IIIT-Una finds its second transit campus in Haroli

Rajesh Sharma

Una, July 29

As the permanent campus of the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) is still incomplete, the new academic session will begin at the Devbhumi College of Engineering in Chandpur village, Haroli sub-division, from August 5.

IIIT-Una became functional in 2014. As a temporary accommodation was not available within the district, the classes for all five batches had to be taken at the transit campus in NIT-Hamirpur. In September 2014, a plot for the permanent campus of the IIIT was alloted by the state government at Saloh village of Haroli sub-division, where only the boundary wall has been constructed so far.

On 3 October 2017, while laying the foundation stone of AIIMS in Bilaspur, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also laid the stone of the IIIT at Saloh via video-conferencing from Bilaspur. A sum of Rs 128 crore has been earmarked for the building to be constructed on 69 acres.

Director, IIIT-Una, S Selvakumar said the new academic session with 168 students would now begin at the second transit campus of IIIT-Una at Chandpur village in Haroli sub-division. The building of a private engineering college — Devbhumi Group of Colleges — has been hired for the purpose, which has a hostel, labs and playground, besides academic and administrative blocks.

The communique read that as per instructions from the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), a two-week Induction programme for the first year BTech students of IIIT-Una for the session 2019-20 would be held at the second transit campus of the IIIT at Chandpur village in Una district from August 5 to 21.

The Director said during the induction programme, students would be introduced to topics such as human values and ethics, anti-ragging, insight into engineering, self-defence, health, fire safety, drug abuse, cyber crime, yoga, child and woman abuse, besides being given awareness regarding fellowship programmes, online courses, research opportunities in science and technology by eminent scientists and resource faculty members.

IIIT was approved in 2013

• IIIT approved by the Union Ministry of HRD in March 2013
• Land allocated for building at Saloh village of Una in Sept 2013
• First academic session begins at NIT-Hamirpur in 2014-15
• First five academic sessions held at NIT-Hamirpur
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid stone of building at Saloh on October 3, 2017, boundary wall complete
• Private college building hired at Chandpur village in 2019