Department of Higher Education (Kerala)
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The Department of Higher Education is an administrative department under the Government of Kerala responsible for formulating policies, implementing programmes, and managing institutions related to higher education in the state. The department oversees universities, government and aided colleges, technical education institutions, professional colleges, and entrance examinations for professional courses in Kerala.[1]
The Higher Education Department was formed to improve the standard of higher education in the state and to ensure coordinated development of university education, technical education, collegiate education, and professional course admissions.[2][3][4]
The department headquarters is located in the Government Secretariat at Thiruvananthapuram.
- Education Department, Government of Kerala
India Kerala- R. Bindu, Minister for Higher Education
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| Department overview | |
|---|---|
| Preceding Department |
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| Jurisdiction | India Kerala |
| Headquarters | Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India |
| Minister responsible |
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| Department executive |
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| Parent department | Government of Kerala |
| Child agencies |
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| Website | highereducation |
The department is headed by a Cabinet Minister of the Government of Kerala, and the current Minister for Higher Education is R. Bindu.[5]
The administration of the department is overseen by the Principal Secretary to Government, an IAS officer. The present Principal Secretary (Higher Education) is Sharmila Mary Joseph IAS.[6] The Principal Secretary is assisted by Additional Secretaries, Joint Secretaries, Deputy Secretaries, Under Secretaries and other Secretariat staff as per the Rules of Business of the Government of Kerala.[7]
Functions
- Formulation and implementation of policies relating to higher education in Kerala
- Administration of Acts and Rules governing higher and technical education institutions in the state[8]
- Supervision of government, aided, and self-financing colleges, universities, professional institutions, and law colleges
- Administration of entrance examinations to professional courses through the Commissioner for Entrance Examinations
- Implementation of state and centrally sponsored schemes relating to higher and technical education
Line Departments / Subordinate Offices
The Department exercises administrative control over the following major line departments and bodies:
- Directorate of Technical Education
- Directorate of Collegiate Education
- Commissionerate of Entrance Examinations (CEE)
- National Cadet Corps (Kerala)
- Government Law Colleges and other professional colleges
- Universities under the administrative control of Higher Education, including:
(Universities are governed as per their respective Acts and statutes.)
Directorate of Collegiate Education
This is the government agency responsible for establishing new government colleges, introducing new academic programmes, and managing staff matters of aided colleges, including disbursement of salary to teaching and non-teaching staff.[9]
Directorate of Technical Education
The Directorate of Technical Education oversees all state institutions imparting technical and professional education, including government engineering colleges, polytechnics, colleges of fine arts, food craft institutes, commercial institutes, technical high schools, and vocational training centres.[10]
Commissionerate of Entrance Examinations (CEE)
Responsible for conducting entrance examinations and allotting seats to various professional degree courses in Kerala.[11]
National Cadet Corps (Kerala)
Functions as the state unit of the NCC, providing military training, leadership development, and youth involvement programmes within the educational institutions of Kerala.[12]
The department also exercises administrative oversight over universities and professional institutions under the Higher Education sector in the state.