Kottayam: Kerala Governor Justice P. Sathasivam presented the Chancellor’s award to Mahatma Gandhi University on the campus here on Thursday.
It received the trophy along with a citation and Rs 5 crore for being the best university in the state.
The Governor in his speech said that though the state had achieved a certain level of excellence in primary education, more work was needed to get it in higher education sector.
“Other states are doing better than us in educational growth and infrastructure,” he said. “In a knowledge-driven society like ours, higher education has become vital for economic development and nation building”, he added.
The universities which participated in the chancellor’s award competition were evaluated on the basis of 37 criteria by a five-member selection committee chaired by Mr B. Srinivas, principal secretary, higher education department.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who presided, lauded the achievements of MG University in academic, administrative and social fields.
“The research programmes in the universities should be human and nature-centric and beneficial to society. We should be able to connect our education to the emerging global education trends,” he said.
Education Minister Prof C. Raveendranath, in his keynote address, said that the universities should give emphasis on the research activities that will facilitate society’s journey forward.
MG University Vice-Chancellor Dr Babu Sebastian said that the university would use the award money to build an education complex as per the decision of the syndicate meeting. Kottayam MP Jose K. Mani and Ettumanur MLA K. Suresh Kurup sent their messages on the occasion.
