IIT Kharagpur plans Rs 400-cr investments; to build new complex

Kolkata: Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (IIT-KGP) has firmed up plans to invest Rs 400 crore in a number of projects with a view to accommodating more students and enlarging its academic programme base. Addressing newspersons here today, Mr Sanjiv Goenka, Chairman of the Board of Governors of IIT-KGP, said a new academic complex – to be named Nalanda – would be built at an estimated investment of Rs 55.30 crore. It would have 200 classrooms with a capacity to accommodate 24,000 students.

Additionally, 200 tutorial classrooms having a capacity to accommodate 12,000 students would also be built at a cost of Rs 22.17 crore.

Mr Goenka said a new chemical sciences laboratory complex would be set up as also a new building to house the Chemicals & Rubber Technology Department. Three new hostels would be set up. New centres of excellence have also been planned.

According to him, the number of sponsored projects taken up by IIT-KGP in the current fiscal was 123. Together, their value has been pegged at Rs 74 crore. The number of consultancy projects taken up by IIT-KGP in 2007-08 was 117, which was valued at Rs 10 crore, he said.