Friday, September 13, 2024

Marian Edu-city...

 

Marian Edu-city

Marian Higher Education Campus

Menamkulam, Kazhakkuttam, Thiruvananthapuram – 695 582

[Edited on 8th September 2025]

Honourable Governor, respected guests on and off the dais, dear staff, students, and well-wishers,

Representing two of the institutions in this campus, am here to felicitate this great and noble venture of the diocese, namely the ‘Marian Edu-city’ which would come into existence in a short while, with its declaration by the honourable Governor, for the higher and technical academic pursuit of students.

In this historic moment, it would be befitting to know this campus. After some 26 years of the creation of the diocese, its first native bishop, Dr Peter Bernard Pereira of revered memory, bought this plot of some 60+ (46) acres in 1963.

 

Now 87 years old, the diocese has become an archdiocese, extending from Mampally near Anchuthengu to Erayumanthurai in Kanyakumari district along with few interior parishes in the city and its suburbs, having a population of 2,17,821 in some 58,501 families (as per 2013 survey) with rather poor educational status with:

-         Only 20.74% of us could complete High School, 9.85% Higher Secondary, 6.26% Graduation, 2.31% Professional degree and 2.06% Diploma/Certificate in Technical Education and Illiteracy: 9.39%. [Socio-Economic & Pastoral Survey of 2013]     

With the available high schools, higher secondary schools and colleges the need for a technical institution was felt way back in 1999. This was deliberated in the Board of Education, which I was fortunate enough to head, on 7th September that year and the historic decision for the Marian Engineering College was taken. With our fiscal constraints, we opted for just three courses, namely Electronics and Communication, Computer Science and Information Technology to start with. Since the BoE did not have necessary fund, it was entrusted with the Trivandrum Social Service Society which owned this land. And this great dream became a reality in 2001 at our St. Vincent’s Minor Seminary [which was shifted here in 1981(April, 18th) from Palayam later giving place for Jubilee Memorial Hospital] here. Soon it was shifted to the present location equipped with necessary infrastructure, leaving the space for St. Jacob’s Training College (SJTC) in 2005.  

The second seminary in the campus was converted into Little Flower Teacher Training Institute which was dropped after a few years. 13 years since MEC, Marian College of Architecture and Planning was started in 2014. Winding up the TTI, Little Flower Football Academy (2015) and Marian Craft and Arts Centre (2019) were started there. Thereafter Marian College of Arts and Science (MCAS) was started in 2016 in the third seminary. And today the Marian Business School also is getting launched by the honourable Governor.

Considering the institutions here at present and the possibility of having more in the near future and in the context of the National Education Policy introducing Four Year Undergraduate Program (FYUP), Integrated Courses, Multi-disciplinary Autonomous Institutions, Private Universities etc. we wanted to ensure the possibility of higher, professional and technical education to our students for their better future and that of the nation. That was how Marian Edu-city is unfolding here today in this campus paving way for autonomous or even Private University status, if time demands, in due course.

It would be good to remember the words of Paul in Romans, “For as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we, though many, are one body.., and individually members one of another. (12:4-5)

May this noble venture take off to soar high in the skies of academic pursuit providing opportunities for our students from the community and others as well. Thank you.

 

Representing two of the institutions in this campus which from this day would proudly be called the ‘Marian Edu-city’ with the declaration of the same by the honourable Governor in a short while, am here to felicitate this great and noble venture of the diocese for the higher and technical academic pursuit of the society. 

[This project though was a seminal proposal of the archbishop, turned out to be a marketing technique for the MEC and MCAP at the cost of SJTC and MCAS! The last two were side-lined, if not ignored altogether]

 

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