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Looming Uncertainty: The Rajaulatu plot in Namkum that has been identified for IIM-Ranchi
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Ranchi, March 2: As IIM-Ranchi gets ready to hold its second convocation on Monday, there is a dark cloud of uncertainty hovering over the premier management cradle’s search for a permanent campus in the state capital.
The Ranchi district administration’s well-intentioned move to allocate land to IIM-Ranchi in Rajaulatu mauza in Namkum block has so far come to naught, caught in usual bureaucratic rigmarole.
IIM-Ranchi director M.J. Xavier has thrown up his hands in despair, realising that no one in the district administration knows what’s going on. That the state is under President’s Rule hasn’t helped either.
“There is a lot of confusion and no clarity on the land front. At the next board meeting of IIM-Ranchi we may seek permission to start a few distance courses as the temporary infrastructure at Suchana Bhawan (the state information & public relations department building) is not enough to offer classroom studies to a larger number of students,” he told The Telegraph.
In November-December last year, Xavier and officials of the district administration visited the Rajaulatu area after the earlier site chosen at Nagri got mired in tribal protests.
The new 200-acre plot at Rajaulatu is close to a power grid. It is 15km from the state capital along NH-33. The area chosen, after much deliberation, comprises only gair mazrua (government) and jungle-jhari land and is without any habitation.
Xavier has made it clear that he would not pursue construction of the proposed 76-permanent acre campus at Nagri in view of protests — at times violent — by tribals who claim farming rights on the land.
Asked about the future of IIM--Ranchi, deputy commissioner Vinay Kumar Choubey said, “We had sent our proposal a couple of months back to the office of South Chotanagpur commissioner. We have not received any instruction since then.”
A senior official of the state revenue and land reforms department conceded that there was no progress in completing formalities to hand over the Rajaulatu plot to IIM. “Everything is closed for now,” he said.
IIM-Ranchi is holding its second annual convocation on March 4, when chairman of board of directors R.C. Bhargava and vice-chairman of Tata Steel B. Muthuraman were expected to be present. But like its first convocation, the function would be held at Aryabhatta Auditorium at Ranchi University’s Morabadi campus opposite Ranchi College.
Xavier is learnt to have met governor’s adviser K Vijay Kumar, who holds the HRD portfolio, and has discussed the issue. HRD department principal secretary D. K. Tiwary is also aware of the logjam.
IIM-Ranchi started functioning in Jharkhand from 2010. At present, post graduate diploma in management and executive programmes are run, besides few specialised courses.
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