Centre to take over Bengal's premier engineering institution
Bengal Engineering and Science University (BESU), one of the pioneer institutions in engineering education in the country, is set to be taken over by the Central government.
The Centre has allocated Rs 15 crore in the budget for 2010-11 as it has decided to take over the institution following a proposal from the West Bengal government.
Established as a college in 1856 to meet requirement of trained engineering personnel, the institution became a university in 2004 and will now be a central technical institute.
The university, which was started on November 24, 1856, in three rooms in Writers' Building and got affiliation from the Calcutta University in 1857, will be renamed as Indian Institute of Engineering, Science and Technology (IIEST).
It became a deemed university in 1992.
An HRD Ministry committee in 2003 recommended IIT status for seven institutions, including BESU. However, another committee of the ministry later did not support IIT status for it, but suggested the status of IT-BHU.
A bill to confer IIEST status to BESU is ready and will be sent to Cabinet soon by the HRD Ministry, sources said.
BESU, which has a campus spread over 49 acres, offers B.Tech programmes in all the branches of engineering education.
----------------------------------------------------
Here's a 27 Feb news item from The Telegraph (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100227/jsp/nation/story_12158503.jsp):
Excerpt:
Besu funds signal
The Centre has allocated Rs 15 crore for the first time in the budget for converting the Shibpur-based Bengal Engineering and Science University (Besu) into an Indian Institute of Engineering, Science and Technology.
The allocation represents the first occasion that the Centre has made a budgetary allocation for the project that has survived several scares, and was almost called off last year after unrest on the campus. The allocation confirms that the human resource development ministry finally plans to take over Besu this year.
The Centre has allocated Rs 15 crore for the first time in the budget for converting the Shibpur-based Bengal Engineering and Science University (Besu) into an Indian Institute of Engineering, Science and Technology.
The allocation represents the first occasion that the Centre has made a budgetary allocation for the project that has survived several scares, and was almost called off last year after unrest on the campus. The allocation confirms that the human resource development ministry finally plans to take over Besu this year.
--------------------------------------------------
Here's another news item from Orissalink(http://www.orissalinks.com/archives/3940) February 26th, 2010:
Here's another news item from Orissalink(http://www.orissalinks.com/archives/3940) February 26th, 2010:
Item 69 of the MHRD Department of Higher Education budget has 15 crores for IIEST. The explanation later says the following:
69. Setting up of Indian institute of Engineering, Science & Technology (IIEST): A State University, namely, Bengal Engineering and Science University, Shibpur is proposed to be converted into a Central Government Institute, namely, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST).
Odisha must continue to push the conversion of VSSUT Burla to an IIEST.
---------- ------------- ---------- ---------------- ----------------
69. Setting up of Indian institute of Engineering, Science & Technology (IIEST): A State University, namely, Bengal Engineering and Science University, Shibpur is proposed to be converted into a Central Government Institute, namely, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST).
Odisha must continue to push the conversion of VSSUT Burla to an IIEST.
---------- ------------- ---------- ---------------- ----------------
Aparently Orissa's academic community is also pushing for upgrading the Burla institute to IIEST.
--------------------------------------------------------------------