Brahmapur, 11th Aug 2025: An old and prestigious educational institution, Khallikote University has earned a name at the national level. However, since the day it was declared a unitary university, its condition has been gradually weakening. For three years after the declaration, Khallikote Unitary University did not receive either the UGC’s 2(f) recognition (affiliation) or 12(b) status (eligibility for financial grants). Although it was granted UGC recognition in August 2024, the university has still not achieved full status.
Tomorrow, this institution will celebrate its fourth Foundation Day. One of the most significant concerns is that there is no hostel for postgraduate (PG) students. A few days ago, the only PG hostel — Ram Chandra Mardaraj (RCM) Hostel — was demolished after being declared unsafe. Though there was a proposal to build a new hostel at the site, at present the university has no hostel for PG students.
Khallikote University has 18 PG and 22 UG departments, with student enrollment exceeding 5,000.
Over 5,000 Students, Only 520 Hostel Seats
The PG department alone has 488 seats. If first- and second-year students are combined, the number reaches 976. Adding MBA and MCA courses, the total PG student capacity exceeds 1,000. Yet, the university had only two hostels — one for boys and one for girls. The RCM Boys’ Hostel had 190 beds and was almost a century old. On June 16, the university administration issued a notice asking residents to vacate the hostel and then demolished the unsafe building. As a temporary measure, the students staying at RCM Hostel were shifted to the Radhakrishna (RK) Undergraduate Boys’ Hostel. However, questions are being raised about where newly admitted PG students will be accommodated this year.
Through the Common PG Entrance Test (CPET), the PG admission process began in March. By July 25, PG admissions across all departments had been completed, with all seats filled. However, due to the lack of a hostel, some students have chosen not to take admission here and have instead enrolled in other institutions, according to a faculty member. This is because students come to Khallikote University from neighboring districts like Gajapati, Kandhamal, Nayagarh, Rayagada, and others, for whom hostel accommodation is essential. The absence of a PG hostel has created serious inconvenience for them.
Apart from the now-demolished RCM Hostel, the university currently has:
- RK Undergraduate Boys’ Hostel (180 seats)
- Jhansi Rani Girls’ Hostel (180 seats)
- Swami Vivekananda Girls’ Hostel (160 seats)