for Asia-Pacific Region since 1997, and held several visiting positions in Australia, Poland, Italy, France, New Zealand, Japan and Hong Kong universities. He established sustained research collaborations with many foreign universities, particularly in Europe such as the Warsaw University, Poland (1997-2017), Naples University, Italy (2004-2020) and INSEAD, France (2001-2013) under joint agreements between Nations or Institutes, and Hong Kong Poly University, Hong Kong, China (1999-2008).

Pal joined the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), Kolkata, as a CSIR Senior Research Fellow in 1975, and eventually entered into full professor position in 1987. He then became a distinguished scientist in 1998, the director in 2005, and the president in 2022. He was the first computer scientist as well as someone outside statistics and mathematics to become the director of ISI in its 75-year history. He is also the first ex-employee of ISI being elected to hold the honorable chair of President of ISI since its inception in 1931.

His areas of research interests include pattern recognition, machine intelligence, image processing, data mining, granular computing, fuzzy sets and uncertainty analysis, artificial neural networks, genetic algorithms, rough sets, and soft computing with applications such as in bioinformatics, video analytics, online social network analysis, and cognitive mind development. He has pioneered hybrid intelligent systems like neuro fuzzy and rough fuzzy hybridization. The generic families of such hybrid intelligent models (networks) developed (in early 1990s) not only provide enhanced learning, understandability, knowledge mining and uncertainty management in decision-making, but also can explain the network decision in natural language. Rough-fuzzy hybridization further enables mining linguistic, categorical and relational data. The neural models, capable of accepting linguistic input, constitute the basic modules that laid the foundation of neuro-fuzzy computing and later, soft computing. Augmentation of the original definition of soft computing by introducing rough sets as its fifth constituent is another contribution of his research. This enhances greatly the computational intelligence of soft computing methodologies. All these have led to significant synergistic technological developments in modern AI (including explainable AI) and data science. His image processing research in 1970s is perhaps the first investigation (other pioneer being A. Rosenfeld, UMD, College Park, USA) that brings out the root relation between the abstract concept of fuzzy sets and image processing tasks & the associated uncertainty involved. Subsequently, definitions for image entropy (mid 1980s) and generalized rough-fuzzy entropy (mid 2000s) based on logarithmic and exponential gain functions are provided for modelling the uncertainty. These measures are unique. This fundamental work laid the foundation of fuzzy (soft) image processing and computer vision research. His other highly cited original research include: i) Unsupervised dimensionality reduction algorithm (in early 2000s) producing maximally independent features, that results in fast and superior performance and is suitable for Big data, ii) Granular computing concept and models particularly when samples are indiscernible; here computations are performed using information granules rather than individual samples, thereby providing gain in both computation and performance in mining tasks, and iii) Z*-number, developed in mid 2010s, for machine subjectivity representation in machine-mind development by encapsulating the objective and subjective time, context, and affect components in natural language of thoughts, speech, and texts.

Prof. Pal is widely recognized across the world for his pioneering and exemplary contributions in Machine Intelligence, Fuzzy Logic, Soft Computing and Pattern Recognition. This has made India a big leader in these disciplines in international scenario.

He is a co-author of twenty one books, eighteen conference proceedings, about five hundred research publications, and two US patents. He has served/serving as editor in most of the well-known scientific journals in computer science and engineering (~25 international journals). He visited more than forty countries as a Keynote/ Invited speaker or academic visitor. He has co-authored with researchers from 48 foreign and 16 Indian institutes.

According to Google Scholar, Pal's work had been cited more than 37,000 times with h-index of 85. One of his articles based on the work done in India is cited 5800+ times; which is noteworthy.

SK Pal is the scientist who introduced the Soft Computing concept and research in India.

For his outstanding contributions, the Department of Science and Technology, GoI, established under his leadership the Center for Soft Computing Research (CSCR), first in Asia, in 2004 at ISI, Kolkata. Subsequently, CSCR is declared by the Governing Body of ISI as an Associate Institute of ISI in 2010. Apart from acting as a strong base for nationwide research and training with linkage to industries and premier institutes in India and abroad, CSCR had special provision for funding and mentoring less endowed institutions, including those in North-East regions of India.

Machine Intelligence Unit (MIU) founded by him in 1993 at ISI, Kolkata has now turned out to be an internationally recognized leading research school producing many science leaders. These demonstrate his visionary leadership.

It is during Pal's directorship of ISI (2005-2010), when the birthday of Prof. P.C. Mahalanobis, the founder of ISI, was declared by the Prime Minister of India on 24 Dec 2006, as the “National Statistics Day” to be celebrated every year over the country. Further, establishing the ISI-Chennai Center, approving the ISI-North Eastern Center, and replacing UGC-pay scales by higher IISc-pay scales for faculty at ISI, are some other major achievements under his visionary leadership as Director of ISI.

Prof. Pal is the founder president of the Indian National Academy of Engineering, Kolkata Chapter. Biennial International Conference on Pattern Recognition and Machine Intelligence (PReMI), started in 2005, is his another brainchild. This facilitates regular interaction among Indian researchers with international experts in AI, ML and related areas for advancing science & technology.

