1000 polytechnics to come up across the country

New Delhi: The 1000 polytechnics to be started across the country will enroll over two lakh students in a year and would provide courses on emerging areas in collaboration with the industry.

The Ministry of HRD has decided to start these institutions in three phases. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has already given the go ahead for setting up these institutions at a total cost of Rs 737.82 crore.

'These polytechnics will be much different from the existing ones with respect to the course content. They will collaborate with the industry and offer courses on areas, which are in demand.

The students will get placement by the partnering industry,'' a senior ministry official told PTI. Each polytechnic will have the intake capacity of 180 students. Certain institutions can induct upto 300 students. At present, there are about 1500 polyte chnics in the country offering courses to about 4.5 lakh students per annum, the official said.

Of the these polytechnics, 300 are to be set up with a one-time central grant of Rs 12.3 crore per institute. Another 300 polytechnics would be set up under private-public partnership (PPP) mode with partial funding of Rs three crore per polytechnic from the Centre.

The rest 400 polytechnics would be set up through private funding, he said. 'We are in the process of consulting the private parties for starting these institutions. We will also frame modalities for starting polytechnics with participation of private p arties,'' he said. The government will release Rs 100 crore by the end of March for starting the 300 polytechnics.