Foundation stone laid for IIM-Visakhapatnam

Visakhapatnam, January 19: Union Human Resources Development Minister Smriti Irani Saturday laid the foundation stone for the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in Gambheeram village near this coastal city in Andhra Pradesh.

To come up on nearly 400 acres of land, IIM-Visakhapatnam is the first of the 11 institutes sanctioned by the central government for Andhra Pradesh under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act.

The institute is expected to start functioning by June and classes are likely to begin from the next academic year. Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu, Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapati Raju, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and many state ministers, parliamentarians and other public representatives attended the ceremony.

Irani said that by setting up the prestigious institute, the government was trying to fulfill the dreams of the youth of Andhra Pradesh. She said prestigious institutes like IITs, IIMs and NITs were offering online open courses free of cost to all citizens who seek education.

Chandrababu Naidu suggested that IIM-Visakhapatnam should introduce innovative courses in logistics, development and marine studies. The chief minister said the city would soon have a Sarala Birla Academy and a campus of the Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS).

Stating that the state was already ahead in higher education, Chandrababu Naidu said it would get more institutes like Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), a central university and a tribal university.

IANS