Odisha becomes first state to get ISO certification for tribal hostels

Odisha has become the first state in the country to receive ISO certification for hostels meant for tribal students, an official said.

The ST&SC Welfare Department had earlier launched the 'Mission Suvidya' project to provide all the tribal hostels of the state uniform standards of infrastructure, amenities and human resources, he said.

"... Comprehensive assessment and evaluation of all hostels under the department were conducted with the objective of improving the standard and quality of the hostels to lead them to achieve ISO 9001:2015 certification," an official release said.

In the first phase, hostels of Keonjhar and Sambalpur districts were taken up for assessment. Out of 156 hostels of Keonjhar, 60 were selected for intensive interventions, it said.

Similarly, out of 90 hostels of Sambalpur, 12 were selected for the purpose.

In March, the audit team for certification visited 32 hostels of Keonjhar and 12 of Sambalpur for final assessment.

All the 44 hostels cleared the assessment parameters and were awarded ISO certification, the release said.

The remaining hostels will be assessed after the lockdown is lifted and restoration of normalcy.

"Odisha became the first state in the country where ISO certification has been given to tribal hostels," it added.