Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, West Bengal, was formed in 1974. The university has distinct mandates for offering agricultural education both at UG, PG levels and doctoral levels, conducting agricultural research and extension programmes. The administrative seat at Mohanpur also houses the Faculties of Agriculture, Horticulture and Agricultural Enginnering apart from the Directorate of Farms and Directorate of Extension Education. The Directorate of Research and the Farmers Training Centre are located sixteen kilometres away at Kalyani. This apart, it has three Regional Research Stations at Gayeshpur, Jhargram and Kakdwip catering to farmers need and research for New Alluvial Zone, Red and Laterite Zone and Coastal Saline Zone respectively along with Regional Rserach Substations at Raghunathpur, Sekhampur and Chakdah.

In its journey over the past 35 years the university took up the challenge of the farmers interest and farm entrepreneurs across the agro-climatic zones of West Bengal, challenges of modern agriculture, changing climatic considerations and earned a distinguished place in the map of agricultural education, research and extension and emerged as a centre of excellence at the national level.

The Farmers Training Centre has come up under the Directorate of Extension Education with necessary training infrastructure. This centre has not only benefited the trainees from different part of the State country but also from all neighbouring states. Besides, this Directorate also has under its control the Krishi Vigyan Kendra Projects in various locations.

At present the BCKV is responsible for catering to the needs of agriculture only in the southern districts of West Bengal.

The Directorate of Research carries out its technology generation, refinement and standardization endeavour through a network of various Research Units of the University. The statutory authorities involved with the research policies are the Executive Council and the Court. The degree research programmes (M.Sc.and Ph.D) are basically regulated and monitored by the Board of Research Studies and, the different departmental Boards of Studies. An overall coordinating authority is the Research Council, which maintains a direct liaison with the Extension Education Council. At each Regional Research Station (RRS), the local arrangement is looked after by the respective Regional Research Station. The Directorate of Research runs three Regional Research Stations and three Sub-Stations, has the All India Coordinated Research Projects (AICRPs) under its control.  Two other state supported permanent research establishments namely, Crop Research Unit and Nodule Research Unit are located at Mohanpur and a Govt. of India Project on Cost of Cultivation operates from the Directorate.  Several National Agricultural Innovation Projects and Ad-hoc Projects and projects under Private Public Partnership mode work in priority areas.  The entire research programme of the University is funded by different agencies with the major share coming from the ICAR and GoWB. In addition to these agencies, there are other national and international agencies, which provide funds for research.