Surendranath College

Surendranath College is an undergraduate college in Kolkata, West Bengal, affiliated to the University of Calcutta. It traces its origin to the Presidency School, taken over by Surendranath Banerjee in 1882. In 1884 it was renamed Presidency Institution and affiliated to the University of Calcutta, then elevated to a first-grade degree college named Ripon College, with the building constructed by Gagan Chandra Biswas. A Department of Law was started in 1884-85, later becoming Ripon Law College in 1911. A women's section opened in 1931, and an evening science section in 1947; both became separate institutions in 1960 (Surendranath Evening College and Surendranath College for Women). The college was renamed for its founder in 1948-1949. Swami Vivekananda delivered his first Calcutta address on the college campus after his Chicago speech. The college offers science, arts, and commerce courses, is UGC recognized, and received a NAAC B+ grade in 2017. It developed a low-cost hand sanitiser called Sparsho during the Coronavirus Pandemic. Eminent faculty and alumni include historians, poets, politicians, and freedom fighters.