Education - Current Affairs for April, 2017

IIT Kharagpur plans to introduce Vastu Shashtra to the architecture students from this year August.

While the rudiments of Vastu Shastra will be introduced to the first and second-year undergraduate architecture students, detailed grounding on the subject will be imparted to the post graduate and research scholars in infrastructure.

For the UG students, graded modules related to basic design and history of architecture will be taught.

For the PG level, modules imparting solar principles, sacred diagrams, 9 circuit placements or the nabagraha mandal, sacred altars and design semiotics and semantics will be taught.

The faculty members of IIT Kharagpur feels that Vastu Shastra as a concept needs to be included in the architecture and infrastructure syllabi.

They are of the view that students be conversant with ancient Indian architectural traditions.

They believe that ancient Indian concepts have a scientific basis and introducing students to these will open up new avenues of knowledge.

Vastu Shastra: Know More

• The basic concept of Vastu Shastra revolves around the healthy relationship of nature and infrastructure and hence has modern relevance.
• Vastu Shastra Vastu Shastra has its beginnings in Rig Veda.
• It is a traditional Hindu system of architecture that describes principles of design, layout, measurements, ground preparation, space arrangement and spatial geometry.

The Union Cabinet on April 12, 2017 approved setting up of an Indian Institute of Petroleum and Energy (IIPE) at Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.

This is at a cost of over INR 655 crore, fulfilling the commitment made to the state when Telangana was separated from it.

The Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved setting IIPE as ‘an Institute of National Importance’ through an Act of Parliament.

The Institute will have the governance structure as well as legal mandate to grant degrees in a manner similar to that enjoyed by IITs.

A separate Act will also impart the required status to the institute to become a ‘CoE in petroleum and energy studies.

The Cabinet also approved INR 655.46 crore as capital expenditure to set up IIPE and contribution of INR 200 crore towards its Endowment Fund.

This will be in addition to a contribution of INR 200 crore from oil companies towards the Endowment Fund.

The Centre had promised a petroleum university as part of the package to Andhra Pradesh after Telangana was split from it.

Andhra Pradesh has allocated 200 acres of land, free of cost, for setting up of IIPE at Sabbavaram Mandal in Visakhapatnam district.

A temporary campus of IIPE has been set up from academic session 2016-17 at the Andhra University campus with two undergraduate programmes in petroleum engineering and chemical engineering (with capacity of 50 students each).

IIT-Kharagpur has taken up the responsibility of mentoring the institute.

The decision to set up the institute has been taken in line with the commitment made under 13th Schedule of A.P. Reorganisation Act.