Union Christian College, Aluva (known as UC College) is a college affiliated to
Mahatma Gandhi University,
Kottayam
Kottayam () is a municipal town in the Indian state of Kerala. Flanked by the Western Ghats on the east and the Vembanad Lake and paddy fields of Kuttanad on the west. It is the district headquarters of Kottayam district, located in south-we ...
.
It is one of the earliest colleges in India to be established and managed by Indian Christians. It was founded in 1921 by four young graduates and teachers of Madras Christian College - Prof. K. C. Chacko, Prof. C. P. Mathew, Prof. V. M. Ittiyerah and Prof. A. M. Varki. It is situated by the banks of
Periyar (river)
Periyar, , (meaning: ''big river'') is the longest river and the river with the largest discharge potential in the Indian state of Kerala. It is one of the few perennial rivers in the region and provides drinking water for several major towns. ...
in
Aluva
Aluva (; also known by its former name Alwaye) is a town in the Ernakulam District in Kerala, India. It is a part of the Kochi metropolitan area and is situated around from the city center on the banks of Periyar River. A major transpor ...
(Alwaye),
Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
.
History
The founders of the college were graduates of the Madras Christian College where they were contemporaries of
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (; 5 September 1888 – 17 April 1975), natively Radhakrishnayya, was an Indian philosopher and statesman. He served as the 2nd President of India from 1962 to 1967. He also 1st Vice President of India from 1952 ...
, the distinguished Indian Philosopher, academician and statesman, and the second President of India. They increasingly felt the need to establish a college in
Travancore
The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. At ...
on the lines of their alma mater, but with a commitment to ideals of Christian ecumenism and national reconstruction.
![UC-collage-Aluva](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/UC-collage-Aluva.jpg)
The decision to establish a college was taken at a time when the churches in Travancore were involved in various legal and property disputes and would not see eye to eye. It was felt that the college would be able to bring the feuding churches together and enable it to witness the love of Christ in Indian society. The founders of the college also expected the college to contribute towards national reconstruction on the lines of national education that personalities like
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
and
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
envisioned. In fact, Gandhi visited the college in 1925 on his way to
Vaikom Satyagraha
Vaikom Satyagraha, from 30 March 1924 to 23 November 1925, was a Nonviolence, nonviolent agitation for access to the prohibited public environs of the Vaikom Sree Mahadeva Temple, Vaikom Temple in the Travancore, Kingdom of Travancore. Kingdom o ...
and wrote in the visitor's diary of the college: "Delighted with the ideal situation". Tagore too visited the college in 1922 and remarked about the striking resemblance of the college with his own institution,
Visva-Bharati
Visva-Bharati () is a public central university and an Institution of National Importance located in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, India. It was founded by Rabindranath Tagore who called it ''Visva-Bharati'', which means the communion of the w ...
, in Shantinikethan.
The college began in an old court house situated in the 18 acres of land donated by
Moolam Thirunal
Sir Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma (1857–1924) was Maharajah of the princely state of Travancore between 1885 and 1924, succeeding his uncle Maharajah Visakham Thirunal (1880–1885).
Early life and education
Mulam Thirunal Rama Varma was bor ...
Rama Varma, the Maharaja of Travancore with the financial support of well wishers. It began as a residential college with 63 students enrolled in the Junior Intermediate Class in Group III, and was affiliated to the Madras University.
The college was elevated as a first grade college under University of Madras in July 1923 and it is the first non-government college in Kerala to achieve that status.
The academic life of the college was envisioned on the lines of the traditional gurukula system of education. The founders sought to make the college rooted in the best of what the eastern tradition represented and ‘keep the college near to the spirit and genius of our people.’ At the same time, they were keen to keep its doors and windows open ‘to profit from the best counsel that western educational experience can provide’, especially its ‘humanistic and liberal tradition.’ Needless to say, it is this spirit of owning one’s own civilization yet being open to ‘cultures of all lands’ that drew the attention of personalities like Gandhi and Tagore to the college.
The only missionary society to have co-operated with this Indian initiative in higher education was the
Church Missionary Society
The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British mission society working with the Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as mission ...
