UCE Burla team’s meeting with the CM and others: a first person report
October 17th, 2007
Following is a first person report from one of the person who was present at the UCE Burla team’s meeting with the CM and others. (After the report, I will have a short analysis.)
It is Chak De hours for us, friends !
First, my thanks to the students who stood up to the task and continued their zero-incident strike for 12 days; they deserve huge ovation.
Second, thanks to CM who found time for us. Let me put in short what happened yesterday in CM’s meeting yesterday.Govt had lined up Industry Minister Mr Harichandan, Industry Secretary Mr Dalwai, CM’s principal secretary, VC of BPUT and two more gentlemen. We had six students, Principal Dr Sanyal, Dr CR Tripathy and yours faithfully me.
Students first narrated what made them to go for strike. CM asked Industry Secy to respond. Secy said – (a) Society Registration file is with Finance Dept, Finance Minister will sign it tomorrow (16 Oct), then Industry Secy & minister. It is a matter of two or three days’s procedural time. But no hurdles, clearly. (b) BPUT Act shall be amended to disengage UCE from BPUT. It is none of our botheration. UCE will straightway go ahead to register as society. Industry Dept shall initiate a resolution in next Assembly. CM interjected to say it comes next month, in November. (c) CM said Govt will pursue the matter with UGC to ensure that we become Deemed University within 3 to 4 months. (but I personally believe it is an inadvertant over-statement by CM as state govt will not have any say in UGC except recommending. college authorities and we alumni have to pursue with UGC ourselves).
After students finished, I made few appeals on behalf of alumni. (a) Being the one and only college from Orissa which has potential to be put
into the league of quality colleges like Bengal Engg College, Jadavpur Univ, Osmania Univ, BHU, BIT or Anna University, state govt needs to go an extra mile beyond just conferring Deemed Univ status. CM nodded. (b) Only infrastructure added after it was built 50 years back by Hirakud Dam Project are a new library and an auditorium. Not only the 50-years-old college needs massive renovation, it also badly needs many more modern infrastructures. CM may plz depute high-level officials along with the Chief Architect of Orissa to campus who will assess the infrastructure, submit a master plan to CM based on which funds could be released over three/four years. CM nodded, asked his Secy to note it. (c) If UCE has to expand, which it will, it neds more land. Before encroached unauthorised by people, Govt may direct the local administration to transfer 300 acres available adjacent to UCE. CM said "he will look into this" (d) Alumni are rock-solid behind UCE. Alumni have built a Gate and are building an e_Learning Centre. I showed him the photos from the farther corner of the distance. CM asked me to come to him with the photos and had a long close look at both the structures. Jubilee Gate resembles India Gate, he commented. Said, he is happy that alumni are committed to the alma mater. Meeting ended. All for nearly 30 minutes. Students declared, they had called off the strike.Later, Secy said CM kept a delegate of investors waiting as he wanted this meeting with UCE first. Some or other in Orissa go on strike everyday, but are rarely invited by CM for a meeting. Govt wants UCE to grow, he said. It seemed so.
How much of the committments shall be kept is to be seen. But, I believe Govt can not go back what they said so emphatically. one thing is sure, we have succeeded to move the wheel. It should move on from now. But, we cannot and will not rest before UCE is indeed conferred "Deemed University" and then an "IIT or IIEST".
One of UCE’s … well-wisher …, Prof Chitta Baral of Arizona University had advised us to demand for "State University" like BESU or Ravenshaw. But, we were cautioned by Industry Secy not to talk of State Univ or IIT in the meeting and we did not. And, rightly so. Thanks to Dr Baral for his passion for UCE.
All the local news papers today have carried the News on front page. It is Chak De UCE, finally.
A proud UCEian.
