5 Interesting engineering college campuses

After which we also tried to understand what all students have to go through right from counselling to taking admission at an engineering college.

We have even talked about the best places to study, top 10 hilarious engineering fundas, popular engineering fests in India as well as listing out educational institutions which have the best hostels. However, these days many Indian educational institutions have Olympic size stadiums, hi-tech infrastructure, extensive gyms etc and so Shiksha.com is taking a step further and is listing for you college campuses in India which stand out from the crowd.

IIT Kharagpur

Spread over an area of 2,100 acress, IIT Kharagpur is a haven for the nature loving spirits. Students can find tasty food at eating facilities within the campus such as Sahara, Dreamland, Vegies, Super-Duper, Tikka, Billoo's Restaurant etc. However, Technology Students' Gymkhana is one part of IIT Kharagpur’s campus which students absolutely adore. The official website states, “It has a number of indoor and outdoor stadia, a modern swimming pool and a gymnasium. Music Society, Film Society, Dramatics Society, Aquatics Society and many more special interest groups are supported by the Gymkhana”. Also, the view of the garden behind the Gymkhana lakeside is breathtaking.

This engineering college’s campus is made even more interesting due to the presence of places such as Nehru Museum, Hijli Shahid Bhavan, Old Prison Cells and Martyrs Memorial, which students can visit anytime.

BITS Pilani

Covering an area of 990 acres, Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS) Pilani was established in 1964. BITS Pilani also has a Birla Mandir dedicated to the goddess Saraswati. This temple is made of white marble and is built on a 7 foot high foundation with 70 pillars for support. It covers an area of 25,000 square feet.

Another aspect which makes the BITS Pilani campus interesting is the fact that it houses India‘s first technological museum which is called the – Birla Museum. An imposing bronze statue titled Cosmic Man, well maintained lawns and ponds, and a simple yet elegant structure characterise the Birla Museum. Built in 1954, this Museum has 17 galleries with interactive exhibits that let users get a hands-on educational experience of basic scientific principles as well as the working of complex gadgets and machinery.

BITS Pilani also has a 27,290 sq ft auditorium which is decorated with paintings by students from the art and decoration department.

TERI University

Established in 1998 and spread over an area of 2 acres, TERI University in New Delhi puts into practice the very principles it teaches in its classrooms. The campus is aesthetically designed with several features of passive solar design, energy-efficiency and water and waste management systems.

Some green features of TERI University’s campus are as follows:

• Insulation of external walls with rock wool
• Insulation on terrace done with vermiculite and puff insulation topped with China mosaic for efficient heat reflection
• Double insulation synergy azur glass is used in external façade with aluminum glazing
• Earth Air Tunnel: It is used for free cooling / heating of the building for a major part of the year. This technology uses the heat sink property of earth to maintain comfortable temperatures inside the building and thus helps in saving up to 50% of energy when compared to regular mechanisms.
• Thermal mass: Thermal mass storage is used in the classrooms. It involves storing energy when available and using it when required. Estimated energy savings of up to 40% can be achieved with this system.
• VRV system: The variable refrigerant volumes (VRV) systems is a modern air-conditioning system, similar to an efficient version of a split air conditioner. It contributes to 15% energy savings as compared to a conventional air conditioning system.
• Hunter Douglas louvers and pergolas are used in the building for controlling the intensity of incoming sun rays.
• Solar water heating system
• Waste water recycling with STP

Manipal University

Covering 313 acres of land with 20, 000 inhabitants, Manipal University is built on lateritic rock. It is a ‘No Smoking Campus’ and all vehicles entering the campus are required to have a pollution under control certificate. Rain water harvesting, conservation and recycling of water, state-of-the-art waste disposal systems, energy saving devices and use of solar energy wherever possible are a few innovative methods which have made the atmosphere in Manipal very eco-friendly.

Manipal University boasts of Asia's largest indoor sports facility called Marena, which covers an area of 142,132 sq ft. This indoor sports facility has badminton courts, basketball courts, squash court and an indoor jogging track along with a gym and a sauna. The campuses also have playgrounds and courts for cricket, hockey, football, tennis, basketball, badminton and volleyball. There is a gym and an athletics track.

The University also has an athletics track and a gym. Sources reveal that there are as many as 124 treadmills at Manipal University’s gym.

Kasturbha Medical College at Manipal University’s campus has one of the finest anatomy museums in Asia. The museum has 1000 odd dissected specimens of the human body- adult, foetus and other animals. The museum also displays cross sectional specimens, radiographs, skeletons of human and other vertebrates, radiographs and developmental anatomy models.

IIT Madras

A residential institute spread over an area of 620 acres, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras was established in 1959. IIT Madras also has a research park which is modeled along the lines of research parks at Stanford and MIT. The focus of IIT Madras’s Research Park is not only on ‘incubation efforts but also on propelling innovation in established R&D focused companies’.

The campus of IIT Madras is known to have around 300 species of plants, 50 species of butterflies as well as 100 different bird species.

IIT Madras also has a lake on campus which covers an area of 25 acres. Birds such as herons, cormorants, egrets, kingfishers and purple moorhens are a common sight here.

Talking about the sports and fitness facilities, IIT Madras’s official website states, “Excellent facilities are available including a swimming pool of Olympic standards, a well-equipped gymnasium, the impressive IIT-Chemplast cricket ground, a vast stadium and a hi-tech wood-floored multipurpose indoor stadium in the Students' Activities' Center”.

The website also reveals that the pool at IIT Madras has been redesigned by the engineering unit and its length has been increased from 49.8m to 50m, which is the full Olympic size, and its width has been increased from 21.77m to 24m. The shallow beginners’ pool has also been made larger, in addition to being newly equipped with a ramp.

Other related articles:

Heritage Universities of India

10 beautiful engineering college campuses in India

5 Most Beautiful Fashion Design Colleges in India

5 Haunted college campuses in India