Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning (Prasanthi Nilayam Campus for Men)

About Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning (Prasanthi Nilayam Campus for Men)

Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning (SSSIHL) at Prasanthi Nilayam is a Deemed University. SSIHL Prasanthi Nilayam is also an autonomous body recognized by the Ministry of Education, Government of India, and the University Grants Commission (UGC), as a Deemed University vide their notification no. F9-11/81-U.3 dated 10.11.1981. Also known as Sri Sathya Sai University, it was founded on 22^nd November, 1981, by Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. It is the Main Academic Campus and the Headquarter of the Institute. The Administrative office of the University is also located here. It is one but the main amongst the four campuses spread over the two states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

The other three campuses are:

1.  The Anantapur Campus, located in the town of Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh

2.  The Brindavan Campus, located in Kadugodi, Whitefield, Bangalore in Karnataka

3.  The Muddenahalli Campus, located in Muddenahalli, Chickballapur, in Karnataka

The University is a regular member of the Association of Indian Universities vide their letter no. Meet/Reg.Memb/86/97596 dt.20.4.1986. The University which grew out of the Colleges founded earlier by Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba at Anantapur (A.P.), Whitefield (near Bangalore, Karnataka) and Prasanthinilayam (A.P.).  Bhagavan Baba is not only the Founder of the University, but also its Revered Chancellor. Extremely dear to Bhagavan Baba are the eternal principles of Sathya, Dharma, Santhi, Prema and Ahimsa. All aspects of the University seek to reflect these noble ideals. Bhagavan Baba has repeatedly declared that Education is for life and not for making a living. Accordingly, class-room work, hostel life and extra-curricular activities have all been designed to blend, mesh and to achieve a coherent development of the body, the mind and the soul of the student. The watchwords are: Duty, Discipline and Devotion. The focus is on purity, and the harmony of thought, word and deed (Trikaranasuddhi).

Location - Prasanthinilayam is in Andhra Pradesh. It is also known as Puttaparthi. Buses will bear the name Puttaparthi, rather than Prasanthinilayam.

Transportation - Prasanthinilayam may be reached directly by bus from Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and several major towns of Andhra Pradesh.

• By Rail - Prasanthinilayam has a railway station by the name Sri Sathya Sai Prasanthinilayam. It is located at about 9 km from Prasanthinilayam. The campus and ashram are located at about 10 km from the railway station. The next nearest railway station is Dharmavaram, which is on the Guntakal-Bangalore section of the South-Central Railway. Dharmavaram is about 40 km from Prasanthinilayam. Those alighting at Dharmavaram Railway Station may board direct buses from the Station to Prasanthinilayam
• By Bus - If direct buses are not available from the Station, one should proceed by auto rickshaw to the Dharmavaram Bus Stand, from where Buses to Prasanthinilayam are available. Puttaparthi may be reached directly by bus from Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and major towns of Andhra Pradesh. Buses alight at the Puttaparthi bus stand, which is conveniently located directly opposite to the entrance gate of the ashram. Private Taxis and Vans are also available in the neighbourhood of the Dharmavaram Bus Stand. A computerized Railway Reservation facility is available at the Prasanthi Nilayam Bus Stand for those who wish to book return tickets
• By Car - Puttaparthi is located off National Highway (NH) 7, which connects Bangalore to Hyderabad. Look out for signs to Puttaparthi or visit Google Maps for point-to-point directions
• By Flight - The nearest airport to Puttaparthi is Bangalore International airport. Once you exit the terminal building, you can negotiate a taxi to take you to Puttaparthi. On average, expect to pay 1500 for a one-way taxi fare. It takes less than three hours to reach Puttaparthi from Bangalore airport

Departments

SSSIHL Prasanthi Nilayam Facilities

Free Education - The University does not charge any type of fees - tuition fees, laboratory fees, library fees, examination fees, caution deposit and the like.

Open Admission Policy - It enables students from all over the country to seek admission to various courses, irrespective of income, class, creed, religion or region, making it truly national in character.

Merit Based Selection - It is done through a very comprehensive testing and interviewing procedure giving adequate weightage to intellectual attainments and intuitive insight.

Student-Teacher Ratio – The University has a very favourable Pupil Ratio for closer rapport between students and faculty.

Residential Character - This character of the University with students and faculty entails staying on the Campuses.

Development of Scientific Research - It is provided at the doctoral level relevant to the local and national needs; introduction of educational technology through the installation of a modern space theatre in rural surroundings providing an opportunity for the students and the faculty to develop various kinds of simulation exercises and also formulate programmes of a creative and constructive character.

