He had written extensively on Indian temple architecture, Jain literature and art.

He received his surname from his native Dhank village near Porbandar.

[4] He served as the director of research at the Centre for Art and Archaeology at the American institute of Indian Studies in Gurgaon from 1976 to 1996 and the director emeritus, research till 2005 at the same institute.

Abu (1980), Arhat Pārśva and Dharaṇendra nexus, Nirgranth Aitihāsik Lekh-Samuccay, Professor Nirmal Kumar Bose and His Contribution to Indian Temple Architecture: The Pratiṣṭhạ̄-Lakṣaṇasamuccaya and the Architecture of Kaliṅga (1998), The Temples in Kumbhāriyā (2001), Saptaka (1997), Shani Mekhla and Tamra Shashan (2011).

[4][2] He had received the Campbell Memorial Gold Medal awarded by the Asiatic Society of Bombay.