(CMS) who had various mission centres in Travancore. The CMS missionaries who associated with the college as teaching faculty included Canon W. E. S. Holland, L. W. Hooper, B. G. Crowley,
Stephen Neill
Stephen Charles Neill (1900–1984Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions, p. 488.) was a British Anglican bishop, missionary and scholar. He was proficient in a number of languages, including Ancient Greek, Latin and Tamil. He went to Trini ...
. Well known English journalist and satirist,
Malcolm Muggeridge
Thomas Malcolm Muggeridge (24 March 1903 – 14 November 1990) was an English journalist and satirist. His father, H. T. Muggeridge, was a socialist politician and one of the early Labour Party (UK), Labour Party Members of Parliament (for Romfo ...
taught at the college for a brief period. The college also received much encouragement from Dr William Skinner and Dr E. M. Macphail, both principals of Madras Christian College, and Dr L. P. Larsen, the well known Danish theologian and missionaries.
Present Status
![UC college, Aluva](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/UC_college%2C_Aluva.jpg)
Today, the college has become a first grade college with about 2200 students, enrolled in 14 graduate and 14 postgraduate courses in diverse disciplines. The college is now affiliated to the Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, with eight of its departments being Research Centres recognized by the university, providing guidance and resources to more than 120 research scholars. It is one of the two colleges that went in for the first cycle of NAAC accreditation in 1999 and received five star accreditation. It had completed the fourth cycle of accreditation in 2017 with an A grade (3.47 score). It had also been awarded an A grade during the last cycle.
Administration
The College is owned and administered by the Association and its Standing Council, which is constituted of representatives of the Inter Church Fellowship (ICF), an association of the permanent Christian members of the faculty who belong to the co-operating Churches and representatives of the four cooperating churches. The association elects the Board of Directors; the Standing Council runs the administration of the College through its Governing Board/Executive Committee. ICF ensures the participation of the faculty in the governance of the College and also carry forward the legacy of the founding fathers.
Notable Landmarks
Kacheri Malika is a three-storey building situated in the heart of the campus. In the beginning of 19th Century, this was a European Bungalow. From 1811-1896, it was used as a Zilla court of the
Travancore
The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. At ...
state. It was one of the five ''kacheries'' (courts) built in AD 1811 during the reign of
Maharani Gowri Lakshmi Bhai. Thereafter, till it was gifted to the college, it remained abandoned. It is built on a hill top known as Kacheri Kunnu and when it was a kacheri, the access to this hill was only by ferry. The ferry would be stationed at what was called Kacheri Kadavu. The architecture of the Kacheri Malika is a blend of Dutch, British and Indian styles. The structure, flooring, wood work of this building have been kept intact. In 1993, the
Government of Kerala
Government of Kerala is the subnational government of the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision ...
declared Kacheri Malika as a protected monument.
The Chapel is situated behind the Kacheri Malika. It is a place of worship that incorporates important aspects of both Eastern and Western traditions of Christianity. It is symbolic of the ecumenical tradition that the college embraces. The chapel was designed by Rev George Edward Hubbard in February 1940.
The mango tree situated in front of the administrative block was planted by Mahatma Gandhi during his visit to the college in 1925.
Mahaganitham is a sculpture commemorating the large mahogany tree that stood in front of the Kacheri Malika. The tree was struck by a lightning in 2002 and the remnants of it was designed as Mahaganitham. 'Maha' signifies the Mahogany tree and 'ganitham'
Mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
. Concepts like the Golden ratio and Fibonacci series are used in the design. More than thousand mathematical entities and geometrical shapes are engraved in the sculpture. The five
Platonic
Plato's influence on Western culture was so profound that several different concepts are linked by being called Platonic or Platonist, for accepting some assumptions of Platonism, but which do not imply acceptance of that philosophy as a whole. It ...
bodies - tetrahedron, hexahedron, octahedron, dodecahedron and icosahedron - are present in it. An iron bell, which was used during the early period of the college, is also a part of the sculpture.
Notable alumni
*
Philipose Mar Chrysostom
Philipose Mar Chrysostom Mar Thoma XX Valiya Metropolitan, (born Philip Oommen; 27 April 1918 – 5 May 2021) was an Indian prelate who served as Metropolitan of the Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church from 1999-2007 and Valiya Thirumeni (Metropol ...
