Pachhunga University College (PUC) in Aizawl, Mizoram, is the only higher education institute from the eight northeastern states to feature in the India Rankings 2024 ‘100 Best Colleges’ published by the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Govt. of India. It has taken the 35th position in the list out of the 3371 colleges that participated in the category. PUC was ranked 34th in 2023 and 45th in 2022.
A total of 182 colleges from the northeast had participated in the college ranking exercise including 110 from Assam, 29 from Manipur, 19 from Tripura, 9 from Meghalaya, 7 from Nagaland, 5 from Arunachal Pradesh, 2 from Sikkim and 1 from Mizoram.
Founded in 1958, the institute was initially called Aijal College which was later changed to Pachhunga University College in honour of Pachhunga, a leading businessman and politician, who funded its initial management in 1962.
The college was awarded A+ grade by National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC)in 2022. Earlier in 2017, the University Grants Commission (UGC) granted the ‘College with Potential for Excellence’ Scheme to Pachhunga University College for its potential to reach world class standard.
The institution, which sits on 138-acres, initially constituted only of higher secondary Arts course but has expanded to Bachelors’ Degree in arts, commerce and science, extending it further to Masters’ Degree in Mizo, philosophy and life sciences. It is the first postgraduate college in Mizoram.
Pachhunga University College is said to be the oldest and largest college in Mizoram, by enrolment and campus size. According to the India Rankings 2024, the College had 2752 students enrolled in 2022-23 and faculty strength of 120.
The institutions for the India Rankings are ranked following the methodology of the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF). The parameters broadly cover Teaching, Learning and Resources (TLR), Research and Professional Practices (RP), Graduation Outcomes (GO), Outreach and Inclusivity (OI) and Perception (PR).
