Our Journey of Excellence
Discover the remarkable milestones, groundbreaking research, and transformative initiatives that have shaped SPA Vijayawada into a leading institution of national importance.
Research and Development Activities
The School of Planning and Architecture Vijayawada has been regularly taking up key Consultancy and Research projects and assignments with the Government, the Industry and the International partners. It is a matter of pride to state that SPA Vijayawada has been fostering research environment by actively encouraging students and faculty to take up research in several emerging areas. Some of the noteworthy projects completed or in progress are –
European Union funded Project
The School is undertaking a prestigious project titled 'Building Resilient Urban Communities (BReUCom)' which is being executed together with Danube University Austria, ITC Netherlands, SPA Bhopal and NIT Hamirpur. The integration of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary aspects of urban resilience into architectural and urban planning training and education is the essence of this research project. SPA Vijayawada is presently working on the pilot implementation and evaluation of the PDPs and OCWs for all partner institutions, as the lead organisation for the Work Package 4, which is under progress.
Ministry of Panchati Raj, Government of India
SPA Vijayawada has successfully completed the preparation of Gram Panchayat Spatial Development Plans for two villages of Andhra Pradesh in December 2020, under the funding of Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Govt of India. The project showcased a sustainable process of preparation of village spatial development plans with ecology, economy and social development at the core. SPAV's plans were greatly applauded by the MoPR and has been now taken up as a model for other states for implementation.
Directorate of Town and Country Planning, Govt of Andhra Pradesh (DTCP, GoAP)
SPA Vijayawada has developed and submitted the Draft version of the "Andhra Pradesh Regional and Urban Planning Act 2020" to the Directorate of Town and Country Planning, Government of Andhra Pradesh (DTCP, GoAP), which is the process of revising the Town and Country Planning Act 1920 of the State. This a landmark work shall guide the growth and development of urban and regional planning for the coming times in the State, and SPAV has been entrusted to develop this landmark Act. The draft Act is under finalization by the DTCP, GoAP.
GIS Based Master Plans
SPA Vijayawada is in the process of preparing the GIS based Master Plans for Bheemavaram region and for Eluru region. These Master Plan projects are funded under the AMRUT scheme of Government of India and are prepared for the DTCP, Government of Andhra Pradesh.
Design and Innovation Centre (DIC)
At the Design and Innovation Centre (DIC) of SPA Vijayawada, two innovative social responsive products are being developed, which are 'Temporary Housing Units', and 'Self-inking Kalamkari Printing Blocks'. Design registration for both the products in progress. Design ideas of these products were presented in All India DIC meet in SPA Delhi, in 2019. State-of-the-art Innovation Lab is being established in SPA Vijayawada through DIC to impart the culture of research and innovation amongst the students and faculty.
Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA)
UBA is a project funded by the Government of India, where SPA Vijayawada has adopted five villages for which development plan has been prepared with involvement of the local people. First phase of the project is completed. The second phase of the project shall commence shortly, where the focus shall be on the implementation of key concepts, technologies developed in the first phase.
Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC)
The School has initiated a project funded by the VMC towards developing a "heritage walk circuit in the city of Vijayawada", which connects its historic medieval caves. The project is in its final stages.
Innovations in the Institute
School of Planning and Architecture, Vijayawada constantly envisage placing itself at the highest pedestals of academic and research in field of Architecture and Planning through facilitating robust research eco-system and promoting the culture of innovation. Today, Intellectual property (IP) plays an imperative role in creating, preserving and commercializing the intellectual outcome of an Institute. The draft Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Policy Note, 2019 of the School is aimed at creating awareness, possible areas of IP generation with the works being carried-out by the faculties and researchers at School.
Patents Filed
Through Design and Innovation Centre (DIC) of SPA Vijayawada, two innovative social responsive products are being developed, which are 'Temporary Housing Units', and 'Self-inking Kalamkari Printing Blocks'. Patent filing for one of the projects is already carried out and the second is in the process.
Institute Innovation Cell (IIC)
SPA Vijayawada has created IIC in its campus, which promotes and supports the culture of innovation in the institute. SPA Vijayawada implements some of the calendar events of IC. Through this, two products are being developed by the faculty of SPA Vijayawada along with students which are in the process of patent filing.
Outreach
In terms of outreach, SPA Vijayawada has been continuously joining hands with leadings institutes and organisations of the world, not only to provide exposure to our students towards the best practices in the world, but also to share and learn from each collaboration. Our School has Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) with several reputed National, International institutions and organisations like - Solent University, UK; University of Melbourne, Australia; Krems University, Austria; Hafencity University, Germany; University of Cologne, Germany; University of Florence, Italy; and Norwegian University of Science and Technology. Recently we have signed an MoU with UN-Habitat for research collaboration.