Integrated Courses – These have duration of five years in order to promote talent.

Maximum Number of Working Days - Fuller utilisation of national holidays and important festivals for educational purposes and extension work.

Hostel - Hostel is compulsory for all students admitted to the University’s programme. Hostel life revolves basically around 3 D's - Discipline, Duty and Devotion.  The Hostel routine has been structured, bearing in mind Bhagavan Baba's directive that all aspects of the Student's being (i.e., body, mind and soul), should receive due and careful attention. The day begins with early rising and prayer (5 a.m.) and ends with prayer and retirement to bed (10 p.m.). During this period, time slots are reserved for various activities - spiritual, cultural, physical, academic and social. Students are also encouraged to participate in community-oriented activities, both in the Hostel as well as the college.

Library Facilities - The Central Library located at the Prasanthi Nilayam Campus, has a considerable number of books which number to 160,000 across all four campuses. The libraries house latest books and journals in diverse academic fields and spacious facilities for reading. The Libraries receive about 250 periodicals, both National and International, and there is an extensive collection of the back volumes of Journals, Audio, Video, CD-ROMs, Theses, Dissertations, Quick Reference Books, and other materials (including maps) are also available. The University has access to around 2100 eJournals and 55,100 eBooks under the UGC INFONET Digital Library Consortium that include journals from reputed publishers such as Elsevier, Springer and Wiley-Blackwell, among many others. The library also subscribes to business and corporate databases like Capitaline and EBSCO’s Business Source Premier (a business research database with around 2300 Journals) adds to the diversity of journal access for students.

Computer Centre - The Modern Computer Centre is equipped with fair amount of computers for use by the students. The student to computer ratio of the University is about 2.5:1. The University has 1Gbps Internet connectivity under the aegis of the National Knowledge Network (NKN), for academic and research pursuits of staff and students. All the campuses of the University are interconnected via 2Mbps leased lines.

Classrooms - All the campuses of the University have spacious, beautiful and artistically designed buildings which stand out for their simplicity and elegance. In order to facilitate effective teacher-student interaction, the classrooms are designed to handle optimal sizes of thirty students each.

Laboratories - The University has well-equipped laboratories in the fields of Physics, Chemistry, Biosciences, Nanosciences, Artificial Intelligence and Information Technology. SSSIHL is also one of the few Universities in the country to have English Language Labs.

Multimedia Facilities - The Air-conditioned Multimedia Learning Centres, with a seating capacity of over 100 participants at each campus, typically hosts national and international seminars, conferences and workshops. They are equipped with the latest Audio / Video conferencing facilities which enable active and real-time collaborations among staff and students of the three campuses of the University.

Sports Facilities - All campuses of the University are well equipped with sports facilities - from cricket grounds to indoor stadiums, from playing fields to basketball courts. Each campus has a Physical Instructor who oversees the sports activities for students at that campus.

Sri Sathya Sai International Centre for Sports – It is a state of the art Olympic-standard multi-discipline indoor stadium inaugurated on 22^nd November 2006, by the then President of India, Honourable Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam.

Sri Sathya Sai Hill View Stadium - A multi-purpose outdoor stadium, the Sri Sathya Sai Hill View Stadium was constructed for the purpose of conducting the Annual Sports and Cultural meet of all Sri Sathya Sai Educational institutions. The stadium overlooks an array of imposing structures and statues symbolizing different religious faiths. On occasions, the stadium hosts International sports events. It boasts a viewer’s gallery that can accommodate over 25,000 people.

Yoga Classes - The University provides lessons in the philosophy of Yogasanas and physical fitness exercises. Students are welcome to join these classes to improve their health and physical fitness and advance further in Yoga.

Reservation of Seats under SC/ST Categories - A) For Scheduled Castes: 15% - If sufficient number of candidates are not available to fill up the seats reserved for SCs, they shall be filled up by ST candidates. The left over seats, if any, shall be filled up by the candidates from the general pool. B) For Schedule Tribes: 7½% - If sufficient number of candidates are not available to fill up the seats reserved for STs, they shall be filled up by SCs. If ST seats still remain unfilled, they shall be filled up by the candidates from the general pool.

Auditoriums - Three out of four campuses of SSSIHL have auditoriums that can accommodate about 900 people each. The auditoriums are used for daily prayers, Moral Class sessions on Thursdays, speeches and cultural events.