About the Department

Founded in May 1856, the Department of Civil Engineering is as old as the institute. The Department was originally established as the Civil Engineering College, Calcutta with the object of imparting training to the personnel in the field of Civil Engineering for the fulfillment of the need of the Public Works Department of the Government of India. Since then it has been striving to develop and maintain a glorious national tradition of producing quality Civil Engineers for the country. 

The Civil Engineering department, at present, provides facilities for research and development in the following broad areas:

• Structural Engineering
• Geotechnical Engineering
• Water Resources Engineering
• Environmental Engineering
• Transportation Engineering

The Department has been associated with various sponsored projects in the above fields. It is one of the Government of India recognized Quality Improved Programme Centres and associated with topical research and development activities. The Department undertakes sponsored research from the AICTE, MHRD, UGO, CSIR, etc. 

The department lends support to the collaborative project, seminars, workshops and also associates itself in different consultancy activities like design, detailing, quality control, project management, etc. to meet the challenges of both private and public sector projects. This department has made a significant contribution to the removal of arsenic from groundwater. The age-old prestigious department has stood the test of time, to bring home to the students, the scholar, the patrons and all concerned the fruits of development of Science and Technology and to enable them to face any challenge anywhere in the field of Civil Engineering.

Message from the Head

The Department of Civil Engineering  is the flagship department of this Institute of National Importance, presently known as IIEST, Shibpur; started its journey since 1856 as Civil Engineering College. The contribution of this department has been manifested in the development of Civil Engineering globally.

The academic programmes viz. B. Tech, M. Tech. and Ph.D. offered by the Department, are one of the best in the nation in terms of campus placement and research output. An efficient alumni network which is active both locally and globally, encouraged by the Department, has resulted in a strong mentor support system for passing out students.

Most of the faculty members of the Department are engaged in real time projects, research and consultancy works. This has resulted in a unique practical and theoretically balanced teaching and learning environment in the Department, which in turn is duly reflected in the NIRF ranking. A competent and cooperative support staff of the Department under able administration ensures smooth functioning of laboratory classes and various events associated with the Department.

With the collective efforts and dedication of the students, faculty members and staff of the Civil Engineering family at IIEST Shibpur and with active collaboration from the alumni and industry, the Department will scale new heights of teaching, research and innovation in future. 

I convey my best wishes to all.

Prof. Ambarish Ghosh

Professor and Head, 

Department of Civil Engineering, 

IIEST Shibpur. 

Milestones

• Started as Civil Engineering College on 24th November 1856, in the premises of the Writers’ Buildings, Calcutta
• First Degree Examination in 1864
• First Post Graduate Course introduced in 1954 (first time in India)
• Faculty exchange program with University of Wisconsin in 1954
• Had the distinction of having  pioneers in Engineering like Prof. Gerald Pickette, Prof. James R. Villemonte, Prof. Paul Anderson, R.L. Daugherty, Prof. A.C. Ingersoll, as visiting faculty members under the TMC scheme with USA.
• Selected as Teachers’ Training Institute Centre in 1959
• First PhD in Engineering in 1962 in India. 
• QIP Centre for M.E. (Civil) in 1990
• QIP Centre for PhD (Civil) in 2006
• In 2005 the Department was recognized as one of the State Technical    Agencies (STA) under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojona
• In 2007 the Department celebrated its 150th Anniversary by organizing an International Conference on Civil Engineering in the New Millennium : Opportunities and Challenges.
• In 2008 the School of Disaster Mitigation Engineering was established with initiative from this Department.
• In 2008 the Advanced Centre for Environment and Water resources Engineering was established in collaboration with Queen’s University, Belfast.
• In 2013, the department was included as one of the nodal institutes in Supra Institutional Network Project for Development of Indian Highway Capacity Manual (Indo-HCM) funded by planning commission of India under the 12th Five Year Plans. 

Illustrious Alumni

• Rai Bahadur Anukul Ch. Mitra (1900) Engg. Incharge of construction of Victoria Memorial Hall, Calcutta.
• Rai Bahadur Girish Ch. Da (1891) Engg. In Charge, High Court Building, Calcutta.
• Dr. Fazlur Rahaman Khan, Pioneer in Structural Engineering
• Dr. Kajal Gupta, Chief Technologist, NASA-DFRC, USA.
• Dr, B.C.Ganguly, Formar Chairman, Indian Railway Board
• Dr. P.K. Basu, Former Chair, C.E. Department, Vanderbilt University
• Amrit Das, Founder Chairman, Research Engineers Inc. USA.