PROF. B. M. DAS MEMORIAL LECTURE

Foundation of the Association and Legacy of Prof. B. M. Das

The Indian Leather Technologists’ Association was established on 14th August 1950, under the visionary leadership of Late Prof. B. M. Das, a pioneering figure in the Indian leather industry. Since 1970, the Association has proudly commemorated its Foundation Day each year on 14th August, marked by the prestigious B. M. Das Memorial Lecture, delivered by distinguished personalities in the field.

Biography of Prof. Biraj Mohan Das

Prof. Biraj Mohan Das, widely revered as the father of the modern tanning industry in India, was born in Faridpur, Bengal (undivided India) in 1885. He had an outstanding academic background, securing First Class First in M.A. in Chemistry from Presidency College, Calcutta, in 1907. His brilliance caught the attention of Acharya P.C. Roy, the eminent chemist and Head of the Chemistry Department at Presidency College, who later facilitated Prof. Das’s entry into the Bengal Chemical and Pharmaceutical Works, India’s pioneering chemical enterprise.

Under Acharya Roy’s mentorship, the young Das developed a simplified process for manufacturing commercial sulphuric acid. Recognizing his potential, Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee, the eminent educationist and reformer, awarded him the Guru Prasanna Ghosh Scholarship to study Leather Chemistry and Technology at Leeds University, UK, in 1909, where he earned his M.Sc. degree in 1911 with distinction.

Driven by a deep commitment to apply scientific knowledge to industrial practice, Prof. Das travelled to Germany and Italy to gain hands-on experience in leather technology. He worked with Friedrich Bayer in Germany and further honed his skills in Italy, even acquiring fluency in German and Italian. He returned to India in 1914, just before the onset of World War I.

Upon his return, Prof. Das joined National Tannery, the first chrome tannery in eastern India, and played a pivotal role in its success. A visionary and reformer, he recognized the urgent need to modernize and scientifically develop India’s tanning industry. In collaboration with Dr. Nil Ratan Sarkar, he contributed to the founding of the Bengal Tanning Institute (now known as the Government College of Engineering and Leather Technology) which originated from the Calcutta Research Tannery established in 1914.

Prof. Das was instrumental in attracting young, educated minds to what was then a socially overlooked profession. Many of his students went on to become leading experts, shaping the Indian leather industry and contributing to global research and education in the field. Under his guidance, the Institute made significant advances in leather research, resolving critical challenges and improving leather quality across various sectors of the industry.

Highly regarded both as a scientist and practical tanner, Prof. Das earned the admiration of leather industry leaders worldwide. In 1953, he was appointed the first Director of the Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), which grew under his leadership to become one of the world’s largest research institutions in leather technology. He also organized the first-ever symposium on leather technology in India, marking a historic milestone in the industry’s academic and technical evolution.

Recognizing the need for a united body to advance education, research, and professional fraternity in leather technology, Prof. Das passionately advocated for the formation of a national association. His vision materialized in May 1950, with the creation of the Indian Leather Technologists’ Association (ILTA), where he served as the Founder President. His leadership laid the foundation for a collaborative platform dedicated to knowledge sharing and technological advancement in the leather sector.

The life of this legendary man, dedicated to the service of leather industry, came to an end in September 6, 1956 in harness. Renowned Personalities who delivered B. M. Das Memorial Lecture

• 1970 A. Nordwig of the Max Planck Institute
• 1971
• 1972 J. J. Ghosh of the Calcutta University
• 1973 George Donath of Stahl Chemicals (G.B) Ltd.
• 1974
• 1975 M. M. Chakraborty of the Deptt. Of Applied Chemistry, University College of Science & Technology, Calcutta.
• 1976 A.Z. M.O. Gani of Savera & Co. Ltd.
• 1977 Z. Kotasek
• 1978 S. N. Bhattacharjee, Director Bose Institute.
• 1979 N. K. Bose, Head of the Department of Applied Chemistry of Calcutta University.
• 1980 S. K. Mukherjee a former Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University.
• 1981 R. K. Poddar, Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University.
• 1982 Dr. B. D. Nag Chaudhuri former Vice-Chancellor of the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
• 1983 C. Mazumder, Vice-President, ILTA.
• 1984 S. Krishnan, Acting Director, CLRI.
• 1985 G. Thyagarajan, Director, CLRI
• 1986 Z. Kotasek
• 1987 Sahasranaman
• 1988 R. B. Mitra, Director, CLRI,
• 1989 K. V. Raghavan, Dy. Director, CLRI.
• 1990
• 1991
• 1992
• 1993
• 1994 T. Ramasami, Dy. Director, CLRI.
• 1995
• 1996 Dilip Banerjee
• 1997 Roy Chowdhury
• 1998 B. Sen
• 1999 Debabrata Mukherjee
• 2000 A. N. Basu, Vice-Chancellor, Jadavpur University.
• 2001 Sri Buddhadeb Chattopadhyay
• 2002 Soumitra Sengupta, Deptt. of Theoritical Physic; Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science.
• 2003 J. Raghava Rao, CLRI.
• 2004 S. N. Kaul, Director Grade Scientist, Neeri, Nagpur
• 2005 Dileep Wakankar, General Manager, R & D and Product Safety, Clariant (India) Ltd. Mumbai
• 2006 C. Rajkhowa, Director, National Research Centre on Mithun, Jharnapani, Medziphema, Nagaland.
• 2007 A. . Mondal, Acting Director, CLRI.
• 2008 H. S. Maity, Director, Central Glass & Ceramic Research Institute, Jadavpur.
• 2009 O.K. Kaul, Executive Director of Tata International Ltd, Mumbai.
• 2010 Padmasree Dr. T. Ramasami, Secretary of Department of Science & Technology, Government of India.
• 2011 B.U.Nair, Director, Grade Scientist of CLRI, Chennai.
• 2012 Sadiq, CSIR-CLRI
• 2013 Shyamal Chakraborti, Department of Chemistry, Calcutta University
• 2014 C. Muralidharan, Chief Scientist of CSIR-CLRI
• 2015 Buddhadeb Chatopadhyay, Principal, GCELT
• 2016 B. Chandrasekaran, Director, CSIR – CLRI
• 2017 Kalyan Rudra, Chairman, West Bengal Pollution Control Board
• 2018 Ajoy Kumar Ray, Padmashri, IIT, Kharagpur and former Director, IIEST, Shibpur
• 2019 Amitava Bandyopadhyay, Dept. of Chemical Engineering, University of Calcutta and Mr. Prasanna Kumar Maduri, Campus Manager, Stahl India Pvt. Ltd., Kanpur
• 2020 Saikat Maitra, Hon’ble Vice Chancellor, Moulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology, Kolkata
• 2021 K. J. Sreeram, Director, CSIR-CLRI, Chennai & Vice President, ILTA
• 2022 Subrata Das, M. Tech (Leather Technology), Freelance Leather Technologist & Consultant
• 2023 Subhamoy Maitra, Professor at Applied Statistics Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata
• 2024 Malathy Jawahar, Senior Principal Scientist, CSIR-CLRI & Scientist-in-Charge, RCED, Kolkata,
• 2025 Dr. Amitava Bandopadhyay, Former Director, ICAR- National Research Centre for Groundnut & Founder National Coordinator, ICAR-National Agricultural Science Fund