section_path: Education/Higher education and research organizations
section_name: Higher education and research organizations
paragraph_text: Higher education and research organizations
  
  Several institutions of higher education with a focus on engineering, management, and design are located in Ahmedabad. The oldest higher educational institution is Gujarat College. Among the universities in Ahmedabad, Gujarat University is a collegiate university established in 1949 and has 286 affiliated colleges, 22 recognized institutions, and 36 postgraduate departments. Indira Gandhi National Open University, commonly known as IGNOU is a public university in India and having an active regional centre in Ahmedabad region to offer 290 ODL programs and 40+ online programs to the students lives in the city. Other state universities in the city include Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Open University, Gujarat Technological University, and Kaushalya Skill University. Gujarat Vidyapith, located near the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Stadium, was founded by Mahatma Gandhi in 1920 and became a deemed university in 1963.
  
  Private universities located in the city include Ahmedabad University, CEPT University (formerly Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology), Indus University, Nirma University, GLS University, and Silver Oak University. Two Institutes of National Importance are located in the city— Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and National Institute of Design.
  
  Other institutions located in the city include the Physical Research Laboratory, which was established in 1947 by the physicist and astronomer Vikram Sarabhai. It is an autonomous research institute under the Department of Space with a focus on research in astronomy, experimental and theoretical physics, and earth sciences. The Ahmedabad Textile Industry's Research Association (ATIRA), registered in 1947, is an autonomous, non-profit association engaged in operational and applied research in the textile industry.