The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bhubaneswar celebrated its 10th year of operations in 2018 by completing the move of all of its operations into a purpose-built campus. The institution’s new 936 acre base is in Argul, to the south west of Bhubaneswar, includes accommodation, a central research facility and a 1,500 seat auditorium.
IITs are a special category of university in India. They generally receive more public funding than other engineering schools in the country. The government also has no control over the curriculum or recruitment of the faculty. All of the teaching at IITs is in English. Bhubaneswar was one of eight new IITs founded in 2008.
IIT Bhubaneswar has about 1,000 students and just over 100 faculty members. The university has seven schools: basic sciences; humanities, social sciences and management; mechanical sciences; infrastructure; electrical sciences; mineral, mettalurgical and materials engineering; and Earth, ocean and climate sciences. Students can enrol onto B Tech, M Tech and joint M Tech-PhD programmes.
The student body at IIT Bhubaneswar, the Gymkhana, organises two large festivals each year. The Alma-Fiesta during mid-January is a three day cultural event with music and dance performances, as well as much more hands-on activities such as ceramic modelling. The second event is the Wissenaire, which is a technology and management festival featuring challenges and workshops around robotics, design, business, mathematics and creativity.
Bhubaneswar is a growing technology and educational hub. There are several educational and research institutions near to IIT Bhubaneswar, including the National Institute of Science Education and Research, All India Institute of Medical Sciences; and the the Institute of Physics.
