Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, informally known as DAVV (acronym), is a State University whose jurisdiction was initially restricted to the city of Indore. Later, its jurisdiction extended to seven districts dominated by tribes of the division of Indore, namely, Jhabua, Alirajpur, Dhar, Khargone, Khandwa, Burhanpur and Barwani. It thus addresses the educational needs of the most industrially developed district of Madhya Pradesh, Indore on the one hand, and the seven backward tribal and rural districts of the State, on the other. From Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, former University of Indore, was founded in 1964 by An Act of the Legislature of Madhya Pradesh. His Excellency Dr. Zakir Hussain, then Vice President of India, inaugurated the university in 1964. The jurisdiction of the university was limited to the district of Indore.
In 1988, the university was renamed after Holkar Maharani 'Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar' of the Maratha Empire as 'Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya'. The word vishwavidyalaya is Hindi for university, therefore, the university is called Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya. During the reorganization of the universities, its jurisdiction was extended to the division of Indore, which covers seven districts. The NAAC Executive Committee has awarded a four-star state to the university in 2001 and has also won the Excellence Award Center by Govt. From Madhya Pradesh. In the year 2014 National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) accredited to the university like a university of degree A.