Odisha HRD

ESIC plans a medical college in Bhubaneswar

Employee’s state insurance corporation plans to establish a medical college in Bhubaneswar. Currently they have the following hospitals in Orissa.

ESI HOSPITAL

ESI Annexes

ESIC Model Hospital
 

Following is a report from Sambada on the proposed ESO Medical College in Bhubaneswar.

2 comments November 29th, 2008

Vedanta and Sri Sri University bills presented in the assembly: Sambada

Hopefully the assembly will continue for a few days and these bills will get passed.

November 28th, 2008

Orissa government to pay for infrastructure costs beyond land for IIT Bhubaneswar

Following are excerpts from a report in Business Standard.

The Orissa government has geared up to meet the requirement of external infrastructure facilities for the proposed Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) near Bhubaneswar.

Apart from providing road communication facilities, the government will also supply water and electricity to the site at Arugul mouza in Jatni Tehsil.

The Centre had asked the Orissa government to provide free land and develop external infrastructure for the proposed institute.

The state industry department has drawn a three-year development plan for the IIT. According to preliminary estimates, the investment will be about Rs 50 crore.

While providing water supply from Naraj to the IIT site is estimated to cost Rs 24 crore, another Rs 20 crore will be spent on supplying electricity at the project location. Besides, a flyover will have to be constructed and roads inside the campus need to be redesigned to bypass the railway line running through the site.

The state government has selected 891 acres in Arugul mouza for setting up the IIT. There is a patch of 20 acres of private land in the identified 891 acres and the state government will acquire it.

… The industry department is in talks with other departments like IT, urban development and science and technology for integrating the water supply system of the IIT with that of Infocity-II, Khurda-Jatni townships and National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), coming up in the same area.

If this comes through, the cost of supplying water to the IIT campus will be relatively low, sources added.

Similarly, the electricity requirement of the IIT campus is estimated at 20 Mw. While the cost of 132 KV transmission line will be constructed by OPTCL, the required 33 KV/11KV line will be laid by power utility Central Electricity Supply Utility (CESU).

Meanwhile, the visit of the Site Selection Committee (SSC) for the IIT in Orissa has been delayed. …

November 28th, 2008

Faculty Positions at Indian Institute of Space Science & Technology

http://www.iist. ac.in/IIST/ compRepository/ mediagallery/ recruitment/ recruitment3. html

November 25th, 2008

General Colleges count in various Orissa districts – work in progress

The left four columns(*) in the following list is based on the lists at http://orissagov.nic.in/highereducation/DistBlockWise_College_list.htm and http://orissagov.nic.in/highereducation/actsrules.htm. It seems both these lists are not up-to-date. For example, neither list has any colleges in the Boudha district. However, the Boudha district web pages mention it having 9 colleges. Using Google some of the colleges one can find in Boudha are Boudh Panchayat College and Gandharadi College. The rightmost column (**) is based on going to the district web pages and getting information there. That is also not up-to-date as in recent years numerous junior (+2) colleges have opened.

2 comments November 24th, 2008

List of general colleges in Orissa

The following is from http://orissagov.nic.in/highereducation/DistBlockWise_College_list.htm.

Continue Reading November 24th, 2008

List of government colleges in Orissa

Following is from http://orissagov.nic.in/highereducation/actsrules.htm.

Continue Reading 6 comments November 23rd, 2008

Food craft Institute in Balangir – needs attention

The National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology has several (31) affiliated Institute of Hotel Managements and several (7-10) Foodcraft Institutes. Orissa has one of each: Institute of Hotel Management in Bhubaneswar and a Foodcraft Institute in Balangir. The food craft institutes are located in the following places in India.

Following are the courses offered by the Institutes of Hotel Management and the Food Craft Institutes.

The Bachelor of Science programme in Hospitality and Hotel Administration is offered jointly by the National Council for Hotel Management and the Indira Gandhi National Open University. The Three-Year programme equips students with all the required skills, knowledge and attitude to efficiently discharge supervisory responsibilities in the Hospitality sector. The programme also involves in-depth laboratory work for students to acquire required knowledge and skills standards in the operational areas of Food Production, Food and Beverage Service, Front Office Operation and House Keeping. The programme imparts substantial management inputs in area such as Sales and Marketing, Financial Management, Human Resource Management, Hotel and Catering Law, Property Management, Entrepreneurship Development, Computers with special focus on Tourism Studies.

