Citing sources, the report said the Sri Lankan government is in touch with IIT Madras for the ambitious project. 

“A high-level delegation had recently visited the Chennai campus to discuss the future roadmap. The talks are on and the campus is likely to come up in Kandy,” the report quoted a source. “The delegation also visited the Research Park at the campus and interacted with officials about possible areas of engagement.”

The proposal for an IIT in Sri Lanka was announced last November in the 2024 Budget unveiled by Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe.

If the plan for the Sri Lanka campus comes through, it will be IIT Madras’ second international campus.

Last year, IIT Madras had announced the setting up of an offshore campus in Tanzania’s Zanzibar with Preeti Aghalyam being appointed the director-in-charge who also became the first woman IIT director.

The institute started functioning in November 2023 from a temporary campus and is offering two full-time academic programmes — a four-year Bachelor of Science in data science and artificial intelligence and a two-year Master of Technology in data science and artificial intelligence.

IIT Delhi had also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the UAE government to set up a campus in Abu Dhabi.

Several IITs have received requests from the Middle East and South Asian countries to set up their campuses.

The United Kingdom is also keen on welcoming an IIT to set up an offshore campus in the country and some UK universities are already in talks with IITs to explore the possibility. 

The central government had formed a 17-member panel to facilitate the process of setting up IIT campuses in foreign locations.

(With inputs from agencies)

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Published: 11 Feb 2024, 04:55 PM IST