Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS) received the Energy Globe Award 2017 which is considered one of the most prestigious and the Highest Award in the world for Sustainable Energy. KISS was selected as a finalist out of 2200 projects submitted by 178 countries. India, Spain and Thailand were the finalists in the Fire category and KISS, was the only representative from India to get this award across all categories.
KISS is dedicated to provide holistic quality education to 27000 tribal children to eliminate poverty and hunger. The Energy Globe Award was handed over in the Presidential Palace in Tehran, Iran.
KISS has efficiently updated its resources like preparation of food for 27000 students through biogas plant; steam based cooking System, solar heating system and rain water conservation system. Statesmen, Policymakers, Bureaucrats and Nobel Laureates from across world have visited KISS and praised lavishly for environmental friendly systems adopted in the campus.
Few months back in August 2017, KISS became the first tribal university in India and in the entire world. KISS was granted the University status by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Govt. of India.
For the students of KISS University the residential education is absolutely free of cost from Kinder Garten to Post graduation.
The Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS) was founded by Prof. Achyuta Samanta in 1992-93 in a rented building in Bhubaneswar with only 125 poor tribal students. It underwent massive growth with gradual increase in the student strength. At present, student strength of KISS has touched 37,000 (27,000 existing students and 10,000 graduated). Sixty per cent of them are girl students.
Few other achievements of KISS
- Fulfilled all the SDGs of UN (1 & 4), i.e. Poverty and hunger alleviation through education
- Accorded Special Consultative Status by UN-ECOSOC since 2015
- Associated with United Nations Department of Public Information (UNDPI)
- Placed among top 223 NGOs in the world and top 10 in India as published by NGO Advisor
- Qualified for “Champion Level- GuideStar India Platinum” for maintaining financial transparency
- Achieved cent percent results in 10th and 12th Board Examinations every year, for the last 12 years.
- Participated and won accolades in Olympics, ASIAD, SAF and other prestigious events in sports.
In addition to formal education from Class I to Postgraduate level, a wide range of vocational skill is imparted to the students. Besides implementing the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals in true sense, KISS has been able to bring about much needed social changes in the tribal hinterland of Odisha and its neighbouring states by arresting spread of Maoist and Naxalite insurgency.
Campusutra salutes Prof. Achyuta Samanta for his crusade towards eradicating poverty and providing quality education to the not-so-privileged ones.
