India, Nov. 5 -- The residential area now known as IRC Village in Bhubaneswar has an interesting history linked to a major national event held around four decades ago. Back in 1982, the area where IRC Village stands today was not a developed locality but a dense forest under Nayapalli Mouza.

During that period, a few government quarters had just been built in the area. Bhubaneswar was chosen to host the 43rd edition of the Indian Roads Congress (IRC) that year. The event drew around a thousand engineers and officials from across the country.

At that time, the city lacked sufficient hotels and guest houses to accommodate such a large number of guests. The government decided to house the delegates in the newly constructed government quart...