A classroom

Bhubaneswar, June 15: The Xavier University campus, spread over 35 acres at Kurki industrial estate in Nijigardh village near Pipili, is getting final touches and will be ready to welcome its first batch of students on June 20.

The varsity will have 360 students for its management programmes from this academic year. This includes 120 seats for MBA, 120 seats for MBA (rural management) and 120 seats for MBA (human resource management). Besides, it will get 160 students for a three-year graduate programme in commerce.

The hostel facilities for 360 students are complete with four hostels, including one for girls. As the commerce classes will be held in day hours, students will not need a hostel, said XIMB associate director Fr Tony Uvary S.J.

“The rush for our courses is very encouraging, especially for the commerce stream, that too, with very less publicity. The ratio between applicants and seats is 7:1,” he said, adding that authorities were hopeful that the demand would go up. Candidates were selected through a written test held at three examination centres in Bhubaneswar, Calcutta and Delhi.

The varsity’s academic block is ready with well-furnished and hi-tech classrooms. It has 10 classrooms with a seating capacity of 150 students each. The state-of-the-art library is also complete and spreads on two floors.

“We are going slow on the administrative building, which will be over in phases. For now, we are trying to start working on the first four floors,” said Uvary.

As many as 11 full-time faculty members and eight visiting faculty members have been recruited. This apart, 20 non-teaching employees have also been recruited, said the authorities.

The faculty building with 12 quarters and the director’s residence is also taking shape. Moreover, work has also started for the basketball court, lawn tennis court, volleyball court, badminton court and a swimming pool.

“We have absolutely no problem regarding electricity or water connectivity and things are moving quite smoothly. By June 21, we will be ready to welcome our students,” said a senior official.

The institute plans to hold an orientation of students during the first week. A formal inauguration by chief minister Naveen Patnaik is scheduled on July 7 following which classes will kick off.

The university has 50 per cent reservation for students from Odisha. The varsity is jointly promoted by the Jesuit Society and Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar.