Greater Noida: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati yesterday inaugurated the new administrative block of the Gautam Buddha University here.

Inaugurating the first session of the varsity's flagship MBA programme, Mayawati, who is its Chancellor, said the new institute would provide world-class education.

"I dreamt of such a world-class institute six years back and today it is a dream come true. Through a special Act, work began on it in 2002. But it was later stopped by the Mulayam Singh Government and the land turned into a concrete jungle. We then took it up on priority basis and expedited work in January 2008," Mayawati said.

"During the last one year, 82 engineering colleges have been set up in the state with private participation," the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief said.

An institute modelled on the Indian Institute of Science (IIS), Bangalore, would be developed in Noida, she declared, adding that a proposal for an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Lucknow was also under consideration.

The University will, initially, have a School of Management which will offer courses in Human Resources, Strategic Management and Marketing & Retail Management.

"The courses have been developed in line with those being offered by leading universities of Europe, US and Canada," said Mayawati.

Schools in Information and Communication Technology, Humanities and Buddhist Studies, Bio-Technology and Law will also be setup in the coming sessions.

"The Gautam Buddha University will be the only institute in the country to offer PhD in vocational studies," added Mayawati.

Vocational courses at the varsity would have subjects on Hospitality and Tourism, Business Administration, Retail & Commercial Services and Media & Designing.

"Fifty percent of students belonging to SC, minorities and poor families of upper castes would be sent to foreign universities for studies. The entire cost would be borne by the State Government", the UP Chief Minister said.

The varsity, setup at an estimated cost of Rs.300 crores, is dedicated to Gautam Buddha, the founder of Buddhism.