Who Owns SRM Institute of Science and Technology?

SRM began in 1985 when T.R. Paarivendhar established SRM Engineering College in Kattankulathur, on the southern outskirts of Chennai in what is now Chengalpattu district. The college was affiliated with the University of Madras and initially offered a limited set of engineering programs to a modest intake.

Through the 1990s, the institution expanded rapidly alongside Tamil Nadu's growing demand for engineering seats. Additional colleges covering medicine, dentistry, nursing, and management were added under the SRM banner, building a multi-disciplinary campus around the original engineering core.

In 2002, the Ministry of Human Resource Development granted deemed university status, and the institution became SRM Institute of Science and Technology, later commonly branded SRM University. Deemed status enabled the university to run its own entrance examination, SRMJEEE, and to expand programs beyond the affiliated-college framework.

The group then expanded geographically. Campuses in Ramapuram and Vadapalani within Chennai city and in Tiruchirappalli widened its Tamil Nadu footprint, while the Delhi-NCR campus in Modinagar extended the brand north. SRM University AP in Amaravati opened in 2017 as a separate state private university, and SRM University in Sonepat, Haryana, followed under Haryana's private university legislation.

The university grew to more than 50,000 students, one of the largest enrollments among Indian private universities. Its research output has risen in parallel, with growing publication volume in engineering and medical sciences and participation in national research programs.