Lack of math skills in India worrying: PM

CHENNAI: Declaring 2012 as National Mathematical Year and December 22, the birthday of mathematical genius Srinivasa Ramanujan, as National Mathematics Day, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday expressed concern over the insufficient number of competent mathematicians in the country.“Since Ramanujan, a number of mathematicians from the country have distinguished themselves by performing at very high levels. However, it is a matter of concern that for a country of our size, the number of competent mathematicians that we have is badly inadequate,” Singh said, inaugurating the year-long celebrations to mark the 125th year of Srinivasa Ramanujan at a function organised by the Institute of Mathematical Sciences here.Manmohan Singh said the mathematical community had a duty to identify ways to address the shortage of top quality mathematicians in the country and that it must reach out to the public especially in the modern context where mathematics had tremendous influence on every human endeavour.Manmohan Singh further said that over the past three decades or more, many young men and women with a natural ability in mathematics had not pursued the discipline at advanced levels. This has also resulted in a decline in the quality of our mathematics teachers at school and college levels.