Aizawl: "The Mizoram government will soon set up four more polytechnic institutes and a National Institute of Technology (NIT) to provide technical education to the youth," state Education Minister Lalsawta said here on Monday.

"The polytechnic institutes and the NIT would be set up with financial assistance from the centre, which has already given its green signal in this regard," he told reporters.

There are currently two NITs in northeast India, one at Tripura's capital Agartala and another at Silchar in southern Assam.

At present, Mizoram has two polytechnic institutes - at Lunglei in southern Mizoram and in capital city Aizwal.

"A group of Singapore-based educationists and researchers is planning to set up a private university called the Rajiv Gandhi University in Mizoram which will greatly boost education in the state," Lalsawta said.

According to the minister, the Mizoram government is keen to make the bordering state an education hub of northeast India. "To make the plan successful, we expect generous help from both the centre and the private institutions," he stated.

In the last census, in 2001, Mizoram had already attained literacy of 88.49 percent which is considered to be the second highest in India after Kerala. IANS