Odisha HRD

Feedback on NISER academic and residential township specs

Going through the NISER call for tenders for providing consultancy for the academic and residential townships, available at http://www.dcsem.gov.in/Page/Tender.htm, I have the following suggestions to the advisory specs mentioned in that document.

1. The whole campus should be universally accessible. (For too long public spaces are designed in India without taking into account people with disabilities.)

2. Research labs in NISER should have the space to accommodate all students in the 4th and 5th year of their integrated M.Sc program. In other words, when students are in their 4th and 5th year they should be required to be part of a research lab, and thus the research labs should have space to accommodate them.

3. Instead of just a cafeteria, most US universities have a "Student Union" which has multiple eating places, bank (with ATM), post office, book store, entertainment options (such as chess, pool, etc.), etc. Some even have a movie theater. The student union should be a one stop place where students (and faculty) can not only eat but also transact other necessary businesses.

4. There should be plan for designing the landscape of the campus as a combination of a botanical garden (with trees labeled with their botanical name and their place of origin) and science based sculptures. Local industries may be approached for sponsoring part of this.

5. Finally the whole design should be such that there is room to expand. Otherwise 20-30 yrs down the road, NISER will suffer the same problem that IISc is facing now in terms of lack of room to grow.

December 3rd, 2008

NISER residential township specs

(Following is from http://www.dcsem.gov.in/page/pcdtbrp3.pdf)

RESIDENTIAL TOWNSHIP

December 3rd, 2008

NISER academic township and Sports complex specs

(From http://www.dcsem.gov.in/page/pcdtb1.pdf.)

ACADEMIC TOWNSHIP & SPORTS COM PLEX

1             for Integrated 5-yr M.Sc course (1000 students in full fledged operation): double room w/o attached toilet for first three years. Single room w/o attached toilet for the last two years;

2             for integrated M.Sc + PhD course (300 students total): Single room w/o attached toilet for the first two years (like other M.Sc. students), single occupancy with attached toilet for PhD part;

3             PhD students : total 300 (other than from (2)) : same as other PhD students;

4             Post-doc fellows (150 max.) : flatlets.

Classroom complex (service area is included in the bulk): .

(A) School adm inistration (for  six schools)

School chairman’s offices (100 sq.m .*6) 600 sq ms

Meeting rooms (small, two each, 50sq.m X2*6)) 600

Seminar halls (one each, 150 sq.m . *5) 750

Committee rooms (one each, 120 sq.m . *5) 600

School libraries and outreach halls (200 sq.m .*6) 1200

Total 3750

(B) Faculty and Research Scholaroffices

Each faculty office will be standard size (5.5m X 3.6m ≈20 sq.m .). There will be 200 such offices, senior faculty (150) being given independent offices, and junior faculty (100) sharing two each. Post-Doctoral Fellows (PDFs), associates and visiting faculty will share (double) a normal faculty office. Since visiting faculty will be both short and long-term type, it is assumed that 50 rooms, seating 100 people, may be adequate. Office space for PhD scholars will be provided by sharing three scholars in one room. A good proportion of scholars are usually accommodated in research labs. However sitting space is provided for about 500.

Faculty offices (200 X 20) 4000

Visitingfaculty(50 X 20) 1000

PDF(150atanygiventime),150X10 1500

PhD scholars 3250

Total 9750

Total 6500

Total 20000

Note: The area mentioned above are indicative. However the Consultant may change the same as per planning requirement

December 3rd, 2008

NISER call for tenders for Providing Consultancy Services for Construction of Residential and Academic Townships

Following is excerpted from http://www.dcsem.gov.in/Page/Tender.htm. The cost estimates are:

• Residential Township : Rs 160 crores
• Academic Township & Sports Complex: Rs 130 crores

(As per http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=31118 each IISER construction budget is 241  crores.)

December 3rd, 2008