Archive for October, 2014
Smart class rooms for Gangadhar Meher college students
Following is a report from the Telegraph:
Sambalpur, Oct. 28: Online teaching will be introduced in Gangadhar Meher College (autonomous) from the next academic session. The lecture gallery-1 and the lecture gallery-2 of the institute will be upgraded to smart classrooms.
“Modern gadgets such as computer, projector and audio visual systems will be installed in the class. Students will get the facility of online teaching in air-conditioned classrooms,” said the estate officer of Gangadhar Meher College U.C. Pati.
“Online tutorial classes will be organised for students. Teachers, too, can use variety of online media to teach students. The classes will ensure better communication between the teachers and the students and will serve as an add-on to existing teaching process. Audio-visual systems will make learning interesting for students,” he said.
“Under the NME-ICT (National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology) project, the college will get 20 Internet connections in subsidised rate. We have five to six Internet connections in the college now. We have already applied for the rest. We can start the smart classes after we get all the connections,” said Pati,
“Several infrastructure developmental works such as building of academic block, new girls’ and boys’ hostels, approach road, library and entrance gate are under way in the college. The smart class will be an added facility for the students.
Moreover, these will also help the institution get a higher grade from the National Academic and Accreditation Council (NAAC),” said a teacher of the college.
“I am really happy to know that the college authority has taken a decision to start smart classes in the institution. Teaching through television has a visual impact, which lasts longer,” said a student of plus three arts, Snigdha Mandal.
Established in 1944, the college offers undergraduate, postgraduate, MPhil and pre-doctoral courses besides self-financing and vocational courses.
There are 18 undergraduate courses, 16 postgraduate courses, seven MPhil courses, three pre-doctoral courses, five self-financing courses and three vocational courses. The institution was declared autonomous in 1991.
Hirakud dam to have more spillways
Following is a report from the http://odishasuntimes.com:
Taking note of the massive siltation and other related issues in Hirakud dam in Odisha’s Sambalpur district where cracks have appeared due to lack of proper maintenance, the dam authorities have planned to construct more spillways of the dam for release of more floodwaters to ensure its longevity.
“The decision for construction of more spillways of the dam has been taken after the recent visit of a high-powered team of the Central Water Commission (CWC). While the budget estimate for the survey work of the spillways has almost finalized, the construction work of the spillways would begin from the current fiscal”, said Yashowant Parida, executive engineer of the dam.
The tender process for construction of additional spillways of the dam would begin in a few months, he added.
It may be mentioned that the cracks and holes near the spillways of the main dam were noticed during an underwater survey of the dam in 2002-03. The dam authorities had later carried out repair of some of these cracks.
While the dam earlier had the provision of gross discharge of 15 lakh cusecs of water from the spillways in 1957, considering the present situation and future of the dam, provisions for release of 24 lakh cusecs of water has been planned, sources said.
Following is another report from the Sambad:
State seeks centre nod for ITI at Kutra in Sundargarh
Following is a report from the TOI:
BHUBANESWAR: The state government has requested Union minority affairs ministry to approve a revised project proposal for setting up five ITIs in minority-concentrated districts.
The ITIs would come up at Kotagarh and Daringbadi in Kandhamal, Kutra in Sundargarh, Cuttack and Bhadrak municipal areas.
Director, OBC, Ramesh Chandra Sai said the government submitted a detailed revised proposal under the 12th Five Year Plan during a recent video conference, following suggestion from the Centre to reduce the estimated cost of the proposed project.
“Earlier, the cost of each ITI was pegged at Rs 9.10 crore. It has now been reduced to Rs 5.32 crore,” he said and hoped to get the clearance by end of this month.
Sai said the government had earlier proposed to set up six ITIs in five districts. It was later revised to five. Rayagada collector was asked to submit a revised proposal for an ITI at Gunupur, he added.
In August, the government had urged the Centre to approve pending projects worth Rs 207 crore for welfare of minorities. These include Rs 42-crore skill development projects, besides drinking water facility and construction of classrooms in schools of minority-concentrated pockets, official sources said.
Air Odisha plans flight service to Angul, Rourkela, Jharsuguda, and Jeypore
Following is a report by PTI from ET:
BHUBANESWAR: A regional airline has proposed to start flight service to small and industrial towns of Jharsuguda, Angul, Rourkela and Jeypore within Odisha.
“Air Odisha Aviation Pvt Ltd has expressed its interest to operate flights from Bhubaneswar to different parts of the state such as Jharsuguda, Angul, Rourkela and Jeypore from this month,” Sharad Kumar, director Bhubaneswar Airport said.
Stating that the work for the Jharsuguda airport will begin from December this year, Kumar said it is likely to be completed within two years. Jharsuguda would be the second commercial airport in the state of Odisha, he said.
Go Air will be operating four daily flights – two flights to New Delhi and one each to Mumbai and Kolkata from the Biju Patnaik domestic airport from the October 26, Kumar said.
He also informed that the preparations are on for starting flights from Bhubaneswar to Bengaluru by another airline operator ATC Airways by February next year.
Presently, 32 flights to eight different destinations are operating from the airport here.
AU urges CM to set up an agriculture university in Balangir district
Following is a report from TNIE:
BHUBANESWAR : Rajya Sabha member AU Singhdeo has urged Defence Minister Arun Jaitely to use the Ordnance Factory at Balangir’s Badmal for augmenting production of Pinaka rockets.
Since a major consideration for choosing location of production facilities is availability of land, the Badmal ordnance factory fits the bill. The facility has 12,200 acres of land of which 5,000 acres is lying unused, he said in a letter to the Defence Minister.
The Centre has sanctioned capacity expansion of Pinaka rockets from 1,000 rockets a year to 5,000. Currently, two new variants of the rocket are undergoing evaluation and upon successful completion of the assessment, the requirement would go up to 12,000 rockets annually.
Since Pinaka and Smerch rockets are being inducted by Indian Army, their production will be taken up by ordnance factories.
Instead of taking up capacity expansion in a piecemeal manner, Singhdeo suggested, the whole exercise should be taken up in one go. This would eliminate duplication of facilities and reduction of costs.
The senior BJD leader who represents Balangir said it is one of the most backward regions in the country and apart from the ordnance factory there has been no major investment by the Centre in the district. If the capacity expansion is taken up, it would boost the district’s economic activity.
In a separate letter, the Rajya Sabha member has requested Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to take steps for setting up an agriculture university in Balangir.
“Odisha, having just one Agriculture University, needs at least one more. The BJD manifesto promises to set up an agri-university in KBK districts. Balangir, representing the backward and western Odisha districts, is the most suitable place for a second university,” he said adding, in terms of technical education infrastructure, Balangir has no academic institute as yet.
Following is a report from the Sambad:
Kosal Discussion and Development Forum 