Vashishtha Narayan Singh (2 April 1946 – 14 November 2019) was an Indian academic. He was a child prodigy and completed his PhD in 1969. He taught mathematics at various institutes in the 1960s and 1970s. Singh was diagnosed with

schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social wi ...

in the early 1970s and was admitted to a psychiatric hospital. He went missing during a train journey and was found years later. He was again admitted to the hospital and later returned to academia in 2014. He was awarded the

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is confe ...

, the fourth highest civilian award of India, posthumously in 2020.

Early life and career

Singh was born on 2 April 1946 to Lal Bahadur Singh, a police constable, and Lahaso Devi in the Basantpur village of the Bhojpur district in

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

, India. Singh was a child prodigy. He received his primary and secondary education from

Netarhat Residential School Netarhat Residential School is a school in Netarhat, India. The school has a record of producing toppers of the Bihar School Examination Board year after year. The students have dominated the Regional Mathematics Olympiad and National Talent S ...

, and he received his college education from

Patna Science College Patna Science College, established in 1927, is one of the oldest science colleges in Patna, Bihar. It is affiliated to Patna University, and offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses in science. History Patna Science College is an institut ...

. He received recognition as a student when he was allowed by

Patna University Patna University is a public state university in Patna, Bihar, India. It was established on 1 October 1917 during the British Raj. It is the first university in Bihar and the seventh oldest university in the Indian subcontinent in the modern er ...

to appear for examination in the first year of its three-year

BSc A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

(Hons.) Mathematics course and later MSc examination the next year. Singh joined the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

in 1965 and received a PhD in Reproducing Kernels and Operators with a Cyclic Vector (Cycle Vector Space Theory) in 1969 under doctoral advisor

John L. Kelley John L. Kelley (December 6, 1916, Kansas – November 26, 1999, Berkeley, California) was an American mathematician at the University of California, Berkeley, who worked in general topology and functional analysis. Kelley's 1955 text, ''General ...

. After receiving his PhD, Singh joined the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seat ...

at Seattle as an assistant professor, and then returned to India in 1974 to teach at

Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur) Hindi: भारतीय प्रौद्योगिकी संस्थान कानपुर) is a public institute of technology located in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India. It ...

. After eight months, he joined

Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) is a public deemed research university located in Mumbai, India that is dedicated to basic research in mathematics and the sciences. It is a Deemed University and works under the umbrella of the De ...

(TIFR), Bombay where he worked on a short-term position. Later he was appointed a faculty at the

Indian Statistical Institute Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) is a higher education and research institute which is recognized as an Institute of National Importance by the 1959 act of the Indian parliament. It grew out of the Statistical Laboratory set up by Prasanta C ...

, Kolkata.

Later life

Singh married Vandana Rani Singh in 1973 and they divorced in 1976. He was later diagnosed with

. With his condition worsening in the late 1970s, he was admitted to the Central Institute of Psychiatry in

Kanke Kanke is a census town in the Kanke CD block in the Ranchi Sadar subdivision of Ranchi district in the Indian state of Jharkhand. Kanke has a large water reservoir called Kanke Dam, which is used to supply water to Ranchi city. Geography Lo ...

(now in

Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ; ) is a state in eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north and Odisha to the south. It has an area of . ...

) and remained there until 1985. In 1987, Singh returned to his village of Basantpur. He disappeared during his train journey to

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, ( the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million As of 2021, Pune Metropolitan Region is the largest i ...

in 1989 and was found four years later in 1993 in Doriganj near

Chhapra Chhapra is a city and headquarters of the Saran district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is situated near the junction of the Ghaghara River and the Ganges River. Chhapra grew in importance as a river-based market in the 18th century when th ...

Saran district Saran district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Indian state of Bihar. The district, part of Saran Division, is also known as Chhapra district after the headquarters of the district, Chhapra. It is considered as one of the richest Zaminda ...

. He was then admitted to the

National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences The National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences is a medical institution in Bangalore, India. NIMHANS is the apex centre for mental health and neuroscience education in the country. It is an Institute of National Importance operates ...

(NIMHANS),

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

. In 2002, he was treated at the

Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences The Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS), formerly known as'' Hospital for Mental Diseases, Shahdara'', is a mental health and neurosciences research institute based in Shahdara, New Delhi, India. IHBAS is the largest mental ...

(IHBAS), Delhi. In 2014, Singh was appointed a visiting professor at

Bhupendra Narayan Mandal University Bhupendra Narayan Mandal University (B. N. Mandal University) is the state government university situated at district headquarters, Madhepura. B. N. Mandal University, Madhepura came into existence on the 10th of January, 1992. It acts as an af ...

(BNMU) in

Madhepura Madhepura is a municipality in Madhepura district in the Indian state of Bihar. It stands at the centre of Kosi ravine, It was called ''Madhyapura-'' a place centrally situated which was subsequently transformed as Madhipura into present Madhe ...

. Singh died on 14 November 2019 at

Patna Medical College and Hospital Patna Medical College and Hospital (abbreviated as PMCH) was established in 1925 and originally known as Prince of Wales Medical College, is a medical college located in Patna, the state capital of Bihar, India. It is located on the southern b ...

in Patna after prolonged illness.

Awards

Singh was awarded the

, the fourth highest civilian award of India, posthumously in 2020.

In popular culture

Filmmaker

Prakash Jha Prakash Jha (born 27 February 1952) is an Indian film producer, actor, director and screenwriter, mostly known for his political and socio-political films such as “Hip Hip Hurray” (1984), '' Damul'' (1984), '' Mrityudand'' (1997), '' Ganga ...

announced a biographical film on Singh's life in 2018. Singh's brother Ayodhya Prasad Singh, citing pending legal guardianship issues, said that no film rights had been granted.

Publication

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Vashishtha Narayan Recipients of the Padma Shri in science & engineering University of California, Berkeley alumni IIT Kanpur faculty Tata Institute of Fundamental Research faculty Indian Statistical Institute faculty 2019 deaths People with schizophrenia Patna University alumni 1946 births Alumni of the Netarhat Residential School People from Bhojpur district, India