Nutrition and Food Chemistry

Biography

Dr. Surajit Mitra is a Professor and Head of the Department of Post Harvest Technology under the Faculty of Horticulture at Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya (Agril. University), West Bengal, India. Prof. (Dr.) Surajit Mitra acquired his B.Sc. (Ag.) Hons. degree securing a first class in 1990 from Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya (Agril. University), West Bengal, India. He received the M. Sc. (Ag.) in Horticulture and Ph. D. in Horticulture degrees also from Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya in 1993 and 1998 respectively. He was awarded several National and International Fellowships, and participated in International Training Courses on Postharvest Technology, and has research experience of having worked at Kasetsart University, Thailand; Postharvest Education Foundation, USA; Agricultural Research Organization, Israel; and Wageningen University, Netherlands. He also attended and presented several research papers on postharvest technology in International Conferences in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Germany. Prof. Mitra delivered a Lead Lecture on “Tropical tubers as alternate staple crops for food and nutrition security” in the International Seminar on ‘Agriculture and Food for Inclusive Growth and Development during 14-15 January, 2017 at Lucknow, U.P., India. He also delivered an Invited Lecture in the workshop on Strengthening Impact Assessment in the CGIAR (SIAC) – Sweet potato organised by International Potato Center (CIP), Peru in Jameson Inn Shiraz, Kolkata on April 10, 2016. Prof. Mitra has published 46 research papers in peer reviewed national and international journals, authored 6 book chapters and 1 book on postharvest technology of horticultural crops in general and tropical tuber crops in particular. He has acted as an invited editor for special issues on postharvest technology in some Open Access Journals. Prof. Mitra has also been serving as a reviewer and an editorial board member of several reputed journals. Among various recognitions, Best AICRP Centre Award, Chaudhary Debi Lal Outstanding AICRP Award from Indian Council of Agricultural Research as a team member of AICRP on Tuber Crops; Best Paper Award by International Society for Horticultural Science for a collaborative research work with colleagues in Venezuela; Outstanding Scientist Award-2015 from Venus International Foundation, Chennai, India; Achiever Award-2015 from SADHNA, Dr. YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India and Eminent Scientist Award-2016 from are noteworthy.

Research Interest

Research Interest and area of specialization: i) Nutritional facts, postharvest quality maintenance, handling and storage of horticultural crops in general and tropical tuber crops including sweet potato in particular. ii) Pre- and post-harvest evaluation and characterization of indigenous germplasms of different horticultural crops including tropical tuber crops to identify promising types having higher productivity, better nutritional quality and longer storability. iii) Reducing food waste and enhancing food security.