National Institute of Technology, Raipur

The first President of India, Rajendra Prasad laid the foundation stone of the college building on 14 September 1956. Construction was completed in 1962 and the college was inaugurated on 14 March 1963 by the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru.

Until as late as 1956, there were only three technical institutes in the country devoted to mining and metallurgical engineering. In view of this fact and also with the aim of harnessing the ample mineral resources in the region, the institute was set up on 1 May 1956 as Government College of Mining and Metallurgy. The first session of the college commenced on 1 July 1956 with the admission of 15 students each in mining and metallurgical engineering.[8]

In 1958–59 with the commencement of additional courses in civil, mechanical and electrical engineering, the college came to be known as Government College of Engineering and Technology. Later graduate courses in chemical engineering (1965), architecture (1984), electronics (1985), information technology, computer science and technology (2000), biotechnology and biomedical engineering (2003) were started.

Administrative Tower

Following the long-standing demand for more Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) the then Minister of Human Resource Development Murali Manoher Joshi decided to upgrade the Regional Engineering Colleges (RECs) to NITs. In 2003 all RECs were upgraded to NITs and central government took control to run these Institutes. Ministry of Human Resource Development issued NIT status to three more colleges. This was done to provide an NIT to every new state carved out of its parent state whose NIT was lost as a result of the bifurcation. As a result, GCET was declared a National Institute of Technology (NIT) by the Government of India on 1 December 2005 and then declared an Institute of National Importance with the passing of the National Institutes of Technology Act, 2007, in May 2007.[9]

Hostel 8 (Sirpur), Largest hostel in central India.

Hostel Entrance.

Campus (West) Streets.

The Institute has a well-organized, magnificent building symbolizing the grandeur of the institute. This huge building alone covers a total area of 62060 sq.m. It is a triple storied planned structure along with a central tower standing up to the height 23 meters. There are 35 lecture halls extending over an area of 6675 sq.m & 13 drawing halls/studios extending over an area of 3510 sq.m. about 85 labs over an area of 11510 sq.m. The other amenities consist of a small canteen, cycle stand, N.C.C, N.S.S department, a student activity center co-operative store, dispensary and a Makerspace. The building is being further extended for the architecture and electronics departments.[10]

There are separate hostel facilities for boys and girls: six for boys and two for girls. Each hostel has its own mess. Dinner is not provided on Sundays only in the boys hostel. There are two hostel for girls, each having a capacity of 150 and 250. Admission to the hostel depends upon the Joint Entrance Examination – Main rank and the distance of their native place from the institute.

At present the institute offers graduate level courses in twelve disciplines.[11]

The institute currently houses the following departments:[11]

• Admission to the undergraduate programmes is very competitive and is based on the rank secured in the Joint Entrance Examination (Main). Candidates must also secure at least 75% marks in the 12th class examination, or be in the top 20 percentile in the 12th class examination conducted by the respective Boards. For Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes students, the qualifying marks would be 65% in the 12th class examination. The Joint entrance exam (Main) is considered to be one of the toughest examinations in the world.
• NIT Raipur follows the reservation policy declared by the Supreme Court of India, by which 27% of seats are reserved for Other Backward Classes, 15% for Scheduled Castes, 7.5% for Scheduled Tribes and 10% for EWS category students. The institute also accepts foreign nationals through scholarships awarded by the Government of India, and non-resident Indians through an independent scheme known as Direct Admission for Students Abroad that uses SAT scores.[12]
• Admissions to the postgraduate programmes are through the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering for the Master of Technology (M.Tech.) and Master of Science programs (taught and research), and through NIMCET for the Master of Computer Applications (M.C.A) program.

The institute awards Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.) degrees in eleven engineering disciplines as well as the Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch) degree through its architecture program.[13]

The institute also offers graduate programmes in science and engineering, leading to a Master of Science (M.Sc.) or Master of Technology (M.Tech.) degree respectively, as well as a program in computer applications (MCA).

The Department of Computer Applications offers full-time post-graduate programme — three-year Master of Computer Applications (MCA) programme.

Most of the institute's academic departments offer Doctorate of Philosophy (PhD) degrees programmes under its own HOD.[14]

Central Computer Center (CCC)

The Central Library of NIT, Raipur has a good collection of more than 1 crore of documents consisting of text books, reference books and back volume journals. Besides it has subscription to a good numbers of print journals and online resources. The library automation program through LibSys7- Library management software is in progress .It caters to the information and document need of nearly 5000 users consisting of Faculty members, staff, B.Tech/M.Tech/MCA students and research scholars satisfactorily.[10]

National Institute of Technology, Raipur (NITRR) is ranked 64 among engineering colleges by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) in 2021.[15]

All the activities are managed by students under the guidance of SAS Officer and Faculty In-Charge Sports. The prime bodies under sports department is activity center and GYM, which provide avenues for various sports events, indoor and outdoor games. Students are also encouraged and facilitated to take part in similar events in other institutions. An extremely crucial role is played by Sports department of the institute in facilitating the activities and reaching out to the students. GYM is an Institute governed organization that cultivates leadership, encourages students to participate in outdoor activities, and provide facilities for games and sports. The members of the staff monitor activities of Gym and help students in organizing and managing their functions. Sports department provides facilities for outdoor games like Athletics, Cricket, Football, Hockey, Badminton, Basketball, Baseball, Lawn Tennis, Swimming, Gymnastics, Yoga Exercises, and Volleyball etc. Each game is looked after by a Captain and Sports Officer. All the games are properly run with the assistance of Sports Officer.

Guest House of the institute provides accommodation facility to the institute guests, guests of the students of the institute, parents of the students, visitors from other NITs and educational institutes, participants of the activities organized by the institute and persons with approval from appropriate authorities. Guest house has three living rooms, one dining hall and one hall.

The student clubs host a number of annual fests or events, inviting participants from colleges across the nation.[16]

The institute has an active alumni network, with chapters across India, in the United States and in Europe.

Notable alumni include Chief Executive Officers and top executives of Fortune India 500 companies:

• Abid Ali Neemuchwala, Former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Wipro
• Sudhir Vasudeva (1974/Che), Former Chairman & Managing Director at ONGC[17]

Bureaucrats:

• Deepak Khandekar (1985/Civil), Personnel Secretary (India). Former Chief Secretary, Ministry of Tribal Affairs

In the academic world, they include deans and chairs of faculties:

• Baldev Raj, Padma Shri recipient and director of the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR)
• Dharma Agrawal, Distinguished Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computing Systems at the University of Cincinnati

Politicians:

• Gaurishankar Agrawal, former Speaker of Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly
• Abhishek Singh, Member of Parliament from Rajnandgaon
• Shivshankar Painkra, Member of Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly
• Zale Neikha, Member of Nagaland Legislative Assembly

Artists:

• Budhaditya Mukherjee, Padma Shri recipient and first artist in history to perform in the House of Commons, London.

• Ajit Jogi, first Chief Minister of the state of Chhattisgarh.