Welcome | Diamond Harbour Women´s University

Department Head

Dr Madhumita Majumdar

Brief Introduction of the Department

The Department of English, Diamond Harbour Women’s University, was formed in 2014 when the institution commenced its academic activities, thus taking pride in being one of the earliest academic departments. Over the years, the Department has grown exponentially, forming its Board of Studies in 2016 and Board of Research Studies in 2018. The catchment area of the Department has also grown by leaps and bounds: expanding from the immediate vicinity that housed the first few students of the inaugurating batch, the Department now attracts students not only from various corners of West Bengal but also beyond the state.

The Department of English, DHWU, is committed to creating a hospitable environment for academic affairs beyond the stipulated curriculum by providing the students with exposure to eminent scholars. The thrust area of research in the department includes Victorian Literature, Neo-Victorianism, Dalit Studies, and cultural transactions in colonial Bengal / India.

In November 2018, the Department organized a one-day symposium in collaboration with the Centre for Victorian Studies, Jadavpur University, to commemorate the birth of Emily Brontë, the first of its kind in India, which attracted seminal papers nationwide. The Department has also hosted Talks and Special Lectures by numerous visiting speakers and subject-experts.

Year of Establishment:

The Department of English was one of the first few academic departments with which the University commenced its academic activities in 2014. Teachers in substantive posts joined from 2016 onwards.

Major thrust area of research:

Victorian Literature, Neo-Victorian, Dalit Studies, Nineteenth Century Bengal

Departmental milestones at a glance (last five years*):

No. of NET/SLET qualified students in last five years - 6/li>
No. of Ph.D. produced in last five years - Nil
No. of registered / enrolled Ph.D. scholars (present) - 05
No. of research publication in peer reviewed journals in last five years
Average impact factor of the research publication
No. of books published in last five years - 01
No. of seminar/conference organized by the department - 02
No. of foreign visit by faculty members and scholars during last five years - 02
No of special lecture organized by the department - 12
Total research grant received during last five years
No. awards/honours received by the faculty members during last five years
Departmental recognition
No. of Seminar / conference / workshop attended by the faculty members during last five years
No. of research collaboration within India
No. of research collaboration outside India
No. of MOU signed

Extension activity by the department:

The Department undertook its first Social Outreach Programme on the 26th November 2018. The PG Sem-III students visited Drishti, a school for children with learning disabilities. The interaction with the special children and the talk delivered by Susmita Nag, the Principal and Special Educator, motivated some of them to pledge to become future volunteers at the organization to make the lives of these children better.

The students of the Department enacted Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the text. The screenplay was also composed by them in adaptation of the original novel.
The students of the Department have regularly brought out their wall magazine, including Special Issues pertaining to particular literary figures.
The Department organized a One-day Excursion to Jorasanko Thakur-Bari on the 26th October 2016.
A Students’ Seminar was organized by the Department on the 22nd November 2016 by selecting top 5 papers submitted by the students in response to a Call for Papers. The Chief Guest was the Registrar of the university Dr. Satya Mandal, and the session was chaired by Prof. Dr. Sayeedur Rahman, the Controller of Examinations of the university.
The students used to present PowerPoint slides based on prominent literary figures.
In tandem with the Government of India’s vision for a skilled India (Kaushal Bharat, Kushal Bharat), the Departmentput up a stall for exhibiting and selling handicraft items made by the students, to nurture their artistic skill alongside their entrepreneurial acumen.The students focused on recycling everyday wastes for their craft, thus making it

Laboratory Facilities

The Department has future plans to set up a language laboratory.

Library Facilities

The department has a rich collection of books that has been laboriously put together by the teachers and students over the years. There are some rare books on Hardy and Victorian Studies, gifted by foreign scholars. These books have not only been a great source of academic research, they can be any book-lover’s delight.

Though the library is still at its nascent stage, the collection boasts of an excellent reservoir of books on literary criticism and postcolonial studies. The first departmental publication (A book on George Eliot) proudly adorns its shelves.

Achievements

Special recognition (for faculty, Scholar, Student)

Intake Capacity:

M.Alevel: 50 per semester

Department of English