Union HRD Ministry allots 120 Engineering seats for Andaman students

Port Blair, Jul 26 (UNI) The Union Human Resources Development (HRD) Ministry has allotted altogether 120 Engineering seats for the students of the Andaman and Nicobar islands, considering its geographical remoteness and lack of scope for higher studies.

The Andaman and Nicobar administration today declared in an official confirmation letter that out of 120 seats, 105 were reserved for BE courses and 10 seats for BE Lateral Entry in various technical institutes for the coming academic session (2008-09).

It added that the Ministry had also allotted five seats in B Pharmacy for the centrally governed Union Territory.

The letter of communication regarding allotment of the seats was handed over personally to Lt Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Bhopinder Singh by HRD Minister Arjun Singh in New Delhi recently.

The seats were allotted after protests led by the Island Development Council were staged here.

The protests began last month after the HRD Ministry withdrew 46 seats for Andaman students in the National Institutes of Technology (NITs).

''The Ministry has now restored 44 NIT seats and also assured the Andaman administration that the seat allotment would continue till the islands get its own NIT,'' Convenor of Island Development Council R K Halder told UNI.

UNI SKR DPM LPB CS1540