University of Lucknow

University of Lucknow

लखनऊ विश्वविद्यालय
Seal
Former name	Canning College
Motto	वंशस्याग्रे ध्वजो यथा
Motto in English	Light and Learning
Type	Public
Established	25 November 1920 (25 November 1920)
Founder	Mohammad Ali Mohammad Khan
Accreditation	NAAC
Academic affiliations	UGC AIU BCI NCTE AICTE PCI
Budget	₹137 crore (US$16 million)
Chancellor	Governor of Uttar Pradesh
Vice-Chancellor	Alok Kumar Rai
Students	20,472
Undergraduates	10,776
Postgraduates	6,280
Location	Lucknow , Uttar Pradesh , India 26.8467°N 80.9462°E / 26.8467; 80.9462
Campus	Urban, Old Campus 225 acres (91 ha), New Campus 75 acres (30 ha)
Language	Hindi English Urdu Awadhi
Colors	Red   Gold   Blue
Website	www.lkouniv.ac.in
Location in Uttar Pradesh

University of Lucknow (informally known as Lucknow University, and LU) is a public state university based in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. LU's main campus is located at Badshah Bagh, University Road area of the city with a second campus at Jankipuram. It is the largest state university of Uttar Pradesh. It is also the only public university of the state to offer both on-campus and online programmes of study.

LU is a teaching, residential and affiliating university, organized into 556 colleges and 17 institutes, located throughout the city and other surrounding areas. The University has jurisdiction over colleges in five districts: Lucknow, Raebareli, Hardoi, Sitapur and Lakhimpur Kheri. The university is opening a third campus in Sitapur district where vocational and skill development courses will be offered.

The University of Lucknow is the only state university of Uttar Pradesh to be awarded "Category-I" university status by the UGC for excellence in teaching and research. It is also the first public university in the State of Uttar Pradesh to be accredited with A++ status by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council.

History

The British, during the colonial period, transformed the Indian educational system, transitioning Indian education from the traditional Gurukul system to schools, colleges, and universities. Educational institutions established during the colonial period are still operational today, and Lucknow University is one of them.

In the summer of 1862, the first Viceroy of British India, Charles John Canning, breathed his last in London. For his loyalty during the Indian Rebellion of 1857, commonly referred to as the Mutiny, he was rewarded with a taluk (subdivision of a district). In his posthumous memory, a group of his loyal talukdars in Awadh decided to donate eight annas (half a rupee) from their annual income to start an educational institution. Just two years later, in 1864, Canning High School was established, starting with 200 students in two rooms of a mansion in the narrow lanes of Khayaliganj, Aminabad.

Canning College, founded in the late 19th century, played a crucial role in strengthening the relationship between the local aristocracy, known as talukdars, and the British administration in Oudh (now Uttar Pradesh). The idea for the college was first proposed by Maharaja Man Singh in 1882 as a tribute to the late Lord Canning, the former Viceroy of India. Conceived as a memorial, it was envisioned as the first institution of its kind in the region, with a mission to educate the youth, enhance the nation's resources, and combat ignorance through knowledge. The college was named after Lord Canning, who served as Governor-General from 1856 to 1862.

Lucknow University traces its origins to Canning College, which was established in 1864 as a prominent educational institution in Lucknow. Initially supported by the talukdars (local landowners), the college emerged as a significant center of learning in India. The land for the college was part of the 700-hectare Awadh Estates granted to Raja Sir Randhir Singh of Kapurthala by the British after the 1857 rebellion.

The Canning College stamp card highlights its role in Lucknow's educational heritage, established in 1864.

In the early days, Canning College had no building of its own and led a peripatetic existence, with the scene of its activity periodically changing as one building or another proved unsuitable or insufficient. During the first twelve years, the College shifted from its original abode, the Aminuddaulah Palace, to several places, including the Lal Baradari. Eventually, it was housed in its own building at Kaisar Bagh, which is now known as the Rai Umanath Bali Auditorium and Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya (formerly the Bhatkhande Music Institute), is situated there.

Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya, previously Bhatkhande Music Institute, is located in Kaisar Bagh.

However, the growing demand for additional space prompted another relocation. The provincial government came to its aid and agreed to sell the Provincial Museum building to the College for Rs. 2,10,000.The high school was reorganized as Canning College in 1866. The foundation stone for a new building was laid by Viceroy Sir John Lawrence on 13 November1867, but construction was not completed until 1878. On 15 November of that year, Sir George Couper, Lieutenant-Governor of the North Western Provinces and Chief Commissioner of Oudh, formally opened the new building. For well over three decades, Canning College remained in the Kaisar Bagh building, but the site was scarcely suitable for a large residential institution.

A photograph depicting a class at Canning College, Lucknow, taken in 1871 from the Archaeological Survey of India Collections: India Office Series (Volume 46).

Consequently, the College Management sought a more spacious site, and the provincial government agreed to purchase the college building for Rs. 2,10,000 to house the Provincial Museum (now known as the State Museum, Lucknow).

Canning College continued to function as a recognized institution under the University of Calcutta for 20 years, from 1867 until it came under the jurisdiction of the University of Allahabad in 1888.

In 1905, the Government handed over to Canning College the extensive walled garden of about 90 acres located north of the river Gomti, known as Badshah Bagh. This garden was originally a garden house of the glorious Nasir-ud-din Haider, Padshah-e-Awadh, the second King of Awadh (1827-1837). After the pacification of Awadh, it became the Lucknow residence of the Maharaja of Kapurthala, who had purchased Badshah Bagh from the British government at an auction for a nominal price of Rs. 35,000 after the Mutiny (freedom struggle). The Maharaja later leased 90 acres of the garden land to Canning College for just ₹3 as annual rent. Some remains in the garden, such as the old royal building Lal Baradari, the tall and beautiful gates, and the canal, remind us of its historicity.

The Lal Baradari is a historic architectural gem in Lucknow University, showcasing Indo-Islamic style.

GN Chakravarti, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of Banaras Hindu University, was appointed the first Vice-Chancellor of Lucknow University on 16 December 1920. The first academic session began in July 1921, and the first convocation was held in October 1922.

"The Temple of learning, the foundation of which we have laid, should draw teachers from all parts of the world inspired by the sacred mission of bringing wisdom where there is ignorance, light where there is darkness, and peace where there is strife. This was the old ideal of the university and must ever remain the true ideal of a living University." — Gyanendra Nath Chakravarty, First Vice-Chancellor of Lucknow University, during his speech on the passing of the Lucknow University Act in 1920, in the Legislative Council.

The implementation of the new building scheme was made possible due to a special grant from the Government, proceeds from the sale of the old building at Kaiserbagh, and the munificence of Maharaja Sir Bhagwati Singh of Balrampur. The construction plans were entrusted to the well-known architect Sir Swinton Jacob, who prepared an impressive design in the Indo-Saracenic style.

The idea of starting a University at Lucknow was first put forward by Raja Sir Mohammad Ali Mohammad Khan, Khan Bahadur, K.C.I.E. of Mahmudabad, who contributed an article to the columns of "The Pioneer", urging the foundation of a University at Lucknow. A little later Sir Harcourt Butler, K.C.S.I., K.C.I.E, was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of the United Provinces. The first step to bring the University into being was taken when a General Committee of educationists and persons interested in university education appointed for the purpose, met in conference at Government House, Lucknow, on 10 November 1919.

"Raja Mahmudabad (seated, center) with leaders of the Aligarh Movement."

