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Srinagar, May 11 (UNI) Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has said the state will soon have a Central university, an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) and the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development had agreed to set up a campus of the National University for Scheduled Tribes in the state.

This follows a meeting between Mr Azad and Union Minister for Human Resource Development Arjun Singh yesterday at New Delhi on his return from Karnataka where he had gone on an election tour.

During the meeting, the Chief Minister requested the Minister for setting up a Central university and an IIM in Jammu and Kashmir on the pattern of IIM Ahmadabad.

The two prestigious institutions would be set up one each in Kashmir and Jammu provinces.

The Chief Minister also requested Mr Singh for setting up in Jammu and Kashmir a campus of the recently established National University for STs headquartered in Madhya Pradesh.

He argued that since the state has a sizeable ST population, a campus of the university in Jammu and Kashmir would go a long way in promoting higher education among this section of the population.

Mr Singh agreed to the proposals of the Chief Minister for setting up the Central university, IIM and campus of the National University for STs in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Chief Minister also took up with Mr Singh the need for establishing women's degree colleges and ITIs in the districts of the state where these facilities are not available at present.

The Minister assured him that this would be sympathetically considered.

UNI BAS QAB AM BD1857