Maulana Azad National Urdu University (Urdu: مولانا آزاد نيشنل أردو يونيورسٹی, Hindi: मौलाना आज़ाद नेशनल यूनिवर्सिटी) is a Central University located in the city of Hyderabad in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It was named after Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, India's first Minister of Education, a freedom fighter in India's struggle for independence, and a scholar of Islam and Urdu literature. The university was established by an Act of the Parliament in January 1998, with an All India jurisdiction. The mandate of the university is to promote Urdu language, provide higher and vocational education through Urdu medium and focus on woman's education. The university has recently been awarded "A" Grade by National Assessment & Accreditation Council(NAAC). The University has a Directorate of Distance Education where around 15,000 students are on roll in various courses (M.A, B.ed, B.A., B.Sc. and B.Com, different diplomas and certificate courses) all over India and abroad. The University has established an examination centre at Jeddah (K.S.A) & few more are in pipeline at Qatar, U.K. and U.S.A.