Gargi College, University of Delhi

Chemistry

The Chemistry Department is one of the first few departments of Gargi College that came into existence in 1967. The department started with a one year premedical course followed by B.Sc. General Physical Sciences and Life Sciences. In 1991, B.Sc (Hons.) Chemistry was introduced in college and the first batch of Chemistry students graduated in 1994. Dr. C. K. Khurana was the founder member of the department. She along-with many other dynamic faculty members (currently superannuated) played an integral role in shaping the department to bring it to its very best. Currently the department has some very well-qualified and dedicated faculty members. The total faculty strength of the department is 20, with 5 Associate Professors and 15 Assistant Professors. Many of them are actively involved in research and also mentor students for various research projects, which are published in journals of repute or presented at national/international conferences. During the challenging Covid time, the faculty members went extra lengths to facilitate a smoother teaching-learning experience to students. The department made sure to maintain an empathetic attitude towards students during the distressing Covid times.

Every year students from various states of the country and different school boards enrol in Gargi for the much-sought after Chemistry Honours course. The academic rigour and training imparted to the students in the department helps lay a strong foundation of the subject. While most of our students secure First Division, some have also attained University positions. The University Science Meritorious students’ award is bagged by many of our students of I, II and III year. Many of our graduate students secure admission to leading institutes like IITs, IISc, Bangalore, TIFR, Hyderabad for post-graduation and Ph.D programmes by qualifying an all India entrance examination. Many are also pursuing Ph.Ds from top-ranking foreign universities. The department has a long list of illustrious alumnae who have made their mark as research scientists, college and university teachers, school teachers in leading institutes of India and abroad. Those alumnae who diversified from Chemistry have also excelled in unconventional fields as corporate & legal professionals, at managerial and administrative positions or in consultancy and defence sectors, to name a few.

The department maintains a departmental library which is well-equipped with books from all disciplines of Chemistry catering to the requirements of students. There are 2 main Chemistry Laboratories and 2 Instrumentation rooms. We have the latest model of spectrophotometer, colorimeter, pH meters and conductometers that help students carry out experiments of the syllabus and those beyond curriculum as well. The department has a well-stocked store for both apparatus and chemicals. The laboratories and stores are maintained by a team of dedicated support staff. Keeping in view the environmental concerns of chemicals, some of the experiments in the chemistry laboratory are modified and principle of 3Rs – Reduce, Reuse and Recycle is being adopted for experiments wherever possible.

The Chemistry Department endeavours to supplement classroom teaching
with invited lectures, workshops, add-on courses, seminars by eminent speakers. Many renowned academicians and scientists have visited the Department from time to time to interact with students. Apart from teaching, a great impetus is given to research activities in the department where faculty members mentor students for various research based projects for various inter and intra-college competitions. The Chemical Society, Rasgandhayan, which is mainly a students’ body organizes various academic events/competitions and fun activities across the year for the holistic development of students. These are interspersed with institutional and educational visits to nearby industries and laboratories - the recent ones include those to Dhampur sugar mill, UFLEX packaging industry, Yakult, Glaxo Smithskline, Taragram, Glass blowing unit IIT Delhi, Central Forensic Science Laboratory (Chandigarh) and Patanjali Herbal Gardens (Haridwar). From time to time, alumnae are invited for interaction sessions with students. The society also participates in the inter college science festival ‘Scintillations’ - a collaborative effort of all the science departments of the college where various interesting and stimulating inter-college competitions are organized over two days for students to learn, explore and compete to win attractive prizes.

The department releases an annual magazine ‘Amalgam’ which gives opportunity to students to showcase their writing skills. It is compiled by students of the department as Editorial Board Members under the supervision of staff advisors to Chemical society. The details of the Society’s activities are also documented in Amalgam and in the college annual report. Days of international and national significance like the World Ozone Day, World Bio-fuel Day and National Science Day are celebrated annually. Each year Dr. C.K. Khurana Memorial lecture (in the memory of the founder member) is based on a topic that marks 100 years of Nobel prize for that year.

The Department of Chemistry aims to nurture the student in every possible way, so that when they leave the portals of the College, they are confident, strong and empowered girls.