Shiksha Mandal is a century-old institution based at Wardha, the undeclared capital of pre-independence India. Founded by Shri Jamnalal Bajaj, it was deeply influenced by freedom struggle and Gandhiji. Its faculty and students were involved in the freedom movement and one of its institutions was closed by the British. The nation’s first education conference was held in Shiksha Mandal in 1937 and was presided over by Gandhiji.
Starting with a school in 1919, it moved on to higher education in 1940 when its Commerce College was established at Wardha. In 1945, a Commerce College was established at Nagpur. In 1961, a Rural Institute was established, which offered courses in Economics, Agriculture and Engineering. This was later spun into three different institutions in these disciplines. A Science College was established in 1962 and in 2003, an Agriculture College was established.
The President of Shiksha Mandal have been from the Bajaj Family. Shri Shekharji Bajaj, Chairman & Managing Director, Bajaj Electricals Ltd., is its current President.
Shiksha Mandal carries on its work of providing quality education, steeped in nationalistic ethos and human values, at an affordable cost. It is conscious of its legacy, but modern in its sensibility. Principles of merit and integrity govern its functioning.
No meritorious student is denied admission for his/her lack of financial resources. Full scholarships are provided to them. Special efforts are made for such students to help them realize their potential.
The normal medium of instruction is English. But in our Commerce Colleges, Sections are also run in Hindi and Marathi. Its institutions are set in sprawling campuses with good infrastructure. Most of its institutions are affiliated to R. T. M. Nagpur University. 6 of its 7 institutions are aided by the Government.
Its Science College has been rated as a College with potential for Excellence by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and is the only College in Vidarbha to be awarded the Star College Scheme of the Department of Biotechnology. Its Agriculture College is rated as ‘A’ by its affiliating University and its Engineering Polytechnic as ‘Excellent’ by Maharashtra State Board of Technical Education. All its UGC recognized colleges are NAAC accredited.
It has excellent library facilities in all its college, with its Science College at Wardha and Commerce College at Nagpur having over 30,000 books. Broadband Internet connectivity and computer laboratories exist in all its colleges. Currently, it has over 8,500 students on its rolls, of which around 50% are female. Among the 250 teaching faculty, over 50 are Ph.Ds.
It offers courses from Class XI to Ph.D. Besides traditional aided courses, it has over the years added non-aided courses in its institutions including MBA. Committed to development of its students, many add-on and certificate courses are also offered. This includes courses in Computer and English. Guidance for competitive and professional exams like Chartered Accountancy and Company Secretary is also provided.
A strong tradition of National Service Scheme, National Cadet Corps, Sports and Extra-Curricular activities exists. Shiksha Mandal has also been involved in rural development for the last 40 years. Since 1984, it has been running a Community Polytechnic Scheme of vocational training very successfully.
Its students regularly feature in the merit list. Eminent Alumni include Late Shri Madhukar Chaudhary (ex-Speaker of Maharashtra), Shri Harish Salve and Shri Nitin Gadkari.
Recently our Management has been honoured with “Ideal Educational Institution Award 2014-2015” from Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University Nagpur.