Bhubaneswar, April 27: The state government today in principle agreed to set up a world-class centre for policy planning, research and innovation in technical education. The government has also agreed to provide 50 acres of land free of cost and funds whenever necessary.

The All-India Council for Technical Education had proposed to the state government to set up such a centre.

“They had asked if the state would provide 50 acres of land and recurring grants and we have agreed,” a senior official in the department of technical education said, adding that it would be a Rs 200-crore project.

The council will now send a detailed project report, the official said.

The council will fund the entire project and will float an expression of interest to select a private partner.

The state government will bear all recurring costs, said the official.

The special purpose vehicle project will have the council, the state government and private players as partners.

The AICTE has made similar queries from 15 states.

“The proposed centre will help in innovation, teaching, research and suggest required changes in the technical education scenario of the state,” said C.S. Kumar, secretary, technical education.

Technical education in the state is going through a rough patch with most colleges grappling to fill vacant seats. While the number of colleges are increasing, the quality of education continues to remain far from satisfactory.

“More importantly, there is hardly any research and innovation in technical education. The faculties who are supposed to be involved in research work are engaged in fetching students and arranging placements. The quality of research is deteriorating. Hopefully, such a centre will get things back on track,” said educator S.C. Mohanty.