At this meeting Sir Harcourt Butler, who was in the chair, outlined the proposed scheme for the new university. A discussion followed, and it was resolved that Lucknow University should be a Unitary, Teaching, and Residential University of the kind recommended by the Calcutta University Mission, 1919, and should consist of Faculties of Arts, including Oriental Studies, Science, Medicine, Law, etc. A number of other resolutions was also passed and six sub-committees were formed, five of them to consider questions connected with the University and one to consider the arrangements for providing Intermediate Education. These sub-committees met during the months of November and December 1919, and January 1920; and the reports of their meetings were laid before a second Conference of the General Committee at Lucknow on 26 January 1920; their proceedings were considered and discussed, and the reports of five of the sub-committees were, subject to certain amendments, confirmed. The question of incorporation of the Medical College in the University, however, was for the time being left open for expression of opinion. At the close of the Conference donations of one lakh each from the Raja of Mahmudabad and Jahangirabad were announced.

The resolutions of the first Conference together with the recommendations of the sub-committees as confirmed at the second Conference were laid before a meeting of the Allahabad University on 12 March 1920, and it was decided to appoint a sub-committee to consider them and report to the Senate. The report of the sub-committee was considered at an extraordinary meeting of the Senate on 7 August 1920, at which the Chancellor presided, and the scheme was generally approved. In the meantime the difficulty of incorporating the Medical College in the University had been removed. During the month of April 1920, Mr. C.F. de la Fosse, the then Director of Public Instruction, United Provinces, drew up a Draft Bill for the establishment of the Lucknow University which was introduced in the Legislative Council on 12 August 1920. It was then referred to a Select Committee which suggested a number of amendments, the most important being the liberalising of the constitution of the various University bodies and the inclusion of a Faculty of Commerce; this Bill, in an amended form, was passed by the Council on 8 October 1920. The Lucknow University Act, No. V of 1920, received the assent of the Lieutenant-Governor on 1 November and the Governor-General on 25 November 1920, establishing the University of Lucknow. Following this, the Canning College was merged into the University, integrating its resources and legacy into the broader educational framework.

The Court of the University was constituted in March 1921, with the first meeting held on 21 March 1921, presided over by the Chancellor. The other university authorities, including the Executive Council, Academic Council, and various faculties, were established in August and September 1921. Statutory and non-statutory committees and boards were formed over time.

On 17 July 1921, the University began formal and informal teaching, with classes in the Faculties of Arts, Science, Commerce, and Law conducted at Canning College and those for the Faculty of Medicine held at King George's Medical College and Hospital . The Canning College was officially handed over to the University on 1 July 1922, although its facilities had been made available to the University for teaching and residence before this date. Additionally, the King George's Medical College and Hospital were transferred to the University on 1 March 1921.

The development of the University occurred in stages, with the following three colleges providing the foundational structure and support:

1. King George's Medical College (now King George's Medical University)
2. Canning College
3. Isabella Thoburn College

   

   The 2012 stamp honors Isabella Thoburn College, a historic institution empowering women in education.

The Lucknow University Act, 1920, was later repealed by the Uttar Pradesh State Universities Act, 1973, which redefined the governance and administration of universities in the state. The Canning College Act, 1922 (Uttar Pradesh Act No. 7 of 1922) also played a role in this educational evolution.

Vice-chancellors of University of Lucknow

The vice-chancellors of University of Lucknow are as follows:

