Darjeeling Hills set to get first engineering college on August 27
Darjeeling: Darjeeling Hills set to get its first engineering college on August 27 in Takdah, which will also be Bengal’s first-ever technical degree college to operate in Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode. Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) Chief Executive Anit Thapa will inaugurate the college.
The Darjeeling Hill Institute of Technology and Management (DHITM) has been established by the Department of Education and the Department of Engineering, GTA.
It is managed by the Orissa Child Welfare and Education Trust (OCWET) and funded by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation Ltd (NHPC) under CSR. The institute is approved by the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), New Delhi and affiliated to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology (MAKAUT), West Bengal.
DHITM will offer four-year undergraduate programmes in Computer Science engineering (including a specialisation in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning), Mechanical, Civil, and Electrical engineering, along with courses in Hotel Management and Culinary Technology. Each department will admit 60 students annually, with the institute assuring 100 per cent placement assistance.
“Our identity is not just our land and mountains but also educated Gorkhas, doctors, engineers, IAS officers and bureaucrats. All dream of a Hill advanced in education. This college is a step towards that dream,” stated Thapa.
The modern high-tech campus is expected to open new avenues for hill students, particularly those from rural areas, by providing access to quality technical and management education closer to home. “It will not only transform individual careers but also contribute significantly to the development and prosperity of the Darjeeling hills,” added Thapa. Admissions are now open, and interested candidates have been urged to contact the college authorities for further details.
Educationalists have hailed the initiative as a historic and inspirational step, one that brings fresh hope to the youth of Darjeeling and the surrounding hill regions by merging education with opportunities for employment.
The inaguration ceremony on August 27 will be attended by Dushyant Nariala, Additional Chief Secretary Government of West Bengal and Principal Secretary, GTA; Binod Kumar, Principal Secretary Higher Education department, West Bengal; Prof. Tapas Chakraborty, VC, MAKAUT; Prof. Tejimala Gurung Nag, VC, Darjeeling Hill University along with officials of GTA, NHPC and OCWET.
