Iftekhar Hossain :
Noakhali Science and Technology University (NSTU) is in mentionable step right now among the institutions which are going ahead with the importance of science and technology in higher education at the university level in Bangladesh. The university which is acknowledged as a ‘University of Oxford’ on the coast, is developing with great fast in the field of academic research and infrastructure sector as well. Following the present knowledge and technology-based world, NSTU has been moving for spreading world-class education in the nature and locality of the country’s southern coastal district Noakhali. Since joining on 2 July 2015, vice chancellor Professor Dr. M Whiduzzaman has been doing a number of activities with honesty and devotion to build NSTU as a developed university. In order to afford world-class education to the students, teachers of holding MS, Ph.D, Mphil, and postdoctoral are recruited. In the last 4 years (2015-16, 2016-17 2017-18 and 2018-19) new 195 teachers have joined in the university, Of these, 46 are higher degree including PhDs. The new treasurer Dr. Mohammad Faruk Udddin have joined here, he is the professor of Department of Sociology at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet. Prior to, he was the elected general secretary of the university teachers association twice. He has also succeeded in providing important administrative responsibilities, including provost of the hall in SUST. However, as a high-flying educationist & vice chancellor of Noakhali Science and Technology University VC Prof Dr M Wahiduzzaman is giving precedence to minority and women in all sorts of recruitment in here. It is distinguished Wahiduzzaman have stood beside the people who are in endangered from early of his student life, involved himself through social organizations & took various initiatives for the backward people. Besides his family’s role in liberation war in 1971 is particularly mentionable. In 1975, after the assassination of father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman he led confrontation movement. Regardless of religion and caste Prof Dr Wahiduzzaman have worked on different portion of the country for the development of humanity & the lives of minor ethnicities. He worked to improve the living standards of the backward group & to eliminate the existing inequality in the country. His motto is all people of the state will get equal rights according to the qualifications. He have taken it as the vow of his life that in the eyes of law all people are equal.
In fact to generate new knowledge and opportunities for research in the national level, it was determined to set up a full phase science and technology university in royal district Noakhali in 2001. And On July 15, in the same year the law was enforced by the notification in the official Gazette. The new window prevailed through establishment of this university for the students of the whole country. New velocity has been introduced in the country’s science and technology sector. Moreover NSTU has been contributing significantly to the skilled manpower in the overseas markets as well. About four thousand & five hundred meritorious students were admitted to the university in four years, three new faculty, 16 departments and two institutes were opened to permit more students to study at the public university and it is been highly appreciable among the state policy makers. The department of ‘Bangladesh and liberation war studies’ was opened to make students aware about the great liberation war 1971, history and tradition of Bangladesh as well. A individual course title on ‘the history of the emergence of independent Bangladesh’ was added here in curriculum and has been compulsory for all the students. As a result of increasing the allocation of research and modernization of laboratory facilities, teachers of NSTU have been able to create 208 basic research in the last three years. As a new milestone in the field of research in Bangladesh NSTU teacher & researcher have developed ‘Pometo’ high-yielding varieties of diabetic free rice & ‘NSTU okra-1’. Complete four new invertebrates animals innovation namely ‘Nephtys bangladeshi, Victoriopisa bruneiensis, ‘Neumania nobiprobia and Arrenurus smiti ‘ is invented by NSTU renowned scientist. Besides the scientists of this university also discovered the successful technology of bringing new breeds of ‘Bourani and Gutum fishes’. ‘Black Garlic’ have widely introduced in Bangladesh by the researcher & faculty of NSTU.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed with six universities of the world, so that the teachers and students of this university can be involved in the technical knowledge and research of those countries. In fact as NSTU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr M Wahiduzzaman working here to build the Noakhali Science and Technology University as a world class university to fulfill our prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s goal that our beloved country will be a developed and self-respecting Bangladesh by 2041. To make the university a suitable & world-class educational institution for the teachers and students VC Wahiduzzaman have travelled to Asian and Europian university. On 5-12 June, 2018 he participated in numta fellowship at the University of Rikkyo, Japan and delivered speech subject on ‘Rohingya Refugee’s at South Asian Studies (CAS) department there. 13 June, 2018 he visited scientific labs of Kobe University in the same country & On June15 he met with the President of University of Rikkyo Japan and handling there a meeting with university authorities. He signed an education Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 18 June 2018 with the Kumamoto University, Japan and Noakhali Science and Technology University. On 19 June 2018, he visited the faculty of education of Hiroshima University Japan and participate there in various meetings and seminars with the faculty Dean. Moreover, On 25th June, 2018, NSTU VC signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) of Thailand. There were vital discussions regarding the launch of joint research projects, academic collaboration, MoU, faculty & student exchange and training programs between NSTU & AIT. Between 27-28 April 2017, NSTU VC participated in ‘scientific conference’ in the University of South Bohemia, Prague, Czech Republic & sign MOU. Besides he himself participated in various important meetings and seminars in France, Italy and Switzerland On April 29 to May 07, 2017. In December 2016, VC went to the UK to start education coordination program with Noakhali Science and Technology University and UK’s Starling University.
