BHUBANESWAR : Buildings of colleges and universities in the state that were constructed before Independence, would be preserved as heritage sites. A decision in this regard has been taken by the state government.
Officials in the Higher Education department said 10 colleges including the aided ones and five universities have been identified for their historical significance and proposed for preservation as heritage sites.
This includes the oldest university, Ravenshaw at Cuttack which was established in the year 1868 and the last in the list, Vikram Dev University (erstwhile Vikram Dev Autonomous College at Jeypore) that came up in the year of Independence - 1947.
The state government has decided to provide grants of Rs 2 crore for universities - Ravenshaw, Gangadhar Meher, Rajendra, Khallikote and Vikram Dev - and Rs 1 crore for the 10 identified colleges which includes Sailabala, Christ, Radhanath Institute of Advanced Studies in Education, all in Cuttack; Fakir Mohan at Balasore, Samanta Chandra Sekhar at Puri. The grants would be used for repair, renovation and maintenance of the ageing campuses.
Officials added that the preservation work would be carried out by either the State Archaeology or a specialised agency like Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). “The initiative is aimed at not just safeguarding the architectural treasures but also promoting cultural awareness and historical significance among students and other stakeholders,” they added.
The department has asked the college principals and university registrars to take help of State Archaeology or INTACH to prepare the detailed project report (DPR) in this regard and submit it for the release of grants.
Despite being 100 years and more, none of the 15 higher educational institutes had found place in the University Grants Commission (UGC)’s scheme of granting ‘special heritage status’ to educational institutes. Under this scheme that was started in 2018, UGC provides grants to conserve college and university campuses which are more than 100 years old. Currently, there are 19 institutions that were developed under this scheme.