Hansraj College is a constituent college of the University of Delhi, in Delhi, India. Established in 1948 and situated in the Delhi University North Campus, it is considered as one of the best colleges in India having produced a large and notable alumni network particularly in the fields of entertainment, civil services, politics, sciences, and in the corporate world. It is ranked 12th among colleges in India by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) in 2024[2] and is accredited A++ by NAAC scoring a CGPA of 3.71, one of the highest amongst DU colleges. It is a premier institution of the DAV Managing Committee - the largest non-government educational organization of the country. On 26 July 1948 the college was set up in memory of Mahatma Hansraj (1882–1938) the founder of DAV College Lahore and a pioneer in the field of education. Departments include science, liberal arts and commerce.
History
The college was founded on 26 July 1948 in memory of the prominent Indian educator and nationalist Mahatma Hansraj. Initially started as an institution for men, the college became co-educational in 1978. With around 5,000 students, it is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Delhi.[3] For years Hansraj College has been ranked among the Top-10 colleges of India in all three disciplines.[4][5][6][7] At the celebration of its 69th Foundation Day, Naveen Jindal, industrialist and alumnus, announced that Hans Raj College would become the first college in Delhi University to hoist the national flag on its premises.[8] The college hoisted the Monumental Flag on 25 January 2017 which happens to be the second Monumental Flagpole in Delhi after CP. The flag was hoisted by MP Naveen Jindal, an alumnus of the college and founder of Flag Foundation of India (FFOI).[9]
The college offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses in various streams. These are B.A, B.A (Hons), B.Sc., B.Sc. (Hons) and B.Com. (Hons) at the UG level. And M.A, M.Sc. and M.Com. at the PG level.
The college receives support under the strengthening component in relation to the Star College initiative of the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India.[16] In addition to this, the college has worked on the future publication of the research journal "Hans Shodh Sudha" to publish research in fields across the sciences, commerce and arts.[17] The Finance and Economics Research Cell of the college also conducts programs to promote undergraduate research in these fields.[18]
The college has a central library, departmental libraries for science subjects and a Book Bank for needy students. The college has six computer and eighteen science laboratories.[19] Sports facilities include a gymnasium, a sports field, football field, basketball court, an indoor sports complex, yoga room, meditation room, and an electronic shooting range.
The college has an auditorium with sound and light systems, and a seating capacity of 400-500 persons along with a balcony on the first floor to host dignitaries and guests. Additionally there are two seminar rooms with a seating capacity of 100 each, equipped with audio-visual facilities, projectors, air-conditioning and podiums.[20]
The college has hostel facilities for boys and girls accommodating more than 200 undergraduate students. The hostel includes a dining hall, a common room, kitchen and gymnasium. It also provides amenities such as solar geysers and 24-hour power back-up.[21]
The college features a well-furnished canteen spanning 375 meters, accommodating around 200 people.[22] Additionally, it has a Nescafé kiosk, a kiosk called 'Shakes and More,' and an outlet of the Mitti Cafe chain, which employs persons with disabilities (PwD).[23]
Admission process
Hansraj College undergoes the standard admissions process of the University of Delhi. In order to apply to this college for an undergraduate course, the student has to fill out a central form that is released by the university itself. After a few weeks of the deadline of the forms, Delhi University publicly releases cut off lists for each individual course for all of the undergraduate courses across the university.
Old admission process: A student wishing to apply for a course at Hansraj can look at the cut-off and matches his or her 12th-grade percentage with the same. If the 12th-grade percentage is equal to or greater than the percentage in the cut-off, the student is eligible. Generally, the cutoff percentage lies at ~97% in the 12th Class Finals, this process is officially not applicable after 2022-23 session since the introduction of CUET examination.
New admission process: As there is a change in the admission process due to introduction of CUET examination, the entrance test shall be sole determiner of the admission at any college in University of Delhi including Hansraj College and 12th results shall be considered for eligibility and tie breaker case only (if applicable).
Its sports facilities include a vast sports field which includes a football field and a basketball court, an indoor sports complex and the only Electronic Shooting Range in the entire University. The college has facilities for both outdoor and indoor games. It has a sports ground and a Basketball court between the college and the hostel premises. It also possess an indoor badminton court and an indoor shooting range. The students have won university, state and national level championships in pistol shooting, archery (w), water polo, basketball, badminton, cricket, etc. The college won the Chancellor's Trophy in 2003–2004, 2004-2005 and for consecutive four academic sessions from 2011 to 2015 for overall excellence in sports. Sport facilities are made available to all students under the program: Games For All and has produced many alumni from sports as well.[24]
In popular culture
The college's picturesque setting and iconic status have made it a popular choice for filmmakers over the years. Some of the films shot here include:
This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. Please improve this article by removing names that do not have independent reliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this article AND are alumni, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriate citations.(October 2023)