#	Name	Photo	Took office	Left office	Ref
1	Dr. Gyanendra Nath Chakraborty		1920	1926
2	Dr. M. B. Cameron		1926	1930
3	Pt. Jagat Narain Mulla		1930	1932
4	Dr. R. P. Paranjape		1932	1938
5	S. M. Habibullah		1938	1941
6	Raja Maharaj Singh		1941	1941
7	Lt. Col. Raja Visheshwar Dayal Seth		1941	1947
8	Narendra Deva		1947	1951
9	Acharya Jugal Kishore		1951	1955
10	Radhakamal Mukerjee		1955	1958
11	K. A. Subramanian Iyer		1958	1960
12	Kali Prasad		1960	1961
13	Randhir Singh		1961	1961
14	Dr. A. Vitthal Rao		1961	1968
15	Dr. Makund Behari Lal		1968	1971
16	Dr. Gopal Tripathi		1971	1973
17	Ashok Kumar Mustafi		1973	1975
18	Dr. Rajendra Vir Singh		1975	1979
19	Dr. Girija Shankar Mishra		1978	1979
20	Dr. Girija Prasad Pandey		1976	1976
21	Dr. Radha Prasad Agarwal		1981	1982
(20)	Dr. Girija Prasad Pandey		1981	1981
22	Dr. Ratan Shankar Mishra		1982	1985
23	Dr. Shambhu Nath Jha		1985	1986
24	Dr. Sheetla Prasad Nagendra		1986	1989
25	Dr. Hari Krishna Awasthi		1989	1992
26	Mahendra Singh Sodha		1992	1995
27	Suraj Prasad Singh		1995	1997
28	Ramesh Chandra		1997	1998
29	K. K. Kaul		1998	1998
30	Roop Rekha Verma		1998	1999
31	Devendra Pratap Singh		1999	2002
32	Shiv Bahadur Singh		2002	2005
33	Ram Prakash Singh		2005	2008
34	Ajaib Singh Brar		2008	2009
35	Upendra Nath Dwivedi		2009	2009
36	Manoj Kumar Mishra		2009	2012
37	Gopabandhu Patnaik		2012	2013
38	S. B. Nimse		2013	2016
39	S. P. Singh		2016	2019
40	Alok Kumar Rai		2019	Incumbent

Campus

University of Lucknow, founded in 1920.

Old Campus Of Lucknow University

In the early days, the Canning College had no building of its own, and the scene of its activity periodically changed as one or other building proved unsuitable or insufficient. During the first twelve years, the college was shifted from its original location, the Aminuddaulah Palace, to a number of places, one after another, including the Lal Baradari. At last, it was housed in its own building at Kaisar Bagh. The foundation stone of this new building was laid by the Viceroy, Sir John Lawrence, as far back as 13 November 1867, but the work of construction was not completed until 1878. On 15 November of that year, Sir George Couper, Lt. Commissioner of Avadh, formally opened the new building.

The University has three main libraries, apart from each department having its own. The Central Library of the university known as the Tagore Library, established in 1941, is one of the richest libraries in the country. It was designed by Sir Walter Burley Griffin, the designer of Australian capital city of Canberra. It has 5.25 lakh books, 50,000 journals and approximately 10,000 copies of approved Ph.D. and D.Litt. dissertations. The Cooperative Lending library was established in 1966 to lend books to economically under privileged graduate and post graduate students for the whole session to be restored only after their examinations are over.

The university also provides residential facilities to teachers, students and non-teaching staff. There are overall 18 hostels for boys and girls in the university. Kailash Hall and Nivedita Hall can house nearly 600 female students.

During the past 20 years, there has been an extension of the University Campus near the Institute of Engineering and Technology.

Organisation and Administration

Faculties

Faculty of Arts
Ancient Indian History and Archaeology	Anthropology	Arabic	Defence Studies
Economics	English and Modern European Languages	Geography	Hindi and Modern Indian Language
Home Science	Journalism and Mass Communication	Jyotir Vigyan	Library and Information Science
Linguistics	Medieval and Modern Indian History	Oriental Studies in Arabic and Persian	Oriental Studies in Sanskrit
Persian	Philosophy	Physical Education	Political Science
Psychology	Public Administration	Sanskrit and Prakrit Language	Social Work
Sociology	Urdu	Western History
Faculty of Management Studies
Management Sciences
Faculty of Commerce
Applied Economics		Commerce
Faculty of Education
Education
Faculty of Fine Arts
Commercial Arts	Fine Arts	Sculpture
Faculty of Law
Law
Faculty of Sciences (FoS)
Biochemistry	Botany	Chemistry	Computer Science
Environmental science (under Botany)	Geology	Mathematics and Astronomy	Microbiology (under Botany)
Physics	Statistics	Zoology
Faculty of Engineering & Technology
Applied Science & Humanities		Electrical Engineering
Computer Science & Engineering		Mechanical Engineering
Electronic and Communication Engineering		Civil Engineering
Faculty of Yoga and Alternative Medicine
Yoga	Naturopathy
Faculty of Ayurveda
Ayurveda
Faculty of Unani
Unani
Faculty of Abhinavgupt Institute of Aesthetics and Shaiva Philosophy
Abhinavgupt Institute of Aesthetics and Shaiva Philosophy

