Realizing the great necessity of advanced Buddhist studies, plans were made for building a college (shedra) in Mindrolling. The foundation stone for the Ngagyur Nyingma (Five Sciences) College was laid on April 26, 1988 by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The project was completed in 1991 and the Ngagyur Nyingma College was formally inaugurated on March 28, 1991 as a part of Mindrolling, India and immediately began the training of hundreds of monks. It is one of the largest Buddhist Institutes in existence today.