The Indian government has signed a $201.50-million (around Rs 1,358 crore) financing agreement with the World Bank to improve the quality of technical education in the country, IANS reported on Thursday. The Finance Ministry said, “the project has been designed as a disbursement-linked one, that is, the World Bank loan will be disbursed on achievement of specific outcomes.”

The money will be used to upgrade facilities in engineering institutes and help the sector perform better by focusing on governance. The Centre plans “to enhance quality and equity in participating engineering education institutes and improve the efficiency of the engineering education systems in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, the eight north-eastern states and Andaman and Nicobar Islands”.

The ministry said the “Third Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme” was signed with the World Bank in Delhi on Tuesday.