However Noakhali Science & Technology University is functioning very well from all side specially in the field of academic research and infrastructure sector by the hard-handed leadership of its VC. The whole campus has been brought under the high speed internet Bidi-ren and WiFi, computer and internet connectivity in the classrooms & labs is increased as well to carry out the government digital Bangladesh policy.
The major accomplishment of the year 2018 to 19 are the establishment of masters programme in nine departments, purchasing two new buses for students, increasing the allocation to ICT & science laboratories and introducing the University’s intercom facility to all offices. Apart from this, establishment of 100 KVA electric sub-station, three-storey medical center, 10 storied house tutors and provost quarters, three-storied central mosques, places of worship and construction of 10 storied staff quarters are recent attainment. As part of the development of physical infrastructure the piling work of the country’s largest academic building which is 40335 square meter area has already been done. The construction work of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman hall, Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib hall and Bir Muktijoddha Abdul Malek Ukil hall has already been completed to build a self-respecting & developed Bangladesh in near feature. NSTU has been taken a project namely ‘marine science and marine resource management institute’ will be build on 375 acres land to get bigger sustainable blue economy over the country.
In order to accelerate academic research in delta plan formulation & space exploration sector, research on ecology will be done in forthcoming years. Moreover, to execute the space research activity two-storey space research center will be build, the university authorities have planned to construct one helipads on the campus as well. in addition, opening the new door of robotics and mecatronics is the the future course plan of the university authority in academic line up. A green house research center will be
set up in coastal areas of Noakhali to amplify the quality of the research of NSTU. The acquisition of three acres of land for building a marine station in the near future is one of the main plans of the university. There will be built jetty infrastructure, hatchery and mini pond complexes on the sea shore. In the future the university will purchase deep sea-going research ships and a coastal research ship as well.
To lead the university VC Prof Dr M Wahiduzzaman faces some obstacles. Forinstance, recruitment of highly qualified degree teachers is really tough here and it is a big obstacle to invite them to join various academic meetings & seminars in NSTU. Because the university’s geographical location is situated on the coast and far away from Noakhali district town. Road and railways are one of the main means of connecting with the capital, no air connectivity is still available. In terms of education and research, financial allocation is less than necessary. Furthermore inadequate acedemic facilities and scientific equipments are limited in demand for research. In addition, there is insufficiency of domestic and international training facilities to increase the professional proficiency of teachers and officials. The number of teachers, students, officials and employees is increasing day by day in the university established on 100 acres only. So there is a lack of space is mentionable, to acquire one hundred & more acres new land for NSTU is a great challenge now.
Noakhali Science and Technology University (NSTU) is in mentionable step right now among the institutions which are going ahead with the importance of science and technology in higher education at the university level in Bangladesh. The university which is acknowledged as a ‘University of Oxford’ on the coast, is developing with great fast in the field of academic research and infrastructure sector as well. Following the present knowledge and technology-based world, NSTU has been moving for spreading world-class education in the nature and locality of the country’s southern coastal district Noakhali. Since joining on 2 July 2015, vice chancellor Professor Dr. M Whiduzzaman has been doing a number of activities with honesty and devotion to build NSTU as a developed university. In order to afford world-class education to the students, teachers of holding MS, Ph.D, Mphil, and postdoctoral are recruited. In the last 4 years (2015-16, 2016-17 2017-18 and 2018-19) new 195 teachers have joined in the university, Of these, 46 are higher degree including PhDs. The new treasurer Dr. Mohammad Faruk Udddin have joined here, he is the professor of Department of Sociology at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet. Prior to, he was the elected general secretary of the university teachers association twice. He has also succeeded in providing important administrative responsibilities, including provost of the hall in SUST. However, as a high-flying educationist & vice chancellor of Noakhali Science and Technology University VC Prof Dr M Wahiduzzaman is giving precedence to minority and women in all sorts of recruitment in here. It is distinguished Wahiduzzaman have stood beside the people who are in endangered from early of his student life, involved himself through social organizations & took various initiatives for the backward people. Besides his family’s role in liberation war in 1971 is particularly mentionable. In 1975, after the assassination of father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman he led confrontation movement. Regardless of religion and caste Prof Dr Wahiduzzaman have worked on different portion of the country for the development of humanity & the lives of minor ethnicities. He worked to improve the living standards of the backward group & to eliminate the existing inequality in the country. His motto is all people of the state will get equal rights according to the qualifications. He have taken it as the vow of his life that in the eyes of law all people are equal.
