BHUBANESWAR : With a majority of public universities left without vice-chancellors (V-C) for several years, which had seriously affected their functioning, the state government finally appointed V-Cs to 14 institutions on Monday.
Governor and Chancellor of universities Hari Babu Kambhampati appointed the V-Cs to Utkal, Ravenshaw, Fakir Mohan and 11 other universities as per the provisions of The Odisha Universities Act, 1989 and The Odia University Act, 2017.
As per the communication from the Chancellor’s office in Lok Bhavan, Prof Chandi Prasad Nanda has been appointed vice-chancellor of Utkal University, while Prof Arka Kumar Das Mohapatra has been posted as V-C of Ravenshaw University and Prof Santosh Kumar Tripathy at Fakir Mohan University, Balasore.
Prof Sanjaya Kumar Patro has been appointed as V-C of Dharanidhar University, Keonjhar, Prof Byomakesh Tripathy Gangadhar Meher University, Sambalpur and Prof Asima Sahu Khallikote Unitary University, Berhampur. Prof Pawan Kumar Agrawal has been named vice-chancellor of Maa Manikeshwari University, Kalahandi while Prof Sibaram Tripathy will take charge of Madhusudan Law University, Cuttack.
The appointments also include Prof Mahendra Kumar Mohanty as V-C of Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University, Baripada; Prof Bibhuti Bhusan Malik at Rajendra University, Balangir and Prof Jyotsna KB Rout at Rama Devi Women’s University, Bhubaneswar.
Prof Prabhat Kumar Mohapatra will head Shree Jagannath Sanskrit University, Puri while Prof Hrushikesh Senapaty and Prof Satyanarayan Acharya will serve as the vice-chancellors of Vikram Dev University, Jeypore, and Odia University, Satyabadi, respectively.
Faculty posts to be filled up soon: Officials
The appointment of V-Cs in the state had remained stalled for years affecting administrative and academic management in the public universities. The crisis emerged following introduction of the Odisha Universities (Amendment) Act, 2020, which conflicted with University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations, leading to filing of multiple cases.
The Supreme Court issued a stay on the Act on May 20, 2022, following which the state Assembly enacted the Odisha Universities (Amendment) Act, 2024.
The new Act was notified on April 17, 2025. Taking note of the enactment of the 2024 Amendment Act, the Supreme Court, on May 7, 2025, permitted the state to proceed with recruitment in accordance with its provisions. Subsequently, the Orissa High Court also asked the state govt to speed up regular V-C appointment in public universities, with strict adherence to statutory provisions.
Apart from appointment of V-Cs, Higher Education department officials said the recruitment process has also been initiated for faculty posts and the vacancies will be filled up soon.
Earlier in the day, the BJD had demanded immediate appointment of V-Cs in universities. The youth and student wings of the party had alleged that besides the V-Cs, around 1,400 teaching posts are also vacant in the universities.
Stating that such injustice to the education system will not be tolerated, they threatened to launch a statewide protest if the posts are not filled up by the end of this month.