RAIPUR // Chhattisgarh state officials have announced a plan to build a teaching complex to be called Education City in a forest that is a Maoist rebel stronghold where 75 paramilitary troops were killed in an ambush two years ago.
The 150-acre campus will house 15 schools and colleges that will cater to 5,000 students from poor and tribal families.
The project's goal is to train people who "not only understand the area's needs but also fill the gap between supply and availability of skilled workforce," said Omprakash Choudhary, the district magistrate of Dantewada who conceived the project, yesterday.
The campus is being built in Dantewada, a forested region in the southern tip of the state. The region is known for its Maoist insurgency, which reached its peak in April 2010 when 75 paramilitary troopers were killed in an ambush on their camp.
Education City is expected to be completed in 18 months. The institutes will include programmes that train students for careers in industry, security and other fields. Each institute will have its own solar energy power plant, academic building, playground, garden and dormitory.
Raman Singh, the Chhattisgarh chief minister, said that the project could help end the Maoist insurgency in the area.
"Education City will not only cater to the educational needs of the vast tribal populace inhabiting Bastar, worst-hit by left-wing extremism, but also usher in an era of peace and prosperity," he said.
At a literacy rate of 30.1 per cent, Dantewada is one of the most illiterate districts in the country.
Government programmes and private companies are paying for the project, which is estimated at 1 billion rupees (Dh66.56m), but some analysts expect the cost to rise.
