It may be interesting to observe that although undergraduate teaching in commerce in Bihar started in 1942, facilities for post-graduate study in this subject were not available in the state until the establishment of this Department in 1951. It was under the persistent public demand that the then then Vice Chancellor of Patna University, Shri Sarangdhar Sinha, took the decision to start post-graduate teaching in the Faculty and created this Department for the purpose. The Department was put under the charge of Dr B. R. Mishra, M. A., Ph. D. (London), D.Sc. Econ. (London) who took over the charge as the founder professor and Head of this Department on the 25th July, 1951. The Department has been assigned the task of Post-graduate teaching and research. The Post-Graduate teaching consists of four Semesters. The intake in each Semester is 100. The Department offers teaching in Management Course also. Since its establishment, the Department has slowly but steadily continued its effort towards the fulfilment of its cherished goal to develop study and research and to create for itself a place of honour in the academic world. By virtue of hard work, the Department has been transformed into a leading centre of learning and research in the field of commerce in the country. Thus, at present, the Department conducts two Post-Graduate level courses of Master of Commerce (M.Com.) & Master of Business Administration (MBA). Besides, the Department also supervises the research works of the researchers for the award of Ph.D. and D.Litt. degrees of Patna University. The Department has been continuously engaged in the development of innovative and creative skills among the Students of the Department which includes Project work, Practical- training, Industrial training, Survey-Work, Debates and Discussions, Business Plan, Case Studies Presentation, Workshop, Seminar, etc. The Department is proud to have a very good Seminar library which includes more than 13,571 text books and Reference Texts for Research. The Department has been fortunate to have a unique distinction with Dr H.H. Burnt, professor of Economics Almira College, New York (USA) as Visiting Professor during the Session: 1956-1957. The Master of Business Administration Programme, which is run by the Department, is one of the prestigious and more ambitious programmes of Patna University, the Seventh Oldest University in India, established in the year 1917. The Management Programme was started in the Department of Applied Economics and Commerce, Patna University in the year 1977, initially as the Diploma course and subsequently upgraded as the Post-Graduate Programme. The Degree in Master of Business Administration (MBA) awarded by the Patna University is recognized throughout the country and abroad. The Management Programme offers a two-year comprehensive MBA Course designed to provide a sound foundation for understanding the complexities of modern business and to equip the students with the analytical tools required for scientific decision-making. Thus, its basic objective is to train and equip students with knowledge and skills necessary for taking up managerial responsibilities in business enterprises. The Programme which includes teachings of Management Principles, Marketing, Organizational Behaviour, Business Environment, Management Information System, etc., is also designed to acquaint the students with all the important functional areas in business such as Finance, Marketing, Human Resource Management, etc. The theoretical foundation built in the students is reinforced by subjecting them to the rigors of Summer Training Programme and writing a Project Report so that during the course of the training itself, they may be in a position to test their knowledge of theory in its application to practical propositions. In tune with the above, the course curriculum, Class-room teachings and other related infrastructural facilities have been developed by the Department for the Management Programme. The growth and Development of the department is a continuous process. Various strategic efforts have constantly been made by the Department to develop the key and basic human response dimensions among the students highlighting their performance effectiveness which is important for a positive mental growth from the following spectrum: • Values vis-à-vis knowledge skills aspects among the students. • Teamwork, sense of Co-operation, sharing and trustworthiness among the students. • Inner harmony, creativity and Counseling to develop a unique core competence among the students. Professor (Dr) Umesh Mishra, Head and Director of the Department participated in the Residential Training Programme on “Enhancing organizational performance through ICT” at Goa, during 13-17 February, 2017. The Training Programme was organized by the National Productivity Council under Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India. Finally, the vision of the Department is to create future mangers of wisdom who will be able to develop a very strong Economic Base for our Great Nation strategically with sustainability.

First Head of the Department: Dr B. R. Mishra,

Present Head of the Department and Director of Management Programme : Prof. (Dr.) Mahesh Chandra Prasad

Co-ordinator of Management Programme : Dr. Ashim Lal Chakraborty