Shillong, July 3: The first academic session of the country's seventh Indian Institute of Management (IIM), the Rajiv Gandhi Indian Institute of Management (RGIIM) in Shillong, will begin today.

Meghalaya Chief Minister Donkupar Roy will inaugurate the first batch of Post Graduate Diploma in Management in the presence of Chairman, Board of Governors, RGIIM, professor R N Dutta, Chairman Headstrong Inc USA and founder member of HCL Arjun Malhotra and Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister T K Nair.

The institute will commence its first academic session in Nongthymmai in Shillong, which previously housed the North Eastern Hill University.

Work will soon commence on a 120-acre site for construction of the permanent campus.

The institute will conduct courses in Post-Graduate Diploma in Business Management, fellowship programme in management, management development programmes, tourism and hospitality management, tele-services and telemedicine, information systems and technology and subjects of local relevance such as tourism, horticulture and hydel power.

For its flagship programme, Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management (PGDBM), the Institute envisages an annual student intake capacity of 60 in the first year, which would be increased to 120 in the third year and 180 in the sixth year. (ANI)