TIMELINE: BATTICALOA CAMPUS

July 2013: HIRA Foundation made the project proposals asking for a landmass from Sri Lanka Mahaweli Authority. The Director Board of the Mahaweli Authority granted approval on July 12 to lease a land of 35 acres in extent to the project. Aug 2013: The land was handed over to HIRA Foundation on August 19, on an annual lease amount of Rs.56, 000. Aug 2013: The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the establishment of this institution as the University College of Batticaloa was signed on August 11 by then Vocational Training and Technical Education Minister Dalles Alahapperuma and Eastern Province Governor M.L.A.M. Hisbullah as the chairman of Sri Lanka HIRA Foundation. Aug 2013: The approval was granted for offering two diploma courses Information and Communication Technology, and Quantity Survey initially. The operation license was valid for three years. May 2014: Started as a vocational training institute, it was elevated to the status of a university named “Batticaloa Campus (PVT) Limited on May 13 in terms of a MOU. June 2015: The application was submitted on June 12 for the registration of it as a project approved by the Board of Investment (BOI). The application was rejected. July 2015: A fresh application was filed on July 17 afterwards. The BOI cleared the project on condition that the degrees should be offered with its prior approval and in coordination with a foreign university. May 2016: It's registration had been renewed till May 21 to be operated as a vocational training institution. May 2019: The University Grants Commission (UGC) emphasized that no organization has been given the authority to conduct degree courses at a university known as the ‘Sharia University’ or the Batticaloa Campus.