JJ School of Art gets de novo deemed university status

NEW DELHI: Education minister Dharmendra Pradhan has declared JJ School of Art a de novo deemed university. He also unveiled the foundation stone of the new university.

Maharashtra assembly speaker Rahul Narvekar, deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis; Maharashtra higher education minister Chandrakant Dada Patil, Marathi language minister Deepak Kesarkar were also present on the occasion.

The minister said JJ school is not just an institute but a laboratory of innovation. He announced that the National Education Policy (NEP2020) will be implemented at the institute and it will become a global centre of excellence. He also mentioned that he has appealed to JJ School of Arts to make illustrations for the new textbooks and also to make a study course for ‘Vishwakarma Yojana’ for those obtaining training under the scheme.

“The tradition of social responsibilities has been present in the Indian system for centuries and the JJ School of Art is an example of this. Mumbai has a great attraction among Indians for its smartness, organised approach, culture, and a ‘Mumbai Pattern’ which has been depicted by the JJ School of Art who will carry this tradition forward in the centuries to come, he emphasised,” he said.

Fadnavis said J J School of Art has produced several skillful human resources in the field of art, applied art and architecture in the last 150 years. The school has contributed to creating Mumbai's iconic structures as well. He also expressed hope that the new wing of the institute would present some new art to society.

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The de novo category is awarded to institutions devoted to innovations in teaching and research in unique and emerging areas of knowledge. With the union government’s approval in place, the institute will become Maharashtra’s only government-run deemed-to-be University and one among the handful institutes with the 'de novo' tag across the country.