The project will come up at a cost of an estimated Rs 250 crore. Official sources said the government proposes to set up the institute at Garnavadi village in the chief minister's native district, Rohtak. The institute will have a sprawling campus spread over 165 acres along NH-10. State chief secretary Dharambir told TOI that the state government has already sent a proposal to the Centre, saying it will provide land free of cost for the institute. ``Rohtak is the perfect venue for such an institute. With the completion of six laning of the Delhi-Rohtak stretch of NH-10, this region will get high-speed connectivity to the capital,'' he added.

``Since Haryana has posted major growth in all other fields and the Congress government has managed to hold on to its support base, there's no reason why the Centre would not clear this project,'' said a government source.

Officials admitted that though the state has scripted its success story in terms of economic growth, it has been lagging behind in the field of higher education. ``Until we create enough skilled manpower to fuel that industrial and economic development, we won't be able to maintain this rate of growth,'' said an official. The government has already announced this year as the ``Year of Education''.