KVASU all set to go international

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The fledgling Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU) is eyeing overseas connections for improving academics and research opportunities. If things go as planned, KVASU, carved out of the state’s lone agricultural university, will sign MoUs with two US and a British universities shortly. KVASU is also pursuing collaborations with various other European and Canadian institutions.Discussions with University of Calgary and University of Connecticut in the US and University of Edinburgh, UK, are well ahead, KVASU Vice Chancellor B Ashok said. ‘’In the case of these universities, the discussions are in an advanced stage. Representatives from Calgary are scheduled to visit Kerala in September or October. We have reached the draft MoU stage with the Edinburgh University,’’ he said.  KVASU is also actively pursuing collaborations with the ONIRIS Veterinary School, France, as well as with the University of Ontario, Canada, and the Royal Veterinary College, London. ‘’What we are looking for is, faculty and student exchange and collaborations in research in animal husbandry. By January, we hope to send our first batch of trainees abroad,’’ Ashok said.KVASU is eyeing collaboration in genetics and cytogenetics with Edinburgh, wildlife and pharmacology with ONIRIS, pathology with Connecticut, wildlife medicine with the Royal Veterinary College and lab animal medicine with Ontario.KVASU is headquartered at Pookode in Wayanad district and was formed by chipping away Kerala Agricultural University institutions including College of Veterinray Animal Sciences and College of Dairy Science and Technology, Mannuthy, and the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Pookode. KVASU is planning new schools for animal production and biotechnology, bio-energy and farm waste management, zoonoses and public health, pathobiological sciences, new media and research, avian sciences, instrumentation engineering and ethno pharmacology.Post-graduate programmes in veterinary pathology, clinical veterinary medicine, veterinary public health, animal husbandry extension and veterinary surgery will be started the next academic year. As a kick-off gift, the Centre had awarded a Rs 100-crore grant to KVASU and the university had also cornered Rs 44.48 crore from NABARD under the Rural and Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF).