The state government said the proposed NIELIT Quantum AI University at Amaravati would not involve shifting or closing the existing National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT) Centre at Tirupati.

The clarification came after reports about the shifting of the Tirupati Centre to Amaravati went viral.

The government said the Amaravati campus would be an expansion of NIELIT's presence in Andhra Pradesh and would function alongside the existing centre at Tirupati.

NIELIT can establish up to three centres in a state, and the proposed Amaravati campus would be the second NIELIT Centre in Andhra Pradesh.

The NIELIT Centre at Tirupati was established at Sri Venkateswara University campus following approval from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on January 4, 2024. The project was sanctioned with a budget outlay of Rs 850.09 lakh.

Since starting training programmes in November 2024, the Tirupati Centre has trained 4,308 candidates from across the state in Electronics and Information Technology and Semiconductors. The beneficiaries include personnel and students from the AP Police, I4C/CID, PM SHREE Kendriya Vidyalayas, universities and colleges.

The centre has developed a wide range of training programmes covering Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Data Engineering, Cyber Security and Digital Forensics, VLSI, FPGA, Internet of Things, Robotics, 3D Printing, Cloud Computing and Embedded Systems. It has also conducted industry-linked training and faculty development programmes.

According to the government, the Amaravati initiative will have a different and complementary role, with a focus on Quantum Technologies and Artificial Intelligence. While Amaravati will provide a platform for advanced education, research and innovation, Tirupati will continue to focus on skill development, training, industry engagement, technology education and capacity building.

NIELIT has also expressed its willingness to expand the Tirupati Centre further, subject to the availability of around two acres of additional land. The expansion would help strengthen infrastructure, increase training capacity and introduce more programmes in emerging technologies.

Meanwhile, Tirupati MP Dr M Gurumoorthy said a permanent NIELIT campus had earlier been proposed in Tirupati with the objective of developing it as a constituent unit of the NIELIT Deemed to be University. He questioned why the Deemed to be University status was being proposed for Amaravati when Tirupati was the first NIELIT Centre in the state.

Gurumoorthy said he had no objection to establishing a second centre at Amaravati focusing on Quantum Technologies and Artificial Intelligence, but insisted that the Deemed to be University status should be granted to Tirupati, for which a Detailed Project Report (DPR) was submitted in 2023.

The government had also expressed its willingness to allot 15 acres of land at Kurukalva village in Renigunta mandal for the project, he recalled.