Valiya Metropolitan
*
Adv. A.T. Markose
Anithottam Thomas Markose (20 June 1920 – 15 October 1977), was an Indian jurist at the International Labour Organization and a pioneering figure in legal studies in India. He was the Founder Director of Indian Law Institute (1957–1963) a ...
, Jurist, Law Professor
*
Paravoor T. K. Narayana Pillai, last
Prime Minister of Travancore
The chief minister of Kerala is the chief executive of the Indian state of Kerala. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minister. Fol ...
and the first
Chief Minister of Travancore-Cochin
Chief may refer to:
Title or rank
Military and law enforcement
* Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force
* Chief of police, the head of a police department
* Chief of the boa ...
*
P. K. Vasudevan Nair
Padayatt Kesavapillai Vasudevan Nair (2 March 1926 – 12 July 2005), popularly known as PKV, was the 9th Chief Minister of Kerala and a senior leader of the Communist Party of India (CPI). He was elected to the Lok Sabha four times, in 1957, ...
, Communist politician and former
Chief Minister of Kerala
The chief minister of Kerala is the chief executive of the Indian state of Kerala. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minister. Fol ...
*
Nitya Chaitanya Yati
Nitya Chaitanya Yati (2 November 1924 – 14 May 1999) was an Indian philosopher, psychologist, author and poet, best known for his commentaries on Advaita Vedanta as well as his literary criticisms. He was a disciple of Nataraja Guru, the succe ...
, Philosopher and Writer
*
NF Varghese
Nadakkaparambil Francis Varghese (6 January 1950 – 19 June 2002) was an Indian actor who worked in Malayalam film industry. He began his career as a mimicry artist in Kalabhavan, acting in minor roles, but later he turned to strong villain rol ...
, Actor
*
*
Sathaar
Sathaar (25 May 1948 – 17 September 2019) was an Indian actor who primarily worked in Malayalam films. He made his acting debut with M. Krishnan Nair's ''Bharyaye Avashyamundu'' (1975). He became a hero in 1976 with ''Anaavaranam'', directe ...
, Actor
*
Lijo Jose Pellissery
Lijo Jose Pellissery (born 18 September 1978) is an Indian filmmaker and actor who works in Malayalam cinema. Known for his unconventional approach in directing, his films are characterized by nonlinear storylines and very long takes. His best ...
, Director
*
Baburaj (actor)
Baburaj Jacob, mononymously known as Baburaj, is an Indian actor, director, and screenwriter who works predominantly in Malayalam cinema and has also appeared in Tamil, Telugu, and Hindi films. He began and established his career in cinema by ...
, Actor
*
Vineeth Mohan
Vineeth Mohan. is a Malayalam film actor, he made his debut in ''Memories''. He acted in ''Peruchazhi'', ''Aadu'', Aadu 2, Adi Kapyare Kootamani. He is more popular for his roles in ''Aadu'', ''Adi Kapyare Kootamani'' and Aadu 2. He also act ...
, actor
*
A. Jayashankar
*
Malayattoor Ramakrishnan
K. V. Ramakrishna Iyer, better known by his pen name, Malayattoor Ramakrishnan (27 May 1927 – 27 December 1997), was an Indian writer of Malayalam literature, cartoonist, lawyer, judicial magistrate, and Indian Administrative Service (IAS) of ...
*
Mathukkutty, RJ, TV Host
*
Kalabhavan Rahman
Kalabhavan Rahman is a Malayalam film actor in Kerala.
Career
Rahman started his film acting career in 1986 with a unimportant role. Reghunath Paleri directed the title Onnu Muthal Poojyam Vare. He hails from Aluva in Kerala. Rahman is alu ...
, Actor
In popular culture
2015 released Malayalam movie
Premam
''Premam'' (transl. Love) is a 2015 Indian Malayalam-language coming of age romance film written and directed by Alphonse Puthren. Produced by Anwar Rasheed, it features Nivin Pauly and Sai Pallavi in the prominent roles. The plot follows Geor ...
shooting took place in UC College, Aluva
References
{{Christianity in Kerala
Christian universities and colleges in India
Colleges affiliated to Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala
Arts and Science colleges in Kerala
Universities and colleges in Ernakulam district
Educational institutions established in 1921
1921 establishments in India
Aluva
Academic institutions formerly affiliated with the University of Madras