Bhubaneswar, April 5: Nalco CMD Dr Tapan Kumar Chand has said that the Navaratna PSU is keen to chronicle the contemporary history of Odisha.
Addressing the first history alumni meet of Utkal University here on Sunday, Dr Chand said, “Historians have recorded the ancient history of Odisha but left much to be desired when it comes to modern and contemporary history of the State”.
Citing the example of great historians like Prof Manmoth Nath Das, Prof Karuna Sagar Behera, Prof Atul Pradhan and Prof Himansu Sekhar Patnaik, Dr. Chand pointed out that students of history have an inquisitive faculty, an analytical ability and overall a capability to serve prescription for the future.
“It is incumbent upon the students of history to change the image of Odisha,” he exhorted.
Prof Amal Mishra, Head of the Department of History, Utkal University delivered the welcome address.
Among others, Prof. Basant Mallik, Prof. (Retd.) K.M. Patra and Prof. Ranjan Bal, Chairman, PG Council, Utkal University addressed the gathering, comprising well-placed alumni, present and past faculty members, PG students and research scholars.
In their speeches, the noted speakers opined that subjects of humanities, like history, have staged a comeback in the various echelons of corporate world. They cited the example of Dr Chand, who is heading a Navratna CPSE like Nalco. Dr Chand was also felicitated on the occasion.
The meeting was followed by formation of Alumni Association, with Prof (Retd) KM Patra as the President, Prof Amal Mishra, Working President, Dr Hemant Mohapatra, Vice President, Prof Basant Mallik, General Secretary, Dr Santosh Sethi, Joint Secretary and Dr Amiya Mohanty, Treasurer. Dr. Chand was also unanimously elected as the Advisor of History Alumini Association.
