Cochin University of Science and Technology

Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) is a state government-owned autonomous university in Kochi, Kerala, India. It was founded in 1971 and has three campuses: two in Kochi (Kalamassery and Ernakulam) and one in Kuttanad, Alappuzha, some 66 km (41 mi) from Kochi.

The university was founded in 1971 as the University of Cochin through an act of the Kerala Legislature, which was the result of a campaign for postgraduate education in the state. It was renamed as Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) in February 1986. Its goals are to promote undergraduate and postgraduate studies and advanced research in applied science, technology, industry, commerce, management and social sciences.

Admissions to both undergraduate and postgraduate courses are based on the Common Admission Test (CAT). Departmental Admission Tests (DAT) are conducted for some postgraduate courses. As of 2019, the university has 29 Departments of study and research, offering graduate and post-graduate programmes across a wide spectrum of disciplines in Engineering, Science, Technology, Humanities, Law & Management. The university has academic links and exchange programmes with several institutions across the globe.

A new species of amphipod collected from the Cochin backwaters was named Victoriopisa cusatensis after the university in 2018.

The motto of the university is Tejasvinavadhithamastu, which is taken from the Vedas and conveys "May the wisdom accrued deify us both – the teacher and the taught - and percolate to the universe in its totality".

Campuses

The university has three campuses: two are in Kochi, and one is at Pulinkunnu, Kuttanad, Alappuzha about 65 km south of Kochi in the state of Kerala.

Main (Thrikkakara) Campus

The main campus is 1.5 km (0.93 mi) off the National Highway 47 in South Kalamassery. The 180-acre (0.73 km2) campus includes the School of Engineering (SOE Campus), Kunjali Marakkar School of Marine Engineering, School of Management Studies, various Science departments, and the School of Legal Studies.

Lakeside Campus

The Lakeside campus, about 12 km (7.5 mi) from the main campus, is set on Fine Arts Avenue in Cochin city on the waterfront of the estuary. It includes the School of Marine Sciences, School of Industrial Fisheries, Department of Physical Oceanography, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, Department of Chemical Oceanography, Department of Marine Biology, Microbiology and Biochemistry, and the Department of Marine Geology and Geophysics. The School of Marine Sciences library is one of the largest marine science libraries in Asia. The school also has a research vessel for coastal water studies, and has academic interactions with other universities and research institutes within and outside India.

Pulincunnu Campus

The Pulincunnu campus in Kuttanad, Alappuzha District is 65 km from the Main campus. It is home to the Cochin University College of Engineering, Kuttanad (CUCEK).

Faculties

CUSAT is structured into nine faculties:

• Science
• Technology
• Engineering
• Environmental Studies
• Humanities
• Law
• Marine Sciences
• Medical Sciences and Technology
• Social Sciences

Department of Physics

The Department of Physics of the Cochin University of Science and Technology was founded as the Department of Physics of the Ernakulam Centre of the University of Kerala in 1963 by Prof. K. Venkateswarlu. It is now a centre of excellence, well known within India and abroad for its contributions to teaching and research in both experimental and theoretical physics. Areas of interest include nanoscience and technology, optoelectronic devices, quantum computing, semiconductor devices, solar cells, holographic materials, high density storage batteries, astrobiology and quantum optics. Research is sponsored by agencies including UGC, AICTE, IUCAA, DST, DRDO, CSIR, IUAC, DAE, and KSCSTE. The department has extensive instrumentation, which is made available to outside users at a nominal charge.

The department offers postgraduate programmes leading to the degrees of MSc (Physics), M.Phil. (Physics) and PhD.

The Department of Physics conducts a science awareness programme in physics and the National Space Olympiad in association with the IUCAA Resource Centre, CUSAT and Edumithra Intellectual Services.

Department of Electronics

The Department of Electronics was established in 1975. Research areas include microwave electronics, microprocessors, underwater acoustics, ocean electronics, microwave propagation antennas, microwave image processing, pattern recognition, microprocessor applications in signal processing and display devices. Research is sponsored by external agencies including the DST, ISRO, AICTE, DOE, DRDO, MOD and the state government. The department has international collaborations with Delft University (Netherlands), PolarizOne Corporation (Malaysia), University of Kent (UK) and University of Surrey (UK).

The department offers postgraduate programmes leading to the degrees of MSc (Electronics) and MTech (Electronics) with specializations in Microwave & Radar Electronics and Digital Electronics, and PhD.