My Comments:
This is a good start. Congratulations! I am hopeful that with the CM’s efforts UCE will get the "deemed university" tag quickly. But as mentioned above, it is not enough to be a deemed university. Being a deemed university does not guarantee adequate funding. So everyone must be ready to go to the next step; assuring good funding for UCE Burla. Unlike what is reported in Sambada, NIT Rourkela’s funding did not increase because it became a deemed university. It increased because central government took it over. There are many ways to ensure UCE Burla gets adequate funding. One way is to get the "funded by UGC" tag and become eligible to get UGC funds. Another way is to get taken over by the central government and/or become an NIT, IIEST or IIT. Another way is to push the state government and Orissa industries to fund UCE Burla at a higher level. Yet another way is to get commitment from industries such as MCL regarding funding some UCE departments.
Entry Filed under: Sambaplpur-Burla-Jharsuguda-Baragarh area (4),UCE Burla (became a university),VSS University of Technology (formerly UCE Burla)
4 Writeup
1. Sandip Kumar Dasverma | October 18th, 2007 at 12:14 am
Dear Friends:
UCE Burla missed a golden opportunity by not mentioning about a State University. Deemed University would be following BE College, Shibpore path. We could have avoided one step by going straight to STATE UNIVERSITY. After all 10 year old KITTS is a deemed University, why 50 year old UCE will try to be that.
The investment in the institute matters and has not been done. Being a deemed University will not get any money from Anywhere.
To upgrade my suggestion is to raise 10 crores immediately by the Alumni – 50 plus Chief Engineers could make a committee and ask for Industry donation and raise donations. Nearly 15 thousand Alumni if they donate Rs. 10 thou each on average and then continue starting with 1 to 5 thousand/year – they can really do things. There might be better ideas to raise funds. Making a state University would have allowed it to get UGC affiliation and funds, like Ravenshaw Univ. But one has to seek and this is where the august Alumni of UCE can act in unison and in one voice to be effective.
Warning: If a consensus is not built among the Alumni, it will not work.
2. S K Sahoo | October 18th, 2007 at 1:58 am
Dear sir
As non-resident Indians,we have the humble responsibility to educate the people of Orissa regarding their exploitation by centre.Print media has failed miserably to influence the people as they get lollypops as advertisements from railways(If a dog barks,throw a piece of bread).Centre is exploiting iron ore,coal from the state through central publc sectors ,transporting through railways & producing steel in other states/nation.Whereas there is no infrstructure developments like rail lines/trains,ports,highways ,educational institutions,central hospitals etc for last 60 years.People in KBK area are dying in hunger & malnutrition without any medical facilities. It is day light robbery.We can not be fooled all the time.Let us educate & influence people through SMS,internet & powerful media like local news channels.
S.K.Sahoo
3. Sandip Kumar Dasverma | October 19th, 2007 at 4:02 am
This is a response to Mr. S. K. Sahoo. This week we had a discussion with Deogarh MP, Sri Dharmendra Pradhan. Among many things he told us are:
1. There has never been problem with Railway land acquisition. It seems Railways are still PIMBY(Put it in my Backyard) industry).
2. In case of Railways – GOOs Revenue department is the main culprit for the delay.
Now if we know and identify the problem correctly – we will be able to solve it. Else the game will continue for ever.
I fully agree with your comment “Let us educate & influence people through SMS,internet & powerful media like local news channel”. As you can see this will need an WiFi net work stretching to 314 Blocks of the state. We sadly have a similar situation for which Orissa lost the 1st IIT to West Bengal in late 1940s. The political leadership of the state are unaware of the potentials of leap frogging, with such a route, as then. Orissa had the 1st shot of having the new IIT in late 1940s. But for Orissa leadership of the day, it was not a priority.
Yes. we should go for distant education path to solve the major problem of lack of development but we have to push BBSR to do their bit.
4. Jaya Shankar Singh | October 20th, 2007 at 3:40 pm
Thank u all 4 getting time to think about ur(our means u,me and all) college…..
I m on of the 5 students who met CM(orissa).
Mr Sandeep have said that we missed a golden oportunity….i don’t think so.
Our strike was started to force government 4 society registration not to get IIT status or anything else.It is a stepwise process.In last 20 years we have not constructed a single building in our college,we r lagging by 20 year but still we r far above in infrastucture and academic in camparision with any other technical college in state.
We r fighting 4 what we deserve nd we will never giveup……only thing we need is ur support.
Thanks alot………………………………