North Orissa Varsity Renamed Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University

Baripada: The North Orissa University (NOU) in Baripada of Mayurbhanj district will now be known as Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University as the institution has been renamed after the erstwhile King of the princely state of Mayurbhanj, announced Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday.

A notification to this effect issued by the Higher Education department in Odisha Gazette mentioned: "In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section-32 of the Odisha Universities Act, 1989 (Odisha Act 5 of 1989), the State government has changed the name of North Orissa University as Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo university with effect from December 23, 2020."

As per reports, the varsity was established in the notification of the Odisha Government in Higher Education Department dated July 13, 1998.

The change of name has been a long-standing demand of the locals and various socio-cultural organisations. Last week on the 17th on the occasion of Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo's 150th birth anniversary, the district unit of the BJP called for renaming North Orissa University after the erstwhile King.

Again on December 21 at the BJD's Council Meet, when CM Naveen asked party functionaries to come up with suggestions on the requirements of their respective regions assuring them that good ones will be implemented, party's Mayurbhanj district committee proposed renaming the varsity and the same was welcomed by the Chief Minister. Our government will approve this suggestion, the CM had said.

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