ENCÆNIA February 16, 2011 Soumitra Chattopadhyay Citation for Conferment of the Degree of Doctor of Literature, honoris causa Mr Chancellor, it’s my great honour to present before you a most respected artiste of our aeon, Shri Soumitra Chattopadhyay, who epitomizes honour and integrity throughout every aspect of the fascinating odyssey of his life. Shri Chattopadhyay is an esteemed, innovative yet iconic film artiste who through his unparalleled approach stretched the “attention span” of Indian film connoisseurs. The quietly eloquent thespian of the Bengali film industry, Soumitra Chattopadhyay, an artiste par excellence, is regarded as a living legend, a virtuoso performer who has created a uniquely modern style rooted in profound knowledge and exceptional talent. Soumitra Chattopadhyay was born on 19th January 1935 at Krishnanagar, West Bengal. He graduated from the University of Calcutta with honours in Bengali literature. He started acting in Bengali theatre as an amateur child artist and had the honor of sharing stage with legendary stage personalities like Sisir Kumar Bhaduri in the early days (role of Suresh in Prafulla) of his career. He took lessons in acting with Ahindra Choudhury. In 1962 he co-edited the literary magazine Ekshon. In 1958, he started acting on-screen. He was with All India Radio, when he portrayed Apu in the third part of Satyajit Ray's Apu-trilogy,- Apur Sansar. He didn't look back and went on to do 300 plus films that include 14films by Ray plus gems from Tapan Sinha, Mrinal Sen, Asit Sen, Ajoy Kar, Tarun Mazumdar and others. Satyajit Ray was renowned for being a consistently sensitive director of actors, and Soumitra Chattopadhyay became a particular favorite, his chief asset undoubtedly being a naturally sensitive appearance that Robin Wood, in his book on the Apu Trilogy, described as "at once physical and spiritual, seems an ideal incarnation of Ray's belief in human potential." Subsequently Soumitra Chattopadhyay became a star in numerous films made by other directors. The roles he has played in Ray's films – as the husband in Devi , the suitor with tartan socks in Teen Kanya, the thinly veiled portrait of Rabindranath Tagore in Charulata , the arrogant leader in Aranyar din Ratri , or the revolutionary in the more recent Ghare Baire – have left a lasting impression. And in Uttoran, the last script penned by Satyajit Ray and directed by his son Sandip Ray, the talents of Soumitra Chattopadhyay are showcased, again. It is Chattopadhyay's talents that makes us question if the conventional climax was an end at all, or only a beginning. Shri Chattopadhyay acts, writes and directs plays in Bengali theatre. He reads and writes poetry and has a distinct place in the arena of Bengali poetry recitation. He also acts in television and played in folk dramas (Jatra s). He received the 'The Officier des Arts et Metiers', the highest award for arts from France, and lifetime achievement award from Italy. He is probably the only Indian actor to have a full-length documentary devoted to him by any Westerner - French director Catherine Berge made a documentary film titled ‘Gaach’ (Tree) on his life. in 2004 he was awarded with 'Padma Bhusan' by President of India. But the best award for him is probably the love and the special place in the heart of film lovers. Shri Soumitra Chattopadhyay’s multidimensional talents, passionate, ingenious approach and stellar career are hallmarks for the world of film and television and society at-large. It is with utmost enthusiasm and respect that we laud his astonishing achievements. He is a person whom we know to be, in respect both of character and of learning, a laudable character and a fit and proper person, for admission to the honorary doctorate degree of Bengal Engineering and Science University, Shibpur. Mr Chairman, I have the honour and privilege to present Shri Soumitra Chattopadhyay, for admission to the degree of Doctor of Literature, honoris causa and I plead you to confer the degree upon him.

