To

Shree Narendra Modi, Honourable Prime Minister of India

Cc:

Shree Pranab Mukherjee, Honourable President of India,

Shreemati Smriti Irani, Honourable union minister of HRD,

Shree Naveen Patnaik, Honourable Chief Minister, Odisha state,

And Honourable Members of Parliament from Orissa.

 

Dear honourable Prime Minister Shree Modi ji,

We appreciate and thank GOI for announcing for establishment of an IIT and an IIM in every state in India in your union budget presented by the Union Finance Minister Shree Arun Jaitley on July 10th. This will help in bringing quality higher education closer to people and will create more quality manpower for our vast nation.

Among the beneficiaries, the state of Orissa is getting one IIM as IIT is already established in the state capital Bhubaneshwar. In the state of Orissa, it has been a regular practice for all successive governments in power since its creation, to put all human resource development institutions in and around the state capital Bhubaneshwar in particular and in the coastal stretch, from Baleshwar in North to Berhampur in South in general, ignoring the need of other regions.

The state capital Bhubaneshwar is over fed with Central sponsored premier education institutes and research centers. The list is given below.

1. Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) Bhubaneshwar
2. IIT Khadakpur’s BBSR campus
3. National Institutes of Science Education and Research (NISER)
4. All India Institutes of Medical Science (AIIMS)
5. Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIIT)
6. ESI Medical College and Hospital
7. Central Institutes of Plastic Engineering and Technology (CIPET)
8. National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT)
9. Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM)
10. Institute of Mineral and Material Technology (IMMT)
11. Eastern Regional Language Centre for CILL
12. Institute of Life Sciences
13. Institute of Physics
14. Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC)
15. Central Fisheries Institute
16. Regional Research Laboratory
17. National Research Centre for Women in Agriculture (NRCWA)
18. National Institute of Rehabilitation Training and Research (NIRTAR)

Other than these aforesaid Central institutes the state capital has many State govt and private institutions.

Within the twin city limit of Bhubaneshwar and Cuttack, there is Central Rice Research Institute (CRRI) at Cuttack. At a distance of 60 KM, in Puri there is Biju Patnaik National Steel Institutes (BPNSI); (Point to be noted that all the Steel and Iron industries and mining are in Western Odisha). Indian Institute of Mass Communications (IIMC) is established at a distance of 100 Km from Bhubaneshwar at Dhenkanal.

At a distance of 171 KM from the state capital towards South in Berhampur there is Ocean Science and Technology Cell, a Central govt sponsored organization and an Army Air Defense College at Gopalpur. Towards North of Bhubaneshwar, at a distance of 198 KM in Balasore, there is Advanced Plastic Processing Technology Centre (APPTC). The satellite centre of Bhubaneshwar AIIMS has been finalised for establishing in Balasore too.

On contrary to this Western Orissa have just two National Institutes, NIT Rourkela and Indian Institute of Handloom Technology (IIHT), Bargarh. Central University is established in Koraput in Southern Orissa. 

Sir, Sambalpur in Western Orissa is one of the oldest districts from British period.  It was the capital city of Hirakhand state, the Atharagad confederacy in Western Orissa and Chhattisgarh. It has played a vital role in the independence struggle of the nation. The sacrifice of Veer Surendra Sai and his followers is unmatched. Sambalpur’s contribution in making the modern Orissa is immense. It is the first place in Orissa state where people got displaced in the name of Nation while construction of the Hirakud dam in 1946. Western Orissa as a whole has been the revenue pot for Orissa state through its mining and industries.

But, even after all the aforesaid contribution Sambalpur is always ignored while establishing Central govt Higher education institutes for development of Human resource in the region. It is strange that Sambalpur do not have a single National Institute. Earlier we were promised by the then Chief Minister of Orissa Sri Naveen Patnaik for up gradation of UCE, Burla into an IIT but it never happened, instead IIT was established in the state capital.

It is the Head quarter of Northern revenue division, one of the three revenue divisions in the state. Sambalpur is situated in the centre of the biggest mining and Industrial corridor in the state, from Rourkela to Angul. Sambalpur has the HQ of Govt owned Navaratna Coal Company, Mahandi Coal Field Ltd (MCL). Sambalpur dist alone has many metal based industries in and around the city.

After the announcement of IIM for Orissa a ray of hope has come up among the citizens of Sambalpur to get it established here. According to the directives of the Union HRD ministry to the state for establishing the IIM, Sambalpur fulfills all the required criteria. Sambalpur has vast govt lands (app. 6000 acres) available near the city. It is well connected with National Highways and Railways. Sambalpur is the junction of NH 6/ AH 46 (From Port Hazira to Kolkata) and NH 42 (Sambalpur – Cuttack). Sambalpur is a Railway Division, having direct train connection to all metros in India and with many state capitals too. Whether you come from Mumbai or Delhi, it is five hours lesser journey time for Sambalpur than the state capital Bhubaneshwar. The World War II vintage Jharsuguad Airport at a distance of 50 KM is being upgraded by AAI for regular domestic services. 

Sambalpur has decent education environment for the children of employees of the proposed IIM. It has a Kendriya Vidyalaya (KV) and a Jawahar Nehru Vidyalaya (JNV). Another KV and a Sainik School are coming up. Sambalpur has many reputed private schools like DAV, DPS, Vikash, Seven Hills, Saint Xavier, Saint Joseph, Saint John, Aditya Residency School, etc.

It has the State run Sambalpur University, VSS Medical College and Hospital, VSS University of Technology (earlier known as UCE, the oldest Govt Engineering College in the state), SUIIT, Dr Parshuram Mishra Institute of Advanced Study in Education (PMIASE), L R Law College, Silicon Engineering College, G M Autonomous College, Women College, NSCB College, etc. There are many others private institutions offering degrees and vocational education.

Health care facility is decent too in Sambalpur. VSS Medical College Hospital is the life line for Western Orissa and Chhattisgarh. Recently the Private hospital Desun has obtained NOC to establish its 700 bed Super specialty hospital in Sambalpur. Apollo too has applied for NOC to establish its Super specialty hospital here.  

For amusement purpose there is a Mall with multiplex in the city with retail joint like Bigbazar, fast food joint like Dominos, and other branded showrooms. The city has other retail joints like Reliance Trends, Reliance Foot wares, Bazar Kolkata, etc. A Reliance Fresh is on the card too.

Sambalpur with better road, rail and air connectivity and surrounded by several industries in Tribal land of Western Orissa is the justified location for establishment of IIM Odisha. All cities in Orissa of the size of Sambalpur or even smaller than it, have got one or more Central Institutes. So, we demand this time it is definitely for justified for IIM Sambalpur.

We hope you along with your team and the state govt will take the necessary steps to establish the IIM in Sambalpur.

Thank you and Best Regards,

People of Western Odisha.