Department of Botany :
The Department of Botany and Forestry was established in the year 1990.
It is a non traditional department as it includes teaching and research
in Botany as well as in Forestry. Being relatively new, the department
did not inherit any glory of the past. Struggling with the lack of
space, man power and fund it has grown slowly but steadily. NAAC in its
report in January 2002 specifically praised the R & D and the teaching
programs of the department.
·
The department has the
distinction of offering M. Sc. course through Distance Mode of Education
from the year 1997.
·
In the year 1999 the
Ministry of Forests and Environment, Government of India sanctioned Rs.
2.5 Lacks to propagate the local, rare and endangered medicinal plants.
·
In 2001 2002 the DST of
Government India sanctioned Rs.15, 00000=00 to develop a computer
laboratory.
·
In the year 2004 a
separate department of Microbiology was carved out from this department
which is flourishing well to our great satisfaction.
·
In the last five years the
department has completed the Research projects of AICTE and UGC with the
funding to the tune of about 35 lacks.
·
Society for Promotion of
Waste Lands Development (SPWD), New Delhi recognized our department as
centre of Eastern Region networking on JFM covering Orissa, Jharkhand
and West Bengal with the funding to the tune of about 8 lacks (form 2001
to 2007).
A total of 19 Ph.D. degrees have been awarded in the last five years by
the department. Recently a medicinal garden of the indigenous plant
species has been established with the funding from the University
RESEARCH AREAS/FIELD
i)
Biofertilizer (VAM + Diazotrophs)
ii)
Taxonomy (Chemotaxonomy, Molecular taxonomy etc.)
iii)Tissues culture and genetics
iv)
Allelopathy
v) Palynology, Palaeobotany and Reproductive Biology
SEMINAR/WORKSHOP HELD
i) UGC sponsored National seminar on 30th to 31st
march 2004 was organized on the topic “
Recent Advances in Plant
Sciences”.
ii)UGC sponsored National seminar on 28th and 29th
March 2008 was organized on the topic “Plants, Microbes and Forestry
Research for sustainable development”.
Research Projects : from 2000 onwards.
Sl
No |
Name of Project |
Funding Agency |
Amount
(Rs. Lakhs) |
| 1 |
Production of gallic acid from raw tannin/ |
AICTE, New Delhi |
6.00 |
| 2 |
Production of Bacterial tanase. |
UGC (Major) |
6.00 |
| 3 |
Phylogenetive relationships among Marhantiales |
UGC (Minor) |
00.50 |
| 4 |
Selaginella Rhizophore (Molecular approach) |
UGC (Major) |
6.00 |
| 5 |
Chemotaxonomy, molecular taxonomy and
Ultra structural studies of Marchantiales |
UGC |
4.00 |
| 6 |
FIST (Computerization) |
D.S.T. |
15.00 |
| 7 |
Extension activities:
Strengthening of Joint Forest Management
through network in Eastern Region,
(Jharkhand, West Bengal and Orissa) |
SPWD, New Delhi |
7.77 |
| 8 |
A Molecular approach to the developmental basis of sporocarp and phylogenetic interpretation of intraspecific polymorphism in Marsilea |
UGC(Major) |
6.02 |
Future plan
One SAP proposal has been sent to UGC for
consideration in 2007-08.
Highlights
(i) A medicinal garden has been created and is maintained by the
department.
(ii) UGC Non-SAP grant has been received by the department for
infrastructural development in 2008 with a fund of Rs. 10 lakh. Two
Research fellows have also been given in addition to that.
|
