Guru Nanak College (Autonomous) won the coveted Exemplary Leadership award, bagging the first place in Tamil Nadu and sixth all over India
Guru Nanak College (Autonomous), a socially-inclusive educational institution in Chennai received twin honours at the EducationWorld India Higher Education Ranking 2025-26 Awards and India Higher Education Grand Jury Rankings 2025-26 awards at a ceremony held in New Delhi on Friday.
The awards were handed out by Grayquest, a fintech company, and EducationWorld, an education portal. The college won the coveted Exemplary Leadership award, bagging the first place in Tamil Nadu and sixth all over India.
It was also named the eighth-best Private Autonomous Arts, Science and Commerce (ASC) College in Tamil Nadu and 24th overall in India.
Leading educators from all over the country attended the awards ceremony and several higher education institutes were honoured for their academic excellence and leadership. This was the 5th consecutive year that GNC bagged the top honours at the event.
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Manjit Singh Nayar, General Secretary and Correspondent of Guru Nanak College, attributed the institution’s success to its unwavering focus on service and empowerment.
Manjit Singh Nayar
“Guru Nanak College is probably one of the youngest colleges, but when it comes to achievement, I think we are there to be recognised today. And this I say with confidence because we are not like the other institutes. Today you see a lot of commercialisation happening in the world of education. But we are a college established by the Sikhs community of Chennai, that numbers around 250 families. We run and manage this institute and over 7,500 students are studying in college and around 1,200 in our school. It is a passion and we are here for the cause of education. We ensure that the marginalised, economically marginalised members of society are given opportunity at the school level and at the college level,” Nayar tells Media India Group.
Nayar further emphasised the college’s ethos of empowerment, particularly for women and first-generation learners. “We want women to be empowered in education and financially independent. And we see quite a satisfying result. Major satisfaction is that the community is running this institute with one or two students from the Sikh community and the others are all from various walks of life. And when I say various walks, they are possibly first-generation learners, at least a majority of them and we are there to help them get their degrees and jobs,” he added.
Also Read: Manjit Singh Nayar receives President’s Medal for the second time
Lakshmi Devi
Lakshmi Devi, IQAC Coordinator and Deputy Dean, Centre for eGovernance outlined the rigorous parameters behind the rankings and the transformative impact of leadership at Guru Nanak College. “We are honoured to receive this award for the fifth consecutive year. Our institution serves over 7,500 students while advancing research and academic excellence alongside community initiatives. Leading these efforts is our General Secretary, whose dedication positions him at the forefront of our achievements. His leadership and tireless contributions make him truly deserving of this recognition,” Devi tells Media India Group.
Devi also emphasised on the evolution of the college under visionary leadership. “Since the time, he started the role of General Secretary and Correspondent, the college has seen a significant expansion in both academic programs and infrastructure. Comprehensive improvements have been made to support learning, including modern facilities such as ICT-enabled resources, AFS systems and smart classrooms. These enhancements reflect a strong commitment to upgrading educational tools and environments across the institution,” she adds.