Barun De has taught history at Calcutta, Oxford, Burdwan, Duke and Sydney universities. Professor of Social and Economic History at the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, founder-Director of the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, and of the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute, Calcutta, he also served as State Editor of the West Bengal District Gazetteers Office. In 1988, he was President of the Indian History Congress, Dharwar Session. After retirement, he served in Tashkent as India Chair. He has published and edited Freedom Struggle, Perspectives in Social Sciences 1; Essays in Honour of Susobhan Chandra Sarkar, and has numerous articles in journals.