Vasanti N. Bhat-Nayak was a professor of combinatorics

Combinatorics

Combinatorics is a branch of mathematics concerning the study of finite or countable discrete structures. Aspects of combinatorics include counting the structures of a given kind and size , deciding when certain criteria can be met, and constructing and analyzing objects meeting the criteria ,...

 and head of the department of mathematics, University of Mumbai

University of Mumbai

The University of Mumbai , is a state university located in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It was known as the University of Bombay until 1996 when the city of Bombay was renamed as Mumbai. The affiliated colleges of the university are spread throughout the city of Mumbai and four coastal districts in...

. Vasanti Nayak was known for her work in BIBD designs, bivariegated graph

Bivariegated graph

In graph theory, a mathematical discipline which has applications in computer science, as well as in many other disciplines, a bivariegated graph is a graph whose vertex set can be partitioned into two equal parts such that each vertex is adjacent to exactly one vertex from the other set not...

s, graceful graphs, graph equations and frequency partition

Frequency partition

In graph theory, a discipline within mathematics, the frequency partition of a graph is a partition of its vertices grouped by their degree.For example, the degree sequence of the left-hand graph below is and its frequency partition is 6 = 3 + 2 + 1...

s.

Vasanti Bhat a Goud Saraswat Brahmin was raised in Pune

Pune

Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...

. She earned a M.Sc. in mathematics from Pune University and a Ph.D. from the University of Mumbai in 1970 on her work "Some New Results in PBIBD Designs and Combinatorics". S. S. Shrikhande

S. S. Shrikhande

Sharadchandra Shankar Shrikhande is an Indian mathematician with distinguished and well-recognized achievements in combinatorial mathematics. He is notable for his breakthrough work along with R. C. Bose and E. T...

 was her advisor. Bhat had guided Ph.D. students in graph theory and combinatorial mathematics. She died on February 12, 2009 in her residence in Chembur

Chembur

Chembur is a suburban neighbourhood in eastern Mumbai, India. It is 22 km from downtown Mumbai and 20 km from Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport...

.