Amethi, the parliamentary constituency of Congress icon Rahul Gandhi, is expected to get the country's first 'Discovery Park' which will travel from Indiana in the United States to Uttar Pradesh.
This park, depicting society's 'big challenges' where today's vision is transformed into tomorrow's reality, will be set up by Indian Institute of Information Technology, Allahabad (IIIT-A).
In the US, the park was promoted by University of Purdue in Indiana, and the IIIT-A would certainly get technological collaboration from professors of this University.
The Discovery Park in Amethi -- estimated to cost Rs 400 crore (Rs 4 billion) -- will see construction work begin next month. It is estimated that the project would be completed in a couple of years, IIIT-A sources said.
The decision to set up the park was taken in a meeting of officials from the US and Indian department of science and technology, rural development, IT and IIIT-A in New Delhi, the sources said.
A delegation from the US which included Prof Pankaj Sharma from the University of Purdue, the host varsity of the US Discovery Park, had a series of deliberations over the dimensions of the proposed park.
Indian experts who were present during the discussions included IIIT-A director M D Tiwari and the in-charge of technology affairs at the Indian Consulate in the US Y P Kumar.
Tiwari said state-of-the-art Discovery Park would come up at Amethi and work for the same has started on a war footing. "We have identified the land in Amethi where the park will come up."
During the New Delhi meeting, deliberations were held on the entire plan of the park. The objective would be the same as that of the US park.
The park will cater research needs but addressing challenges of community development would be another goal, he said.
Purdue University's pioneering project had sought to evolve innovation through multi-disciplinary approach by creating a combinational power which is greater than any individual strength and to serve as a catalyst for drawing faculty, staff, and students to reach into other disciplines and projects in order to take Purdue to the cutting edge of academic work.
