Kolkata: Sidho Kanho Birsha University (SKBU) will soon have its second campus—spread over 53 acres— Chharra in Purulia. The land for varsitys expansion has been allotted by the state Land and Land Reforms department. The varsity had applied for allocation of land to the state government in 2018 for setting up its second campus. The proposal was approved in 2019. The state Public Works department (PWD) has already finalized the design plan for the second campus. It will be developed into a completely green campus. The new campus will have several structures including an administrative building, academic building, a state-of-the art library, student activity centre, health centre, guest house, separate hostels for girls and boys, hostel and canteen, among others. Infrastructure will also be developed for professors and staff quarters and vice chancellors bungalow. Like a world-class varsity, the campus will have a playground with gallery, basketball court with gymnasium, auditorium, parking lot, Biodiversity Park, medicinal plant garden, museum, swimming pool and an artificial water body for aquaculture, among other facilities. In the first phase, academic building, boys hostel, Biodiversity Park, medicinal plant garden, teachers quarter and sports complex will be built with 2025 earmarked as the deadline. University vice chancellor Dipak Kar said the work for erecting the boundary wall around the campus has already begun. The medicinal plant garden has already come up. Sports complex will be built over 1/4th part of the total land—containing the playground, gallery, swimming pool and gymnasium. The varsity has already received Rs 20 crore from RUSA funds. The State Higher Education department has also given Rs 20 crore for the project. Funds worth Rs 10 crore has been given from the union Science and Technology department for setting up the second campus. The university has a dedicated Science and Technology Intervention Hub, where the researchers and students of the Department of Science and Technology work for the upliftment of the SC community. It is the only-of-its-kind in eastern India. SKBU was established in 2010 on 13 acres. It has seen a lot of expansion in terms of academic activities.

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