Savitribai Phule Pune University

Savitribai Phule Pune University

Former names	University of Poona University of Pune
Motto	Sanskrit: य: क्रियावान् स पण्डित
Motto in English	"Where Actions Prove Knowledge"[1]
Type	Public
Established	10 February 1949
Chancellor	C. Vidyasagar Rao
Vice-Chancellor	Nitin R. Karmalkar
Location	Pune, Maharashtra, India 18.5336° N, 73.8109° E
Campus	Urban
Affiliations	UGC, NAAC, AIU
Website	www.unipune.ac.in

Savitribai Phule Pune University, formerly University of Pune and University of Poona, is a university in Pune in western India, founded in 1949. Spread over a 411 acres (1.66 km²) campus,^[2] the university is home to 43 academic departments. The university is named after Savitribai Phule, a 19th-century Indian social reformer who is known for her contribution towards empowerment and emancipation of women through education. The university has affiliated colleges, departments, and research institutes, which are primarily in Pune.

Main building of Pune University

History

The University of Poona (original name) was established on 10 February 1949 under the Poona University Act, passed by the Bombay legislature in 1948.^[3] M. R. Jayakar became its first Vice-Chancellor. B. G. Kher, Chief Minister and Education Minister of the government of Bombay, helped ensure the university received a large allocation of land for their campus. In early 1950, the university was allocated over 411 acres (1.7 km²).^[3]

Its location has historical significance. Some incidents of the Battle of Khirkee, during the Third Anglo-Maratha War, took place where the present-day university is located. The present-day main building was built in 1864 and was known as the Governor's House. The university is home to IUCAA, an institute for astronomy.

The institution's name was changed from the University of Pune to Savitribai Phule Pune University on 9 August 2014 in honor of Savitribai Phule, the 19th century Indian social reformer who played an important role in improving the lives of women and the Dalit communities in Maharashtra during British colonial rule. She and her husband founded Pune's first native run school for girls in 1848.^[4]

Jurisdiction

Initially the university had a jurisdiction extending over 12 districts of western Maharashtra. With the establishment of Shivaji University in Kolhapur in 1962, the jurisdiction was restricted to five districts: Pune, Ahmednagar, Nashik, Dhule and Jalgaon. Out of these, two districts—Dhule and Jalgaon—are attached to the North Maharashtra University established in August 1990.^[3]

Affiliations

In 1949, there were 18 affiliated colleges (including colleges such as the Fergusson College, and College of Engineering, Pune) with an enrolment of over 8000. Thereafter, the number of colleges increased. As of 2017 the university had 43 departments,^[5] 433 affiliated colleges and 232 recognized research institutions, with an enrolment of 496,531 students for undergraduate and graduate courses.^[6]

Research

More than 70 research institutions have been recognised by the Savitribai Phule Pune University for research. These include institutions of national importance like the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), National Chemical Laboratory (NCL), National Centre For Cell Science (NCCS), National Institute of Virology (NIV), Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics (GIPE), Documentation Research and Training Centre (DRTC) of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) among others.

Other research organisations which are associated with the university are:

• National Centre for Radio Astrophysics (runs the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope)
• Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (home to the PARAM range of supercomputers)
• Institute of Bioinformatics and Biotechnology (IBB)
• Shreemati Nathibai Damodar Thackersey Women's University (SNDT Women's University)

Departments

Savitribai Phule Pune University

The university has departments and centres, offering courses in science, social science, management, law, etc.^[5]

