Bhubaneswar, Nov. 27: The Utkal University is planning to launch two new courses — master in public health and master in retail manage-ment from the next academic year.
Both the courses will be self-financing, said vice-chancellor of the university A.K. Das.
While talks have been finalised with the Asian Institute of Public Health for the MPH programme, the formalities are being worked out with the higher education department for the retail management course.
“The courses are market driven and will be beneficial in providing jobs to the students,” Das said. He was speaking on the sidelines of the 72nd foundation day of the university today.
Former Indian ambassador to the USA Lalit Mansingh, the chief guest at the function, awarded gold medals, cash prizes and scholarships to 38 students on the occasion. Additional director-general (crime branch) Bijay Kumar Sharma also received the Ashok Das memorial gold medal today for his performance in the LLB course.
In another development, the vice-chancellor also announced a special mediclaim policy for the students. Each student will have a medical insurance cover of Rs 25,000 and will receive a sum of Rs 1 lakh if they lose their parents while studying in the university. The university has tied up with the United India Insurance for the scheme and is planning to implement it from the next academic session.
Das also said that they were planning major renovation of university hostels.
The existing convocation centre will be remodelled into a state-of-the-art convention centre. The UGC fund will give Rs 6 crore for the project, the vice-chancellor said. There are also plans to set up the common instrumental centre and a high performing computer centre at the varisty, Das said.
The varsity authorities also spoke of converting the Parja library into a world-class one without damaging the iconic structure. The library will be fully digitised and also have a Braille-enabled space and cafeteria.
Besides, the varsity is also planning to complete the recruitment process at the earliest.
