Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, June 24, 2015 :

Western Odisha town of Sambalpur finally won the battle to have the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in the state ending wild speculation over the site.

The Union Cabinet chaired by prime minister, Narendra Modi on Wednesday decided to locate the premier institute at Sambalpur, according to union minister Ravishankar Prasad.

Making the announcement after the cabinet meeting, Prasad said classes in the Sambalpur IIM would begin from the current academic year (2015-16).

A total of 140 students would be admitted to each of the six new IIMs, including Sambalpur, he said.

“The Union Cabinet has approved a plan to set up of six more Indian Institutes of Management (IIM). The locations of the premier management institutes will be in Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), Bodh Gaya (Bihar), Sirmaur (Himachal Pradesh), Nagpur (Maharashtra), Sambalpur (Odisha) and Amritsar (Punjab),” said Prasad.

“A total 140 students each will be admitted to the six IIMs, including the one at Sambalpur, and courses will start from this year; 2015-16. Budgetary allocations for the same have been made. We have asked the state governments to provide land for the projects and we will take up the construction responsibilities,” he added.

Ahead of last year’s online registration for Common Admission Test (CAT) for management courses, the CAT website had said that the students could apply to the new institutes.

With the addition of six new institutes, the total number of IIMs in the country will go up to 19.

The Odisha Government has expressed its satisfaction over the decision of the Union Cabinet. “I am relieved and wish to thank the Union HRD minister for this announcement. I am also thankful to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for all the lobbying. The Union HRD ministry, after visiting the Sambalpur location, had asked us to make improvements on communication and we had immediately agreed to it,” said Sanjay Dasburma, Minister of Employment, Technical Education and Training (ETET).

“Sambalpur is well-connected via rail and road. It is a well-developed area of Western Odisha. We know it doesn’t have air connectivity as of now, but it takes time to develop infrastructure. As of now, it would be dependent on Jharsuguda airport,” he added while answering a question on air connectivity.

The western Odisha town erupted in joy with the news of the decision on Sambalpur as the location for the IIM spread like wild fire.