IIM Calcutta plans to upgrade facilities to attract international scholars

IIM Calcutta has decided to build new hostels and academic blocks to deal with a rise in students and to attract international scholars.

The institute said in a release: “There is an urgent need to upgrade the infrastructure so that the institute can retain its competitive edge on the national and global stage.”

Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan will virtually lay the foundation stone for the project from Shastri Bhawan in New Delhi on January 31, officials said.

The proposed hostels, service building and sub-station building will be a G+9 structure.

Many teachers have told this newspaper over the past few years that IIM Calcutta was losing ground to the other IIMs in the absence of “forward-looking initiatives”.

The institute has also decided to dismantle the older hostels while upgrading the infrastructure.

Institute sources said chunks of concrete keep coming off the ceilings of the older hostel buildings. They were constructed in the 1970s.

A release from the institute said the proposed building will have a built-up area of 32,556 square metres consisting of 726 rooms with common washrooms and 200 rooms with attached washrooms.

The estimated cost is Rs 245.88 crore. The structure has been designed by architect Hafeez Contractor through the CPWD (Central Public Works Department).

Contractor is one of the most renowned architects of India, and is the man behind designing some of the most iconic buildings in India.

The project is envisaged to be completed within two years, says the release.

The institute now operates out of a campus spread across 135 acres in Joka with around 1,200 students.

An IIM official admitted ng that some of the existing hostels were in poor shape and said: “The institute is located on a marshy land which has adversely affected the construction of the hostels. Therefore we are getting them demolished.”

“Since we are a fully residential campus, it is a must that we provide accommodation facilities equipped with the latest facilities. As we are increasing the number of executive-level programmes the institute must upgrade the infrastructure in terms of hostels and classrooms,” the official said.

Another IIM official said with the advent of the IIM Act 2017, the institute has revised its vision and mission, which seek to make the institute an international centre of excellence with a high global ranking in all aspects of management education, research and practice.

“We aim to draw a significant number of international scholars to our campus. This can be done by upgrading the infrastructure. Infrastructure norms like the ability to efficiently support and use digital technologies are now essential requirements, which we want to provide,” he said.

Manish Thakur, dean (new initiatives and external relations), said the new initiatives will help the B-school significantly.