NIT Rourkela to host the youth from Sikkim for a 5-day exposure tour to Odisha under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat –Yuva Sangam programme

Bhubaneswar:23/2/23:NIT Rourkela has been chosen as the Nodal Institute for Odisha and paired with NIT Sikkim to host the Yuva Sangam youth exchange programme under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat (EBSB) –Yuva Sangam programme. NIT Rourkela is going to host the youths from Sikkim for a 5-day exposure tour to Odisha. 25 participants from Sikkim and 5 faculty/staff of NIT Sikkim will be on the tour of the state of Odisha, starting from February 25th to March 3rd, 2023. The EBSB coordinators from NIT Rourkela will organize their tour, which includes visits to different academic institutions, tourist places, notable industries, etc. during this 5-day trip (excluding arrival and departure day). Similarly, NIT Rourkela has selected its first batch of 40 young participants within the 18–30-year age group (including students, NSS/ NYKS volunteers, employed/self-employed persons, etc.), from different districts of Odisha for an exposure tour to Sikkim state starting from 1st March to 7th March 2023.

Yuva Sangam is an initiative by the Ministry of Education, Government of India to strengthen people-to-people connections, especially between youth belonging to North Eastern India and other states. It will provide an immersive experience of various facets of life, development landmarks, recent achievements and youth connections in the host state. During their visits, the youth will have a multi-dimensional exposure to five broad areas – Paryatan (Tourism), Parampara (Traditions), Pragati (Development), Prodyogik (Technology) and Paraspar Sampark (People-to-people connect). This program is being organized in collaboration with various other ministries and departments, including Education, Culture, Tourism, Railways, Information & Broadcasting, Youth Affairs & Sports, Home Affairs, Department for Development of North-East Region (DoNER) and IRCTC. Around 1000 youth will participate in the pilot of Yuva Sangam. This project can be considered a unique way to connect and strengthen the bond between young people of the North Eastern States and the rest of India. The program is fully funded by the Government of India towards travel and there is no expenditure on the part of visiting students as the host institute is providing accommodation and food.

During the tour, participants will visit heritage sites, sports infrastructure, industries, religious centres, education institutes, and meet Self Help Groups primarily involved in making products of millets and attend the cultural showcase and experience the rich tradition and heritage of Odisha. They will also get a first-hand experience of living among people with a mixed set of cultural diversity at the NIT Rourkela campus and explore their scientific and academic expedition.

The nodal officers for Yuva Sangam (Youth Exchange Programme) Odisha-Sikkim are Prof. Winny Routray from NIT Rourkela and Mr. Ram Nepal (Assistant Registrar) from NIT Sikkim. To detail more on the tour to Sikkim, selected youth from Odisha had an orientation programme on 22.03.2022. To achieve the goal of ‘One India united India and strong India’, NIT Rourkela is proud to be a part of this visionary initiative by the Government of India.