Modi inaugurates AKTU’s campus
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the newlyconstructed campus of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University (AKTU) on Tuesday.
Established in 2000, the university used to function from the IET Campus at Sitapur Road since then.
The construction of the campus, spread over 30 acres, began in 2011 but was stopped after a few months following strong opposition from farmers over land issue.
Vice-chancellor Vinay Kumar Pathak, who took over in August 2015, expedited the construction work that resumed in January 2016.
In October 2015, former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav laid the foundation of Kalam Memorial Centre building inside the campus.
Pathak said the university will establish Centre of Advanced Studies to start masters and PhD programmes in different disciplines from July.
The total expense incurred in the construction of the university campus was Rs 194.72 crore. Another Rs 17.14 crore was spent in constructing the Kalam Memorial Centre, which will house the digital library of the university.
It was earlier known as Uttar Pradesh Technical University (UPTU).
Akhilesh Yadav renamed it on Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University as a tribute to India’s Missile Man who died in July 2015.
One of the largest technical universities in Asia, as claimed by it on website, over 780 institutes are affiliated to AKTU across Uttar Pradesh, of which 93 colleges are in Ghaziabad and 75 in Gautam Budh Nagar.
These colleges or institutions offer graduate, postgraduate and doctoral level programmes in engineering, technology, architecture, pharmacy, hotel management and catering technology, management and computer applications.