Dharmendra Pradhan, minister of education, skill development and entrepreneurship has inaugurated Kendriya Vidyalaya (KV) and initiated the commencement of six projects at the National Institute of Technology, Rourkela (NIT Rourkela) campus on November 30, 2023. With a vision to increase the enrollment of female students, the institute laid the foundation stones for three girls’ hostels, each with a capacity for 500 students, according to an official release.
The establishment of KV within NITR aims to enhance interdisciplinary collaboration between the school and faculty, potentially leading to innovative educational programmes that spark interest and provide clarity about potential career paths. Simultaneously, the infrastructural projects contribute to creating a clean and healthy atmosphere for students throughout their academic journey.
“NIT Rourkela is making its own way through industrial collaboration bringing infrastructural development to the institute. I acknowledge NIT Rourkela’s efforts in initiating this noble task of empowering education and helping the young mind to innovate and research. Also, I thank the distinguished alumni of NIT Rourkela for choosing the institute for their educational journey,” Pradhan said.
NIT Rourkela claims to have designated a 15-acre plot for both boys’ and girls’ hostels. The current plan allocates half of the area for a boys’ hostel accommodating 1,000 students and three-fourths for three girls’ hostels. The remaining space is reserved for future hostel construction. Emphasising sustainability on campus, the institute is constructing a 1.5 MLD sewage treatment plant and faculty residences.
Notably, one of the girls’ hostels is funded by Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) with Rs 42.69 crore. as part of their CSR activity, while another is funded by the Ministry of Education under the EWS scheme fund. The overall project cost of Rs 165.81 crore. will be covered with support from HEFA (Higher Education Financing Agency). Coal India will contribute to the infrastructural development of Kendriya Vidyalaya-NIT Rourkela, the release mentioned.
NIT Rourkela further claims to maintain a reservation of at least 20% of seats for girls in each discipline. Currently, there are 960 female students in the Undergraduate (UG) programme, 420 in the Post Graduate (PG) programme and 503 in the PhD programme, with a total student population of 8,000, as per the release.
“One of the primary objectives of NEP-2020 is to eliminate any disparity in access to education for children of all communities or other socio-economically disadvantaged groups. Towards this NIT Rourkela, through Kendriya Vidyalaya, is aiming to provide high-quality education for all. we do believe that the residential facilities for the students have to be the best, within the available resources and thus we are creating these infra projects at the campus,” K. Umamaheshwar Rao, director, NIT Rourkela, said.