ଓଡ଼ିଶା ସରକାର Government of Odisha · Department of Higher Education

Visual identity

The University crest

The official Vikram Dev University crest: a shield bearing the motto Tamaso ma jyotirgamaya in Devanagari at the top, an open book and the lamp of knowledge above a central seal divided into the Konark wheel and the four-district jurisdiction map, with a red banner reading VIKRAM DEV UNIVERSITY · JEYPORE, ODISHA at the base.
Vikram Dev University · The official institutional crest. Reproduced from Wikimedia Commons.

What the crest carries

Every element of the crest references a specific aspect of the institution's heritage and jurisdiction. Read top to bottom:

  1. The motto on the upper arc, in Devanagari. तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय ("From darkness, lead me to light"). The text is set in red across the top of the shield. The source is the Pāvamāna Mantra of the Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad; the original Sanskrit script is preserved.
  2. The lamp of knowledge, to the upper right of the central seal. The lit oil lamp (deepa) is the canonical emblem of academic illumination across the Indian tradition.
  3. The open book, to the upper left of the central seal. Together with the lamp, it forms the standard Indian academic device.
  4. The Konark wheel in the central seal's left half. A direct citation of the chariot wheel of the Sun Temple at Konark, the State emblem of Odisha and a marker of the University's identity as an Odisha State institution.
  5. The map of the jurisdiction in the central seal's right half. The contour is the four-district affiliation territory of the University: Koraput, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, and Rayagada.
  6. The red banner ribbon at the base, set in aal-red, bears the institution's name in Roman type: VIKRAM DEV UNIVERSITY · JEYPORE, ODISHA.
  7. The shield outline, in black, contains all of the above in a unified academic-arms format.

Provenance

The crest in its present form is the official institutional mark of Vikram Dev University. The same arms are inherited from the predecessor body, Vikram Deb (Autonomous) College, which has used the device since the renaming in 1961. The crest is held on file by the Office of the Registrar and is reproduced under the Government Open Data License (GODL) India on the public-facing website.

Usage

The crest is the property of Vikram Dev University. It may be used by affiliated colleges, students, faculty, and accredited press in accordance with the rules below. Non-conforming uses constitute a violation of the University's intellectual property and may attract action under the Copyright Act, 1957.

Permitted

  • Affiliated colleges may use the crest on official letterhead, examination notices, and convocation materials, with the affiliated college's own name displayed alongside.
  • Students of the University and its affiliated colleges may use the crest on their personal academic CV and on academic event materials of student organisations recognised by the Registrar.
  • Accredited press may reproduce the crest in editorial coverage of the University without prior permission. A clean SVG file may be downloaded below.

Not permitted without prior written consent of the Registrar

  • Use of the crest in commercial merchandise.
  • Modification of the crest (including colour-change, recropping, mirroring, or removal of any element), except for the high-contrast monochrome variant published by the Registrar.
  • Use of the crest by entities not affiliated to the University, or in any context that may suggest endorsement or partnership.

Downloads

View full-size crest Download PNG PNG · 500 × 500 · 190 KB

Forthcoming. Monochrome and one-colour variants, the high-contrast version, the print-quality CMYK PDF, and the formal usage manual will be published on this page in the next release. Communications may be addressed to the Office of the Registrar in the meantime.

Last updated: 26 April 2026 · Reviewed by: Office of the Registrar