University also known as "Vishav Vidyalaya" in Indian parlance is considered as the highest educational institution in the hierarchy of educational system throughout the world from time immemorial.  With the formalization and professionalization of the education system the definition of university has also gained objectivity. Now it is defined as an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees of both undergraduate and postgraduate level in a variety of subjects. In ancient time Nalanda, Taxila and Vikramsila universities were renowned seats of higher learning, attracting students not only from nook and corner of the country but from many neighboring and far off Asian countries like Korea, China, Burma etc .But now with the increase in the awareness about education among the masses of India the functions and responsibilities of universities has changed a lot. Now they are not only catering to the higher educational need of the students but also controlling and directing a lot of other educational institutes like collages, distance education centers etc.  to reach the candidates indirectly.

Formally starting from 1854 and subsequently setting up of the universities of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras in 1857 and followed by the University of Allahabad in 1887 there has been a great development in the education system of India. The Inter-University Board (later known as the Association of Indian Universities) was established in 1925 to promote university activities, by sharing information and cooperation in the field of education and allied areas.

With the spreading of the educational infrastructure the need of a national education system in India was felt consequently a University Grants Committee was formed in 1945 to oversee the work of the three Central Universities of Aligarh, Banaras and Delhi   which was further reconstructed into University Grants Commission (UGC) in 1956 to oversee the functions of all the universities of the country.

After its inception UGC has become the main governing body of all the universities in India. Since then it has been handling the affairs of the higher education by working in tandem with All India Council for technical Education (AICTE) and National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC)-a body responsible to give recognisation to the universities. With the type of education a university is imparting  to its students and the aid it is getting from its respective  governing bodies  the universities of India can be classified into certain categories like (i) Centre (ii) State (iii) Private (iv) Deemed (v) Open Universities (vi) Agricultural  university and National Institutes of Importance.