NEW DELHI – The cabinet committee of economic affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the upgradation of the National Rail and Transportation Institute (NRTI) from a deemed-to-be-university to a Central University. The Cabinet has decided to establish Gati Shakti University, said Union Minister Anurag Thakur while briefing about the cabinet decisions recently. Railway training centres and special laboratories will be utilised to impart training. In December 2017, Union Cabinet approved a proposal of the Railway Ministry to set up the first-ever NRTU in Vadodara. Earlier in October 2016, the Prime Minister had announced the Government’s intent to set up the University in Vadodara. “Once it becomes a Central University, it will enjoy greater autonomy," said an Education Ministry official. As a deemed university, NRTU has to follow the deemed university's regulations of the University Grants Commission (UGC). The institute is not allowed to affiliate any institution. The University is named after the Government's flagship Rs. 100 trillion PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan for multimodal connectivity. It aims to build a holistic infrastructure in the country. It received its first-ever outlay of Rs. 20,000 crore in the budget of FY22-23.