Orissa not to have a premier IIT institute: state government calls it unfortunate

Orissa not to have a premier IIT institute: state government calls it unfortunate
By Deepak Kumar Mohanty
Delhi

May 11: The people of Orissa have expressed the central government’s decision for not setting up an Indian Institute of Technology IIT in the state as unfortunate. In the parliamentary session, on Tuesday, the Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development, D.Purandeshwari, confirmed that the centre had no plan to set up an IIT in Orissa.

From a long time the people of Orissa have demanded a premier institute but the present UPA government has undermined the state government’s demand and also the will of the people, which can be realized as against democratic set up.

Though the UPA government has approved to set up three new IIT institutes at Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar but it has sideline the same for Orissa state. The fact that despite the state attracting huge amount of foreign investments for its mineral resources has not been helped with proper infrastructure is really unfortunate. Orissa is going to have India’s highest FDI with Korean steel maker POSCO and apart from it Mital Steel has also signed an agreement with the state government. Under these developments, the demand for IIT is unavoidable.

Earlier the state government informed the centre to provide 300 acres land and forwarded a proposal to set up an IIT in the state. Even IIT-Kharagpur has made a proposal for setting up an extensive campus in Bhubaneswar. The centre did earlier approve the proposal but the present government has ruled it out. The BJD-BJP coalition government in the state and the people of Orissa see it as ignorance on the part of central government.

The BJD and BJP MPs have already shown their dissatisfaction inside and outside parliament. Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik, has also written a letter to the Prime Minister in this regard.

The Biju Janata Dal in the state is trying to provide for the positive results in future as far as vote bank is concerned. The Congress Party’s position is really worse in the state; and such ignorance can further weaken its position in the state.