About the Department
The Department of Botany of Raiganj University (erstwhile Raiganj College (University College) is known for its excellence, producing a number of talents over the years. The Department of Botany is trying its best to impart quality education in its limited capacity, from the year of its existence. Ever since its inception in 1980, the Department of Botany had been a pioneer and integral part of Raiganj College affiliated to University of North Bengal imparting undergraduate (Honours & General) learning to this region of North Bengal. Now the Department of Botany is a proud and integral part of Raiganj University since its inception in 2015. Being a part of Raiganj University, it is also offering PG, Ph. D. and M.Phil courses along with undergraduate learning to the aspirants of this region. The Department is trying to create the graph of excellence and achieve greater heights in near future for both Undergraduate and Postgraduate students of this region. Presently the Department of Botany has five permanent full time faculty members serving the Department—
● Dr. Ayon Pal, M. Sc., Ph.D. Associate Professor
● Dr. Parimal Mandal, M.Sc., Ph.D. Associate Professor and Head
● Dr. Sanjoy Sadhukhan, M.Sc., Ph.D. Assistant Professor
● Mr. Zerald Tiru, M.Sc. Assistant Professor
● Dr. Arka Pratim Chakraborty, M.Sc., Ph.D. Assistant Professor
● Department offers both UG and PG course with semester system.
● Department also offers PhD as well as M. Phil. program which is at its primary phase. PhD course work has been initiated from the year 2016 and at present few students are pursuing their PhD course work.
● The medium of instruction for UG (Hons), PG and M.Phil. is purely English whereas for UG(General) it is Bengali and English.
● Department publishes its wall magazine named “ANKUR’’ through which students are given the opportunity to express their talent of writing on various topics of Botany.
● So far the Department hasorganized two National seminars. The main theme of the seminar was Current Trends in plant and Microbial Research 2016 and 2017 sponsored by Govt. of West Bengal where Professors and Research Scholars from different Colleges and Universities attended and presented their research works which was turned out to be fruitful to the students of not only our Department but other Departments too. The Department has also taken the initiate to organize special lectures by eminent personalities from premier institutes to disseminate knowledge among the students and create mass awareness.
● Taking this confidence one step further department is now planning to organize even more seminars and popular lectures on different aspects of Botany in near future so that both teachers and students may get more benefit out of it.
Vision & Mission
Setting up of modern and up to date facility for imparting quality education and carrying out research activities
Over the last decade and half, we have experienced a tremendous change in life science education and research. In order to maintain the standard of high education and research at the advanced level, it is necessary to set up post graduate Departments, along with up to the mark research facilities in different branches of biology where there should be ample scope of pursuing modern research in the respective fields and imparting quality education. The Department has also taken initiative to explore the region and design research projects that will benefit this particular region.
Academic Programs
List of Academic Programs Offered
| Level & Nature of the Programs | Degrees Approved/Offered |
| Bachelors | B.Sc.-Botany
B.Sc.-Botany
(Evening/ Self Financed) |
| Masters (Taught) | M.Sc.-Botany |
| Masters (Research) | M.Phil. (Science)-Botany |
| Doctoral | Ph.D. (Science)-Botany |
Objective of the UG Program:
Department offers UG course with semester system. The UG course covers all branches of Botany including general botany, biochemistry, microbiology, morphology, anatomy, plant physiology, plant breeding, biostatistics etc. The UG course also covers Discipline specific elective and Skill enhancement course papers. We have included Bioinformatics, Mushroom culture technology, Herbal technology etc. as Skill enhancement course papers which can help students to acquire basic knowledge about the course.
Objective of the PG Program:
Department offers PG course with semester system offering special papers, namely Microbiology, Mycology and Plant Pathology, Plant Physiology, Biochemistry and molecular biology.
Specialization of the UG Program:
The UG course covers Discipline specific elective and Skill enhancement course papers. Bioinformatics, Mushroom culture technology, Herbal technology etc. as Skill enhancement course papers have been included which can help students to acquire basic knowledge about the course.
Specialization of PG Program:
Special papers are offered with PG Degree namely Microbiology, Mycology and Plant Pathology, Plant Physiology, Biochemistry and molecular biology.
Future Program Planning (if any):
● We aim to achieve excellence through high quality education and research relevant to local, and regional needs through cooperation with leading researchers and educators.
● To train students in Botanical Sciences, to adequately equip them to apply themselves meaningfully in any activity requiring botanical expertise.
● At Undergraduate level we aim to provide a wide-spectrum comprehension of various aspects of plants.
● At postgraduate level, our objectives are concerned with maintaining a high level of scientific excellence in botanical research with specific emphasis on major field of Botany.
Facilities
The Department has following facilities for its students, researchers and teachers---
Departmental infrastructure
➢ Classroom
The Department has three lecture theatres which are clean, airy, well lit and equipped with the usual black boards.
