Universities should focus on research, not politics, says Kerala Agriculture Minister
Kerala Agriculture Minister T. Siddique has urged universities to prioritize research over political activities to improve academic quality. The University of Calicut is responding by planning a special academic zone to attract international students and foster interdisciplinary studies.
Why it matters
The debate over the role of politics in higher education is a significant factor in the academic development and brain drain issues facing Indian universities.
Agriculture Minister T. Siddique has said that universities should focus more on research works than political activities.
He was at the University of Calicut campus at Tenhipalam in Malappuram district on Thursday (July 23, 2026) to open its 58 th founding day celebrations. Mr. Siddique said a university should not confine its role into a “factory producing certificates” but develop itself as a centre churning out graduates who are knowledge carriers. He urged the university authorities to look back and correct the mistakes that could have happened in the past decades.
T.V. Ibrahim, MLA, was the chief guest at the event. Vice-Chancellor P. Raveendran said the university was planning to set up a special academic zone on the main campus where at least 30,000 students, including those from other countries, could be able to pursue their studies. Interdisciplinary and multi-disciplinary courses too would be launched, he added.
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