Date:13/07/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/13/stories/2008071357880100.htm

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IIITM-K links up with Nagaland varsity

Special Correspondent

‘Link will eliminate the distance between south-west, north-east’
16 faculty members from IIITM-K to take part in programme

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Union government would set up an Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) at Dimapur in Nagaland soon, Minister for Development of the North-East Region and Panchayati Raj Mani Shankar Aiyar said here on Saturday.

Inaugurating a broadband terrestrial education grid link between Indian Institute of Technology and Management (IIITM)-Kerala and Nagaland University, Mr. Aiyar said the new interactive link should be developed as a double-lane for communication between the two States so as to enable students to gain the best from the teachers of the IIITM-K and ensure that Kerala imbibed the development models and initiatives launched by the Nagaland government towards attaining 100 per cent literacy in villages, among other achievements.

The link, a mentoring technique, has eliminated the distance between the south-west and north-east parts of the country, he said.

At the time of Independence, Nagaland was one of the two prosperous regions in the country, but it was caught in political turmoil.

Now the State is emerging from the confusion.

The new link would help Nagaland regain its prosperity and complement the capacity-building year observance launched by the State government.

Education Minister M.A. Baby, in his presidential address, said the trans-border link would provide more choices in education for Nagaland.

Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio said the State had already launched the year for capacity-building and the new link would go a long way in catalysing the development process.

The government has already signed MoUs with Kerala on health, education and agriculture initiatives.

Nagaland University Vice-Chancellor K. Kannan said the link would be the beginning for providing quality education for the 21st century by connecting, communicating and making education an engine for caring and sharing growth, transformation and development for Nagaland.

The terrestrial link is the platform for making functional the National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning.

It would also provide inclusive quality education under the National Mission on Education.