*Decision on temporary campus yet to be taken
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Apr 27: Rejecting six sites proposed by the Jammu and Kashmir Government for establishment of prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development has categorically told the State that land for permanent campus should be only in the vicinity of Jammu city. It has also directed that entire exercise in this regard should be completely expeditiously so that institute comes up within stipulated period of three years.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that soon after the sanctioning of prestigious Indian Institute of Technology for Jammu in the month of July last year, the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development directed the State Government to identify suitable site for establishment of permanent campus of the institute.
In compliance to this direction, six sites were identified in Kathua, Samba and Udhampur districts and accordingly Site Selection Committee of the HRD Ministry visited these sites. However, the Committee did not finalize any of these sites mainly on the ground that all these sites were located too far from the winter capital of the State.
While rejecting these sites, the Site Selection Committee conveyed to the State Government that site should be only in the vicinity of Jammu city, nearer to the airport and with good road connectivity for the convenience of the visiting faculties, sources said.
“Since it is difficult to manage high value faculties, the Ministry doesn’t want the visiting experts to waste time in travelling to and fro the campus and airport or railway station”, sources said.
Stating that HRD Ministry wants to establish Indian Institute of Technology within a period of three years from the date of handing over of cumbersome free land, sources said, “the Site Selection Committee has stressed that suitable land should be identified as expeditiously as possible”. Now, in compliance to the direction of the HRD Ministry, the Higher Education Department of State Government has identified some sites in the vicinity of Jammu city and has made a request to the Site Selection Committee to visit these areas as early as possible, they added.
When contacted, Minister for Higher Education Naeem Akhtar confirmed that sites earlier proposed by the State Government have not been found suitable for establishment of IIT and said, “new sites have been identified and we are hopeful of Site Selection Committee finding anyone of them suitable for the permanent campus”.
“Our job would end at the finalization of land and thereafter everything would be created by the HRD Ministry, which has conveyed to us that there would be no constraints of the funds and complete campus would come up in a time-bound manner”, he said in response to a question, adding “even the modalities for the first academic session, which will commence from current year, would be finalized by the Ministry, which has engaged IIT Delhi as mentor Institute for IIT Jammu”.
Meanwhile, no decision has yet been taken on temporary campus of the IIT Jammu. “Though Site Selection Committee visited the Government College of Engineering and Technology (GCET) campus at Chak Bhalwal in the outskirts of Jammu but it didn’t give approval mainly on the ground of it being far-off from city and some other small issues”, sources informed.
“Government is also considering Old University Campus as second option for temporary campus of IIT Jammu but final decision would be taken only by the Site Selection Committee, which is likely to visit Jammu again in the days to come”, they said, adding “at some levels the Old University Campus is being given preference over GCET Campus on the ground that operating of IIT from Chak Bhalwal would dislocate GCET”.
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