Acharya Nagarjuna University

Acharya Nagarjuna University (IAST: Ācārya Nāgārjuna Vișvavidyālaya) is a university in the region of Namburu, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India.It is one of several major universities in the country, covering many colleges and institutes of districts in the region. It is located in Nagarjuna Nagar, Namburu, in the northern part of Guntur City, a major centre of learning for the state of Andhra Pradesh.

The university is the outgrowth initiative of the post-graduate centre of Andhra University, which was established in 1967 in the Nallapadu area of Guntur, subsequently relocated to the Nambur/Kaza area in the east of the city. The centre gained affiliating-university status in 1976 and would open with ten post-graduate courses. The university is named after Acharya Nagarjuna, the founder of the Madhyamaka path of Mahayana Buddhism.

ACHARYA NAGARJUNA UNIVERSITY - HISTORY:

Acharya Nagarjuna, the profounder of the Madhyamika Buddhism is one of the greatest philosophers India has ever produced. The Buddhists of China, Japan and Tibet river him to be the Second Buddha, who once again set in the motion the wheel of Dharma. He endowed with metaphysical profundity and logical acumen has reaffirmed the basic ideas of Buddhism, apart from providing reinterpretation, clarification and amplification of new concepts of Buddhism. He focused on the fundamental problems of human existence, human aspiration and human actions. He found solutions to them through intuition and reflective thought. He applied and practiced these solutions and his doctrine and experience become a norm to motivate rational and sensitive minds of different generation in different countries with varied cultural environment. Hanayama Shinsho recognizing Nagarjuna's contribution has opined that ‘he may well be called the progenitor of Mahayana thought'.
The Madhyamika-karika testifies to the historicity to their author Nagarjuna, the great Buddhist philosopher, who extolled the path of Prajnaparamita. He wrote the Karika in order to expound the basic teaching of the Prajnaparamita-sutras. The recent archaeological discoveries at Amaravati corroborate to certain extent the broad facts about Nagarjuna's life on which his traditional biographies agree. He was born in a Brahmin family in Andhradesa at Vedali. Based on the Chinese author Tao-an (A.D.568) and Kumarjivas' account and his date for Buddha' nirvana and other material of a Japanese Scholar Hakaju concluded that Nagarjuna lived about 113-213 A.D. The fact being his friendship with a Satavahana King Gautamiputra Satakarni (130-150 A.D.) and his having spent the latter part of his career in the monastery built for him by this king at Bhramaragiri (Sriparvata). The Manjuasrimulakalpa and Tibetan sources contend that Nagarjuna had the Amaravati stupa renovated, enclosed and ornamented with the assistance of this King. Dhanyakataka and Sriparvata were the Centers of his activity. Rajatarangini of 11 th century treats him as a contemporary of Kanishka.

Vision 
To generate sources of knowledge that dispel ignorance and establish truth in everything.
-SATYE SARVAM PRATISHTITAM

Mission 
To promote a bank of human talent in diversified faculties like Arts, Commerce, Law, Education, Engineering, Humanities, Natural Sciences, Physical Sciences and Social Sciences that would become an investment for a prosperous society.

Campuses and student life:

In addition to its main campus, the university maintains two campuses in [[Nuzvid]], [[Krishna District]] and [[Ongole]], [[Prakasam district|Prakasam District]]. A total of forty-four courses are offered at the three locations. The university affiliates the post-graduate programmes of 292 colleges and institutes in [[Guntur District|Guntur]], [[Krishna District|Krishna]], [[Prakasam district|Prakasam]] and other districts of [[Andhra Pradesh]]. Acharya Nagarjuna University offers a special MBA programme that meets industry standards, following an agreement reached with [[Central Michigan University]] to establish partner programs  .

Exchange programs
The university is well known for its international exchange programs. Various seminars and symposia are hosted by the university to promote international education and research activities on a regular basis.

University College of Engineering and Technology
A new college for engineering and technology was established at the main campus of the university<ref name="New ANU Engineering college">{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/2009/01/23/stories/2009012350990200.htm|title= New ANU Engineering college campus|work=Online edition of the Hindu|publisher=The Hindu|accessdate=2009-01-23|location=Chennai, India|date=2009-01-23}}</ref> in 2009. This is one of many engineering colleges in the Guntur region, but it has the distinction of being the first to be managed entirely by the government. AICTE has visited the campus and completed the inspection to award grants and other recognition purposes to assess if it meets the minimum criteria.

Research journals
*''Acharya Nagarjuna International Journal of Mathematics and Information Technology''
*''[[Current Trends in Biotechnology and Pharmacy]]''