Mohali (Punjab): Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today announced that 13 new degree colleges would come up in the state by next year at a cost of Rs.104 crore.

These colleges would be located in the educationally backward districts of Amritsar, Bathinda, Faridkot, Fatehgarh Sahib, Ferozepur, Gurdaspur, Mansa, Moga, Muktsar, Nawanshahar, Patiala and Sangrur on the recommendations of the University Grants Commission (UGC).

Badal was presiding over a function to mark the silver jubilee of the Government College here, 10 km from state capital Chandigarh.

Badal said that to boost higher and technical education, a central university at Bathinda had already started its academic session. Another world-class central university would be set up in Amritsar in over 700 acres of land.

He said that the state government had transferred 501 acres of land for setting up the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) at Ropar, 45 km from Chandigarh.

The classes for the IIT have started this year from the building of a government polytechnic. IANS