Mumbai: All the three academic institutes attached to Nirma Education and Research Foundation (NERF) have been granted the university status by the Gujarat government.

The Gujarat legislative assembly passed the University of Science & Technology Act to this effect on 5 March 2003. Under this Act, Nirma Institute of Management, Nirma Institute of Technology and Nirma Institute of Diploma Studies will now collectively be known as Nirma University of Science & Technology.

With the grant of university status to Nirma institutes, the dream of Dr Karsanbhai Patel, the great entrepreneur of Gujarat and the creator of one of the most respected fast-moving consumer goods companies in India, have turned into reality. Patel realised the critical role of education in today’s fast-changing world, especially in the technical and managerial fields.

“While on one hand, Patel created a classic Indian brand like Nirma in a very short span of time, on the other hand he has once again set the stage for Nirma to play the role of a guiding light in the lives of aspiring students and helping future professionals emerge as world-class citizens through Nirma University of Science & Technology,” says NERF managing trustee Ambubhai Patel.

With the newly acquired status of university, Nirma Education & Research Foundation has plans to set up professional educational institutes like a dental college, a medical college, a pharmacy college, a nursing education institute and specialised postgraduate courses with a focus on emerging areas like biotechnology and bio-informatics, besides setting up a centre for post-graduate studies in pure sciences.

“We at Nirma are thankful to the Gujarat government for helping us set up and establish these centres of excellence for the benefit of the students of the region, who had to always look at other states as education destinations. We have been able to attract the best faculty in the field of research and technology to provide that extra edge to our students and help them achieve professional excellence and add to the overall progress and development of the nation,” says NERF executive chairman Dr N V Vasani.