Overview & History

The PG Department of English was established in the year 1922, while the UG course in English had become functional in 1916, making it not only one of the oldest English Departments in the country but also an important player in the rise of English Studies in India. The Professor’s Chair of the Department was offered by the Queen of Sonepur, erstwhile Subarnapur of Odisha. The Department has produced a multitude of talents who have held offices of high rank at state, national and international levels. 

The faculty strength of the Department is constituted by 1 Professor, 5 Associate Professors and 10 Assistant Professors. The Department offers UG, PG, M. Phil and Ph. D. programmes with a plan to introduce multiple short term certificate courses in the areas of translation, publishing and editing. In the Post Graduate course currently we offer American Literature and Indian Writings in English as optional special Papers. Our aim is to prepare students for careers in research, teaching, and writing. The study of literature and culture in the Department of English is predicated on the objective of demonstrating how rigorous attention to text and textuality opens up readers to the larger issues that challenge humankind. Further training in the English literature course enables the students to choose from a variety of career options. Our students have qualified in state and national level tests such as UGC-NET/JRF, UPSC and OPSC. After completing the UG course, most of our students go on to work as personality development trainers, content writers and journalists, whereas PG students find employment mostly as teachers in schools and colleges across the state and as copy-editors and content writers. The Department’s Seminar Library has a rich collection of 9000 books including e-books. The crown jewel of the Seminar Library is the Professor Paul St Pierre collection which includes some of the most invaluable works in English language. 

The Department’s faculties are actively engaged in research and, at present, are directing projects funded by World Bank-assisted OHEPEE and the ICSSR.

Heads of The Department

Mr. P. O. Whitlock

(1922–1929)

Shri G. C. Ganguli

(1929–1929)

Shri K. P. Sinha

(1929–1936)

Shri Niranjan Neogi

(1936–1938)

Prof. P. S. Sundaram

(1938–1950)

Prof. G. S. Ray

(1950)

Dr B. Dash

(1950–8 June 1959)

Dr. A. P. O’Brien

(1959–1961)

Shri K. P. A. Pillai

(I/C) (1961–1962)

(22/6/1971–1/1/1972)

Shri N. K. Mishra

(I/C) (3/6/1962–18/10/1963)

(1976–3/6/1981)

Dr. P. K. Pati

(19/10/1963–2/1/1969)

(12/9/1969–27/6/1970)

Shri S. Das

(I/C) (3/1/1969–11/9/1969)

(I/C) (28/6/1970–21/6/1971)

(2/1/1972–1976)

Shri B. J. B. Dasmahapatra

(4/6/1981–6/1/1982)

Dr. M. Q. Khan

(I/C) (7/1/1982–5/8/1982)

(10/10/1983–4/8/1992)

Prof. H. P. Mohanty

(6/8/1982–9/10/1983)

Dr. P. K. Mohanty

(5/8/1992–6/12/1995)

Dr. (Mrs.) H. P. Singh

(7/12/1995–18/5/1998)

Shri T. Acharya

(18/5/1998–15/1/1999)

Shri D. P. Pattnayak

(15/1/1999–10/8/2001)

Dr. B. K. Bal

(10/8/2001–2/8/2002)

(1/5/2006–31/12/2006)

Dr. S. K. Joshi

(2/8/2002–29/9/2003)

Shri A. K. Mohanty

(29/9/2003–30/4/2006)

Dr. Suman Mohapatra

(1/1/2007–31/3/2008)

Dr. A. K. Purohit

(1/4/2008–31/10/2008)

Shri C. Jena

(1/11/2008–30/4/2009)

Dr. R. N. Mishra

(1/5/2009–25/2/2010)

Prof. D. R. Pattanaik

(23/7/2012–21/6/2014)

(21/6/2016 - 26/6/2018)

Dr. Madhusmita Pati

(22/6/2014–20/6/2016)

(24/6/2018 – 28/2/2019)

Dr. Subhra Prakash Das

(22/6/2014–20/6/2016)

(24/6/2018 – 28/2/2019)

Dr. Sambit Panigrahi

(I/C) (01/7/2019 – 19/2/2020)

Dr. Khagendra Sethi

(I/C) (20/2/2020 – Continuing)