26/12/2025
College since its inception
Thiagarajar College founded on 7th July 1949, was formally inaugurated on 12th October 1949 by His Excellency, the King of Bhavnagar, the then Governor of the Madras State. In the inaugural function, the founder, Karumuttu Thiagarajan Chettiar, described this college as a “Small and Humble Endeavour in Education”. It is said that as the mathematical equation 7 x 7 = 49 will remain unchanged forever, the college will also remain immortal on the sands of eternity, as it was opened on 07.07.1949.
From its inception, the college remains one of the premier institutions in Madurai. The college was started with only three undergraduate courses but now has grown in its stature with 28 UG, 12 PG and 11 M.Phil and 10 Ph.D Programmes in addition to 13 diploma and 16 Certificate courses. The college is a private and aided co-educational institution affiliated to Madurai Kamaraj University. It is meticulously managed by Kalaithanthai Karumuttu Thiagarajan Chettiar Memorial Trust. The motto of the college is “Wisdom and Love embody the Divine”.
The college has come a very long way from the time of its inception, with the significant contribution of the founder, the great philanthropist Karumuttu Thiagarajan Chettiar and the committed service and support of the members of his family, late Dr. Mrs. Radha Thiagarajan (then Emeritus President), Mr. Karumuttu T. Kannan (The President), Dr. Mrs. Uma Kannan (The Vice President) and Mr. K. Thiagarajan (The Secretary).
The focal point of the college is employability along with academic excellence and character development. It aims at providing quality education, fostering excellence in research and promoting academic inquiry. The Institution was upgraded as an autonomous institution in 1987. It was first accredited with Five Stars by National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) in 2001 and was re-accredited with ’A’ Grade in 2007 and again re-accredited with ‘A’ Grade in the third cycle in January 2013.
NAAC has recognised our college as one of the high performing institutions and has extended the accreditation validity period from 5 to 7 years.
The college has been selected to receive grants for a National Centre of Excellence facility by MHRD, New Delhi for Interdisciplinary research and training in Bio-resource Management involving the departments of Mathematics, Zoology and Botany and has received a grant of Rs. 2.00 crores during the period 2014-16.
UGC approved Women’s Studies Centre under the chairmanship of the Vice President Dr. (Mrs.) Uma Kannan,is offering certificate courses on Women’s Health and Fitness and Life Skills for Women. The Centre is organizing programmes on the focal themes of Women and Health, Women and Environment & Women Entrepreneurship.
The Tamil Music Research Centre offers Certificate and Diploma courses in Vocal, Mirudhangam, Veena and Bharathanatyam under the aegis of Tamilnadu Music and Fine Arts University.
The teaching-learning process being student centric, the curriculum endeavours to integrate knowledge with skill which sustains an environment of learning and creativity. Learning is accentuated with students’ participation in project work, hands-on training, internship and e-learning. The learning process is more student-friendly through modern teaching aids and ICT tools.
The College plays a proactive role in establishing our culture in a multi-faceted dimension. The College provides a conducive ambience to carry out the research projects. Faculty members submit research proposals and receive grants from various funding agencies like UGC, DST, CSIR, DRDO, MoEF, MHRD, TNSCST, DBT, CICT, MoES etc. The college has been a member of UGC-NLIST programme from the since 2010. The faculty and research scholars utilize this facility for their research. Our College is a part of the Cluster colleges selected by CII (Confederation of Indian Industry, New Delhi). Inter-disciplinary research is another healthy activity of the campus, where, research guidance and publication take place involving departments of related fields.
The College is associated with organizations like National Taipei University of technology, Taiwan, Birla Institute of Technology, Goa Campus, M.S. Chellamuthu Trust, Madurai, IICT, Hyderabad, AIRC, Chennai, ICWAI, Calcutta and CECRI, Karaikudi for research and with PARD, Madurai, AKASH, Madurai and Rotary International, USA for outreach programmes, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), ICT Academy, RedHat Academy. The college has adopted Puliankulam Village for carrying out all the extension activities. The Department of Economics receives studentship grants from M&EA Trust, Department of Econometrics, University of Madras for undertaking PG Projects. The Department of Chemistry offers consultancy services for FTIR, UV and water analysis as well as Molecular Modelling to the students, teachers, researchers and industries in Tamil Nadu.
Every student is expected to enroll oneself in either Physical Education, NCC (Army/ Navy) or NSS for committed community service. The cultural programmes of the fine arts club provide an opportunity for the students to hone their histrionic skills. The Training and Placement Cell along with Career Guidance Cell and the TECA Forum ensure that all the students get trained in personality development and soft skills. Rotract Club, Youth Red Cross Society, Nature Club, Girl Students’ Counselling Cell, Blood Donors Club, First Aid Cell, Value Education, Social Service League, Quality Circle and Library book club are the various clubs actively functioning to ensure overall development of the students. With 5925 Life Members, the vibrant Thiagarajar College Alumni Charitable Trust is associated with the various development activities of the college under the benevolent leadership of the illustrious alumnus, President Thiru. Karumuttu T. Kannan.
