ROURKELA : National Institute of Technology Rourkela, the second-largest government Institute in Eastern India celebrated its Diamond Jubilee (1961 – 2021) on 26th January 2021. The Institute marked its 60 years of existence with a celebration held on 26th January 2021. Honourable Governor of Odisha – Shri Ganeshi Lal, Chief Minister of Odisha – Shri Naveen Patnaik, and Honorable Union Minister of Education, Govt. of India – Shri Ramesh Pokhrial “Nishank” were a part of the event. Dr. G. Satheesh Reddy, Chairman of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Govt. of India was the Chief Guest of the ceremony. This virtual event was also joined by distinguished alumni of NIT Rourkela, Shri C. P. Gurnani, (CEO of Tech Mahindra), Mrs. Soma Mondal (Chairperson, SAIL), Sri S. M. Vaidya (Chairman, IOCL), and Professor Prasant Mohapatra (VC, UC Davis, USA).
The celebration started with an invocation song and lighting of the lamp by Director, registrar, and Deans. There was a limited audience as per Covid-19 guidelines. A video was featured showing the journey of NIT Rourkela since its establishment, followed by messages of the Honourable Governor of Odisha, Chief Minister of Odisha and Union Minister of Education. Many notable alumni also shared their thoughts via video messages.
Sharing a video message on the occasion, Shri Ganeshi Lal, Hon’ble Governor of Odisha, said, “NIT has earned global recognition and in times to come it will be an institution of great significance to international and national research and development. I present my heartiest congratulations on the Diamond Jubilee being celebrated this year. I appeal to the students of NIT Rourkela to make the institute one of the best and top most institutions of the world.”
Congratulating NIT Rourkela for this achievement Shri Naveen Patnaik, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha, said, – “NIT Rourkela has evolved as an institute of National and International repute for technology education and research. Your graduates have taken leadership positions in India and abroad and have contributed immensely to the emergence of “New India”.
During the occasion, a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Venkata Narasimham Peri (Distinguished Alumnus of NITR and Sponsor of Poverty Alleviation Research Centre (PARC)) was signed for the upliftment of backward region of Koraput, Balangir, and Kalahandi (popularly known as KBK districts) of Odisha. Through this research project, NIT Rourkela aims to make a significant contribution in reducing poverty in that region. The video of the inaugural function for Diamond Jubilee Year can be viewed at the following link – https://www.youtube.com/
NIT Rourkela was established as Regional Engineering College (REC) Rourkela on 15th August 1961. It now functions independently under the Ministry of Education as a National Institute of Technology. Institute has about 5.5 lakh square meters of built-up area on campus for staff and students’ academic activities and residence. The institute is soon going to inaugurate a DAY CARE center for working women’s children. It has one of the tallest academic buildings in the country named the Golden Jubilee Building recently inaugurated by Hon’ble Minister for Education who also became a part of the Diamond Jubilee Year Inaugural function.
Speaking on the occasion of the Inaugural Function for Diamond Jubilee year of NIT Rourkela, Hon’ble Union Education Minister, Shri. Ramesh Pokhariyal ‘Nishank’ said, ” It has been an extraordinary journey for NIT Rourkela leading up to this Diamond Jubilee Year. NIT Rourkela has always been an institute of great significance for Nation-building. NIT Rourkela has steadily improved in National and International rankings. NIT Rourkela’s Technology Incubation cell (TIC) and Industry Relation Cell (IRC) both have been successful in curtailing the gap between Academic and Technology development to Market demand. Institutes like NIT Rourkela plays a significant role in India’s call for Vocal for Local, and Local for Global. I appeal to the students to aim to create jobs rather than seeking jobs. I believe this institution is doing wonders, with the help of FTBI (Foundation for Technology & Business Incubation.”
To boost innovation and entrepreneurship, the institute set up the Foundation for Technology and Business Incubation (FTBI), which was incorporated in May 2016. FTBI facilitates the growth and development of innovative ideas. It provides facilities such as office and manufacturing space, capital equipment and laboratory for prototyping, 24X7 Internet, power backup and water supply, legal and IPR services, with financial support to attend training and skilling programs, and funding for the early-stage start-ups. Currently, FTBI houses 46 incubated start-ups, 8 patents, 28+ pre-incubation teams with 150+ jobs generated to date.
NIT Rourkela consistently maintains its top rank in the research activity among the NITs for the past few years. During last five years, NITR has received 333 numbers of sponsored research projects with a sanctioned value of around 100 crores and 126 numbers of consultancy projects with a sanctioned value of 15.13 crores. In the calendar year 2019-2020, faculty members and students have published 9 patents, 152 books and book chapters, and 1380 publications in reputed journals. Based on the expertise available with the Institute, NIT Rourkela is also prominent in consultancy work with more than 50 active consultancy projects around the year. NIT Rourkela is the only NIT that has awarded approximately 400 Ph.D. degrees in the last three years. Over 6000 journal papers (Indexed by Web of Science and Scopus) are published by students and faculty members in the previous three years. More than 100 Ph.D. scholars are going to get the degree in the coming convocation
Major institutional facilities were created during the last decade in NIT Rourkela like Computer and Data Centre, A N Khosla Centre for Technology Enabled Learning (ANKCTEL), Foundation for Technology & Business Incubation (FTBI), Centralized Instrumentation Facility (CIF), etc. Another noble initiative called Institute Counselling Services has been started by the Institute, which deals with various important aspects of a student’s life such as Academic, Financial, Mental, and Socio-cultural issues, ensuring a seamless transition from home to hostel life for the freshmen and making life at NITR more enjoyable. The Student Activity Centre situated within the academic area has various clubs to open the wings and dreams of the students.