The Department has also one smart class room with modern computer and digital projection that one would expect at this digital age.
➢ Laboratories
The department has two spacious and almost well equipped laboratories provided with limited sophisticated instruments and apparatus for smooth execution of practical classes.
➢ Faculty room cum research laboratories
The Department has four faculty rooms cum research laboratories for carrying out research work, project work and as such many more.
Practical instruments and apparatus of the Department
- ● Colorimeter
- ● UV visible single beam spectrophotometer
- ● pH meter
- ● Camera Lucida
- ● Microtome
- ● Hot Water Bath
- ● Autoclave
- ● Laminar hood
- ● Transmission electron microscope
- ● Pan balance with wt. box
- ● Centrifuge
- ● Pestle and mortar
- ● Simple microscope
- ● Compound microscope
- ● Digital weighing machine
Research Areas
Thrust area of Department/ Faculty Members/ Research Programs:
● Microbiology,
● Bioinformatics,
● Computational Biology,
● Molecular plant pathology and fungal biotechnology,
● Plant physiology,
● Biochemistry and molecular biology.
Research Scholars
Details of Research Scholars and Research Completed—
Number of M.Phil. Candidate Received their Degrees (if any)
(Name of the Candidate with Title of the Thesis and Year of Award)- NIL
Number of Ph.D. Candidate their Degrees (if any)
(Name of the Candidate with Title of the Thesis and Year of Award)- NIL
Number of M.Phil. Candidate Registered (if any) (from 2015)
(Only Name and Research Area)- NIL
Number of Ph.D. Candidate Registered (if any) (from 2015)
(Name and Research Area)
●
Mr. Zerald Tiru- Research Area: Promotion of growth and management of rot disease of maize (Zea mays L.) caused by Fusarium moniliforme with biotic and abiotic agents.
●
Mrs. Monalisha Sarkar- Research Area: Screening, isolation and identification of
Plant Growth Promoting Fungi (PGPF) of rice and antagonistic microorganisms from rhizosphere and study of their potential effects against major fungal pathogen of rice of Uttar Dinajpur, West Bengal.
●
Mr. Hriday Kumar Basak- Research Area: Study of quorum sensing and screening of inhibitors in pathogenic bacteria.
●
Ms. Jayanti Saha- Research Area: Analysis of Heavy metal resistant microorganisms, comparative genomics and study of plant growth promotion from arable land.
●
Mr. Barnan Saha- Research Area: Analysis of Heavy metal and antibiotic resistance and co selection in microorganisms from natural environment.
● Mr. Vivek Roy- Research Area: Microbiological and comparative genomics based analysis of Heavy metal resistant microorganisms from water bodies.
●
Mr. Anup Sarkar- Research Area: Seed germination under saline stress.
Few Publications
Total 42 (Forty Twenty) Journal Paper has been Published from 2015 to 2020 from the Department of Botany—
Dr. Ayon Pal, M. Sc., Ph.D. Associate Professor and Head (Please refer full CV)
Dr. Parimal Mandal, M.Sc., Ph.D. Associate Professor (Please refer full CV)
Dr. Sanjoy Sadhukhan, M.Sc., Ph.D. Assistant Professor (Please refer full CV)
Mr. Zerald Tiru, M.Sc. Assistant Professor (Please refer full CV)
Dr. Arka Pratim Chakraborty, M.Sc., Ph.D. Assistant Professor (Please refer full CV)
Few Facts/ Achievements
Since establishment in 2015, the Department flourished with tireless efforts of faculties, staff and students. One of the strong points of the Department has been eminence in research.
➤ Dr. Ayon Pal is currently working as an Associate Professor in the Department of Botany, Raiganj University, Raiganj. He served Raiganj University College, Raiganj (Affiliated to University of North Bengal) as an Assistant Professor in Botany for more than nine years. He has about 13 years of research experiences in the field of Biophysics, Molecular Biology and Bioinformatics and has more than 20 publications in peer reviewed International and National publications.
➤ Dr. Ayon Pal He has also delivered numerous oral and poster presentations in numerous International and National symposia/conferences. He is interested in the field of research related to the area of bacteria and genomics. He is actively involved in the study of mechanisms shaping genome structure, evolution in microorganisms and in the proliferation of metal resistance in natural environments.
➤ Dr. Pal is actively associated with scientific society as member of Association of Microbiologists of India (AMI) and Microbiology Society, UK.
➤ Dr. Parimal Mandal is currently working as an Associate Professor in the Department of Botany, Raiganj University, Raiganj. He served Raiganj University College, Raiganj (Affiliated to University of North Bengal) and Shyampur Siddheswari Mahavidyalaya, Howrah as an Assistant Professor in Botany for more than twelve years. He has more than 10 years of research experiences in various research projects (funded by DBT, CSIR & UGC) and is currently engaged in promotion of Mushroom Cultivation for the sustenance of SC, ST & Weaker Section of North Bengal and in sustainable development of Mushroom Cultivation for rural women and youths.