ENCÆNIA February 16, 2011 Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat Citation for Conferment of the Degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa I am delighted and honoured to be delivering the citation for the conferment of an Honorary Doctor of Science of the Bengal Engineering and Science University, Shibpur upon Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat. Dr Saraswat is a truly outstanding individual, and it is hard to know where to begin to describe his many achievements and talents. He is one of the leading applied scientists of India, who has triumphed in the field of missile technology. He has been a forerunner in the development of a number of critical missile technologies, thus making India self-reliant in Missile Technology, defying the denial imposed due to the Missile Technology Control Regime A Master in Mechanical Engineering from IISc, Bangalore, Dr. Saraswat later specialized and obtained his doctorate in Combustion Engineering. Dr. Saraswat started his career in DRDO in 1972 at the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad He pioneered the Design and Development of Liquid Propulsion Rocket Engines for various defence applications including development of India’s First large thrust LP Engine “Valiant” to power Intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBMs). He was instrumental for the successful development and productionisation of 3 ton L.P. engine for Prithvi and the earlier versions of Agni missiles from scratch when India embarked on the most ambitious and prestigious Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP). Under his leadership, the successful testing of ‘Dhanush’ missile on board a moving ship with high terminal accuracy brought a new dimension in the national defence capability. In 2009, the Indian Government appointed Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat as Secretary to Dept of Defence R&D, Director General of DRDO & Aeronautical Development Agency and Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister. Dr Saraswat with his visionary outlook steers science and technology programs of DRDO and policy with a mission to develop world class technology in Missiles, Aeronautics, Armaments, Materials and Life Sciences through the mechanism of scientific breakthroughs and transferring science to robust technology. With the changing times and the advances in defence technologies worldwide, he initiated many measures for promotion of defence technologies in the specialist labs. The scientific career of Dr VK Saraswat spans over 38 years and his defence research won him international acclaim. International Academy of Engg, Russia elected him as a Member of Academy and honored him as Academician in 2007, a rare distinction for an Indian scientist. The Times Magazine of United States in its Issue dated 17 Sep 2007 described Dr Saraswat as an Innovator working on New Technologies. These include development of Propulsion System to accelerate to Mach 8 speed, SCRAMJET and AVATAR (Aerobic Vehicle for Advanced Trans Atmospheric Research) at low cost. During his illustrious career, Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat won many accolades and Awards. A few to mention here are, Padmashree by Government of India in 1998, ; DRDO’s Technology Leadership Award, Scientist of the Year Award, Path Breaking Research Award; National Aeronautical Prize by Aeronautical Society Of India in 1993; Distinguished Alumni Award from Indian Institute of Science Alumni Association 2010; Dr Y Nayudamma Memorial Award in 2010; Prof Jai Krishna Memorial Award of Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE) in 2009; Outstanding Scientist honour by Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar in 2006; Award for Vocational Excellence in Leadership by Rotary International District 3140, Mumbai during its convention for Mankind in 2002; FICCI Annual Award for the year 2005 and Outstanding Indian Award from One India One People in 2006. Today, we are very honoured that Dr Saraswat is among us here so that our teachers and students have the opportunity to admire him in person. Mr. Chancellor, it is my privilege and pleasure to present to you Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat, a distinguished scientist and a modest and dedicated scholar, for the award of the degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa.

ENCÆNIA February 16, 2011 Prof Ashoke Sen Citation for Conferment of the Degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa Mr Chancellor, it’s my great honour to deliver here a citation for Prof. Asok Sen, legendary renowned professor, brilliant physicist, tenacious and productive researcher, innovative and motivating lecturer, and a prolific author. His sure-fire zeal, supreme intellect, deep abiding faith in science, unshakable passion, and resourceful conscientious approach to the pursuit of knowledge, have been the hallmarks of his life.

A native of Kolkata, Prof Sen was born on July 15, 1956 and obtained his Bachelors degree in Physics from Calcutta University in 1975. He completed his MSc from the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur in 1978. He was awarded PhD by State University of New York at Stony Brook in 1982. In 1982 he joined Fermilab,- the famous US laboratory dedicated to high energy physics to carry out post-doctoral research. In 1985 he undertook research at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC). Having returned to India he joined Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (1988-95) before finally moving to the Harish-Chandra Research Institute (HRI). In recognition of his achievements, Dr Sen has been awarded the ICTP prize in 1989, S S Bhatnagar Award in 1994 and G D Birla Award in 1996. He has been elected as a fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences in 1991 and of the Indian National Science Academy in 1995. Professor Sen has made valuable contributions to the Superstring Theory, a theory that attempts to unify all the fundamental interactions of nature in a single framework. He has made important contributions to the field of classical solutions in string theories, string dualities, black hole solution in string theories and several other aspects of unified theories. His major original contributions to the subject of String Theory, include a landmark paper on strong-weak coupling duality or S-duality, which was influential in changing the course of research in the field. He pioneered the study of unstable D-branes and made the famous Sen Conjecture about open string tachyon condensation on such branes. His description of rolling tachyons has been influential in string cosmology. He has also co-authored many important papers on string field theory. One of his most recent contributions include the entropy function formalism for external black holes and its applications to attractors. His current research interests are centered around the attractor mechanism and the precision counting of microstates for black holes in string theory. Of his nearly 200 research papers, as many as 47 papers have over 100 citations each. In recognition of Prof Sen’s distinguished contribution, he has been honoured with Government of India’s prestigious civilian award, Padma Shri, in 2001. Mr Chancellor, Prof. Ashoke Sen’s magnificent, enthusiastic commitment to science, and his awesome, pioneering achievements are difficult to match. He epitomizes Bengal Engineering and Science University, Shibpur’s cherished core values of excellence, leadership, service, and truth. I feel honoured and privileged to approach you with the request to confer on him the degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa, in absentia.