The quote fits on the President of Graphic Era Group of Institutions - Prof. Dr. Kamal Ghanshala - the visionary who transformed the educational and health landscape of the Himalayan state of Uttarkhand and emerged as a pioneer in shaping the ecology of learning in India; radiating its glory even beyond the borders.
The remarkable journey of Prof Ghanshala to establish Graphic Era as a leading institution in higher education, began in 1993 with a modest start, when after completing his graduation from Delhi Institute of Technology and MTech from VIT, Karnataka, as a young computer science graduate with just ₹29,000 and boundless determination, established the Graphic Era Computer Centre in Dehradun with a revolutionizing intent of creating opportunities in his own region first. There was a time in nineties, when Dehradun was quite famous for its school education but not for higher education. Prof Ghanshala, a passionate treader of unconventional paths, with his farsightedness captured the pulse of upcoming technology driven era and took the call to establish a computer centre. Under modest settings he established the computer center in the living room of his parental home with just 14 chairs, mainly attracting office goers from 9 AM to 5 PM. Instead of entering into easy partnerships, he chose the path of struggle to follow his passion. He was the one who played a leading role in the computerization at Garhwal University, especially in their examination system.
In 1998, he went a step further and transformed the centre into a full-fledged institute entitled as Graphic Era Technical Institute. From there, he never stopped to bring fortune to the academia. In 2008, Graphic Era Technical Institute became Graphic Era (Deemed to be University). Three years later, he set up Graphic Era Hill University with two campuses, Dehradun and Bhimtal to cater the needs of the students particularly from hilly states that reflected his all inclusive approach . Graphic Era Hill University expanded its student base by establishing another campus at Haldwani in 2011.
Being a strong proponent of integrating industry-academia links to foster education, innovation and employability, his leadership focuses on student placements which stands as a significant testament to the quality of education and industry-readiness of the students. Students from across campus get placements in world’s most reputed companies and business groups such as Google, Microsoft, Infosys, TCS and Amazon etc. Based on its high placements, world class infra and teaching facilities, Graphic Era (deemed to be University) was accredited with NAAC grade A, in 2015.
The legacy continued with the foundation of premier institutions that provide quality education and Graphic Era Global School was established in 2016 by Dr. (Prof.) Kamal Ghanshala, Chairman and Dr. Rakhee Ghanshala, Vice Chairperson, with the vision of "Transforming Dreams into Reality" by setting the foundation of quality education right from a young age. The Graphic Era Global School continues to emerge as the pioneer of excellence in school education in Dehradun, while catering to about 1000 students, with a team of dedicated educators and counsellors.
For his contribution to the cause of quality education time and again he has been conferred with multiple awards and honors including Uttarakhand Ratan Award for outstanding contribution to quality Technical and Higher education in Uttarakhand (2007), International Gold Star Millennium Award (2008), Dr. BC Roy award (2010) for social services, Best Manager of the Year (2015) by Europe Business Assembly in the prestigious International Summit of Leaders held at Oxford Town Hall, Oxford City United Kingdom, Distinguished Educationist Award (2016) by BERG Singapore and Entrepreneur Award (2017), presented by the then H’ble President Pranab Mukherjee, to name a few.
Another milestone was achieved in 2022 when Graphic Era (deemed to be University) was recognized again for its strong academic, community driven research output, technical and innovation-focused environment, NBA-accredited programs and top rankings. Based on this, the university was accredited with NAAC grade A+ that signifies very high level of academic quality, outstanding infrastructure, and excellent research output.
Further, the visionary spirit of Prof. (Dr.) Kamal Ghanshala, led him to set up a 1100-bed hospital in Dehradun and opened the world class Graphic Era Institute of Medical Sciences (GEIMS hospital) with state-of-the-art facilities and medical equipment, diving in to the health sector contributing to the development of the state of Uttarakhand, in the year 2024. He struggled for almost 2 years to get NOCs and 6 months to get clearances for an electric connection for the hospital, however his intention to save the lives of people did not let him stray from his focus.
Owing to its strong humanitarian values and focus on collective empathetic action, Graphic Era Group of Institutions in Dehradun has established a strong legacy of supporting the people of Uttarakhand during natural disasters through direct on-ground relief, medical aid, and education sponsorship for affected lives. Under the philanthropic leadership of Dr. Kamal Ghanshala, the institution has actively supported victims of the 2025 Dharali disaster, the 2023 Joshimath crisis, and provided significant aid during COVID-19.
Acknowledging his outstanding contributions to humanitarian cause and technological advancement, Governmnet of Uttarkhand has appointed him as the Chief warden of the civil defence . In the 2025, he has been conferred with the prestigious ESQR Quality Achievement Award 2025 in Dubai on December 9, 2025. This international honor recognizes his visionary leadership, unwavering commitment to quality, and transformative contributions to global standards in higher education.
Despite his hectic schedule, what makes him different is the level of energy at which he works on everyday basis. Till date he continues to teach students of Compute Engineering by dedicating his time for lecture preparation. His deep taste for art, music and admiration for India’s cultural heritage reflects on his endeavors like organizing musical nights, symposium, exhibition that contributes to its cultural component, inclusivity, value-driven education along with faculty and student well-being.
Other than innovation and technology, Graphic Era has never undermined the value of sports and extra-curricular activities reflecting the leadership’s personal interest in fitness and sportsman spirit. Under the dynamic leadership of Prof. Ghanshala, Graphic Era has given the world many national and international level players in cricket, volleyball, basketball, table tennis and badminton.
In his words, “Young people should have dreams. Before the first dream becomes a reality, they should nurture the next dream. Never give up, pursue your goal, and ignore the detractors. Take small steps at a time to turn dreams into reality.” As an edupreneur, his constant encouragement to all the youth is in igniting them to take risks, show courage and engage in start-ups and grab self-employment opportunities.
Prof. (Dr.) Kamal Ghanshala has a diverse track record of providing quality education with proven credibility. He has left an indelible mark of contribution in evolving the educational landscape not only in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand but in the country as well. The vision of the leader continues to include and embrace students from around 40+ countries to study and build a future they have always dreamt of, right in the heart of Dehradun!
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