The department conducts two national symposia as biennial events: the National Symposium on Antennas & Propagation (APSYM), and the Symposium on Ocean Electronics (SYMPOL).

Department of Instrumentation

The Department of Instrumentation was established in the year 1995 as an outgrowth of the University Science Instrumentation Centre (USIC), which offers instrumentation services including design and fabrication, glass blowing, and carpentry to science and technology departments of the university and external organizations. As an academic department, it now has research programmes in the areas of Instrumentation and Applied Physics, sponsored by external funding agencies including DST, DAE, UGC, AICTE, KSCSTE and TWAS. It also offers consultancy for the design and fabrication of experimental systems for teaching, research, calibration and industrial applications.

Rankings

CUSAT was ranked in the 1201-1500 band by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings in 2024 and in the 301-350 band in Asia.

The NIRF ranked it 34th among universities and 51st overall in India in 2024.

Centres

Centre for Science in Society

The Centre for Science in Society (C-SIS) was established in 1991 with partial financial assistance from Cochin Refineries Limited. The Centre aims to make science and technology more accessible to children. The government of Kerala has approved C-SIS as a training centre for high school science teachers under the "Sastraposini" Programme.

The Science and Technology Park of C-SIS includes a Space Pavilion donated by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) that includes models of their space rockets and of the lunar probe Chandrayaan, and videos of rocket launches from Sriharikota. Students can see demonstrations of trajectory monitoring and error correction in the process of satellite launching. The park also includes an electronics exhibit from the U.S based (IEEE) Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, 'E –Scientia'.

Sophisticated Test and Instrumentation Centre

The Sophisticated Test and Instrumentation Centre (STIC) is a joint venture of the Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment (KSCSTE) and Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT). Its goals are to provide advanced instrument facilities for analysis testing, measurement, and calibration to users from industries, academic institutions, and R&D establishments; develop novel instruments in areas relevant to industries in the State; and offer training in the operation of these instruments for industry and academic institutions.

National Centre for Aquatic Animal Health

The National Centre for Aquatic Animal Health (NCAAH) was formerly the Centre for Fish Disease Diagnosis and Management. It is situated in the Lakeside Campus of the university. The centre was established in 2000 to support aquatic farmers in protecting the health of growing stocks. It includes research laboratories in bacteriology, virology, animal tissue culture, immunology, genomics, proteomics, fermentation, and bioassays. The centre offers an MTech programme in Marine Biotechnology sponsored by the Department of Biotechnology of the Government of India.

Centre for the Study of Social Exclusion & Inclusive Policy

The Centre for the Study of Social Exclusion & Inclusive Policy (CSSEIP) was founded in 2009. It performs research into social exclusion, focusing on digital exclusion, housing and basic amenities exclusion, socio-cultural and structural determinants of exclusion, spatial exclusion, and demographic dimensions of exclusion.

Women's Studies Centre

The Women's Studies Centre (WSC) was started in 2010 with financial assistance from the University Grants Commission with a view to build up Women's capacity for empowerment. Since then the centre has been striving hard to achieve the goals. The centre has conducted numerous seminars and outreach programmes.

Tech Fest Incident in 2023

The CUSAT stampede was a fatal incident that occurred on 25 November 2023, at the CUSAT in Kochi, Kerala. Four students died and 64 others were injured when a crowd of people tried to enter an open-air auditorium where a concert by singer Nikhita Gandhi was about to begin, as part of the university's annual tech festival 'Dhishna'. The concert was organized in collaboration with Realme, a smartphone brand. The stampede was triggered by a sudden rain and a lack of proper crowd management, as only those with passes and 'Dhishna' T-shirts were allowed inside the auditorium, which had a single entrance/exit gate.

Notable alumni

• Ameer Shahul, Author and environmentalist
• Sunil Thomas, Honorable Judge, High court of Kerala
• Mary Joseph, Honorable Judge, High court of Kerala
• Tom Jose, Chief Secretary, Government of Kerala
• Appu Krishnan, musician
• Roshan Mathew, actor
• B. Ravi Pillai, industrialist, business tycoon
• Shanker Ramakrishnan, director
• Roopesh, Maoist Leader
• Sabu Thomas, Vice chancellor, MG University, Kottayam
• Roxy Mathew Koll, Climate Scientist
• Madhu Vasudevan, professor, lyricist

Binoy Viswam, Politician, ex-member of Parliament, Former Forest & Wildlife Minister.

Sebastian Paul, Politician

Ashiq Usman, film producer, actor

Эх сурвалж: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)