The Kerala Agricultural University has been awarded the SARDAR PATEL OUTSTANDING ICAR INSTITUTION AWARD for the year 2003. The award is given annually to one State Agricultural University for the best performance in agricultural research, extension and education.

                                                                                     
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The Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) was established on 24 February 1971, to give the much-needed impetus for agricultural development in the State through education and research. The founding fathers perceived the University as an organization for “providing human resources, skills and technology required for the sustainable development of Kerala’s agriculture including crop production, animal husbandry, forestry and fishery by integrating education and research, by piloting their large-scale field adoption with supporting extension activities.

Agriculture in the state is confronted with several problems such as low productivity of crops and low returns/ profitability, topographic peculiarities, high rainfall intensities, accelerated soil erosion etc. Although challenges are daunting, especially in view of the abundant biophysical resources, physiographic heterogeneity, changing social fabric of the society and the mounting environmental concerns, the academic and research programmes of KAU have been designed to address these problems and the dilemmas of the twenty-first century, signified by globalisation, liberalization and international competition.

The KAU has been striving to fulfill its commitment by reorienting and restructuring its programmes. In bachelor’s level education, professionalism has been fortified with entrepreneurship; and at the post graduate level, training imparted in emerging areas integrating relevant disciplines. The KAU secured the first position among 34 State Agricultural University (SAUs) in India in the All India Examination held in agriculture and allied subjects for the Junior/Senior Research Fellowships, conducted during the year 2002 and 2003 by the ICAR. The KAU was also ranked first in the Third Agricultural University Youth Festival (AGRIUNIFEST) organised at Thrissur, in which 12 SAUs participated, implying its eminence in co-curricular activities too. The Centre for Plant Biotechnology & Molecular Biology (CPBMB), College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara was awarded the Biotech Product & Process Development and Commercialisation Award for the year 2003.

The mantra of this current era is ‘”job placement”. Career preparation is widely seen as the function of higher education. Several of the KAU alumni have gained entry into the civil service, agricultural research service etc. Furthermore, the Kerala Agricultural University has been instrumental in providing the intellectual foundation and training in scientific experimentation through its graduate and postgraduate programmes to a visible quantity of internationally known professional and scientists in agriculture and allied fields.