Bhubaneswar: Padma Shri Damyanti Besra today inaugurated the academic wing building of the Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes Research & Training Institute (SCSTRTI) today.
Dr Besra, former principal of MPC Autonomous College, Baripada has contributed enormously in the field of tribal literature.
Ranjana Chopra, Principal Secretary, ST & SC Development Department, Director (ST) Guha Poonam Tapas Kumar, Prof A B Ota, Director, SCSTRTI, MD, TDCCOL Manasi Nimbhal and other senior officers of the department and the staff of SCSTRTI were present during the inauguration.
The new 3-storey, 28000 sq. ft. academic wing building has been constructed with an ethnic design. It houses a state-of-the-art, 100-seater conference hall. All the facilities including firefighting measures are in place. The building complies with the guidelines of a differently-abled-friendly infrastructure.
It has special facilities such as ramps, rails, and special toilets. Tribal paintings adorn the inner and outer walls of the building. The courtyard showcases the images of tribal leaders who had led various tribal movements before independence.
The academic wing will accommodate the research personnel of the SCSTRTI. It will also provide space for undertaking collaborative research with institutes of national and international repute.
Funding for this building has been made by the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs and the Government of Odisha through ST & SC Development Department.
The SCSTRTI is the oldest Tribal Research Institute in the country, set up in 1952, spreading over 12 acres of land in the heart of the capital, Bhubaneswar.
It got Nodal Research Institute status in 2009 and was conferred National Resource Centre (NRC) status by MOTA in 2015. It has a national-level library with more than 25000 books on various subjects pertaining to tribal issues.
The library is accessed by students and researchers from within and outside the country.
It has a world-class interactive museum, Odisha State Tribal Museum with state-of-the-art technology which facilitates an immersive experience for the visitors.
It also has a dedicated PVTG museum. It undertakes policy research, evaluation studies, and training programs.
It provides input to the State Government and the Union Government for policy formation on STs, SCs, and Backward classes.
