Nalanda College of Engineering (NCE) is a government engineering college situated at Chandi town, near Nalanda city in Bihar state of India. It was inaugurated on 19 November 2008 by the chief minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar. It is affiliated to Bihar Engineering University. The college is managed by Department of Science and Technology, Bihar.

History Nalanda College of Engineering is a Government Engineering College working under the Department of Science and Technology Bihar state, India. It was established by the Government of Bihar. Its foundation was laid by the chief minister of Bihar Nitish Kumar in 2008. It is situated on the holy land where Lord Buddha experienced enlightenment and Lord Vardhaman Mahavir embraced Nirvana. It belongs to the land of ancient Nalanda University where students from across the world studied Buddhism.

Campus

NCE Chandi functions from a 51.64 acres (21 ha) campus in Chandi, Bihar. It is located at 17.3 km distance from the District's main city Bihar Sharif and 42 km from the State's capital city Patna.

Five buildings including laboratory, workshops, girls' and boys' hostels and residence for the principal have been constructed at a cost of around Rs 40 crores in the first phase. In the second phase the tender process for the construction of another 22 major and nearly a dozen minor buildings at an estimated cost of Rs 180 crore, is being initiated. The initial cost of entire construction was estimated at around Rs 166 crore in 2012 which increased to Rs 220 crore in three years.

Academics Nalanda College of Engineering offers undergraduate courses in the field of engineering and technology. Its courses are recognised by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). Admission is through Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Board (BCECE). Vocational courses admission, directly to the second year, is through the BCECE Lateral Entry Competitive Examination.

Admission 2019 onwards the admissions are done only through the merit list of the national level competitive exam Joint Entrance Examination – Main. Students desiring to take admission must appear in the "Joint Entrance Examination – Main" exam that is conducted by National Testing Agency.

Earlier Undergraduate admissions were done through the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Board conducted by Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Board, Under Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Act 1995 of Bihar government. The Entrance examination has two stages: First stage is the screening test or preliminary test. The screened candidates have to appear in the main examination (second stage). Based on the merit list of the second stage, candidates are allotted seats in different engineering colleges of Bihar.

Admission to postgraduate programmes is based upon the score and rank in Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) conducted by IITs/IISc.

Departments The colleges includes the following departments: Department of Computer Science & Engineering Department of Civil Engineering Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering Department of Mechanical Engineering Department of Aeronautical engineering Department of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Department of Applied Science & Humanities

Student life

Clubs and societies Student activities at the institute are organized through several technical, cultural, and community bodies functioning under faculty guidance: Technical and Coding Clubs: The institute hosts dedicated coding, robotics, and technical clubs that organize workshops, hackathons, and competitive programming events. Innovation and Entrepreneurship: The Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell), Startup Cell, and Institute Innovation Council (IIC) operate under the Ministry of Education's Innovation Cell (MIC) framework to promote student innovation, prototypes, and enterprise incubation. Career Development: The Training and Placement Cell coordinates campus recruitment, internships, industrial visits, and soft-skill development workshops. Chirag: A student-led educational initiative founded by NCE students that conducts free tutoring and mentorship sessions for underprivileged schoolchildren in surrounding rural areas. Social and Cultural Bodies: The National Service Scheme (NSS) unit conducts community welfare campaigns, tree-planting drives, and blood donation camps. Other active groups include Spark (the photography and creative arts club), the Civil Services Club, and sports interest groups.

Festivals The college hosts two major annual inter-college festivals: Atisa: The annual technical festival featuring competitive coding, robotics tournaments, CAD design challenges, paper presentations, and guest lectures. Prarambha: The annual cultural festival featuring music and dance competitions, theatrical performances, fine arts showcases, and literary contests.

Campus facilities Central Library: The institute library houses over 10,000 volumes, reference texts, and subscriptions to more than 80 national and international journals. Divided into reading, lending, and reference sections, it also maintains an e-resource repository alongside departmental study centers. Computing Facilities: A centralized computer center equipped with local network infrastructure and high-speed internet access provides computational support for programming laboratories, online testing, and curriculum coursework. Hostels: The college provides on-campus residential hostels for male and female students, complete with dining mess arrangements, basic recreational facilities, and security management. Sports and Recreation: Infrastructure for athletics and extracurricular activities includes outdoor grounds for cricket, football, and volleyball, as well as amenities for indoor games like badminton and table tennis.

References

References

External links http://www.beu-bih.ac.in/BEUP/Letter.aspx