Odisha HRD

7 Writeup

• 1. Viswas  |  May 30th, 2008 at 4:12 pm

  Sir, from the examples sighted by you, it is pretty clear that except Orissa in rest all states the institutions have been evenly distributed. Now in future what shall be done is a separate issue, but your analysis is a pointer towards the uneven spread of institutions in Orissa. Thanks for bringing out the disparity existing in Orissa with factual evidence. God forbid if the NIT even comes to Orissa and few people say that there is no NIT in Our capital so let us have one as we can’t rule out that possibility. So unless that approach is changed whole Orissa will suffocate just under an affluant Capital.

• 2. Chitta Baral  |  May 30th, 2008 at 6:52 pm

  Dear Viswas:

  You are so passionate and emotional about having IIT in Berhampur (which in a way is good), it is hard to discuss things with you on this topic. You read and interpret things that suit your goal. Let me make one more try.

  1. For IIT location, there has been hardly any argument from anyone that I know that IIT should be in BBSR because it does not have one. The closest is I said that BBSR does not have a good institution that offers M.Tech and Ph.D in various engineering subjects and such an institution will be helpful to the 40+ and growing engineering colleges that are in the area or coming up.

  2. The IIT location was kind of sealed when the central govt. made proximity to airport (meaning a running one) as a requirement. Rourkela, Jharsuguda and Sambalpur (50 kms from Jharsuguda) are more likely to satisfy that requirement in the near future than Berhampur. So a future goal of Berhampur should be to push for a regional airport more towards Berhampur (say 30 km south of Khurda) so that in the future many locations near Berhampur will be within an hour of this airport.

  3. There are some states where the situation is similar to Orissa; although I would have prefered that the IIT and WCCU were at the two ends of a corridor. Patna will have the IIT, WCCU and it actually has the NIT. It also has an international airport away from Patna, in Gaya. Ahmedabad-Gandhinagar (40 km apart) will have the WCCU and the IIT. Gujarat has actually few other well developed cities with airports. Surat has an airport. Jamnagar also has an airport with Deccan and Indian flights. In Assam, the IIT and WCCU will both be in greater Guwahati. Tezpur has an airport with flights to Kolkata and Johrhat.

  4. There will be support from all of Orissa if there was a push for an NIT in Berhampur. People are always ready to pursue things from the center. The timing is right and this should be done. Some organized efforts on this have started and at some point you guys should join it. It is better to make a movement of that kind (NIT in Berhampur) rather than wait till an NIT is announced and then compete with people from other locations (not Bhubaneswar) who may also want the NIT. There will be also support towards AIIMS upgradation of MKCG, if it is done now; while people are sympathetic about the IIT issue. Months later things may change.
  A IIIT in Berhampur demand will also help. Eventhough NASSCOM recommended IIIT to be in BBSR, it may be possible to move or have a branch of the state initiated IIIT in Berhampur. One can use Andhra’s example, where IIIT Hydearabad will have a branch in Bassar (which was the location the previous govt. picked for an IIT.) At some point you guys got to move from option A (IIT) to Option B (NIT, IIIT and AIIMs).

• 3. Viswas  |  May 30th, 2008 at 8:48 pm

  If Bihar or Assam were to be the role models of Orissa, instead of Maharastra or Tamil Nadu then I accept that my logic is absurd. I don’t remember whether the central government put the condition of airport in earlier cases or not, but the bottom line is South of Bhubaneswar, the state never preferred to locate even a govt. engineering college. Whether that is reason enough to talk about the issue or not only time can say. But, I would like to reflect on one such instance from Andhra Pradesh where the earlier location of Basher for IIT was changed to Medak and it was the government of the state which proposed another central institute there to go ahead with Medak, again 70 kms from Hyderabad proper. In Orissa also it is the obligation of the government to consider the interests of various places while moving ahead with an emotive issue of IIT or Central University. I am not just talking about my citybut for other places of the state as well. Now bypassing the state the people can’t fight with the center directly, which has not been benevolent towards us. So, here is the reason of growing frustration inside the state and why blame the center, which can’t decide independently if the state doesn’t desire so or at least put forward its demand explicitly.
  I have been a fan of yours as far as persistence on a subject is concerned and like posting my thought on subjects which I believe are important and hence accept your views with humbleness.

• 4. Chitta Baral  |  May 30th, 2008 at 9:15 pm

  Viswas:

  I also mentioned Gujarat. 🙂

  The more people fight for the rights for different parts of Orissa the better.

  The lack of such fight is what has caused Rourkela to decline and Berhampur is on the rise. This is based on the number of private engineering colleges, existing and upcoming, in both areas.

  I see good things for Berhampur in the future; especially if people buy into the corridor idea and take advantage of its proximity to Bhubaneswar. The growth will continue along the side of Chilika lake because of the natural beauty and accessibility (by the side of NH).

  The approach which has a better chance of success is to play up Gopalpur port, proximity to the sea (which you are doing), Chilika lake and Bhubaneswar.

  Three years back when we started our campaign about NIS, BBSR did not have a single large scale national institute. Now it has completely turned around. So keep up with your effort; but broaden it. It is quite realistic to achieve (i) NIT (ii) AIIMS upgradation (iii) IIIT branch (iv) upgradation of Berhampur engg school to an Engineering college (v) international airport within an hour of Berhampur and some knowledge clusters (10-15 engg colleges in one location) near Berhampur.

  The IIT in Berhampur campaign effort has probably helped you build a Berhampur focused network which will be very useful for all of the above. I would be happy to help. If you all make a comprehensive plan (somewhat along the lines I mentioned above), with the CM and a central minister having their constituencies from that area, chances are bright that a lot of it can happen.

• 5. Chitta Baral  |  May 30th, 2008 at 9:20 pm

  Some of the above the state can do. For the things that involves central govt. (NIT, AIIMS), if it does not happen with this govt. at center, the state can put it as a condition during next govt. formation.

  It is important to play-up the corridor as much as possible. There are other directions that BBSR can grow, for example Dhenkanal, Kalinganagar or Paradeep but having both the NH and Chilika lake will help the growth to be more towards Berhampur. But conscious efforts have to be made towards that.

• 6. Chitta Baral  |  May 30th, 2008 at 9:28 pm

  I have some additional information, which I have not spelled out yet, because of which I have stopped focusing on the location for the IIT, and started focusing on the future.

• 7. Viswas  |  May 31st, 2008 at 3:55 pm

  At least there is someone to say that Berhampur is on the rise. What extraordinary the state govt. has done in the last 20 years to make the city rise no body knows. In 1961 when there were two cities with population above 1 lakh then these were Cuttack and Berhampur. Ravenshaw and Khallikote College are the two colleges entering 140 years of their establishment and were the torchbearers of higher education in Orissa till independence.
  So, Berhampur has not risen due to the decline of some other city but the fact is Berhampur depended the least on state initiative to grow, basically due to its entreprising people. But, yes the absence of state support has resulted in 5 lakh youth of the district depending on Surat alone and not Berhampur, which could have been their natural destination.
  It always needed a big-push to emerge on the national map but that never came its way. It is because of efforts from people like you and many other that the hope of Berhampur doesn’t die down. But, I must say the state support always remained elusive, even though Berhampur produced a President of India an alumnus of Khallikote College, a former Prime Minister who got elected from here or at least half a dozen CMs including the present incumbent who represented this district.