…

Admission to the following courses is regulated by the respective Institutes. Announcement for admission is released by them between May-July each year. Candidates meeting the prescribed entry-level requirements may apply to the concerned Institute. Admission will be based on the candidate’s merit in the qualifying examination.

A recent news item in expressbuzz.com mentions some problem with respect the Food Craft Institute in Balangir.

Uncertainity looms large over the Food Craft Institute here which is unique in Orissa. Reason: The State Government is yet to allot the plot, where the institute is presently located, in the name of institute. As a result, the financial assistance of Rs 1.3 crore from Centre to construct the hostel and part of institute building may return.

The government had decided to set up the institute in 2004 to boost the tourism and hospitality sector in the region. At present, the institute is being run by Ministry of Tourism. Orissa government had signed an MoU with Centre according to which the latter will provide financial assistance to run the institute for five years. Since the State Government is yet to hand over the land to the institute, the stipulated period (five years) of running the institute will elapse soon resulting in closure of the institute.Sources in the institute said if the State government does not do anything, then the institute will face closure in 2009. The Centre is seeking utilisation certificate (UC), which the institute has not been able to submit as the money is yet to be utilised in building the required infrastructure. When asked, Works Minister (former Tourism minister) and local MLA Ananga Udaya Singhdeo admitted that Centre would ask for return of funds if the UC is not submitted. “I have reminded the Tourism Department many times but they are not taking any step in this regard. The land should be allotted in the name of the institute as per the MoU,’ said the Minister.So far the institute has produced hundreds of students, who are well placed in hospitality industry. At present, around 55 students are studying in the institute.

1 comment November 23rd, 2008

Locations of the new regular central universities, new IITs and IIMs

The Indian government has announced to have 16 central universities in states that do not have any. Following are the states and the locations in those states that are being championed by those states. In some states existing universities will be upgraded to central university status:

1. Bihar – Near Motihari, East Champaran District
2. Chhatisgarh – Guru Ghasidas University, Bilaspur will be upgraded (approved by cabinet)
3. Goa – Goa University was approved by cabinet; but now the state has changed its mind ??
4. Gujarat – Gandhinagar
5. Haryana – Mirzapur Bachhor Village In Mahendergarh District
6. Himachal Pradesh – Kangra
7. Jharkhand – Khunti (near Ranchi)
8. J & K – Dual Campus in Jammu & Srinagar
9. Karnataka – Suntanur-Kadaganchi on the Aland Road , Gulbarga
10. Kerala – Kasaragod
11. Madhya Pradesh – Dr. Hari Singh Gaur University, Sagar will be upgraded (approved by cabinet)
12. Orissa – Koraput
13. Punjab – Bathinda
14. Rajasthan – Bikaner
15. Tamil Nadu – Tiruvarur
16. Uttarakhand – Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University will be upgraded (approved by cabinet)

The location of the new IITs are (the existing ones are at Bombay, Delhi, Kharagpur, Kanpur, Madras, Guwahati and Roorkee and IT BHU is to be upgraded):

1. Andhra Pradesh – Hyderabad
2. Bihar – Patna
3. Gujarat – Gandhinagar
4. Himachal Pradesh – Mandi
5. Madhya Pradesh – Indore
6. Orissa – Bhubaneswar
7. Punjab – Rupnagar
8. Rajasthan – Jodhpur

The location of the new IIMs are (the existing ones are at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Indore, Kozhikode and Lucknow) :

1. Uttarakhand – Dehradun
2. J & K – Srinagar
3. Chhatisgarh – Raipur
4. Haryana – Rohtak
5. Jharkhand – Kanke, Ranchi
6. Tamil Nadu – Tiruchi
7. Meghalaya – Shillong

5 comments November 22nd, 2008

Curriculum change in Orissa schools likely

The Hindu reported the following.

Teaching in the State schools will no longer remain a one-way affair. The State government is all set to introduce new syllabus and innovative approach of schooling from the next academic session when students will take the lead in classrooms and teachers will play the role of facilitators.

