Ahmedabad University’s sprawling new University Centre, which keeps students at the centre of learning, is set to challenge everything we thought a university building could be.
The University Centre, which was inaugurated on the 13th Foundation Day and is arguably the first of its kind in Gujarat and India, competes with the best on a global scale. It spans two basement parking levels, a multipurpose ground floor, and four storeys of various facilities, with the proverbial cherry on top being a rooftop jogging facility!
Ahmedabad University roped in Delhi-based architecture design consultancy SPA Design, headed by Stephane Paumier, once more for raising this structure which is the heart of the campus. SPA Design has been the name behind the University’s elegant School of Arts and Science building.
The University Centre’s execution began just as the pandemic began. When students got back to campus in full force by the last semester of 2021-22, they were in for a breathtaking surprise. A University Centre that personifies style, a hub designed for their enjoyment. The Centre, according to Stephane, is intended to be the default position for everyone on campus.
“You have a free lecture, you get there; you have free time between classes, you get there. That is the whole point of its existence, and there is just a 60-metre garden to dash across to reach it. And it’s multipurpose, with at least seven different types of usages. It really is a hybrid building,” he says.