All these activities, including foundation of MIU & CSCR and visionary leadership as ISI-Director, have long lasting educational and societal impact.

SK Pal has graduated officially 22 PhD students, so far, in India and abroad. It is not the number, but the quality which was his only concern. Many of his PhDs are now internationally known leading scientists with recognitions like Fellows of IEEE, TWAS, IFSA, INSA, INAE, J.C. Bose National Fellow, Padma Shri, S.S. Bhatnagar awardee, P.C. Mahalanobis National Award of the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation (MOSPI), Govt. of India, Editor-in-Chief of IEEE Transaction, Vice-President of Multinational IT Company, and Directors of premier national Institutes.

Donations to Alma-maters and Instituting Medals/Fellowships to benefit the Science & Society: Besides his academic and research contributions, Pal has instituted the following awards in his alma-maters, starting from school education. These are aimed at nurturing the talent and scientific spirit as well as to help the students from less priviledged community, which in turn benefits the society: i) Two Merit-cum-Means Scholarships in 2013 for supporting two economically backward students of Classes IX and X every year in his alma-mater, Ariadaha Kalachand High School, Kolkata 700057, India. This facilitates them to complete their secondary school education. ii) A Gold Medal Award at Ramakrishna Mission Vivekanda Centenary College, Rahara, Kolkata 700118, India in 2024 for the Best Graduating BSc(Hons) Student across all science disciplines (currently seven) to nurture bright science-minds for higher studies. iii) A Gold Medal Award at Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), Kolkata 700108 in 2003 for the Best M.Tech.(Computer Science) Dissertation to encourage and promote research excellence. iv) Besides, he has been donating frequently to the Student Assistant Fund of Imperial College of Science & Technology, London, UK, his another Alma-mater, to help students who face hardship to complete their study

Patriotism: NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, USA, desired to offer him a "Green card" in 1991 requesting to stay permanently in the USA when he was working there as a National Research Council (US National Academy of Sciences) Guest Investigator (Resident Research Associate). But he turned down the offer and returned back to India to serve his country for ever.

Family: Sunity Kumar Pal (father), Parul Bala Pal (mother), Amita (wife), Dhiman & Anshuman (sons). He is the second child of his parents with brother: Samir, and sisters: Anuradha, Anurupa and Sutapa. He came from a very ordinary family with low income and many members. He thereforte knows the kind of hurdles and hardship one has to face to complete the higher studies and reach the position where he is today.

Message: "It is not the only height at which one is flying, but from how much lower altitude one had taken off to reach that height also should be of concern while evaluating one's performance."

Awards and recognition
Prof. Pal is the recipient of numerous awards including: - 1990 Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize (the most coveted award in science in India) - 2013 Padma Shri award (the fourth highest civilian award in India) - 1999 G.D. Birla Award for scientific research (given to only one among all branches of science – basic, applied, medical) - 1998 Om Prakash Bhasin Award from the Prime Minister of India - 2000 Al Khwarizmi International Award from the President of Iran - 1993 Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship - 1993 Hari Om Ashram Prerit Vikram Sarabhai Research Award - 1993 NASA Tech Briefs Award (USA) - 1994 IEEE Trans. Neural Networks Outstanding Paper Award (USA) - 1995 NASA Patent Application Award (USA) - 1997 IETE Ram Lal Wadhwa Gold Medal - 2000-2001 FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry) Award - 2001 Syed Husain Zaheer Medal of Indian National Science Academy - 2005-06 P.C. Mahalanobis Birth Centenary Gold Medal of Indian Science Congress Association from Prime Minister of India for Lifetime Achievement - 2006 Distinguished Alumnus of the Institute of Radio Physics and Electronics, University of Calcutta - 2007 J.C. Bose Fellowship of the Government of India - 2008 Vigyan Ratna Award from Science & Culture Organization - 2010 P.C. Mahalanobis Memorial Medal from Indian Science News Association - 2013 Chair Professor of Indian National Academy of Engineering - 2015 S.N. Mitra Award of Indian National Academy of Engineering - 2017 Jawaharlal Nehru Birth Centenary Lecture Award of Indian National Science Academy - 2018 Distinguished Professorial Chair of Indian National Science Academy - 2020 National Science Chair of the Government of India - 2021 AICTE Distinguished Chair Professor - 2023 Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis Memorial Lecture Award from the Department of Science and Technology and Biotechnology, Government of West Bengal - 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award (1st time in the history of 60 years) of Ramkrishna Mission Vivekananda Centenary College, Rahara, Kolkata - 2024 Indian National Science Academy Distinguished Lecture Fellowship.

Pal is an elected Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, The World Academy of Sciences for the Advancement of Science in Developing Countries (TWAS), International Association for Pattern Recognition, International Fuzzy Systems Association, International Rough Set Society, Asia-Pacific Artificial Intelligence Association, International Artificial Intelligence Industry Alliance, Web Intelligence Academy (Founding Fellow), Indian National Science Academy, National Academy of Sciences, India, Indian Academy of Sciences and Indian National Academy of Engineering. He is an elected Foreign member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. Currently, he is the 14th President of Indian Statistical Institute and a Vice-President of the International Artificial Intelligence Industry Alliance (AIIA), Hong Kong.