Ramadevi Mahila Mahavidyalaya now first women's university of

The Ramadevi Mahila Mahavidyalaya here was today formally accorded the status of women's university by the Odisha government with the higher education department issuing a notification in this regard.
The women's college would now be known as Ramadevi Women's University, the first of its kind in the state, said higher education minister Pradeep Panigrahi.
He said the department issued the notification in this regard after Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik formally approved the proposal.
All the women colleges, about 47, under the Utkal University, would come under the jurisdiction of the newly created Ramadevi Women's University, Panigrahi said, adding, a notification has also been issued for upgradation of Khalikote College to a cluster university.

The new cluster university would be known as Khalikote University, the minister said.
While Ramadevi Women's University would get the status of an affiliating university, Khalikote University would operate as a cluster university.

There would be five major colleges like Khalikote (Autonomous) College, SBRG College, Berhampur, Vinayak Acharya College, Berhampur, Gopalpur College and Government Science College, Chhatrapur under the newly created Khalikote University, Panigrahi said.
The state government has also proposed to upgrade the G M College at Sambalpur into a university. A proposal in this regard has been sent to the Centre for approval, he said.
The minister said the two new universities would be provided with Rs 55 crore each for infrastructure development.

With the two new universities, the number of universities in Odisha has increased to 14, he added.