The University of Science and Technology, Meghalaya (or simply USTM) is a

private university Private universities and private colleges are higher education institutions not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. However, they often receive tax breaks, public student loans, and government grants. Depending on the count ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

located at Ri-Bhoi, in the state of

Meghalaya Meghalaya (; "the abode of clouds") is a states and union territories of India, state in northeast India. Its capital is Shillong. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the Assam: the United Khasi Hills an ...

. It is the first State Private University in the entire

Northeast India Northeast India, officially the North Eastern Region (NER), is the easternmost region of India representing both a geographic and political Administrative divisions of India, administrative division of the country. It comprises eight States and ...

. The University is established through the University of Science and Technology, Meghalaya Act, 2008 of the Government of Meghalaya. This University is a project of Education Research & Development Foundation (ERDF), the largest educational network in the North Eastern region of

. It has been accredited with 'A' by NAAC.

History

The University of Science and Technology, Meghalaya (USTM) has been established under the provisions of University of Science and Technology, Meghalaya Act (No.6 of 2008) enacted by the Legislative Assembly of Meghalaya and notified vide Gazette Notification No. LL(B)87/2008/21, dated 02.12.2008 of Government of Meghalaya. The University is empowered by University Grants Commission (UGC), to award degrees as specified by the UGC under section 22 of the UGC Act, 1956.

Campus

The University is situated on more than 400 acres in Baridua, about one kilometer from GS Road in the 9th Mile area, opposite the CRPF Group Centre, in

Ri-Bhoi District Ri Bhoi () is an administrative district in the state of Meghalaya in India. The district headquarters are located at Nongpoh. The district occupies an area of 2378 km² and has a population of 258,840 (as of 2011). As of 2011 it is the sec ...

. It is the largest private university in Northeast India by area and features extensive greenery surrounded by mountains.

Recognition and accreditation

USTM is recognised by UGC and approved by

AICTE The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) is a statutory body, and a national-level council for technical education, under the Department of Higher Education (India), Department of Higher Education. Established in November 1945 firs ...

, and NCTE,

Ministry of Human Resource Development Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

. USTM has also complied to UGC's 12(B) status. The University was also recently Accredited with Grade "A" by NAAC and is amongst the first Private Universities in Northeast India to get an A Grade in its first Cycle itself. USTM was ranked among the best 200 universities of India in the 9th edition of the

National Institutional Ranking Framework National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) is a ranking methodology released annually by the Ministry of Education, Government of India, to rank institutions of higher education in India. The framework was approved by the former Ministr ...

(NIRF) 2023. As of August 2023, it is the only private university in the northeastern region to make it to the list.

Controversy

On February 22, 2025, Mahbubul Hoque, Chancellor and founder of the University of Science and Technology, Meghalaya (USTM), was arrested by Assam police from his residence. Authorities stated that the arrest was related to a law and order situation involving allegations of accepting money in exchange for facilitating unfair means during the CBSE Class 12 Physics examination in Sribhumi district. In response to allegations, ERD Foundation principal secretary Mehjabeen Rahman refuted the accusations, stating that the organization was "accused of not giving students an opportunity to cheat in examinations." Rahman characterized the allegations as originating from a handful of students who were dissatisfied with their performance on a physics exam and who may have been prevented from using unfair means by invigilators. Hoque and his institution have previously faced criticism from Assam Chief Minister

Himanta Biswa Sarma Himanta Biswa Sarma (born 1 February 1969) is an Indian politician and lawyer serving as the 15th and current Chief Minister of Assam since 2021. A former member of the Indian National Congress, Sarma joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on 23 Au ...

, including allegations of 'flood

jihad ''Jihad'' (; ) is an Arabic word that means "exerting", "striving", or "struggling", particularly with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it encompasses almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with God in Islam, God ...

' conspiracy. As per reports, he was arrested on Saturday morning by a police team comprising officers from Panbazar Police and the Special Task Force (STF) of the Assam Police. After 2 days of the Chancellor arrest, 5 professors of the University were also got arrested for the same malpractice. The arrest sparked backlash from many people, including several political leaders, who called it another targeted campaign by the Assam administration against Muslims. Congress leader Maskoor Usmani characterized the arrest as the culmination of a politically motivated vendetta by the Chief Minister of Assam, alleging an attempt to undermine USTM, a NAAC-A Grade institution operating under Meghalaya's governmental jurisdiction and University Grants Commission (UGC) academic regulations. Abdul Khaleque, a former Lok Sabha MP and Congress leader from Assam, criticized the arrest and noted that the Assam Chief Minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma, had been publicly critical of Hoque in the preceding months.

Academics

The University is divided into following academic units:

School of Biological Sciences

* Biotechnology * Food Science & Technology * Botany * Zoology * Microbiology

School of Applied Science

* Chemistry * Physics * Disaster Management * Environmental Science * Geography * Mathematics

School of Social Science & Humanities

* English * Public Administration * Political Science * Rural Development * Library & Information Sciences * Sociology * Social Work

School of Media Sciences & Cultural Studies

* Media Sciences

School of Engineering Technology

* Electronics * Computer Application

School of Business Science

* Economics * Commerce * Business Administration

Prof. Qoumrul Hoque School of Education

* Education * Psychology * B.ED

School of Law and Research

* B.A.LLB * LLB * LLM

Seat Intake

MoU & Collaboration

USTM has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with different Institutes & Universities: * North-Eastern Space Applications Centre (NESAC), Department of Space, Govt. of India * Universitas Ngurah Rai, Denpasar (UNR) * Tezpur University *

National Institute of Technology, Silchar National Institute Of Technology Silchar (NIT Silchar or NITS) is one of the 31 National Institutes of Technology, NITs of India and was established in 1967 as a Regional Engineering College in Silchar. In 2002, it was upgraded to the status o ...

* CSIR-NEIST * CSIR-CRRI,

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

* Bangladesh University of Health Sciences (BUHS) * Aaranayak- A Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation * Bamboo & Cane Development Institute (BCDI) * National Law University and Judicial Academy, Assam * Academy of excellence Kerala (Calicut)

References

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External links

USTM Official Webpage
Universities in Meghalaya 2008 establishments in Meghalaya Universities and colleges established in 2008 Ri-Bhoi district Private universities in India