About the Department

Brief History:
The department of Chemistry is one of the oldest departments of City College. It was established in the year 1884. Since its inception, this department has grown into a modern and innovative one to fit the need of the time.

Traditionally the department has always had a scholarly faculty. We had Prof. Suresh Kumar Sengupta of the ‘Bardhan-Sengupta Synthesis' fame as our faculty. Currently it has a set of highly motivated teachers, some of whom are involved in post graduate teaching as guest lecturers at various universities. Some faculty members have experiences of being associated with advance research projects in India & abroad. A few of our faculty members are actively engaged in popularizing science.

Apart from the trivial "Chalk & Talk" method, we also strongly feel that the practice of learner-centric method should be of additional benefit. We regularly hold seminars with the premier ex-students of the department as speakers as well as "students' seminars" where the 2nd yr. & 3rd yr. Hons. students present short papers. Our Hons. students run a wall magazine, where the students are the major contributors of articles.

The Dept. runs a seminar Library for its Hons. (B.Sc.) students. There are about 400 books in this library. Teachers of our deptt. are members of different learned societies and find regular access to the National & International Journals. We look forward to subscribe to a few journals from this Seminar Library for the benefit of the students.

Our Labs are well-equipped to run Honours and general courses.

The department takes pride in grooming a large number of students who have found placement at various prestigious academic & industrial institutes in India & abroad.

In recent years, the teachers of the department regularly participate in seminars held at different institutions throughout the year. A few young teachers of the department are already engaged in research activities in the department (One R&D project has been sanctioned in 2022, granted by Department of Science Technology and Biotechnology, Govt. of West Bengal).

Overview:

• Names of Programmes / Courses offered (UG, PG, M.Phil., Ph.D., Integrated Masters; Integrated Ph.D., etc.: UG
• Names of Interdisciplinary courses and the departments/units involved: NA
• Annual/ semester/choice-based credit system (program-wise): CBCS
• Participation of the department in the courses offered by other departments: NA
• Courses in collaboration with other universities, industries, foreign institutions, etc.: NA
• Details of courses/programs discontinued (if any) with reasons: NA
• Student-Teacher Ratio (program-wise): For Hons. Courses - 10:1 (Student:Teacher) and For General Courses - 15:1 (Student:Teacher)

Ex-Teachers:
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Infrastructure:

• Departmental Library: There is a well-maintained Seminar Library of around 400 text and reference books, from which students borrow books regularly.
• Laboratory: Total four laboratories, one each for General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry and Physical Chemistry.
• Instruments: The instrument lab is equipped with a projector, UV-Vis double beam spectrophotometers, pH-meter, conductivity meter, potentiometer, colorimeter, polarimeter (both analogue & digital), digital balance (high precision), temperature-controlled water bath and distillation unit.
• A Rotary evaporator with chiller and pump is also set.

Distinctiveness:
The Chemistry Department offers a robust mentoring program that tailors instruction to students’ individual needs. Through seminars with leading scientists, tutorial and remedial classes, wall magazines, student presentations, industry and laboratory visits, and parent-teacher meetings, the department ensures that students stay updated with the latest developments in their field. The department’s dedicated staff and well-stocked seminar library support students’ academic growth and overall development.

Best Practices:

• The Department has an effective mentoring system as well as department conducts parent teacher meetings in regular interval.
• The faculty members of the department created individual Whatsapp groups and google classroom for both Hons. and general students. The Study materials are uploaded in Whatsapp groups, as well as in the College Website.
• The Department uses the projector and laptops whenever required to promote effective teaching learning experience.
• The Department organizes various types of events e.g., seminars (State, National and International levels), e-magazines, visit to industry and labs of various institutions etc. to provide requisite experience to the students to enable them dream their future. These events are structured and executed for active participation of the students at every level whereby students can learn through real time situations.
• Teachers also participate in Faculty Development programmes and seminars.
• First Aid Kit is readily available in the Chemistry laboratory.
• Sufficient Exhaust fans have been installed for the efficient discharge of gases from the labs to keep the lab-environment healthy for the students.