Sachindra Nath Das Gupta was awarded the PhD in 1929 by the University of London and the DSc in 1979 by the University of Kalyani. Working in the area of mycology and plant pathology, he was Professor of Botany at the University of Lucknow before he was appointed Vice-Chancellor of the University of Kalyani. He was a Member of the Public Service Commission, West Bengal as well as a Counsellor in Agricultural Sciences at UNESCO, Paris.

Academic and Research Achievements: Das Gupta’s research contributions lie in the areas of saltation (mutation) in fungi, mango necrosis, storage disorders, host-pathogen interaction, leather mycology, paper pulp mycology, predacious fungi, aquatic fungi, deficiency, diseases, air pollution, lichenology, virology, medical mycology and reclamation of user lands.

Other Contributions: Professor Das Gupta served on the governing bodies of Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow, and National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow. He was also on the editorial board of Mycopathology. He served on the INSA Council (1952-64).

Awards and Honours: In 1957, Professor Das Gupta was elected President of the Botany Section, Indian Science Congress. He was a Fellow at the Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore and National Academy of Sciences (India), Allahabad as well as being an Honorary Fellow of the Indian Botanical Society, and of the Indian Phytopathological Society. He held Honorary Membership of the American Phytopathological Society and the Botanical Society of France.