Hyderabad: The new Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Andhra Pradesh will commence classes from this academic year (2008-09) at a makeshift campus in Medak district, the state government announced today.

The decision was taken after a high-level meeting of officials from the departments of higher and technical education that was presided over by Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy.

Classes will be held at the makeshift campus at the Ordnance factory at Eddumailaram in Medak until the permanent one comes at Kandi in the same district.

The government decided to release Rs.190 million for the acquisition of over 500 acres of land for the permanent campus.

The meeting also decided to set up a world-class university in Kadapa, the home district of the chief minister, for which the government will allot 700 acres of land.

Officials in the council for higher education said the IIT would initially have five disciplines with 40 students each. The first batch is likely to start in July.

The central government had last year decided to set up two new IITs in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar.

The state government in December selected Medak district as the location for the IIT in view of its proximity to the state capital. The previous government had suggested the temple town of Basara in Adilabad district as the location for the proposed institute.

The IIT in Medak will be the eighth in the country. Seven IITs are already functioning in Mumbai, New Delhi, Kharagpur, Roorkee, Guwahati, Kanpur and Chennai.

Meanwhile, Japan has evinced interest in collaborating with IIT-Medak. It is also keen to extend financial aid of Rs.40 million to the new institute.

A three-member delegation from Japan visited Medak on Friday and inspected Kandi and the Ordnance factory. The delegation that included Ryuji Sakaue, head of South Asian division in Japan's ministry of foreign affairs, and Rites Megan, vice-president, International University of Japan, also held talks with state government officials. IANS