New Delhi / Jalandhar, May 12, 2013: The Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers and Statistics and Programme Implementation, Srikant Kumar Jena, has said that he would take up the issue of setting up a plastic park for the downstream industries of Panipat Refinery in Haryana under the Central Government’s plan to set up such parks all over the country.
Speaking after inaugurating the building of the Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology (CIPET) at Murthal in Sonipat District, on Saturday, Jena also announced that the classes for B. Tech, post-graduate and under-graduate courses in the CIPET would commence from the next academic session. He was accompanied by the Haryana Chief Minister, Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
Jena said that the CIPET building had been constructed on the campus of Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology at the cost of Rs. 25 crore. The entire expenditure on the construction of the building has been borne by the state government.
Apart from this, the state government has also provided 10 acres of land for the purpose.
The Panipat Refinery, having beautiful campus, raw material and ample manpower, offered an ideal place to locate a plastic park, Jena said. Haryana is emerging fast in the industrial sector and the entrepreneurs could also take the initiative to set up ventures in the state.
The minister said he would ensure that the students of Haryana got 25 per cent reservation in admission to the CIPET, Murthal. He recalled that when the foundation stone of the building was laid in 2009, the Chief Minister had demanded that 25 per cent seats should be reserved for the students of Haryana. Besides, he also demanded that B.Tech, post-graduate and under-graduate courses should also be introduced in CIPET.
Jena said that CIPETs were rendering great service to the industries throughout the country. People thought that plastic polluted the environment but the truth is that plastic plays a vital role in our day-to-day life. He said that the use of plastic bag accounted for only 0.1 per cent of pollution.
While appreciating the facilities made available in the institute, Jena said that jobs were assured to all the students who pursued their studies in this institute. “Industry is expanding and you have such machinery, which is not even available in big industries,” he said, adding that after training, industry would come to you instead of you reaching out to industry.
The Hooda-led state government had created an industrial and entrepreneur-friendly atmosphere in the state.
Describing Hooda as a stalwart, the Union Minister said that under his leadership, education had got a tremendous boost in Haryana. He had taken the initiative to upgrade the Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram College of Science at Technology to the level of university. Besides, a number of other universities have also been set up with his efforts.
Education, health care facilities, infrastructure and road network were pivotal for the growth of any country or state and he was happy to learn that Haryana is way ahead in all these spheres.
While thanking the Union Minister for his assurance to get a Plastic Park approved for Panipat, Hooda said, “We are developing an industrial estate along the Panipat Refinery and it would be an appropriate place for locating such project.”
The CIPET is a premier national institute devoted to academic, technology support and research activities for the growth of plastics and allied industries in the country. Hooda said that with the inauguration of this institute, the number of CIPETs in the country had reached to 23.
It is a matter of happiness that the institute which was started with just 32 students today has 700 students on the rolls with 100 per cent placement of students passing out from this centre. He hoped that this centre would be a boon to the plastics industry and allied industries not only in Haryana but also in the neighbouring state.
Hooda pointed out that any meaningful industrial development could not sustain itself in the absence of a dependable pool of skilled manpower. Therefore, our focus has been to invest in educational and professional institutes for skill development amongst our youth. The state government has opened 489 technical institutes in the last eight years. As a result, there has been an addition of 1.15 lakh seats in various technical courses. A number of prestigious institutes had already been set up in the state, Hooda said.
Hooda disclosed that the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, would lay the foundation stone of the National Defence University in Gurgaon on May 23. Similarly, the foundation stone of the National Institute of Design (NID) is also going to be laid very shortly.
Earlier, Jena and Hooda went round the CIPET campus and viewed the facilities available there.