As a first step towards making education interactive, new textbooks would be introduced in Class I, III, VI, and VIII from the next academic session. In the subsequent year students of Class II, IV, VII and IX would get new set of textbooks. In the third year, case of left out classes V and X would be taken up.

1 comment November 21st, 2008

Regional Centre for Biotechnology Training and Education in Haryana

Following is from the PIB report http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=44917.

The Union Cabinet today gave its approval for establishment of the UNESCO Regional Centre for Training and Education in Biotechnology at Faridabad, Haryana as a Category-II Institution of UNESCO with the revised budget of Rs. 99.55 crores.

The proposed Centre would act as the focal point for cooperation amongst the Members countries of the Asian Region in Biotechnology.

The Centre would be a regional hub for interdisciplinary education and training in biotechnology with emphasis on novel education programmes relevant to industry, including bio-drug discovery science, nano-science & medicine, imaging techniques, designer crops, bioengineering and biomaterials, intellectual property, technology transfer and regulation to fulfill and overcome the acute shortage of skilled human resources in India.

The Centre will be governed by a Board of Governors with representations from India, UNESCO and the member countries. Collaboration with UNESCO will ensure gateways to international institutions such as European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO), International Union of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology (IUBMB) etc. and usher in skill acquisition in the global context.

The Centre will be the first every inter-disciplinary institution in life sciences and biotechnology in India with unique international character to offer novel educational & training courses in the interdisciplinary and related areas of biotechnology. It would also be a place of designing of new and novel programmes for education & training which could be then assimilated by the existing universities in India and the Region.

32 comments November 20th, 2008

Centrally funded non-NIT/IIT engineering colleges in various states; need a KBKIET in Kalahandi

Besides IITs and NITs some centrally funded engineering colleges are being established by the central govt. in various states. This includes the Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology in Punjab and Central Institute of Technology, Kokrajhar, Assam.

Following is a PIB report on a similar institute being established in Malda, West Bengal.

The Union Cabinet today gave its approval for establishment of Ghani Khan Choudhary Institute of Engineering & Technology, as a Centrally funded institution in Malda, West Bengal on the modular pattern of teaching as adopted by Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering & Technology (SLIET), Longowal, Punjab. The Institution will offer courses in Engineering and Technology to cater to the various manpower requirements of the region, with special emphasis on courses relevant to the local population such as in food technology & sericulture.

Initially, the Institution would start with Certificate level courses leading to Diploma, Degree and Post-graduate levels later.

The total project outlay of the Institute will be around Rs. 97 crores.

Orissa should ask for a similar engineering college to cater to the backward KBK+ districts and located in Kalahandi.

Koraput will have the central university; Branch of IGNTU is being pursued in Kandhamala. So an engineering college like SLIET should be located in Kalahandi. The institute can be called KBK institute of Engineering and Technology (KBKIET).

November 20th, 2008

IITs may become real universities and have more non-technical programs

Following is an excerpt from a report in Times of India. (Thanks to Prof. Ratan Ghosh for the pointer.)

In the coming years, the IIT palette will have on offer a range of shades beyond the cut-and-dry coding courses. A bunch of doctors, historians, perhaps policy makers too, could boast of IIT degrees.

… the XIth five-year committee for higher education is working with these centres of excellence to expand their charts. The committee, headed by educationist Yash Pal, that is meeting IIT heads on Friday will discuss how the tech schools can change their character and, like American universities, enlarge their menu.

"Currently, the IITs are premier undergraduate engineering schools doing some postgraduation and research work. Now, we want to give them a bigger role," Yash Pal told TOI. The noted scientist said that he had discussed his suggestions with some IIT directors and that a clearer picture would emerge after this week’s meeting.

While the IITs will be given more oxygen in terms of starting courses of their choice, it’s difficult to predict whether the new subjects offered will compare in excellence with the engineering departments, or be relegated to the sidelines, like the IITs’ management schools. However, Yash Pal said, "All great universities around the world offer a range of undergraduate courses. Our IITs can’t be great unless they think in that direction."

