Arya Kanya Gurukul
Arya Kanya Gurukul is a girls’ K-12 boarding school in Porbandar, set up in 1936 by Gujarati industrialist and philanthropist Shri Nanjibhai Kalidas Mehta, founder of the Mehta Group. Deeply influenced by Mahatma Gandhi and the principles of the Arya Samaj, Nanjibhai made the revolutionary decision — remarkable for its time — to have the foundation stone of the Gurukul laid by a Scheduled Caste girl.
The school complex spans 90 acres of land between the Arabian Sea and the Barda Hills. Over the decades, Arya Kanya Gurukul has hosted visits from some of India’s most prominent leaders, including Presidents Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Dr. Radhakrishnan and Smt. Pratibha Patil, and Prime Ministers Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, Smt. Indira Gandhi, Shri Morarji Desai and Shri Rajiv Gandhi.
Today operating as Arya Kanya Gurukul (English Medium), the school is managed by the Raj Ratna Sheth Shri Nanjibhai Kalidas Mehta Arya Kanya Vidyalaya Trust and is CBSE-affiliated (Affiliation No. 430356), led by Principal Vandana Sharma. The trust also operates Gurukul Mahila Arts and Commerce College nearby, established 1966, extending the founder’s vision of women’s education from school through undergraduate study.
The education system blends Vedic heritage with a modern curriculum oriented towards science and technology, rooted in Arya Samaj principles, and welcomes girls from all backgrounds and social strata.