Cabinet approves expansion of 5 new IITs, including IIT Jammu and Kashmir

Under this expansion project, five advanced research parks will also be built to strengthen partnerships between industry and academia

The Union Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the expansion of academic and infrastructure facilities at five new Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), according to an official statement.

 

These IITs are located in Andhra Pradesh (IIT Tirupati), Kerala (IIT Palakkad), Chhattisgarh (IIT Bhilai), Jammu & Kashmir (IIT Jammu), and Karnataka (IIT Dharwad). The total cost of this expansion will be ₹11,828.79 crore and will be spent over four years, from 2025-26 to 2028-29.

 

As part of this project, 130 new faculty posts will be created. In addition, five advanced research parks will be built to strengthen partnerships between industry and academia.

 

This expansion will increase student capacity at these IITs by more than 6,500. The number of students will go up from the current 7,111 to 13,687 across undergraduate, postgraduate, and PhD programmes.

 

Each year, more students will be admitted:

 

1,364 in the first year

1,738 in the second year

1,767 in the third year

1,707 in the fourth year

 

This will help more students from across the country fulfil their dreams of studying at top engineering institutes. These efforts will also help India by producing skilled professionals, encouraging research and innovation, and boosting the economy.

 

New jobs will be created through the hiring of faculty, researchers, administrative staff, and other support roles. Local areas around these campuses are also expected to benefit through increased demand for housing, transport, and services.

 

Although these IITs are located in specific states, students from all over India are eligible to apply, making this a nationwide benefit.

 

As announced in the 2025-26 Budget, the number of students at all 23 IITs has doubled in the last 10 years, from 65,000 to 1.35 lakh. The new infrastructure in these five IITs—set up after 2014—will support 6,500 more students.

 

These five IITs began operating from temporary campuses starting in 2015-16 and 2016-17, and are now running from their permanent locations.