IIM Ahmedabad Dubai Campus Will Take Best Of India To The World, Says Dharmendra Pradhan

NEW DELHI: Dubai Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has inaugurated the Dubai campus of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad, in the presence of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

Pradhan, who is on a two-day visit to the UAE, described it another big leap towards globalisation of India’s education.

“IIM Ahmedabad Dubai campus will take the best of India to the world. Dubai, today, has provided the perfect launchpad to the ethos of ‘Indian in spirit, global in outlook’ by hosting the IIM Ahmedabad international campus,” Pradhan wrote on social media platform X.

Pradhan also met Abdulrahman Abdulmannan Al Awar, Acting Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research of the UAE.

“Both leaders reviewed bilateral cooperation in higher education and agreed to further deepen knowledge bridges, making knowledge, innovation, and research central pillars of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership,” the Ministry of Education said in an official statement.

“The discussions also focused on joint research in critical and emerging areas, capacity building and promoting two-way cultural and academic exchanges. Reaffirming that India is a global hotspot of talent and the UAE a global economic hub, both sides underscored their shared commitment to strengthening people-to-people ties and advancing mutual priorities,” it said.

Later, Pradhan visited the Manipal University campus in Dubai, where he had a roundtable with principals of Indian higher education institutions including Symbiosis, BITS Pilani, MIT, Amity and others.

A great honour to have the IIM Ahmedabad Dubai campus inaugurated by HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai.

This is another big leap towards globalisation of India’s education as envisioned by Hon’ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji. IIM Ahmedabad… pic.twitter.com/1GTVYCbR2f

— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) September 11, 2025

“Pradhan learnt about the UAE’s academic approaches and plans for the future. The minister outlined the need for moving the research value chain from the publication of research papers to productisation and marketisation. He also mentioned that there were productive deliberations on strengthening Brand India on the global education, innovation and entrepreneurship map,” the statement said.

The Minister interacted with the principals of 109 Indian Curriculum schools in the UAE. Principals of CBSE schools in other GCC countries and all global CBSE schools have joined virtually.

Atal Tinkering Labs

“Pradhan announced the setting up of the 12 Atal Tinkering Labs in CBSE schools in GCC countries to ignite scientific inquiry and entrepreneurship among students through hands-on STEM projects,” the statement said.