Odisha HRD

The State Government has decided to elevate Khallikote Autonomous College here and Gangadhar Meher College at Sambalpur to unitary university status, said Higher Education Minister Debi Prasad Mishra here today.

A government appointed task force on higher education reforms had suggested upgrading these two premier autonomous colleges to university status, the Minister said while addressing a function of the Students’ Union of Khallikote College.

Mishra however stressed the need to develop necessary infrastructure facilities before the second oldest college of the State was declared a unitary university.

While at least 50 acre was required, Khallikote Autonomous College had only 16.74 acres of land in its possession.

“There is a proposal to get another 2.50 acres from transport departments garage adjoining the college”, he said.

The Minister asked the local MLAs to locate another 50 acres in the town for the college’s expansion. He also assured the students to fill up the vacant posts soon. Around 50 out of 90 posts of teaching staff are vacant in the 132-yearold college, where over 3,600 students are pursuing studies in 19 different departments, 15 of them having post-graduate departments.

With UCE Burla granted the Unitary State University (USU) status, lawmakers of southern Orissa have urged the Chief Minister to declare the century-old Khallikote Autonomous College (KAC) in Berhampur, an USU. 

The KAC has been the Center of Learning and intellectual pursuits in Orissa since long. 

Lawmakers including Sugyani Kumari Deo, R CC Patnaik, Bikram Kesari Arukh, Usha Devi, Ladu Kishore Swain, Bharat Paik, Niranjan Pradhan and Saroj Kumar Padhi have requested the Chief Minister to take up the matter to the next Cabinet. 

All of them have appealed Naveen Patnaik to upgrade the institution from autonomous status to USU. 

The Chief Minister has asked the Higher Education department to take up the case. 

Accordingly Madhu Sudan Padhi, Commissioner-cum-Secretary Higher Education has processed the file, said sources. 

A Cabinet Note is being prepared for the purpose, revealed an official. 

Most likely the proposal will be accepted, thanks to the elections round the corner. 

Than Orissa will have 3 unitary universities with Ravenshaw and UCE Burla (VSS) Unitary University earlier given the status. 

The KAC which started in 1856 as a Zilla School is now a full fledged Post Graduate College having autonomous status since 1990.