The University of Bombay now Mumbai university is one of the oldest and premier Universities in India. It was established on 18th July 1857. Madras and Calcutta Universities were established in the same year.
Introduction
The University of Mumbai was established in 1857 consequent to ‘Wood’s Education Dispatch drafted by Charles Wood in 1854.
The university was modeled after London University. During that time University was only an examining body and conducted tests for the students who studied in affiliated colleges. The university features four campuses, namely Thane campus, Kalina campus, Fort campus, and Ratnagiri campus. This was the first university in India to admit women to all degrees in 1883.
University Built on Own Land
University didn’t have its own place for over a decade. It used the premises of Town Hall to carry all activities.
It was then established in the Fort campus in 1857. The convocation hall, named after Sir Cowasji Jehangir who had donated a munificent donation of one lakh as early as 1863, was completed in November 1874.
The Rajabai Clock Tower, one of the most attractive features of the city rises to a height of 280 feet. The building was completed in November 1878 at a total cost of Rs. 5.48 lakhs covered by the gift of Rs. 4 lakhs generously donated by Premchand Raichand in 1864 and the interest which had since accumulated thereon. The donation was made by him in commemoration of his mother.
Jurisdiction of Bombay University after Independence
After Independence, the jurisdiction of the University fo Bombay extended over Western India. With the increase in the number of colleges especially after Independence, the University of Mumbai was broken up leading to the establishment of Poona, Baroda and Gujarat Universities in 1949 and Karnatak University in 1950. As a result, the jurisdiction of Mumbai University came to be limited to the Greater Mumbai area. Much later its jurisdiction was extended to include the Konkan area.
Colleges Affiliated with the University
There were atleast four colleges in the city before the foundation of the university in 1857. They were Elphinstone College (1827), Wilson College (1832), Grant Medical College (1845) and Law Colleges (1855). Elphinstone, Grant College and Law Colleges were affiliated to the university in 1860 while Wilson College and St. Xavier’s Colleges came to be affiliated in 1861 and 1869 respectively.
- J.J. School of Art began in 1857 and became well established by 1870.
- V.J.T.I. came up as an Engineering college in 1888 under the patronage of the government.
- Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics also run by the government started in 1914.
- G.S.Medical college came up in 1925 as the second medical college in the city.
- Ismail Yusuf College was set up in 1930.
- Ruia college and Gurunanak Khalsa College came up in 1937 in Matunga.
- In 1944 Sophia College came up as the first women’s college under Mumbai University.
- Siddharth College was started in 1946.
- While Poddar College of Commerce and R.D.National College were started in 1941 and 1949 respectively.
Library
The university library was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott at the same time as the Rajabai Clock Tower. It is today part of the Victorian complex in Mumbai that is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Another library is set in the Kalina campus which is famously known as Jawaharlal Nehru library.
Examinations & Students
The first Matriculation examination was conducted by Mumbai University in 1859. Out of the 132 candidates who appeared for the examination only 22 were declared successful. The major cause of the failure of such a large number was attributed to their inability to do well in their mother tongue.
The first student to receive the degree of Bachelor of Arts were M.G. Ranade. R.G. Bhandarkar, B.M. Waglay and V.A. Modak. Ranade and Bhandarkar secured first-class rose to national fame with Justice Ranade became Judge and Bhandarkar as Sanskrit scholar.
Campuses of University
Mumbai University is built on two campuses at Fort and Kalina.
Fort Campus
The University of Bombay was established in 1857 at the Fort campus, which is located near the southern end of Mumbai island. It houses the administrative division of the university on a 5.3 ha (13 acres) site. It has 116,000 m2 (1.25×106 sq ft) of built-up area, 2,000 m2 (22,000 sq ft) of classrooms, and 7,800 m2 (84,000 sq ft) of laboratory space.
Kalina Campus
This campus covers an area of 93 hectares (230 acres) and houses graduate training and research centres. Departments offering courses in the sciences, technology, commerce, and humanities are located here. Most colleges of engineering and medicine affiliated to the University of Mumbai, though, are privately owned. The university does not have its own engineering or medicine departments.
Visit the website of Mumbai University
Detailed info of Mumbai University on Wikipedia