Mahatma Gandhi University, one of the major Universities in Kerala, is a premier educational institution that strives to fulfill the higher educational needs of the people of Central Kerala. Set on the sprawling 110-acre Priyadarsini Hills Campus at Athirampuzha, 13 km off Kottayam, the University also has two satellite campuses in Kottayam. The University was established on 2nd October 1983 and has jurisdiction over the revenue districts of Kottayam, Ernakulam, Idukki and parts of Pathanamthitta and Alappuzha. The University conducts a range of programmes at the Undergraduate, Postgraduate, M Phil and Doctoral levels through its 17 University Departments, 1 International and Inter-University Centre, 7 Inter-University Centres, 10 Inter School Centres, 77 Govt./Aided Affiliated Colleges including10 Autonomous Colleges (of which 8 are Colleges with Potential for Excellence), 200 Unaided Affiliated Colleges and 273 Recognized Research Centres. It imparts education in the interdisciplinary as well as conventional disciplines of Science, Social Science and Humanities besides in the professional disciplines of Engineering, Technology, Legal Studies, Pedagogy, Pharmacy and Nursing.