Acharaya Girish Chandra Bose and Bangabasi College

  • Girish Chandra Bose (October 29, 1853 – January 1, 1939) was an Indian educator and botanist who hailed from the village of Berugram in the Burdwan district of India. 
  • After his graduation from Hooghly College in 1876, he was appointed as a lecturer of science at Ravenshaw College, where he worked until 1881. He was offered a state scholarship to study agriculture at the Royal Agricultural College (Cirencester, England). He took life membership of the Royal Agricultural Society in 1882, and in 1883 was elected a Fellow of the Chemical Society. He completed his degree at the Royal Agricultural College in 1884. 
  • After visits to Scotland, France and Italy, he returned to India.
  • A Manual of Indian Botany written by Bose, was intended as textbook containing plants of India, in contrast to the European textbooks commonly used at the time. He also started the first agricultural journal in India. The journal, founded in 1885, was published both in English (as Agricultural Gazette) and in Bengali (as Krishi Gazette). The books authored by him in Bengali include Bhu-tattva, Krishi Sopan, Krishi Parichay, Gacher Katha, Udvid Gyan, Bilater Patra, and Europe Bhraman. His contribution to Indian agriculture is noteworthy. (1876). Girish Chandra was a member of the university of Calcutta Senate and Syndicate, President of the Science Section of Bangiya Sahitya Sammelan (1919) and the founder president of the Botanical Society of Bengal (1935). 
  • Due to his progressive outlook, Girish Chandra supported equality of caste, monogamy, female education and education in the mother tongue. 
  • Girish Chandra Bose founded the Bangabasi School in 1885 and Bangabasi College in 1887 respectively with an aim of preparing boys for the university entrance examinations. The lands were donated by the founder himself. 
  • These were reorganized in 1964–1965 to Bangabasi Morning College, Bangabasi Evening College, and Bangabasi College of Commerce. Bangabasi College of Commerce was renamed as Acharya Girish Chandra Bose College in 2005. 
  • The college has produced illustrious alumni. 
  • His son Prasanta Kumar Bose also served the Bangabasi College. 
  • The college, particularly Botany department, has several well preserved items which speaks of its past legacy. Herbarium sheets prepared by Girish Chandra Bose, Raja Rammmohan Roy and Pandit Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar are priceless possesions of the college. Botanical illustrations curated by J. D. Hooker and Nathaniel Wallich holds one in awe.
Bust statue of Acharya Girish Chandra Bose
At the entrance
Main building
Potrait of the founder

Botanical Excursion team 1922
Botanical Excursion team 1938
Original painting curated by J D Hooker
Herbarium sheet by G C Bose
Herbarium sheet by G C Bose
Herbarium sheet by Raja Rammmohan Roy
Original painting curated by Nathaniel Wallich
Old Herbarium sheets 
Old herbarium sheets
Date of visit: 21.01.2023

References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girish_Chandra_Bose

https://indianculture.gov.in/other-collections/girish-chandra-bose-pioneer-indian-agriculture

https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Bose,_Girish_Chandra

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