Milinda Moragoda appointed as Advisor to Nalanda University

Monday, 17 September 2012 01:31 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Nobel Laureate and Chancellor of Nalanda University Professor Amartya Sen and the Governing Board of the university have invited Milinda Moragoda to assist in the establishment of the university as an advisor.

The Nalanda University was an ancient centre of Buddhist learning and repository of world knowledge, functioning for 800 years from the 5th-12th century CE.

The most famous Buddhist university, it was one of the first universities in the world and reputed to have had in its heyday 2,000 teachers and 10,000 scholars from many countries, including Sri Lanka. Close to the 12th century, Nalanda was destroyed by invaders.

In 2007, the 16-member East Asian Summit held in Cebu, Philippines endorsed the plan to reestablish Nalanda University in keeping with its original values. Among the countries that participated at the summit were India, China, Japan, Thailand, and Singapore.

In 2009, the East Asian Summit held in Thailand formerly supported the establishment of the Nalanda University and encouraged regional networking between the university and other centres of excellence in East Asia.

In 2010, the Nalanda University Bill was passed by both Houses of the Indian Parliament and received Presidential assent. The government of the Indian state of Bihar has donated 450 acres of land to the university in Rajgir.

The eminent Board of Governors headed by Chancellor Prof. Amartya Sen and Vice Chancellor Prof. Gopa Sabharwal are presently in the process of setting up the university infrastructure. East Asian countries such as India, China, Japan, Singapore and Thailand have pledged financial support for this initiative.