Virtually releasing the Brochure of Diamond Jubilee and Hindi Patrika “AAHAN” of Institute, the Chief Guest, Dr. G. Satheesh Reddy, Chairman, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Government of India, said, ” NIT Rourkela is known for credentials, for its variety of in-depth knowledge of various subjects and which has been steadily standing in good Rankings of the academic institute and have been producing eminent people from the institute. Besides the eminent people, NIT has produced the various departments and centres which are present in the institute, which is of very important considering the current requirement of the nation, whether it is renewable energy or Nano-material. DRDO I keenly look for Cryogenic and Nanomaterial subjects for in-depth research in future. Looking at the work done by NIT Rourkela in these fields of study, DRDO will be collaborating with it in near future and work together in these areas. We are going to have some long-term partnerships with academic institutes.”
With twenty academic departments offering a wide range of courses designed to meet the industry and academia’s current requirements, NIT Rourkela has one of the nation’s most diversified curriculum. It is the only NIT to have departments like Food process engineering, Ceramic Engineering, Atmospheric Sciences, Industrial Design, and Life Science. Also, there are six Academic Centres and nine Centres of Research, two of them recognized as Centres of Excellence by external Government agencies. The most recent among them is the Poverty Alleviation Research Center (PARC).
Cracking the global outbreak of the COVID-19, NIT Rourkela acted proactively to ensure its prevention. Apart from complying with all the guidelines issued by the Central and the State governments, the Institute is also operating COVID-19 Care Homes (CCH) facility inside its campus. Along with this, the Institute has a 24×7 free ambulance facility. The Institute is ensuring that the entire campus, from floors to doorknobs, is sanitized multiple times a day as part of the measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. NIT Rourkela welcomed Ph.D. scholars back to the campus with utmost safety and precautions. For helping neighbour societies, it is constantly participating actively in Unnat Bharat Abhiyan activities. To provide a source of revenue to the women of one of the adopted villages under Jhirpani (Rourkela), it encouraged women of the Self Help Group “JAGRUTI” to prepare masks and sanitizers.
Addressing this virtual function, Prof. Animesh Biswas, Director, NIT Rourkela, said, – “With the vision for 2025 in place, NIT Rourkela is on the road to its next phase of growth. The achievement of its vision will positively impact the lives of students, alumni, faculty, and staff while shaping the progress of our nation for decades to come. I thank and congratulate everyone on this remarkable journey. I feel very proud to say that the institute’s journey of glorious 60 years is of great pride and inspiration for the entire country.”
NIT Rourkela has produced more than 25000 alumni in fifty-six batches covering twenty departments. Its alumni have earned a high degree of reputation not only in India but all over the world. Many alumni have reached the pinnacle of success and brought laurels to the Institute. For example, the recent news about Mr. Pranav Khaitan, a 2009-batch alumnus whose team had contributed to the Nobel peace prize. His contribution was acknowledged by WHO, Alumni are a true ambassador of any institute. The NIT Rourkela Alumni Association(NITRA) has a global database. Mrs. Soma Mondal, an alumnus who joined the event is the first woman Chairperson of SAIL. Like her many notable alumni became a part of this historical moment and shared their memories and feelings.
Joining the event online, Chemical Engineering graduate & distinguished Alumni, Mr. Chandan Prakash Gurnani, CEO, Tech Mahindra said – “I did not take many other formal degrees. My best degree was at NIT Rourkela. Our alumni network is one of the most powerful networks in the world. NIT has provided us with great mentors who have passed on not only academic knowledge but also gave exposure to industry verticals. NIT Rourkela teaches us to learn to live with each other and dream together.”
Distinguished Alumni of NIT Rourkela, Mr. S. M. Vaidya, Chairman, IOCL also became a part of the event and said – “I feel proud of this achievement. It holds a very special place in my heart not just for the quality education but also for the values it has cultivated within me during my student days. My heartiest congratulations to all my alma mater, as NIT Rourkela enters the 60th year. Nelson Mandela said, Education is the most powerful weapon, which you can use to change the world,’ I can well assimilate to the value of these golden words, during the four years I spent as a student at NIT Rourkela. True to its mission of advancing knowledge in Science and Technology our institute has carved a niche for itself for its students and stakeholders in India’s technical education landscape.”
Speaking on the occasion of the inaugural function for Diamond Jubilee Year 2021, Distinguished Alumni, Padma Shree Awardee Shri N.R. Mohanty said, ” The institute has seen marvellous growth over the years. In 60 years of its foundation, the institute has occupied its rightful position as a top-ranking NIT in the country today, all credit goes to its directors, professors, faculty members/ staff and students.”
