University of Calicut


The University of Calicut, also known as Calicut University, is a state university in India run by the state of Kerala. It is headquartered at Thenjipalam in Malappuram district. Established in 1968, it is the second university to be set up in Kerala after the University of Kerala. The university is affiliated by the University Grants Commission of India. The university has off-campus centres in Malappuram, Kozhikode, Thrissur, Palakkad, Wayanad districts, and in Lakshadweep islands. It conducts courses and examinations for the students of the affiliated colleges. It has 30 post graduate departments and 426 colleges. Prof. M. K. Jayaraj is appointed as new Vice - Chancellor of University of Calicut on 12 July 2020.

History

Calicut University was established in 1968 during the tenure of C. H. Muhammed Koya as the Minister of Education and was administered by Dr. M.M. Ghani in the 1970s.

Campus

The main campus is spread over in Thenjipalam of Malappuram. The main campus includes postgraduate and research departments, UGC HRD Centre, School of Distance Education, University Library, Central Science Block, Office of the Vice Chancellor, Administration Block, Educational Multimedia Research Centre, guest houses, Pareeksha Bhavan etc. The university has off-campus centres in Kozhikode, Wayanad, Thrissur, Palakkad and Lakshadweep. In the 1980s, a Cockroft-Walton particle accelerator was put in place on campus.

Departments

Important departments in main campus include:

School of Drama and Fine Arts

Located in Aranattukara, a suburb of Thrissur city this department of the university provides formal education and training in drama and theatre. The school is affiliated with National School of Drama. The school was established in 1977 as a centre for drama artists in Kerala. Under the leadership of late Professor G. Sankara Pillai, the school within a short period earned the reputation as a highly credible centre for studies in various areas of theatre and also a force behind theatre movement in Kerala. In 2000, the institute started the music department offering Post Graduate and PhD courses.

Institute of Tribal Studies & Research

Institute of Tribal Studies & Research is located at Chethalayam in Wayanad district is established for empowering tribal students for higher education. The centre is also devoted to carry out research on tribal communities.

Affiliated colleges

The University of Calicut has about 480 colleges with a total annual intake of nearly 100,000 students. Colleges are spread over Kozhikode district, Thrissur district, Malappuram district, Palakkad district and Wayanad district. 279 of these colleges are private colleges and the rest are government run. Most of these colleges offer only undergraduate degrees, while 88 others also offer postgraduate degrees. Subject-wise they comprise 254 arts and science colleges, 63 training colleges, 40 engineering/technical colleges, 7 medical colleges, 4 paramedical colleges, 6 Ayurveda colleges, 10 law colleges, 33 Arabic/Oriental title colleges, 11 I. H. R. D. centres, 8 management studies colleges, 1 music college, 1 fine arts college, 2 colleges of physical education, 21 nursing colleges, 7 dental colleges, 9 pharmacy colleges, 1 Homoeopathy college and 2 colleges for hotel management. The university published a list of affiliated colleges and courses.

Library

The Calicut University Library was established in 1971 and later renamed after C.H. Mohammed Koya. It is primarily concerned with the conservation and dissemination of knowledge to its users. It plays an important role in the provision of information to the academic community in the Malabar region. It has a collection of about 95,000 books and subscribes to 218 journals and 10 newspapers.
The library follows the Anglo American Cataloguing Rules II for cataloguing and the Dewey Decimal Scheme of Classification for the classification of books.
It has the distinction of being the first fully automated university library in the state of Kerala.
The library is situated at the main campus at Thenhippalam on the side of the NH 17.
Apart from the university library, a study centre library is functioning at Calicut to serve the academic community in the city. All major Malayalam dailies and periodicals are available here.

Pareeksha Bhavan

Pareeksha Bhavan, the branch of the university that oversees the conduct of examinations in over 250 affiliated colleges, and which awards degrees, is the largest wing of the university. The branch has been in the news for expert accomplishments of the tasks entrusted.

Arts and sports

Arts festival

The annual Interzonal festival, 'kalolsavam' is held during the months of January - April or in between. The Interzone is conducted among students within the five districts the university spreads to. The various districts conducts different zonal competitions and the winners gain entry to the interzonal festival. The festivals goes on for a week at the most, where various gifted participants showcase their talents both offstage and onstage.

Sports

The annual sports also takes place between the inter colleges among the zones as well as among the zonal colleges. The sports days follow the arts and go on for a week.

Rankings

The university was ranked 54th among Indian universities by the National Institutional Ranking Framework in 2020 and 76th overall.

Notable alumni