The University of Southampton on 16 July inaugurated its first Indian campus in Gurugram, Haryana, becoming the first foreign university to establish a full-fledged branch in the country under the University Grants Commission’s 2023 regulations. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini presided over the opening, calling it a milestone in the National Education Policy 2020’s push to internationalise higher education. The branch will admit its first cohort in 2025, offering BSc degrees in Computer Science, Economics, Accounting & Finance and Business Management, as well as MSc programmes in Finance and International Management. Enrolled students may spend up to a year at the university’s campuses in the United Kingdom or Malaysia, retaining the option to graduate in India. Southampton expects the Gurugram site to enrol as many as 5,500 students annually and to employ more than 75 full-time faculty members who meet UK academic standards. The university said the campus will charge tuition below UK levels while giving Indian students access to a QS Top 100 institution without the cost and visa hurdles of studying abroad. New Delhi views the project as a template for attracting other top global universities and strengthening the India-UK Roadmap 2030. Pradhan said the streamlined rules and the quick rollout by Southampton demonstrate India’s intent to become a global knowledge hub.