The committee is looking at the Big Daddy of engineering colleges for inspiration. "If MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) or Caltech (California Institute of Technology) can offer a wider range of programmes that are well-known, why not the IITs? Our IITs have produced wonderful engineers for the country. It’s time they looked at offering more," he added.

Former Indian Institute of Science director Govardhan Mehta, who’s also on the committee, said that the country was currently at a stage where an institute running one programme was also being termed a university. "However, a university, as defined in the ninth century, is an institution with a confluence of many disciplines where research and teaching are carried out. While expansion of courses in the IITs is what our committee is thinking of, Friday’s meeting will give us a chance to know what’s in the IIT heads’ minds," he said.

 … IIT-Guwahati director Gautam Barua said, "There has been some suggestion that the IITs start programmes in areas other than science and technology. I do not have a problem with doing that if our focus is clearly defined."

… Educationist and former director of IIT-Chennai P V Indiresan, who has spent a large part of his life in the IIT system, said the institutes had been synonymous with excellence and they must not start any programmes unless they got very good faculty for the same.

How the IITs will rise to the challenge remains to be seen. What’s certain, however, is that the flow charts on their lush campuses are set to be redrawn.

November 20th, 2008

Disagreement on the WCCU and National university plans

Update: See also this article in Times of India.

Following are excerpts from a report in Telegraph.

The Prime Minister’s plans of setting up a new class of universities to specifically compete with global institutions are being held up by differences between key government arms.

The HRD ministry has proposed a category of “Navratna” institutes comprising 14 new universities and existing top state varsities, government officials have said.

These institutes would be on a par with “world-class” universities but would be known by the new name because some people are against the earlier nomenclature.

The universities of Calcutta, Mumbai and Chennai are being considered for Navratna status.

However, the University Grants Commission has opposed starting institutes with the specific mandate of competing with the world’s best, sources said.

… The UPA government had promised 14 new world-class universities, including one in Calcutta, under the eleventh five-year plan. But the differences have led to an impasse and the plans, though not yet shelved, are headed for the backburner, the sources said.

… At meetings with universities in July, September and last week, HRD ministry officials were questioned on how a new university stood a better chance of becoming “world-class” compared with established institutions.

So, the ministry — through higher education secretary R.P. Agrawal — suggested that instead of having just 14 new world-class universities, a new category could be created.

This could be called the Navratna category and it could include top state universities apart from the 14 new ones aspiring to world-class standards.

But UGC chairman Sukhdeo Thorat apparently said that creating another category would introduce a new Brahmin into an already layered “caste system” in higher education.

Under the “caste system”, central universities receive maximum attention from policy makers, followed by state universities. Deemed-to-be universities are a rung lower.

… Officials have also questioned the basis on which state universities would be given Navratna status.

“For instance, if Calcutta University is given the status, how can we refuse Jadavpur University?” an official asked.

The concept of “world class universities” is a part of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s plans to make India a “knowledge economy” — a global hub of myriad branches of education and learning.

The initial plan sees them as unified centres of excellence in engineering, the sciences, humanities, management and medicine — on a par with the IITs, IIMs and the AIIMS.

November 19th, 2008

Call for EOI for establishing a medical college in Balangir

Following is from http://www.wodcorissa.org/notice.pdf. As per http://www.wodcorissa.org/Corrigendum.pdf the deadline has been extended till November 30, 2008.

November 18th, 2008

Indian Institute of Handloom Technology at Baragarh inaugurated: Sambada

The report at http://handlooms.nic.in/hl_dhds.pdf has details about the establishment of this IIHT. Following are some excerpts.

3.6 Setting up of IIHTs in Central Sector, Bargarh  

In order to cater to the needs of the handloom sector for technically qualified manpower, provision for opening the IIHTs in the Central Sector, where required, has been made in the 11^th Plan. The IIHT is being set up at Bargarh (Orissa) as announced by the Hon’ble PM during his visit to the State of Orissa in August 2006. As per the approved norms, the total cost for setting up of the IIHT is Rs. 13.05 crore and the total staff strength is 35.

Funding pattern :- The component will be fully funded by the Central Govt. and the funds will be required for meeting the expenditure on construction of building, salary, wages, scholarships/stipend, travel expenses, machinery & equipments and office expenses. 

…

12 comments November 18th, 2008