Shillong, June 9: The National Institute of Technology (NIT) Meghalaya is emphasising the promotion of technical education in the state by adopting schools and colleges, creating skill development centres for the young and unemployed and opening a centre for tribal studies.

Talking to reporters here today, the director of NIT Meghalaya, Bibhuti Bhusan Biswal, said the institute was looking forward to carry out research in technology-related domains.

"We will try to be in touch with schools and colleges to promote technical education by making students aware of technology that will help them while pursuing further studies," Biswal said.

Highlighting the potential of Meghalaya and the Northeast as a whole, Biswal said the institute would also work towards removing social and psychological barriers by providing need-based and affordable education in different disciplines."People had a wrong perception about the Northeast. We would like to spread information and remove such barriers from their minds," he said.

Biswal said NIT Meghalaya would also create a skill development centre.

Biswal said the institute would also work to make the institute a preferred destination for technological education and research, besides providing state-of-the-art infrastructure for all stakeholders, and promote industry-institute interactions.

The National Institutional Ranking Framework last year ranked NIT Meghalaya the 57th best engineering college of the country, and 15th among NITs. The institute also ranked third in the region.

It is one among the 31 NITs in the country established as institutes of national importance with funds from the Union ministry of human resource development.

Functioning from a temporary campus and old campus of North Eastern Hill University, Bijni Complex here, NIT Meghalaya is expected to shift its permanent campus to Sohra, nearly 53km from here.

The foundation stone of the institute campus at Sohra was laid by the then Union minister for IT and human resource development, Kapil Sibal, in October, 2012.

Nearly 300 acres was allotted to set up the permanent campus.

The institute has nearly 1,100 students, including graduates, 72 staff and nine departments which include, five engineering departments, three science departments besides humanities and social science departments.

According to the director, by 2021, NIT Meghalaya will enhance its intake capacity to 1,260 seats with 50 per cent of seats meant for home state students, and 50 per cent for those from different states.