Decks have been cleared for construction of National Institute of Technology’s own campus here with allotment of 280 acres of land by the Puducherry government and work slated to begin soon.

NIT, inaugurated in July 2010 has been functioning since then from a makeshift campus at Aringnar Anna Government Arts College.

The Centre had announced that NIT would get a permanent campus in 280 acres in Poovam area in Karaikal, an enclave of the Union territory of Puducherry. The territorial government had agreed to procure the land and hand it over to NIT.

In Feb 2011, the then Minister of State for HRD, Puradeswari laid the foundation stone for the permanent campus. Initially, 30 acres of poromboke land were transferred.

Steps were then taken to procure the remaining 250 acres of adjoining privately-owned land at Poovam area

But land procurement process and permanent campus establishment were delayed as a result of which work did not commence. The Rs 12 crore fund allotted by the HRD Ministry for the first phase construction remained unspent.

In March 2012, land procurement process was completed. In November this year, Karaikal South MLA A M H Nazeem announced an agitation condemning the delay in the land hand over process. Karaikal district unit of Congress had also criticised the Puducherry Government for the delay.

Following this, Chief Minister N Rangasamy handed over the procured land to NIT on Dec 10.

Official sources said the master plan for the campus envisages construction of classrooms, administrative block, laboratories, hostels and residential quarters. The Centre has earmarked Rs 150 crore for constructing the campus.

NIT offers three B. Tech courses in ECE, EEE and Computer Science streams, with a total intake of 90 students per year.

A total of 270 students are now studying here.

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