Ajit Kumar Shasany joins as VC of Central University of Odisha

Koraput: Dr. Ajit Kumar Shasany, Former Director of the National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI) under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), has joined as the Vice-Chancellor of the Central University of Odisha, Koraput on Thursday.

Prof Shasany was appointed by the President of India as new Vice Chancellor of CUO for a period of five years vide a notification dated 2nd July 2026.

Dr Shasany took over charge of the Vice Chancellor from Prof N C Panda, Dean of Schools & Head, Dep’t of Sanskrit who was acting as Vice Chancellor I/c. The joining was done in the presence of University officials like Dr Sanjay Kr Pradhan, Registrar I/c and Shri Duryodhan Sethy, Finance Officer. Dr Shasany also interacted with the students, research scholars and faculty members of the University.

As per the official communication issued by the Ministry of Education, Dr. Shasany has been appointed for a term of five years. Apart from the National Botanical Research Institute, Dr. Shasany has also served as the director, ICAR-National Institute for Plant Biotechnology, New Delhi and chief scientist, Biotechnology Division, CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Lucknow.

The Central University of Odisha has been established by the Parliament under the Central Universities Act, 2009 (No. 3C of 2009). It is one of the 15 new Central Universities established by the Government of India during the UGC XI Plan period to address the concerns of “equity and access” and as per the policy of the Government of India.