Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (Kufos) here will set up a Marine Biology Centre (MBC–L) at Kavaratti, Lakshadweep.
The proposed centre will function as a spoke institution under Vertical 6 of the Deep Ocean Mission — Advanced Marine Station for Ocean Biology — conceptualised by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES).
A recent meeting of the varsity’s governing council approved the project in recognition of its academic and research linkages with the Union Territory of Lakshadweep and in response to requests from the administrative departments, according to a release issued here.
The new centre will host state-of-the-art laboratories for marine genomics, coral restoration, and blue biotechnology, along with coastal and offshore field research stations for long-term ecological monitoring and community-based marine restoration initiatives involving local stakeholders, it says.
The council also approved the proposal to launch Four-Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUGP) and Five-Year Integrated Postgraduate Programmes (FYIPGP). The varsity will launch a FYUGP program on Climate and Data Science in association with Institute for Climate Change Studies (ICCS). The Director of Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad, a member of the governing council, has evinced interest to launch a programme in Operational Oceanography, according to the release.
It has been decided to formulate a research programme to identify areas with deep-sea fisheries resources, off the Kerala coast, using both satellite and oceanographic data monitoring. The university will launch a FYIPGP in Marine Sciences in association with the proposed MBC-L. The council has also accorded in-principle approval recognising ICAR-Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture (CIBA), Chennai, and ICCS, Kottayam, as research centre of the Kufos.
The council has decided to enhance the merit scholarship amount from ₹2,500 to ₹5,000 per semester, effective from the current academic year, it says.
Published – October 25, 2025 07:13 pm IST
