TIFR plans campus in city

HYDERABAD: The Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) has decided to set up its campus in the city. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is likely
to lay foundation stone for the campus soon. This will be the second campus in the country after Mumbai.

TIFR director Mustansir Barma called on chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy on October 12 and presented a proposal to set up the campus during the centenary birth year of its founder Dr Homi J Bhabha.

The TIFR, according to official sources, sought about 210 acres of land at the Hyderabad Central University (HCU) for the campus and has projected an investment of over Rs 2,500 crore over a period of 12-15 years.

Barma informed the chief minister that they had preferred Hyderabad for the second campus because of its good national and international connectivity , which met the required benchmark of TIFR.

HCU vice-chancellor Syed E Hasnain was also said to have welcomed the proposal of locating the TIRF on the HCU campus as it would go a long way in making the central university a world-class research hub a la 'Little Boston' and it would not only help students and faculty of the university but would also contribute to the economic development of the state.
The second campus, TIFR feels, would take care of its expansion programmes. It has proposed to set up the institute in two phases, phase I between 2008-2014 and phase II between 2014-2020.