In fact to generate new knowledge and opportunities for research in the national level, it was determined to set up a full phase science and technology university in royal district Noakhali in 2001. And On July 15, in the same year the law was enforced by the notification in the official Gazette. The new window prevailed through establishment of this university for the students of the whole country. New velocity has been introduced in the country’s science and technology sector. Moreover NSTU has been contributing significantly to the skilled manpower in the overseas markets as well. About four thousand & five hundred meritorious students were admitted to the university in four years, three new faculty, 16 departments and two institutes were opened to permit more students to study at the public university and it is been highly appreciable among the state policy makers. The department of ‘Bangladesh and liberation war studies’ was opened to make students aware about the great liberation war 1971, history and tradition of Bangladesh as well. A individual course title on ‘the history of the emergence of independent Bangladesh’ was added here in curriculum and has been compulsory for all the students. As a result of increasing the allocation of research and modernization of laboratory facilities, teachers of NSTU have been able to create 208 basic research in the last three years. As a new milestone in the field of research in Bangladesh NSTU teacher & researcher have developed ‘Pometo’ high-yielding varieties of diabetic free rice & ‘NSTU okra-1’. Complete four new invertebrates animals innovation namely ‘Nephtys bangladeshi, Victoriopisa bruneiensis, ‘Neumania nobiprobia and Arrenurus smiti ‘ is invented by NSTU renowned scientist. Besides the scientists of this university also discovered the successful technology of bringing new breeds of ‘Bourani and Gutum fishes’. ‘Black Garlic’ have widely introduced in Bangladesh by the researcher & faculty of NSTU.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed with six universities of the world, so that the teachers and students of this university can be involved in the technical knowledge and research of those countries. In fact as NSTU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr M Wahiduzzaman working here to build the Noakhali Science and Technology University as a world class university to fulfill our prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s goal that our beloved country will be a developed and self-respecting Bangladesh by 2041. To make the university a suitable & world-class educational institution for the teachers and students VC Wahiduzzaman have travelled to Asian and Europian university. On 5-12 June, 2018 he participated in numta fellowship at the University of Rikkyo, Japan and delivered speech subject on ‘Rohingya Refugee’s at South Asian Studies (CAS) department there. 13 June, 2018 he visited scientific labs of Kobe University in the same country & On June15 he met with the President of University of Rikkyo Japan and handling there a meeting with university authorities. He signed an education Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 18 June 2018 with the Kumamoto University, Japan and Noakhali Science and Technology University. On 19 June 2018, he visited the faculty of education of Hiroshima University Japan and participate there in various meetings and seminars with the faculty Dean. Moreover, On 25th June, 2018, NSTU VC signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) of Thailand. There were vital discussions regarding the launch of joint research projects, academic collaboration, MoU, faculty & student exchange and training programs between NSTU & AIT. Between 27-28 April 2017, NSTU VC participated in ‘scientific conference’ in the University of South Bohemia, Prague, Czech Republic & sign MOU. Besides he himself participated in various important meetings and seminars in France, Italy and Switzerland On April 29 to May 07, 2017. In December 2016, VC went to the UK to start education coordination program with Noakhali Science and Technology University and UK’s Starling University.
However Noakhali Science & Technology University is functioning very well from all side specially in the field of academic research and infrastructure sector by the hard-handed leadership of its VC. The whole campus has been brought under the high speed internet Bidi-ren and WiFi, computer and internet connectivity in the classrooms & labs is increased as well to carry out the government digital Bangladesh policy.
The major accomplishment of the year 2018 to 19 are the establishment of masters programme in nine departments, purchasing two new buses for students, increasing the allocation to ICT & science laboratories and introducing the University’s intercom facility to all offices. Apart from this, establishment of 100 KVA electric sub-station, three-storey medical center, 10 storied house tutors and provost quarters, three-storied central mosques, places of worship and construction of 10 storied staff quarters are recent attainment. As part of the development of physical infrastructure the piling work of the country’s largest academic building which is 40335 square meter area has already been done. The construction work of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman hall, Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib hall and Bir Muktijoddha Abdul Malek Ukil hall has already been completed to build a self-respecting & developed Bangladesh in near feature. NSTU has been taken a project namely ‘marine science and marine resource management institute’ will be build on 375 acres land to get bigger sustainable blue economy over the country.
In order to accelerate academic research in delta plan formulation & space exploration sector, research on ecology will be done in forthcoming years. Moreover, to execute the space research activity two-storey space research center will be build, the university authorities have planned to construct one helipads on the campus as well. in addition, opening the new door of robotics and mecatronics is the the future course plan of the university authority in academic line up. A green house research center will be
set up in coastal areas of Noakhali to amplify the quality of the research of NSTU. The acquisition of three acres of land for building a marine station in the near future is one of the main plans of the university. There will be built jetty infrastructure, hatchery and mini pond complexes on the sea shore. In the future the university will purchase deep sea-going research ships and a coastal research ship as well.
To lead the university VC Prof Dr M Wahiduzzaman faces some obstacles. Forinstance, recruitment of highly qualified degree teachers is really tough here and it is a big obstacle to invite them to join various academic meetings & seminars in NSTU. Because the university’s geographical location is situated on the coast and far away from Noakhali district town. Road and railways are one of the main means of connecting with the capital, no air connectivity is still available. In terms of education and research, financial allocation is less than necessary. Furthermore inadequate acedemic facilities and scientific equipments are limited in demand for research. In addition, there is insufficiency of domestic and international training facilities to increase the professional proficiency of teachers and officials. The number of teachers, students, officials and employees is increasing day by day in the university established on 100 acres only. So there is a lack of space is mentionable, to acquire one hundred & more acres new land for NSTU is a great challenge now.
(The writer is the public relations officer of NSTU)
