School of Earth Sciences
Department of Geography
UGC-SAP Sponsored Department

The Department of Geography is established in Bharathidasan University in July 2001 with the vision to conduct research in frontier and emerging areas of geography and to disseminate the knowledge to the community.
Before 2001, the faculty members of the Department of Geography were attached with the erstwhile School of Earth Sciences. Even though the School of Earth Sciences was started in November 1987 it became a full-fledged School only in August 1989. As the School was composed of geography and geology faculty members, it started a P.G Diploma in Remote Sensing programme in 1990 and later it was upgraded to M.Tech Remote Sensing in 1994 to impart remote sensing knowledge to both the branches of the disciplines. M.Sc Applied Geography and M.Phil Geography programmes were started in the year 1996 and 1999 respectively with the existing faculty members of geography in the School of Earth Sciences to comply the demands made by the geography students in and around Tiruchirappalli. Several students, who had completed M.Sc Applied Geography programme from the School, have successfully passed out the examinations like State Level Educational Test (SLET), National Eligibility Test (NET) etc.
In order to develop the concerned subject with its own style and functions, for its separate identity and recognition and tune the subject through modern research the School of Earth Sciences was trifurcated into three different Departments viz., Department of Geography, Department of Geology and Centre for Remote Sensing under the new banner of School of Geosciences in July 2001.
The Department of Geography has vibrant faculty, undertaking a full range of degree programmes from M.Sc. in Geosciences to Ph.D. in emerging and frontier areas of geography. During the academic year 2002-2003, M.Tech programme in GIS was introduced. The University Grants Commission (UGC), New Delhi has awarded an Innovative Programme on Post Graduate Diploma in Geomatics to the Department in April 2005. The Geomatics Laboratory was established with the state of art infrastructure and GIS software in 2005. In the year 2006-2007, the Department introduced a five-year integrated M.Sc programme in Geosciences.
During 2008-2009, the UGC awarded Special Assistance Programme (SAP) DRS Phase-I level with the outlay of Rs. 50.50 lakhs and two project fellows to the Department. Additionally, the UGC has also granted Rs. 20.00 lakhs in the form of BSR to this SAP assisted Department to strengthen its infrastructure. By utilizing the UGC fund, the Department has established an Automatic Weather Station (AWS); with the support of NGRI, Hyderabad the Department maintains a Seismic Station and with the coordination of IIRS-ISRO, Dehradun it conducts EDUSAT outreach programme to the remote sensing aspirant community. The Indian Society of Remote Sensing (ISRS), Dehradun has housed its Tiruchirappalli Regional Chapter of ISRS at the Department. As many as 87 students out of 97 students passed out from the Department have been well placed in leading research and academic institutions and MNCs in various parts of the World.