Utkal University

On receiving the Governor's assent on 2nd August 1943, the Utkal University Act, 1943 came into force, clearing the way for the foundation of Utkal University on 27th November 1943. The University initially started functioning from a room in Ravenshaw College, Cuttack before moving to its new campus. The Utkal University Act, 1943 was amended in 1947 defining the territorial jurisdiction of the University, which was subsequently extended to the whole state of Odisha in 1950. Dr. Pranakrushna Parija, the then Principal of Ravenshaw College, Cuttack was the first Vice-Chancellor of the University, and Mr. V. V. John, the then Assistant Professor of English, Ravenshaw College was its first Registrar. Initially it was an affiliating body but in 1949 it took over the management of the under- graduate Department of Law from Ravenshaw College, Cuttack and established its first constituent college now known as Madhusudan Law College, Cuttack. Post-Graduate Departments such as Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Botany, Oriya and English opened during the years 1966-69 in its new campus at Vani Vihar. The Department of Sociology and Labour Welfare and the Department of Geography was set up in 1970. Utkal University has a jurisdiction over 9 districts, namely Angul, Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Jajpur, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Khurda, Nayagarh and Puri. At present, the University has twenty-seven post-graduate teaching and research departments in the campus.