Cabinet gives nod to IIM Jammu as new peers underperform

The process of setting up two IIM campuses will commence after a detailed report on the project has been prepared

The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved the establishment and operation of an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in Jammu at a cost of nearly Rs 62 crore.

The cabinet meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

IIM Jammu would function from a temporary campus at the Old Government College of Engineering and Technology for the initial four years, from 2016 to 2020.

According to an official statement, the institute will take 54 students this year under its diploma programme for management studies. However, there will be a gradual increase in the number of accepted applications as the institute hope to accommodate 120 students by 2020.

Steps would also be taken up for setting up a campus at Jammu and an out-campus in Kashmir region.

The process of setting up the permanent campuses will commence after the completion of a detailed project report regarding the same. 

The project is part of Prime Minister's development package for Jammu and Kashmir.

The institute along with the newly opened IIT at Jammu, the modernisation of National Institute of Technology (NIT) in Srinagar and the setting up of two new AIIMS institutions in the region, would go a long way in meeting the requirement of a providing high-quality living and education standards in the state.

At present, there are 19 IIMs in the country, out of which 13 are located at Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Lucknow, Indore, Kozhikode, Shillong, Ranchi, Raipur, Rohtak, Kashipur, Trichy and Udaipur.

Six other IIMs, which were started in 2015, are located at Amritsar, Sirmaur, Nagpur, Bodhgaya, Sambalpur and Vishakhapatnam.