NID’s Amaravati campus construction to start next year

Officiating Director says 50 acres has been allotted near IGC at Velagapudi

NID - Vijayawada Officiating Director Pradyumna Vyas and Governing Council chief Udayant Malhoutra addressing the media in Vijayawada on Friday.

Construction of the National Institute of Design (NID)’s permanent campus at Amaravati is likely to commence next year with an initial investment of ₹65 crore. It has already been allotted 50 acres near the Interim Government Complex (IGC) at Velagapudi in Guntur district, said NID-Vijayawada Officiating Director Pradyumna Vyas.

Addressing mediapersons along with Udayant Malhoutra, Chairman of the Governing Council, here on Friday Mr. Vyas said NID-Ahmedabad is the mentoring institution for NID-Vijayawada which is in the process of admissions for the third batch of undergraduate courses in industrial, communication and textiles and apparel designing commencing in July 2017 at its transit campus in Acharya Nagarjuna University (ANU).

Three full-time teaching staff members have been inducted and 10 more are likely to come before July 2017. The campus works have been awarded to the National Building Construction Corporation Limited.

Innovation centre

Mr. Vyas said there were plans to introduce Information Technology (IT)–integrated designing course in near future and set up an innovation centre and an incubator for start-ups at a later stage as the first few batches of students start passing out of the institution, which is an autonomous body under the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion.

“The NID is looking forward to partnering in information designing for the capital city and in other forms as it grows into a world-class city over the years. Our final year students do projects sponsored by industries and also municipal bodies. This is where the NID can probably collaborate with the State government,” Mr. Vyas added.

Mr. Malhoutra, who is the CEO and Managing Director of Dynamatic Technologies Limited, said the NID was lucky that its foray into A.P. came at a time when its capital is being constructed and the city (Amaravati) happens to be India’s most modern city.

“NID could lend its expertise in building the city in such a manner that it is liveable and healthy. India had been a ‘design leader’ for hundreds of years but there is little design in the buildings around us. A lot of things can be done in that area,” observed Mr. Malhoutra, who worked as the Chairman of CII’s National Design Committee.