Lucknow, Sep 4 - Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Friday named a full-fledged university after the mother of her blue-eyed party general secretary Satish Chandra Misra, who has shot to fame as the Bahujan Samaj Party's Brahmin mascot.
Named after Misra's mother, late Shakuntala Misra, a homeopathic physician, the university is described as the first of its kind in Asia to be devoted exclusively to the physically challenged.
Mayawati was earlier slated to inaugurate the university, located on the outskirts of the city, at a formal function. A special helipad had been set up to facilitate her landing. However, the chief minister declared the university 'open' at a low-key function at her official residence here instead.
Addressing the small gathering, which included a handful of ministers and officials, Mayawati said her government had taken several decisions with a view to providing better educational opportunities for physically-challenged students at all levels, and these decisions were implemented in record time.
She said: 'While carrying out various works for the betterment of the physically-challenged persons, it was felt that there was no special institute for providing higher education to the disabled children according to their requirements.'
The foundation of the Shakuntala Misra University was laid on Oct 9, 2008 - the second death anniversary of BSP founder Kanshi Ram.
Spread across 175 acres, the university has received financial allocation of Rs.