PM Modi inaugurates new Nalanda University campus in Rajgir, Bihar
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the new campus of Nalanda University in Rajgir, Bihar, on Wednesday.
The new campus is near the ancient ruins of Nalanda University, which was established through the Nalanda University Act, 2010.
This Act followed a decision made at the second East Asia Summit in the Philippines in 2007.
In his address, Modi said: “Nalanda is the proclamation of the truth that knowledge cannot be destroyed even though books would burn in a fire. A country that protects its human values knows how to recreate its history.”
“Nalanda is not just a name, it is an identity, a regard. Nalanda is the root, it is the mantra,” he added.
“It epitomised the Asian and global heritage within the campus. The new Nalanda has also involved many countries and will certainly strive to be a knowledge centre like the ancient seat of learning,” Modi was also quoted as saying.
He continued: “Education is beyond boundaries. It inculcates values and thought while giving it shape.”
The new campus is spread over 455 acres and a total of Rs 1,749 has been spent on the university.
According to the Press Information Bureau’s release, the new university campus has two academic blocks with 40 classrooms. It has two auditoriums with 300 seats each, a student hostel that can house around 550 students, an “international centre”, an amphitheatre with a capacity of 2,000 people, a faculty club and a sports complex among other things.