Greetings and welcome to St. John’s College.

   The Department of Botany at St. John’s College, Agra, is a pioneering department with a rich history and strong emphasis on sound education and practical learning. St. John’s College itself was established in 1850 by the Church Missionary Society of England, making it an institution with a long and rich legacy in North India. The Botany Department has a long-standing tradition within this historic college and is a well-established and active Department within the Science Faculty of the College.

    The Department of Botany was established in 1906 with Botany, Zoology and Chemistry at graduation level. The department later expanded its programmes to include Master of Science (M.Sc.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). Prof. N. M. Mukherji was the head of the department during 1942-1952 followed by Prof. Babulal Gupta (1952-1964). Prof. S. S. Bhatnagar joined the department as head in 1964 and served till 1997. Later Dr. O. A. K. Das became head in 1997. In 1999, Rev. Dr. B. Sundara Singh took over as head and continued till 2013 when Dr. (Mrs.) B. Geetha Singh took charge till 2015. Since 2015, Prof. Samuel Gorden Singh is taking care of the department as head. Presently, Prof. Manjula R. Thomas, Dr. Sakshi Walker, Dr. Rohan J. D’Souza, Dr. Smit Benjamin and Dr. Anjani Sharma are rendering their services to the Department.

  The Department emphasizes an all-round approach to imparting learning with equal focus on curricular, co-curricular and extra-curricular activities for the benefit of our students. The Department pursues the mantra of holistic development of a student and inculcation of a scientific temper. This makes the learning process more collaborative and stimulating. Botanical excursions, seminars, guest lectures by eminent scientists and academicians, documentary films, quizzes, scientific debates etc. are a regular feature. Multimedia based teaching-learning including innovative methods like flipped classrooms are encouraged. In the near future, we hope to expand with developing technology and industrial interaction.

Milestones:

The aim of the Department is to further strengthen its core activities of teaching, training and research. Students gain theoretical knowledge in areas like Taxonomy, Morphology, Anatomy, and Reproductive Biology of Angiosperms, Phytogeography, Pharmacognosy, Phytochemistry, Ethnobotany, Ecology, Phycology, Mycology, Bryology, Pteridology, Physiology, Cell Biology, Biotechnology, Molecular Biology, Genetics, Plant Breeding, Horticulture and conservation of Bio-diversity well supported by practical exposure in the laboratory. The students are continually assessed and evaluated through regular class tests, seminars, and assignments apart from examinations at the semester end. Advanced knowledge in instrumentation skills, plant tissue culture techniques, molecular biology and bio-resources of Agra is imparted at the Master’s level.

Post graduate students of the department have been excelled in the University examinations consistently. Most of our PG students pass with first division and we take pride in the fact that in the past ten years, our students have been awarded the University Gold medal six times. In fact, our students topped the University M.Sc. Botany Exams for five consecutive years from 2017 to 2022.

To keep pace with advances in knowledge, the department has also been organizing National/Internal Conferences and workshops regularly. We have organized 3 conferences and 1 workshop since 2020. This interaction with Scientists, researchers and academicians and exposure to applied aspects of the subject has helped our students further in their journey as budding botanists.

Enriched by the legacy of renowned teachers, the department is proud to have a committed faculty which excels in research, book writing and teaching. Till date 75+ candidates have earned their Ph.D.’s in Botany through the department. It boasts of many eminent alumni, who occupy important academic and professional positions in India and abroad.

Uniqueness:

Holistic Approach: The department’s mission emphasizes intellectual, cultural, social, aesthetic, and spiritual development, aiming to transform students into capable, compassionate, and committed human beings.
Modern Curriculum: The curriculum balances traditional botany with modern plant sciences, integrating core, elective, and vocational papers with inter-disciplinary components and exposure to cutting-edge technologies.
Focus on Social Impact: The education provided aims at social transformation and preparing students for serving the wider community.

Highlights:

Botanical Society (BOTSO): The department has an active student society called “BOTSO,” which organizes various educational and extra-curricular activities to promote botanical awareness and practical learning.
E-Magazine: The Department publishes an annual e-magazine The Seed focused on giving our students a chance to share news, updates and current developments related to science. True to its name our humble effort has been steadily fulfilling its objectives and has turned into a forum for recognizing and promoting our students to express their creativity and spread awareness about issues related to the environment, biodiversity, medicinal plants, naturopathy, aromatherapy etc.

Infrastructure:

Science Block: The Department of Botany is a part of the dedicated Science Block constructed on the western side of the main M.G. road campus. A Bio-Sciences Wing has also been added recently.
Well-equipped Facilities: The Department boasts good infrastructure with well-equipped classrooms and three laboratories for practical sessions. The departmental and students’ libraries fulfil the requirement of the faculty members and students in addition to central library. A number of reference books and access to online journals is also available. The department focuses on all-round development, with students and faculty participating in various activities and receiving recognition within the college and wider university system. The laboratory and instrumentation facility is adequately equipped for studies at the graduate and postgraduate level as well as basic research in plant sciences.
Museum & Herbarium: The department boasts of a dedicated museum with a diverse array of specimens and models related to Algae, Fungi, Bryophytes, Lichens, Pteridophytes, Gymnosperms and Angiosperms. The Herbarium compiled over the years from plant specimens collected and preserved by the faculty and students is our pride and joy.
Botanical Garden: A botanical garden housing an appreciable variety of ornamental and medicinal plants along with wild native species are maintained. It also boasts of a small pond with aquatic plants. A compost-pit is managed by the students where all the organic waste of the department as well as domestic waste collected by students is composted. Students also gain exposure to biodiversity conservation initiatives and organic farming within its green confines.
Support Facilities: Students have access to a large central library with Wi-Fi, good medical facilities, and large well-maintained playgrounds for sports.
Programmes and courses offered by the Department:

The Department offers the following programmes:

• Certificate in Microbial Technology & Applied Botany
• Diploma in Plant Identification, Utilization & Ethnomedicine
• Bachelor of Science (Botany, Zoology, and Chemistry)
• Bachelor of Science (Botany, Zoology, and Industrial Chemistry)
• Bachelor of Science (Biotechnology) under self-financed scheme
• Master of Science (Botany)
• Doctor of Philosophy (Botany)

Vision:

• The vision of the department is to develop scientific and technical capabilities to become centre of excellence in plant sciences and provide expert services to research organizations, industries and educational institutes in various aspects of Botany.
• To be distinguished as a renowned academic institution recognized for its innovation, excellence and inventions; producing the best human resource in the field of Plant Sciences and help them to realize their full potential in ways that benefits the society.

Mission:

• To make a significant contribution to the national goals of promoting knowledge society through high quality education, innovative-research and services to the society in the field of plant sciences.
• To produce highly qualified post graduate and Ph.D. students in the field of plant sciences that serve in academic and research institutions.
• To serve the society’s needs and contribute to transform the society into a knowledge society.
• To serve society’s needs and contribute to transforming society into a knowledge society.

Prof. (Dr.) Samuel Gorden Singh
Professor and Head Department of Botany
St. John’s College, Agra
drsamuelgsingh@gmail.com