In the movie ‘3 Idiots!’ Amir Khan essayed the role of Phunsukh Wangdoo aka Rancho who enjoys immense popularity probably because he asserted that one should chase excellence instead of success. Although Amir Khan is quite popular in his own right, the character of Rancho is celebrated because of his nuanced approach towards education which left a lasting impression on the audience. What set ‘Rancho’ apart from the crowd was his ability to find sustainable solutions to real-life problems and how he decided to become an educator to empower posterity and took it upon himself to spread his excellence for everyone’s benefit, especially for those at the grassroots.

The reel life ‘Rancho’ has been a topic of multiple conversations and writings but today we bring to you the story of a real-life Rancho from Odisha, Prof. Mukti Kanta Mishra. The educationist is known for taking a fragile College from a Naxalite part of Odisha and turning it into a university with six campuses which are the epitome of ecological self-sustainability. The University adheres to the responsibility of being waste minimal and believes in optimal utilization of natural and man-made resources. However, his most famous idea is a skill-based education model that he developed in partnership with Industrial bigshots, it involves parallel experiential & action learning through on-campus industries.

The ‘Rancho’ Factor

An example of Prof Mishra’s foresightedness is the blend of upcycling and recycling that takes place in the day-to-day operations carried out on these campuses. The campuses at his university are mostly residential leading to the production of a lot of cooked and uncooked waste which is sustainably managed through various initiatives. The campus has partnered with local piggeries top pick-up waste as they were unable to find food for their livestock and the remaining waste is converted to manure via biodigesters.

Centurion Campus of Bhubaneswar, built on barren land due to being located on Laterite Zone was revived by growing greenery on the alternative soil made with food waste that sustained the growth of trees and grass. Even though there is a provision to connect with the municipal drainage system of the locality, the campus utilises the last drop of wastewater it generates. The wastewater from hostels is treated and then utilised within the fields and mango orchards.

Moreover, the university produces handmade paper from the paper waste and the library waste generated from here. Interestingly, the university aids its Civil Engineering course by manufacturing pavers from the plastic bottles collected from students consuming packaged drinks. The pavers are sold on an I-2-I market basis, to other educational institutions.

From a failed College to a Multi-campus University

Prof Mishra and his long-time friend Prof D N Rao began their journey around 2005 when they secured a contract for management of college located in a tribal district in Odisha. They came to be the trustees of that College when disagreements in management arose leaving them with two options and one of them being quitting the college altogether and other being the trustees. Prof Mishra’s association with dual sector universities in Australia led him to develop a skill-integrated higher education model but its implementation was proving to be difficult because it was a private college with an affiliation to a government university.

Developing precision components for HAL and ISRO

The University produces more than 32 products which are produced within its campuses either directly or through social enterprises incubated herein and student start-ups. This product-centric model has been fostered through individual and institutional mentoring made possible by its partnerships with various industries. The production line-up of these on-campus industries produces market-linked products including everything from bread & rice, CO2 supercritical extracts and transformers to precision components for HAL and ISRO. The students are guided by experts at every level of production like product design, development, manufacturing, packaging, and marketing. In addition to that, students are involved in supply chain management and reverse auction. The university, with a current turnover of Rs. 30-35 crore is eyeing a turnover of Rs 100 crore with product and productions alone, this target is to be achieved by 2025-26.