Extension Lecture on ‘Cartography through ages’

The Department of Geography, The Bhawanipur Education Society College organized a Extension lecture primarily for the students of Semester 4 on the topic ‘Cartography through ages’ on 25.04.2023, Tuesday at 2:45 pm in the Geography Laboratory (Room no. 532). The lecture was delivered by Dr. Niladri Das, Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, Hiralal Bhakat College, Nalhati, Birbhum, West Bengal. The event was attended by 19 students and 2 teachers of the Geography and 1 teacher of the History Department

The welcome address was given by Dr Uttiya Chattopadhyay sharing more information with the students about Dr Das’s area of expertise and work. Dr Das started his lecture by orienting the students to some basic concepts of cartography. He went on to discuss through visual references of the development of the discipline. Beautiful old maps from ancient times kept the students mesmerized as Dr Das navigated through his presentation with many new information. The concept of ‘Mappa Munda’, Ptolemy’s map, understanding projections and the development of new/advanced branches of Cartography through digital means were new concepts where Dr Das moved a bit beyond their syllabus. The best was yet in store when Dr Das demonstrated the ‘Google Earth’ Application. Students had a great time looking at the satellite image of different parts of the Earth: the college, Statue of Liberty and Pyramids of Giza.

The session was concluded with a short interactive session, where students asked Dr Das about his passion for maps. Dr Debika Banerji and Dr Uttiya Chattopadyay co-ordinated the discussion session with inputs and insights.

At the end, a vote of thanks was given by Dr Debika Banerji thanking the speaker for his brilliant presentation which would be helpful for the students. It was hoped that more such events would be organized in the future.