Academic Activities During Pandemic
During the lockdown, all the students vacated the hostels, except for one thesis student, he was continuously monitored and looked after by our warden Ar. Prashanti Rao and Chief Warden Dr. YS Rao. The student Mr. Vikram left SPAV after successfully completing his thesis by the end of June, and emerged as one of the toppers in the B.Arch. thesis.
Online Learning Implementation
The faculty undertook the online classes wef April 1, 2020 to April 30, 2020. The internal evaluation was conducted wef April 27-April 30, 2020. The various digital platforms such as Google Meet, Skype, Microsoft Team Link, Google classroom etc were used for the conduct of the classes. The faculty availed the vacations wef May 1 to June 8, 2020. The remedial/ Summer classes for the hand holding classes for certain students were also conducted wef May 10 to June 10, 2020 during the summer break.
Virtual Examinations and Juries
The external thesis Juries /Viva-Voce for the Final year B.Arch., M.Arch. B. Plan and M. Plan were conducted wef mid of June till the end of June by inviting the experts from Industry and Academia; the Architects such as Dr. Harimohan Pillai, Ar. Charanjit Singh Shah, Dr. Manoj Mathur, Dr. Anil Dewan, Ar. Anurag Roy, Ar. Sanjay Prakash, Dr. Rommel Mehta, Ar. Jit Gupta and Ar. Surinder Bahga and many others experts for Planning discipline conducted the juries. Mostly Google Meet and Skype platforms were used for the conduction of Juries, which went on very smoothly.
Research and Consultancy
SPAV retained its 9th rank in NIRF like last year, it consistently obtained 9th rank for 2019 as well as 2020. Nevertheless, the marks obtained in 2020 were on the higher side.
Government Collaborations
SPAV was asked to participate in the designing and planning of Sub centres and Primary Health centres, taking care of the site, materials availability and climatic considerations. We were asked to consider Vastu principles also for placing the different units. The various meetings took place with the Minister of finance and other chief Bureaucrats of the State of Andhra Pradesh. The work produced by SPAV was highly appreciated.
Village Development Projects
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj and Rural Development approached SPAV for the spatial Planning of two villages. We selected two villages from the Krishna district and sent the preliminary demographic data. We have frequent online meetings with MoPR from Delhi and AP. The work is in progress.
Campus Activities
Plantation Drive
Undertaking of plantation drive in SPAV Campus.
Construction Yard
The execution Construction yard by the students of SPAV to get hands-on experience in the making of the yard.
Infrastructure Development
Completion of permanent Boundary Wall for SPAV Campus.
NIRF Ranking Achievement
SPAV has Secured 9th Position in the Architecture Category in National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) – 2019 ranking by the Govt of India. It also secured the 11th Position in the Architecture Colleges in India by India Today Group.
'Green UP SPAV Campaign'
The SPAV campus commissioned the facility of Roof-top Solar Power generation with 183 KW per day with 108000 kwh units of generation per year. SPAV also commissioned the Sewage Treatment Plant with 100 KLD capacity wherein recycled water from the campus is to be used for gardening and flushing of toilets. It initiated the installation and commissioning of a composting yard for managing and reusing kitchen waste and compost manure. All these facilities are under operation at present.
Faculty Development Programme
A Faculty Development Programme (FDP) was organized by School of Planning and Architecture Vijayawada, (an Institute of National Importance) on Communicating Research and Open-Access Publishing (CROP-2019) during 17th June - 22nd 2019. The main purpose of this program was to create awareness about scientific research writings (structure, style, language, scope, content, methodology, etc.), peer-review process, scientific misconduct and open access publication that help to increase individual or institutional citations, visibility, rank, and reputation.
International Day of Yoga
As per the unanimous declaration by the United Nations General Assembly in the year 2014, 21 June, the longest day of the year, is designated as International Day of Yoga. The 5th International Day of Yoga was celebrated on 21 June, 2019 at the School of Planning and Architecture Vijayawada. As part of the same, Yoga cum Meditation session of 75 minutes duration was conducted from 06.15 AM till 07.30 AM.
Academic Expansion
SPA Vijayawada has introduced two new PG programmes in the last semester to add to its academic portfolio and now boasts of offering seven PG programmes in total and two UG program in addition to its doctoral program. 'Master of Architecture with specialisation in Conservation' and 'Master of Building Engineering and Management' were the latest PG programs offered.
Special Lectures and Cultural Events
Urban Design Lecture
A Special Lecture on "Urban Design and Public Space Management" by Uwe S. Brandes, Professor of Practice and Faculty Director, Urban and Regional Planning Program, Georgetown University was arranged at School of Planning and Architecture Vijayawada on Friday, August 2nd 2019.
SPIC-MACAY Programme
SPAV conducted the SPIC-MACAY Programme, which completed its 42 Years in 2019. The programme was conducted on the 13th August 2019, at 4:30 PM in Exhibition Hall (Ground Floor) of the SPAV Institute Block. Eminent Artist and versatile Kathak Dancer Pt. Rajendra Gangani ji was among with us on the occasion to perform along with other instrumental artists who were accompanying him.
