Biotechnology program in IIT Kharagpur was initiated in 1986 with the introduction of an MTech Course in Biotechnology and with the generous support from the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India and dynamic activities by faculty, the program bred excellence in the spheres of teaching/training and research. The wide appreciation of the program in the country and abroad led to introduction of an undergraduate course in Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering in 1994, and an independent Department in 1999, with BTech (Hons), MTech, PhD and Post-Doctoral activities. In the MTech course, a balanced exposure (both in theory and in practice) of modern biology and bioprocess engineering is given. The achievements in industry-Institute collaborative research, process/product/equipment development, patent and technology transfer on inventions are indicative of the excellence of the program. The faculty has strong interaction with reputed Institutions of national and international importance. The Department has state-of-the-art facilities in Cell and Molecular Biology, Plant Biotechnology, Biochemistry, Fermentation, Biochemical Engineering, Downstream Processing, Bioinformatics, r-DNA Technology, Bioseparation, Microbiology and Immunology, Molecular Genetics, Protein Chemistry, Proteomics, Genomics. The Department offers following specialization: : BT      Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering Core Subjects: New Separation Processes in Biotechnology, Immunotechnology, Biotechnology of Plant Metabolites, Recombinant DNA Technology. Electives: Aspects of Biochemical Engineering, Applicable Mathematics and Statistics, Programming and Data Structures, Biophysics and Instrumental Methods in Biology, Bioprocess Plant and Equipment Design, Secondary Metabolism in Plants and Microbes, Solid Waste Management, Biomedical Engineering, Biotechnology in Crop Improvement, Immobilization Technology, Quality Control in Biotechnology, Industrial System Dynamics and Policy Planning, Technology Forecasting and Assessment, Protein Engineering, Industrial Water pollution Control and management, Total Quality Management  and ISO 9000, Materials Management, Computer Process Control, Seed Production Technology. The lecture classes are supported by well-planned laboratory demonstrations in New Separation Processes, Plant Biotechnology, Cell Culture and Hybridoma Technology, Genetic Engineering.
Areas of Research High frequency mass propagation, cell culture and metabolic/genetic manipulation in plant in liquid media and bioreactor, continuous ethanol production by using novel bioreactor, characterization of fibroin protein and analysis of fibroin gene structure; characterization of virus infecting tasar silk worms, gene expression in prokaryotic and eukayotic system; hydrogen production by bacterial fermentation, microbial herbicides production, proteomics of protein-protein interactions, polyclonal and monoclonal antibody production, recombinant protein production in plant, animal and microbial cells, microbial fuel cells, genetic modification of antibiotic sensitivity and biofilm formation, physiological formation of auxiliary components in bacterial cell wall and their implications, immunomodulatory and  anticancer peptide from plant lectin and mushroom proteoglycan as immunomodulator, lectin array on microfluidic platform, skin and bone tissue engineering, molecular analysis of microbial communities, metagenomics, bioremediation of metal and hydrocarbons, microbial synthesis of metal and nanoparticles alongwith its characterization and application, silk based biomaterials for tissue engineering and their biotechnological and other biomedical applicants, purification and fermentor-level production of lipopeptide biosurfactants from marine bacteria, development of probiotic based nutracenticals, process development and optimization for continuous biodiesel production, process integration for biotethonal  production, structural investigation of proteins from pathogenic organism like M tuberculosis and S. aureus, genetic improvement of jute and oil seeds.
Home Page : Department of Biotechnology	BACK