The central government propose to invest over ₹3,030 crore in higher education in Andhra Pardesh, Union Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani said on Thursday.
She was speaking after laying the foundation stone of National Institute of Technology (NIT) at Tadepalligudem in West Godavari district. An investment of ₹300 crore would be made in the institute, to be temporarily housed in Vasavi Engineering College premises. With 480 seats, the NIT will begin classes in the last week of August.
Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, union Minister of State for Science and Technology YS Chowdary, state ministers, MPs and state legislators attended the function.
Irani said she had laid foundation stones of four institutes of higher learning during the last few months.
She said about ₹700 crore would be invested in Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Tirupati, where classes have already begun. The minister said ₹870 crore would be invested in Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), coming up near Tirupati. The classes at the institute began on August 10.
She also added that the Centre would invest another ₹680 crore in Indian Institute of Management, Visakhapatnam. The classes in IIM are set to begin next month.
She suggested the students of NIT Tadepalligudem to help infuse technology with agriculture and find new ways of benefiting farmers.
State HRD Minister Ganta Srinivas Rao said the state would get a total of 540 seats, including 60 seats in NIT, Warangal.