Cotton university

Vice Chancellor Message

• Prof. Ramesh Ch. Deka assumed office as the Vice Chancellor of Cotton University on September 16, 2022.  A well acclaimed chemist with over 25 years of research experience, Prof. Deka is a Professor of Chemistry at Tezpur University, Assam. He has over 200 peer reviewed publications in prestigious international journals to his credit.

• He earned his degree in Bachelor of Science in 1991 from Cotton College, the Master of Science degree in 1994 from Gauhati University and the Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1998 from Pune University, working at National Chemical Laboratory, Pune.  He carried out his post-doctoral research in the University of Tokyo, Japan (1999-2001). He was also awarded the prestigious Humboldt post-doctoral fellowship for research at Technical University of Munich, Germany (2003-2005).  

• Prof. Deka has developed and applied computer models to heterogeneous catalysis.  By combining computational methods with experiments, he has contributed to areas as diverse as catalysis, nanoscience and drug design.  His approach has advanced understanding of reaction mechanism of industrial catalysts, especially involving microporous materials and metal oxides.  He has developed foreign collaborations with University College London, UK; Cardiff University, UK and Tohoku University, Japan.

• Prof. Deka also explored some hitherto unknown facets of history of science in North East India.  The first validated reports on Dr. Radhikaram Dhekial Phookan, the first Ph. D. from Assam and on Dr. John Berry White, the founder of the first medical school in Assam have been published by him in peer reviewed journals and are widely acclaimed.

• He has held various administrative positions in the course of his career, among which Head, Department of Chemical Sciences; Dean, School of Sciences and Director, Centre for Multidisciplinary Research, Tezpur University deserve mention.