A Journey of Life with Divine Blessings – Autobiography Launch of Prof. G.K. Roy, a pioneer educator and institution builder of technology education in Odisha

Bhubaneswa:25/2/24:   A Journey of Life with Divine Blessings, the autobiography of Prof. (Dr.) G.K. Roy, a pioneer teacher, professor and engineer in technology education in Odisha was unveiled on 25 February 2024 in Bhubaneswar, by eminent citizens from the field of education, law, medicine, engineering and literature on the eve of his first death anniversary. The panellists included, Prof. Pramila Panda (EditorYagnaseniand Retd. Professor of Political Science), Rajendra Kishore Roy (Retd. Vice-Principal Balasore Law College), Manas Panda (Vice-Chairman, Gandhi Education Group), Dr Khirod Kumar Rout (doctor and educator) and Braja Mohan Sadangi (retired engineer). Prof. Pramila Panda, who also joined Regional Engineering College Rourkela as its first lady faculty in 1966, along with G.K. Roy reminisced about the author’s contribution in building Odisha’s premiere engineering education institution, while Manas Panda spoke on his contribution in guiding research and mentoring in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Gandhi Institute of Engineering and Technology in Gunupur, post-retirement. R.K. Roy and Dr K.K. Rout shared anecdotes about Prof. Roy’s contributions to society, while Mr Sadangi recounted their together days as batchmates at Banaras Hindu University, and the friendship of a lifetime.

Honoured with Odisha’s prestigious Samanta Chandrasekhar Award winner for his contributions to the field of ‘science and technology’, by Chief Minister Shri Naveen Patnaik in 2005, Prof. Roy’s biography depicts his life and times, along with his memories and takes on important events in Odisha, India and the global technical space spanning over five decades through the second half of the twentieth century, and the early twenty-first century, until Covid 2021. The book goes beyond the scope of an autobiography, to chronicle events in the building of a technical institute and thus is as much about the author’s professional journey as that of the story of the making of a technical institution of global repute. An avid traveller, the book also offers personal vignettes on the author’s many pilgrimages across India covering almost every major shrine in the Hindu pantheon of religious places from the 12 jyotirlingas to the ‘chaardhaams’ and Anantnag.

About Prof. G. K. Roy

Prof. G. K. Roy, B.Sc. Chemical Engineering (BHU, 1966), M.Tech. (IIT, Kharagpur, 1971), PhD (Sambalpur, 1975) was a retired Professor of the Department of Chemical Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela. The last Principal of Regional Engineering College, Rourkela and the first Director of NIT Rourkela, he was a teacher for over half a century with authorship of 159 research publications and seven textbooks, apart from guiding six doctorates.

He was honoured with the first ‘Life Time Achievement Award’ of the National Institute of Technology, Rourkela for his long and excellent service in the field of teaching and research’ on the occasion of the 69th Republic Day on 26th January 2018.

Prof. Roy was also part of environmental clearance for industries and infrastructural activities through State-level Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC) of the State Pollution Control Board (2012-15) and has organised national and international seminars, symposia, and workshops on themes of contemporary relevance under the aegis of registered technical institutions in Bhubaneswar, and offering guidance to doctoral candidates of the Biju Patnaik University of Technology and the Utkal University. He has also authored many popular articles on science and technology in Odia newspapers and magazines and is founder-patron of Subarna Srikshetra, a temple and spiritual centre in his native village, Chhanpur in Balasore (Odisha) dedicated to Lord Jagannath.

The launch event was attended by colleagues from NIT Rourkela, family members, friends and students from different batches of the Chemical Engineering department of erstwhile REC and subsequently NIT Rourkela. The book is available for purchase on Amazon. in and notionpress.com.