Siliguri,TT.Jan. 25: North Bengal University will offer a post-graduate degree in tea science from the next academic session beginning in July to meet the tea industry’s need for researchers in the fields of pest control and soil test.
The NBU will be the first institution in India to offer a full-fledged PG course in tea science, the proposal for which was first mooted by the Tea Board of India.
“There are around 300 tea gardens and 25,000 small tea growers in north Bengal. But not a single institute exists in the region to offer bachelors or post-graduate degree in tea science. Hence, we have decided to introduce MSc degree in tea science in the varsity from the 2012-13 academic session (that starts around July). The NBU has taken the initiative to produce skilled human resources for the gardens in north Bengal,” vice-chancellor Arunabha Basumajumdar told The Telegraph today.
Currently, the varsity offers a one-year PG diploma course in tea management. A full-fledged department of tea science was started last year after the Tea Board had proposed the launch of the PG degree course.
Around 35 graduates pursue the self-financing diploma course that is being offered since 1995. They opt for posts of assistant managers in gardens and sales experts in tea exporting companies. The PG diploma course is now under the department of tea science.
The Tea Board had last week sanctioned an annual fund of Rs 3 lakh to start the new course which will be a self-financing one till the University Grants Commission gives its approval.
“In December 2010, the then deputy director of the Tea Board, Amal Roy Chowdhury, had proposed to us to launch a PG degree course in tea science. It took over a year to construct a two-storied building and finalise official procedures to launch the course. Simultaneously, we had also approached the board for a financial help of Rs 3 lakh per year and the amount was sanctioned last week,” said S.E. Kabir, assistant professor of tea management in the department of tea science.
Kabir was a scientist with the Tea Board for 18 years before joining the university.
The Tea Board also assists the faculty in conducting training for small growers.
Indrajit Roy, the academic co-ordinator of the department, said: “NBU is the first institute in the country to offer a full-fledged MSc course in tea science. Right now, the agriculture universities in Assam and Himachal Pradesh offer special papers in tea husbandry in the MSc agriculture course.”
An all-inclusive syllabus comprising plantation, production, management and marketing of tea will be prepared for the PG degree course.
“The PG diploma course focuses on management and marketing. But the PG degree in tea science will deal with pest control and the use of fertilisers and production aspects like packaging, maintenance of quality of tea leaves and hygiene in factories,” said Kabir.
Roy said the students who would successfully complete the course could become researchers in scientific institutes and plantation labs and experts in pesticide and fertiliser companies.
BSc graduates in botany, chemistry, microbiology, biotechnology and mathematics can apply for the PG degree course. However, the varsity is yet to decide on class strength and the course fee.
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