Centres and Institutes

• Tourism Studies
• APJ Abdul Kalam Centre for Innovation
• Institute of New and Renewable Energy
• Dr. Giri Lal Gupta Institute of Public Health
• Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma Institute of Democracy
• Institute for Development of Advanced Computing
• Institute of Hydrocarbon, Energy & Geo-resources
• Institute of Wildlife Sciences
• ONGC Centre of Advanced Studies
• Population Research Centre
• Development Studies
• JK Institute of Sociology, Ecology and Human Relations
• Urban Studies
• Women Studies
• Centre of Indian Diaspora and Cultural Studies
• Centre for Cultural Texts, Records & Translation of Indian Literatures
• Centre of Online, Open and Distance Learning
• Institute of Human Consciousnes & Yogic Sciences
• Food Processing and Technology
• Center for Advanced Studies in Social Work
• Mass Communication in Science & Technology
• Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Advanced Molecular Genetics & Infectious Diseases

Academics

Rankings

The NIRF (National Institutional Ranking Framework) ranked it 23rd in Law and 97th overall in India in 2024.

University rankings
General – India
NIRF (Overall) (2022)	197
NIRF (Overall) (2023)	115
NIRF (Overall) (2024)	97
Law – India
NIRF (2024)	23
India Today (2020)	10

Notable alumni

Main page: Category:University of Lucknow alumni

Politics

• Arif Mohammad Khan (born 1951) — politician, columnist, former union minister, Governor of Kerala
• Ashutosh Tandon (born 1960) — cabinet minister in Government of Uttar Pradesh
• Awadhesh Prasad (born 1945) — Member of parliament, former Cabinet minister of Uttar pradesh
• Kirti Vardhan Singh alias Raja Bhaiya — Union Minister of State for External affairs and Environment; Member of Parliament from Gonda
• Atul Kumar Anjan — national secretary of Communist Party of India
• Brajesh Pathak (born 1964) — former MP, currently deputy chief minister of Uttar Pradesh
• Chandrapal Singh Yadav (born 1959) — Rajya Sabha Member
• Chaudhary Dilip Singh Chaturvedi (born 1932) — former MLA, Bhind, MP; former LU president 1955-56
• Dinesh Sharma (born 1964) — MP Rajya Sabha, former deputy chief minister of Uttar Pradesh
• Abdul Ghafoor Ahmed (1927-2012) — Pakistani politician, author, former federal Minister for Industries and Production
• Harish Rawat (born 1948) — former chief minister of Uttarakhand
• K. C. Pant (1931-2012) — former minister of defence
• Lalji Tondon (1935-2020) — 22nd Governor of Madhya Pradesh, 28th Governor of Bihar
• Pushkar Singh Dhami (born 1975) — chief minister of Uttarakhand
• P.L Punia (born 1945) — Member of Rajya Sabha
• Raghuraj Pratap Singh (Raja Bhaiya) (born 1969) — MLA
• Ram Govind Chaudhary (born 1946) — leader of the opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly
• Shankar Dayal Sharma (1918-1999) — 9th President of India
• Shivpal Singh Yadav (born 1955) — politician, MLA, former-cabinet minister in the Government of Uttar Pradesh
• Aditya Yadav (born 1988) — MP
• Surjit Singh Barnala (1925-2017) — former Governor of Tamil Nadu
• Sajjad Zaheer (1899-1973) — founding member of the Communist Party of Pakistan
• Syed Sibtey Razi (born 1939) — former Governor of Jharkhand
• Vijaya Raje Scindia (1919-2001) — late Rajmata of Gwalior
• Zafar Ali Naqvi (born 1948) — Member of Parliament
• Zakir Hussain (1897-1969) — third president of India
• Rajpal Kashyap — Member of Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council
• Choudhary Ram Kishan Bairagi (born 1938) - Member of Legislative Assembly 1977-1982.

