Pruthul Desai appointed Gujarat University vice-chancellor
The physics teacher and Surat college principal will serve a five-year term as the 19th vice-chancellor of the university.
The Gujarat government on Saturday appointed Dr Pruthul Desai as the 19th vice-chancellor of Ahmedabad-headquartered Gujarat University (GU). According to The Indian Express, the 56-year-old Dr Desai, who has taught physics for 31 years, will serve a five-year term.
Dr Desai, the principal of Surat's Sir P T Sarvajanik Science College, succeeds Prof Jagdish Joshi. Joshi had been serving as the in-charge vice-chancellor since June 30, after the tenure of Prof Neerja Gupta ended.
The appointment was made in the name of the Governor under Section 10(4) of the Gujarat Public Universities Act, 2023, according to Bhaskar English. The Times of India reported that a senior official said Dr Desai will likely take charge from November 16 after the Diwali vacations.
Dr Desai has been the principal of the autonomous Sarvajanik College for 14 years. He earned a doctorate in nuclear physics in 2010 and previously served as the secretary of the Indian Association of Physics Teachers during 2022-24.
Dr Desai told The Indian Express that he is delighted to be honoured with the position. He stated he will work to take the university from its current NAAC A+ category to an A++ rank and aim for a top 50 ranking in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF).
In 2025, Gujarat University was ranked 74 in the NIRF, which was one notch higher than its previous 76th ranking.