"We had been working on our expansion plans for a while. But the coincidence with the implementation of OBC quota has given us a chance to make it more ambitious. The Delhi Urban Arts Commission has reviewed and approved our new building plans. While construction of the hostel and flats will kick start in September, work on the academic complex will probably commence by the end of this year," said Professor Surendra Prasad, director, IIT, Delhi.

The academic complex - which will come up on the vacant plot located behind the textile and workshop block and have 13 lecture halls including one with seating capacity of 500 - is scheduled to be completed in three years and cost Rs 134 crore approximately The expenses for the hostel and apartments will amount to Rs 36.8 crore and Rs 35.4 crore, respectively.

"The 500-seater lecture hall will be equipped with projection screens to ensure that the distance between the students and teacher does not hinder learning," said Hem Chandra Gupta, deputy director, administration. "Seven years from now our student intake would have increased from 5,000 to 7,700. We need to develop our infrastructure even further to meet their needs. We are planning to build a new hostel that can house close 1,000 of our girl students, a new hostel for our married students and a students' center for the day scholars," added Gupta.