➤ Dr. Parimal Mandal He has more than 20 peer reviewed International and National publications till date. He has also delivered numerous oral and poster presentations in numerous International and National symposia/conferences, acted as resource person in Krishi Mela, Govt. of West Bengal, Shyampur, Sasati-II, Howrah to highlight the research on Mushroom Cultivation and its Importance. He is interested in the field of research related to the area of PGPF/PGPR based sustainable agriculture, Plant disease management, Agro waste management, macro fungal cultivation and application.
➤ Dr. Parimal Mandal was awarded second prize for the paper entitled “Jasmonic acid induced systemic resistance of tea to Botryodiplodia theobromae Pat” during the 25th annual conference and symposium, Indian Society of Mycology and Plant pathology at A.R.S. Durgapura, Jaipur in 2003. Dr. Mandal is actively associated with scientific society as life member of Indian Phytopathological Society (IPS).
➤ Dr. Sanjoy Sadhukhan is currently working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Botany, Raiganj University, Raiganj. He served Raiganj University College, Raiganj (Affiliated to University of North Bengal) as an Assistant Professor in Botany for more than one year.
➤ Dr. Sanjoy Sadhukhan has about 11 years of post-doctoral research experiences at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia and University of Pittsburgh, (Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh), Pittsburgh and has more than best 11 peer reviewed high impact factor based International and National publications.
➤ Dr. Sanjoy Sadhukhan is interested in the field of research related to the area of Plant Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.
➤ Sri Zerald Tiru is currently working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Botany, Raiganj University, Raiganj. He served Shibpur Dinobundhoo Institution as an Assistant Professor in Botany for four months.
➤ Sri Zerald Tiru is now actively engaged in Ph.D. research. He has also delivered oral and poster presentations in International and National symposia/conferences. He is interested in the field of research related to the area of Stress Physiology especially in the arena of abiotic and biotic stresses with reference to physiochemical changes in plants, pharmacognosy, plant pathology and ecology.
➤ Dr. Arka Pratim Chakraborty is currently working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Botany, Raiganj University, Raiganj. He served Gyan Jyoti College, Siliguri (Affiliated to University of North Bengal) as an Assistant Professor in Botany for more than two years.
➤ Dr. Arka Pratim Chakraborty has about 09 years of research experiences in various research projects (funded by DBT, CSIR & NBAIM-ICAR) and has 30 peer reviewed International and National publications (International Journals = 11 and National Journals = 19), 04 research articles in proceeding volumes, 03 articles as book chapter till date. He has also delivered numerous oral and poster presentations in numerous International and National symposia/conferences. He is interested in the field of research related to plant-microbe interactions, host-pathogen interactions and plant disease management through plant growth promoting rhizobacteria, biotic and abiotic stresses.
➤ Dr. Arka Pratim Chakraborty was awarded as K.P.S. Bilgrami best poster paper award in 2007 and P.P. Singhal Pesticides India Competition award in 2010
Dr. Arka Pratim Chakraborty had received PR Verma award competition for Ph.D. students in the year 2015 and K.P.S. Bilgrami best poster paper presentation award in 2015.
➤ Dr. Arka Pratim Chakraborty is actively associated with scientific societies as life members of Asian PGPR Society, Association of Microbiologists of India (AMI), Indian Mycological Society (IMS), Indian Phytopathological Society (IPS) and member of Indian Society of Mycology and Plant Pathology (ISMPP).
➤ Dr. Chakraborty has served duty as reviewer in scientific journals- IJCRT, IJRAR, International journal of Tea Science (IJTS), Archives of Phytopathology and Plant Protection- Taylor & Francis Group
➤ Dr. Arka Pratim Chakraborty is associated in the Journal of Tropical Life Science (JTLS); as an editor in magazine Agriculture & Food: e-Newsletter and as one of the active Editorial Advisory Member in the UGC-CARE list journal- Journal of Advanced Scientific Research (ISSN- 0976-9595) under ScienSage publishing house.
Events
- ● In 2016: Department organized National seminar. The main theme of the seminar was Current Trends in plant and Microbial Research2016 sponsored by Govt. of West Bengal where Professors and Research Scholars from different Colleges and Universities attended and presented their research works.
- ● In 2017: Department organized National seminar-Current Trends in plant and Microbial Research2017 sponsored by Govt. of West Bengal where Dr. Subrata K. Das, Scientist, ILS, Bhubaneswar and Prof. TC Ghosh, Bose Institute, Kolkata both were key note speakers.
- ● In 2018: Department organized J.C. Bose memorial lecture.
Contact
Department of Botany
1st Floor,
Rear of Main Building Complex
Raiganj University
West Bengal-733 134, India
Email:
Departmental:
Head: ayonpal.ruc@gmail.com (Dr.Ayon Pal)