• Department of Anthropology.
• The Department of Law was established in 1965 under the stewardship of Professor Dr. S.K.Agrawala a legal scholar. The initiative and efforts undertaken by Agrawala led the department to be rated as the fifth best in the Commonwealth of Nations in the field of legal education of the commonwealth universities.
• The Department of Zoology was one of the first to be established. It offers a postgraduate programme (M.Sc., M. Phil and Ph.D.) in Zoology.
• Department of Media and Communication Studies (DMCS)
• The Department of Media and Communication Studies (DMCS); was established in 1990. It offers a two-year (interdisciplinary) full-time master's course in Media and Communication Studies (M.Sc.). This master's course in the second year offers two specializations, Media Research and Video Production. DMCS also offers M.Phil and PhD. in Media and Communication Studies. It has a wide range of notable alumni spread across the media, film, television, corporate, advertising, research, and academic industries in India and abroad.
• The Department of Geography was established in 1950. Every year the department admits students for its M.A/MSc., M.Phil and Ph.D courses. The department also offers students a course in Remote Sensing and Geospatial Information Systems (GIS and RS).
• Department of Geo-science
• The Institute of Bioinformatics and Biotechnology is an autonomous institute with an affiliation to the Savitribai Phule Pune University. It was established with a view to promote research and development activities in bioinformatics and biotechnology.
• The Department of Chemistry was one of the earliest established by the university. It has received the CAS status (Centre for Advanced Studies in Chemistry). Its research programs cover areas like computational chemistry, organic chemistry and inorganic chemistry and biochemistry. The department has a collaboration with the National Chemical Laboratory (NCL), a research institute in India. It has a separate central computing facility: a computer laboratory for students.
• The Department of Microbiology is an autonomous department and offers a credit based course in Microbiology which covers topics in Immunology, Medical Microbiology, Molecular Biology, Industrial Microbiology and Biochemistry.
• The Department of Materials Science.
• The Department of Management Sciences (PUMBA) is a business school run by the university. It was formed in 1971 and has about 360 students. In 2007–08, it started an MBA++ course. It also offers an MBA with a biotechnology specialisation.
• Department of Biotechnology: In 1985, the National Board of Biotechnology selected the Savitribai Phule Pune University as one of its five centres for imparting training in M.Sc. Biotechnology.
• The Department of Environmental Science was established as an interdisciplinary school in 1978. As a first step, Environmental Science was introduced as an optional course in all the science departments. In view of its popularity, a one-year course, B.Sc. (Applied) was started in 1986, which was subsequently converted into a two-year full-time M. Sc. course.
• Department of Education
• Computer Science Department (PUCSD): In 1980, a one-year programme was started towards the B.Sc.(Applied) degree in Computer Science. The M.C.A. programme was launched in 1983, the M.Tech. degree programme in 1985, and the one-year B.Sc.(Applied) programme was upgraded to a two-year M.Sc. in Computer Science in 1986.
• Department of Psychology
• The Department of Physics started in 1952. Its research programmes cover areas like Materials Science, Solid State Physics, Condensed Matter Physics, Nonlinear Dynamics, Scanning Tunneling Microscopy, Cloud Physics, Thin/Thick Films, Diamond Coatings, Nuclear and Accelerator Physics, Lasers, Plasma Physics, Field Electron/Ion Microscopy, Biophysics etc. The department has received funds from DST / government of India under the FIST program.
• Atmospheric and Space Sciences started in 1988 by the sponsorship of UGC. Department runs two programs in the field of Atmospheric Sciences leading to M.Sc and M.Tech degrees. Department also have MoU with Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune.
• The Department of Electronic Science started in 1984. Its labs and research programmes include System Design, Cyber lab for Electronics, Sensors, Materials, MEMS, Embedded systems, Optoelectronics, Virtual Instrumentation. Every year 30 students are taken in for post graduation studies through an entrance exam.
• Department of Ecotechnology
• The Department of Instrumentation Science (USIC) is a spin-off from the university workshop. The department was conceived as an extension of the physics department to build and maintain instruments used by the Physics department and served as a prototyping laboratory for building and testing new instruments. Initially the department started running an M.Sc. program for Applied Electronics autonomously, funded in large part by student fees and research projects. To provide a broader focus, the M.Sc. Applied Electronics course gradually metamorphosed into the M.Sc. Instrumentation Science Course with additional focus on sensors and transducers, as well as product design. In addition to the M.Sc. course, the department features a sensor lab which continues to collaborate with the Physics and Electronics departments providing PhD candidates an inter-disciplinary environment to pursue independent research work.
• The Centre for Modeling and Simulation (CMS) is an autonomous centre at the university. It was established in 2003 to promote mathematical modelling and simulation methodologies, to encourage interdisciplinary problem-centric approaches to basic and applied research, and to nurture computing expertise on the university campus. The centre runs a two-year full-time MTech programme in Modeling and Simulation.
• Interdisciplinary School of Scientific Computing (ISSC)
• Department of Linguistics
• The Department of Statistics was established in 1953. The department was in the main building of the university. Prof. V. S. Huzurbazar was its first head. In 1962 the department was shifted to its new elegant building later named as `Wrangler Paranjapye Ganit ani Sankhyashastra Bhavan'. The Department of Statistics was separated in 1976. Now the department is recognised as the `Centre for Advanced Studies in Statistics'.
• Department of Sociology
• Department of Mathematics
• Department of Politics and Public Administration
• The Department of Economics offers a Master's programme in Economics and a doctoral programme. The department has a post-graduate diploma in Foreign Trade.
• Department of Architecture
• Department of Defence & Strategic Studies
• Department of Urban Studies & Planning
• The Department of Foreign Languages was started in Ranade institute building in 1949. It offers courses for German, French, Russian, Japanese and Spanish languages from elementary level to post graduation courses. Batches are conducted in morning as well as in evening. Over 1500 students are enrolled every year.^[7]
• The Department of Technology provides a research platform for solving industry relevant research problems. It runs industry-university sponsored M.Tech-Ph.D. integrated programs. Four technology boards have been established under the umbrella of 'Faculty of Technology'
• Competition Exam Center (CEC): is for coaching programs for various government competition exams.^[8]
• Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule Women's Studies Centre.^[9]
• Skill Development Centre: Established in 2014, the department is credited to facilitate 4 credit skill development course for all PG students. The department also runs 5 B.Voc (Bachelor of Vocation) Courses, namely Automotive Automation, Renewable Energy, Retail Management, IT & ITeS, Jewellery Designing and Gemology.

