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Latest News |
| 30th
Aug 2010 / Business Standard |
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IIT-Kharagpur hopes to get Cabinet nod for medical school
The Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (IIT-K)
might finally get a go ahead with its plans to set up
a medical school and hospital. Since it signed a $50-million
MoU with the University of California, San Diego, last
year to set up a 750-bed state-of-the-art hospital and
research centre at the IIT, the institute had been pursuing
the case with the Union HRD Ministry.
“We are talking to the health ministry. The IIT-K
proposal will be presented before the Cabinet for the
approval of an amendment to the IIT statute. It could
take 2-3 months,” said Pratima Dikshit, director
of technical education, Union HRD ministry.
“We are waiting for the permission from the central
government. Union HRD Minister, Kapil Sibal, is very keen
on this. Now, it will go to the Union Cabinet for its
approval,” said AK Majumdar, deputy director of
IIT-K.
The existing IIT Act that governs the Indian Institutes
of Technology does not allow the institutes to branch
out into other streams. “The Act has to be amended
by Parliament, which we hope, will be done at the earliest,”
said Majumdar.
“The cost of the project has gone up in the past
one year but we are yet to estimate how much it would
cost us now.” He said the institute would explore
the possibilities of building the proposed medical school
on a public-private partnership, once it gets the ministry
nod. “If we get the ministry’s approval, it
will be applicable to all IITs,” he said.
E-mails sent to the HRD Minister and IIT Kharagpur director
Damodar Acharya did not elicit any response.
IIT-K started the School of Medical Science & Technology
in its Golden Jubilee year in 2001. Its objective was
to provide a platform for interdisciplinary teaching and
research in medical science and technology.
“We are already doing some work in the field of
medical science and technology. The World Health Organisation
has also cited some of our works,” said Majumdar.
It may be mentioned that the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT), has expanded beyond its core area of
science and technology into fields like economics, philosophy,
political science and management.
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