Hindi Diwas Celebration
The month long Hindi Pakhwada marking the Hindi Diwas, culminating in the Hindi Diwas Celebrations on the National Hindi Diwas (14th September 2019) was flagged off on 16th August 2019, (Friday). There were several events planned for every week till the 14th of September 2019.
Student Achievements
- The students of planning participated in the Annual NOSPLAN Convention 2019 held at UPES Dehradun and secured the "Second Runners Up" amongst all the educational institutions in planning across the country.
- B.Planning student Mr. Leelavamsi Chadarajupalli (2015-2019 Batch) was recipient of the Best UG Planning thesis award for the academic year 2018-19 by the Institute of Town Planners, India (ITPI).
- A team of four students from the Department of Planning have been recognized as the top winner of Wipro Earthian 2019 Challenge, which was themed this year on intelligent and sustainable management of "Water, Food and Waste".
Campus Relocation
The School of Planning and Architecture Vijayawada shifted its activities to its permanent campus recently in June 2018, which is located in the heart of Vijayawada city along the ITI road, extending to around 9.66 acres. It houses the main academic and administrative block with a total built-up area of around 30,000 sqm, the Boys hostels with about 14,000 sqm of built-up area spread over two blocks, Girls hostels with about 6,200 sqm of built-up area and a Dining cum Visiting Faculty Guest House with about 4,300 sqm of built-up space.
Infrastructure Development
After shifting to permanent campus, SPAV established many labs, workshops and support facilities to aid the teaching learning process. The campus was made ICT enabled for high end teaching atmosphere, high end digital surveillance systems, spacious studios and smart classrooms, open-air theatres, auditorium, cafeteria, and outdoor sports facilities. The campus boasts of Computer Labs, Geoinformatics Lab, Art Lab, Material Testing Lab, Surveying Lab, Carpentry Lab, Terrain Modelling Lab, Climatology Lab, Environmental Monitoring Lab and Structural Lab.
Presidential Inauguration
On August 23, 2018, SPAV inaugurated the new campus in the august presence of Shri. Shri Venkaiah Naidu, Honourable Vice President of India and Shri. E S L Narasimhan, the Honourable Governor of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The occasion was also graced by Shri. R. Subhrahmanyam, Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, many leading Architects and Planners of the region.
Green UP SPAV Campaign Launch
The SPAV campus initiated a long term campaign of "Green Up SPAV" aimed towards being environmentally sensitive and careful of Nature in the functioning of the campus. It started the functioning and operation of two ground water recharge pits where the entire storm water runoff of the campus is guided to these two pits for recharge. It installed LED lightings with automatic sensors, and solar powered water heaters for hostels and guest house.
Research Project - Building Inclusive Urban Communities
Building Inclusive Urban Communities (BReUCom) is a research project funded under EU Erasmus+ Program in the field of Capacity Building in Higher Education focusing on how to develop inclusive planning and architectural design processes that includes the marginalized and impoverished. The School conducted its first 'Local Dissemination Workshop on Inclusive Planning for Informal Communities' funded by the European Union in October 2018 with over 75 participants.
Student Achievements
SPAV students succeeded in winning many trophies at the annual convention hosted by National Association of Students of Architecture (NASA) in 2018. The students also won several competitions including Gateway of Amaravati Design Competition in 2018 organized by The Indian Institute of Architects, Andhra Pradesh Chapter, Transparence National Competition 2018 to Design Mother and Child Hospital, IGBC Green Design Competition, 'My City in History' Short Video competition during the 'International Conference on History of Architecture' held by GREHA and ICCR, Govt. of India
Campus Construction Progress
SPAV expedited the completion of construction activities of its new campus in a time bound phased manner. It completed the construction of the hostels first and initiated the shifting of boys and girls hostels in June-July 2017. This enabled SPAV to shift from the private leased hostel premises into an integrated state of the art hostel complex. Thereafter, the Guest House Block with Integrated Dining Facility was completed in Dec 2017 and made functional from Jan 2018.
Student Competition Success
SPAV students also stood overall second in annual convention hosted by National Organization of Students of Planning Annual Convention (NOSPLAN) in 2017. Students of SPAV won the Reubens Trophy and Overall championship at ZONASA-2017 and Landscape Trophy at Archifest Srijan- Vaishnodevi University. The students won the Amaravati Bridge Design Competition in 2017 organised by Amaravati Development Corporation.
GIAN Programmes
GIAN is an initiative of MHRD, GoI under which Indian universities can invite foreign professors to interact and share their knowledge with Indian students. SPA Vijayawada conducted two such programmes where professors came from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway and from the University of the West of England, Bristol, UK and spent a week each on topics related to Sustainable Architecture and Land Management.
Foundation Year
2016 marked the foundational year for many of the initiatives and projects that would later define SPA Vijayawada's excellence. This year laid the groundwork for the institution's future achievements in research, infrastructure development, and academic excellence.