Jayakar Library

The library was founded in 1950 and is a center of reference and information. It subscribes to Indian and foreign research journals, and receives periodicals on a gratis and exchange basis. It has more than 450,000 books and journals. An inter-library loan facility is extended to colleges, institutions and government agencies. The Jayakar Library has preserved ancient Indian texts in the form of manuscripts and books. It has computerized all library activities and using RFID technology and has undertaken a project in digital library management.

Rankings

Savitribai Phule Pune University was ranked 601-800 in the world by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings in 2016-2017,^[10], as well as 161-170 in Asia^[12] and 143 among BRICS & Emerging Economies University Rankings in 2017.^[11] It was ranked 14 in India overall by the National Institutional Ranking Framework in 2017.^[13]

Student halls of residence

The colleges of the university provide residences for students. The International Centre provides residences for international students, including visiting students.^[14]

Vice-Chancellors

Past and present vice-chancellors of the university are:^[15]

Notable alumni and faculty

Notable alumni of Savitribai Phule Pune University include major politicians of India including Vishwanath Pratap Singh, 7th Prime Minister of India; Pratibha Patil, 12th President of India; Vilasrao Deshmukh, 17th and 19th Chief Minister of Maharashtra; and Sharad Pawar, former Chief Minister of Maharashtra. P.V. Narasimha Rao, 9th Prime Minister of India, graduated from Fergusson College, when the college was under the University of Mumbai.

Khaled Bahah, 2nd Vice President of Yemen and Prime Minister of Yemen, received his BCom and MCom from the university.^[16]

In science and engineering, notable alumni of the university include Padmanabhan Balaram, chemist and director of the Indian Institute of Science; Kantilal Mardia, statistician and Guy Medallists; Thomas Kailath, electrical engineer and recipient of the 2014 National Medal of Science; Vistasp Karbhari, civil engineer and the eighth president of the University of Texas at Arlington;^[17] Suhas Patankar, professor at the University of Minnesota, and pioneer in the field of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and finite volume method; C. Kumar N. Patel, inventor of the carbon dioxide laser, recipient of the 1996 National Medal of Science and vice-Chancellor for Research at the University of California, Los Angeles;^[18] and Vinod Scaria, bioinformatician, who is known for sequencing the first Indian genome. V. S. Huzurbazar served as the first head of the statistics department. S.N. Sadasivan who was Civil Serivices trainer, Author and historian.

Other alumni include Ashutosh Agashe, businessman-cricketer.

See also

• University of Pune faculty
• List of universities in India
• Universities and colleges in India

References

External links

• Official website

Coordinates: 18°33′08″N 73°49′29″E / 18.5523°N 73.8246°E / 18.5523; 73.8246