New Delhi: Four year degree engineering course to be introduced at Indian Institutes of Handloom Technology (IIHT), Bargarh, very soon, Union Textile Minister Piyush Goyal said in Rajya Sabha recently.
Giving a written reply to a unstarred question of BJD MP Prasanna Acharya, Goyal said, “The Government of India has taken a policy decision to introduce 4 years degree course in Handloom and Textile Technology in the IIHTs under its control including at Bargarh as per feasibility of introducing the degree course.”
The IITH Bargarh was established in 2008 and offering 3 years Diploma in Handloom and Textile Technology.
At present, the intake capacity for this diploma course is 50 seats and the students in this batch are from three States namely Odisha (22), Chhattisgarh (5), Telangana (9) and Maharashtra (14).
Campus of the Institute is spread over a 33.02 acre area and is 8 km away from Bargarh. The institute campus has 3 storied Administrative block, double storied Workshop block, Multipurpose Hall cum Auditorium, two separate Hostels for Boys and Girls with 60 and 15 rooms, Guest house and Staff quarters, sources said.
There are six Indian Institutes of Handloom Technology at Bargarh (Odisha), Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), Salem (Tamilnadu), Guwahati (Assam), Jodhpur (Rajasthan) and Fulia-Santipur (West Bengal) under the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India.
Besides, four IIHTs at Venkatagiri (Andhra Pradesh), Gadag-Betgeri (Karnataka), Champa (Chattisgarh) and Kannur (Kerala) are run by respective State Governments, Mr.Goyal said.
Around 340 students are awarded diplomas/post diplomas/degrees each year by six Central Government-run IIHTs. Post qualification, students either wish to seek employment, be self employed or pursue higher studies, he said.
The Union Minister further said that the placement offices in these institutes invite companies for campus placement for students. A significant number of students are recruited from the campus. The placement office continues to assist and guide the remaining students, if any, in finding gainful employment.