In a first, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan inaugurated the country's first Digital University at Technocity in Mangalapuram on Saturday named – Kerala University of Digital Sciences, Innovation and Technology (KUDSIT).
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the Governor unveiled the plaque through videoconferencing and addressed the inaugural event with the latter saying that the university would provide a driving force to Kerala's dream of becoming the digital powerhouse of India as well as a global hub of digital activity.
Khan further expressed optimism that the university would play a significant role in adopting technology to enable the State to keep pace with the fourth Industrial Revolution that had witnessed technologies, including Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Data Analytics, Robotics and Bio-computing, transforming lives and disrupting conventional models of work and business.
The university would spark a digital transformation that would provide access to world-class facilities to "think digital, innovate digital and act digital," he added.
The Digital University in Kerala has been set up by upgrading the two-decade-old Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management – Kerala (IIITM – K) through an ordinance promulgated in January 2020. Developed on a 10-acre campus in Technocity, the university will provide education to 12,000 residential scholars on the campus and many technology-linked learners outside.
Further, the university will offer master-level programmes in computer science, informatics, applied electronics and humanities with various specialisations. It has set its sights on establishing specialised centres in various avenues, including Blockchain, ArtificiaI Intelligence and Machine Learning, Robotics, Cyber Security, Big Data Analytics and Geospatial Analytics in collaboration with international academic, research and industry bodies.
