'310, Camp Road', IIMA's First Home | Issue 1 @ IIMA Archives

SEPIA ECHOES

'310, Camp Road', IIMA's First Home

"310, Camp Road was the host for a number of significant meetings and discussions. A number of administrative decisions, early faculty member recruitment, the initial formalities of partnering with the Harvard Business School and the Ford Foundation, and the launch of the first PGP in Business Administration in 1964, were some of the highlights of this period."

310, Camp Road, Shahibaug, Ahmedabad-4. This was the first address that IIMA could call its own. For a little over three years, from June 1962 to mid-1965, IIMA operated out of a rented bungalow at this address. As the formalities related to the setting up of the Institute were being completed in 1961, a search for a temporary location for IIMA got underway. At that time, Vikram Sarabhai was staying in his family home, 'Retreat', in Shahibaug, and IIMA's location was just "IIMA, c/o Vikram Sarabhai, Retreat." IIMA's Planning Committee, in a meeting on January 28, 1962 decided that "the house of Mrs. N. Bakubhai Charity Trust in Shahibaug might be hired." Nirmala Bakubhai belonged to a business family of Ahmedabad, and on her death, her house passed to the Trust. The Planning Committee authorized Vikram Sarabhai to work out the details, including the amount of rent to be paid. Dr Sarabhai got an official of the Government of Gujarat to inspect the bungalow and identify the repairs that were needed. He then wrote to Gautam Sarabhai, the managing trustee of the charity on February 26, 1962 regarding the hiring formalities. The institute occupied the bungalow in June 1962. The Board meeting held on August 3, 1962 seems to have been the first major meeting held at the new premises. The house was initially hired for a period of one year, and then the contract was renewed periodically up to June 30, 1965. For the first year (1962-63), a provision of Rs. 13,000 was made for rent; for the full year 1963-64, the rent paid was Rs. 22,800. The bungalow had a first floor which housed the faculty seating and the library, and a ground floor given over to administration.

**310, Camp Road', 1962, external view**

310, Camp Road was the host for a number of significant meetings and discussions. A number of administrative decisions, early faculty member recruitment, the initial formalities of partnering with the Harvard Business School and the Ford Foundation, and the launch of the first PGP in Business Administration in 1964, were some of the highlights of this period. Since the Institute did not have a campus, flats belonging to the Gujarat Housing Board were hired to house the PGP students; the classes were held in the rooms of the Ahmedabad Textile Industry's Research Association (ATIRA).

**Gujarat Housing Board Flats, some of which were hired as student hostels, 1964**

**ATIRA, where classes were held initially, 1964**

Campus construction on the Vastrapur land started on September 9, 1964. Today, IIMA is spread out over roughly 40 hectares, and the campus is divided by a highway into the iconic 'Main' (or Old) Campus and the New Campus. But '310, Camp Road' will continue to occupy a special niche in IIMA's campus history.