Education and science

• S. P. Chakravarti (1904-1981) — father of Electronics and Telecommunications engineering education in India
• Sanduk Ruit (born 1954) — founder of Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology
• Harish Poptani — professor and chair of the Center for Preclinical Imaging at the University of Liverpool
• Inder Verma (born 1947) — professor of molecular biology
• Atul Kumar — chemist
• C.M. Naim (born 1936) — writer and academic
• Vinod Bhakuni (1962-2011) — biophysicist
• Girjesh Govil (1940-2021) — molecular biophysicist
• Shyam Swarup Agarwal (1941-2013) — immunologist
• Rajendra Prasad — professor of pulmonary medicine
• Ravi Kant (born 1956) — professor of surgery
• Raj Kumar (born 1959) — professor of neurosurgery
• Ritu Karidhal (born 1975) — ISRO scientist
• Furqan Qamar (born 1960) — professor of management
• Shalini Kapoor — India's first woman IBM Fellow
• Navin Khanna — Researcher and scientist

Government

• Brajendranath De (1852-1932) — early Indian member of the Indian Civil Service
• Isha Basant Joshi (1908-?) — India's first female IAS officer
• Laxmi Singh (born 1974) — first woman police commissioner of U.P.
• R N Kao (1918-2002) — civil servant, founder and first director of R&AW

Literature

• Ali Jawad Zaidi (1916-2004) — poet, critic, writer and freedom fighter
• Ahmed Ali (1910-1994) — Pakistani novelist, short story writer and scholar
• Iftikhar Arif (born 1944) — Urdu poet, scholar and intellectual
• Kavi Pradeep (1915-1998) — poet and lyricist
• Qurratulain Hyder (1927-2007) — Urdu writer and novelist
• Abdur Rahman Kashgari (1912-1971) — Uyghur poet, writer, lexicographer and Islamic scholar
• Attia Hosain (1913-1998) — British-Indian novelist, author, writer, broadcaster, journalist and actor
• Vinod Mehta (1942-2015) — journalist, critic and writer
• Roshan Taqui (born 1958) — historian, writer

Law

• Adarsh Sein Anand (1936-2017) — former Chief Justice of India and former chairman of National Human Rights Commission
• Prafulla Chandra Pant (born 1952) — former Justice, Supreme Court of India
• Vishwambhar Dayalu Tripathi (1899-1959) — lawyer and politician
• Mahendra Pal Singh (born 1940) — law scholar
• S.P. Singh (1937-2020) — jurist
• Devendra Kumar Upadhyay Current Chief Justice of Bombay High court

Others

• Swami Chinmayananda (1916-1993) — founder of Chinmaya Mission
• V. Mohini Giri (born 1938) — social activist, Padma Bhushan
• Seema Mustafa (born 1955) — journalist
• Manoj Joshi — journalist
• Suresh Raina (born 1986) — Indian cricketer
• Anup Jalota (born 1953) — singer
• Amitabh Bhattacharya (born 1976) — lyricist and playback singer
• Vartika Singh - Miss Diva 2019 and represented India at 68th edition of the Miss Universe pageant

See also

• University Ground, University of Lucknow
• List of universities in India
• Universities and colleges in India
• Education in India
• Higher education in India
• List of educational institutions in Lucknow

External links

• Official website