The year 2005 -2006 was named the Year of Seminars. The idea was to encourage new avenues of thought through discussion of topics of contemporary relevance. It was also a means of providing topics of research not only for the faculty but also for the students. Indeed these seminars did help in infusing an atmosphere of curiosity and intellectual discipline in our campus. The students were thrilled to be addressed in person by the people they had only so far read about. The seminars were on a wide range of issues like "Kerala Literature and Culture" to "Facts of Astronomy". Here are some of the highlights and salient points :

BOTANY

National Seminar on 'Conversation and Sustainable Utilization of Medicinal Plants' was held on 15 and 16 June 2005. This UGC sponsored venture was preceded by an exhibition on 14th June which showcased medicinal, ornamental and aquatic plants, rare pictures, flowers etc.

The seminar went on to make us realize the botanical wealth of the Malbar Coast, the value of traditional medicines, need for conservation of the same and the scope for cultivation of high value medicinal plants in Kerala. The need for conservation and further research into the possibilities of these plants were examined.

ZOOLOGY

'Chemical Safety in our Lives' held on 20th and 21st July 2006, was yet another UGC sponsored seminar. Organized by the Zoology Department, the seminar had as its resource persons eminent personalities lie Sri.Nithyananda Jayaram (CEM, Chennai), Sri.Sridhar R, (Zero Waste Centre, kovalam), Sri. Purushan Eloor(LEAC) etc. A movie entitled "Chemical Safety in our Lives" was also screened during this time.

Discussions went on at length about the level of pesticides in food, child care products, and the after effects of contamination. The resource persons as well as the audience concluded that the concept of zero waste would be the best, and the slogan,"convert waste into wealth" emerged.

LITERARY AND DEBATING ASSOCIATION

The Literary and Debating Association wing of the Department of English organized a National Worshop on 'Literature and Media', focussing on the interdependence between the two. Eminenet personalities like Mr.Shymaprasad (Film Director), Ms.Saraswati Nagarajan (The Hindu), Ms. Beena K.A (All India Radio), Mr.Radhkrishnan, were resource persons. The seminar was held in association with Mathrubhumi - a prominent Malayalam newspaper. The Malayalam movie "Akale" - an adaptation of Tennesse Williams's "Glass Menagerie", directed by Mr.Shyamaprasad, was also screened.

Issues such as fidelity of media to literature, the effectiveness of media, the role of newspapers and the current state of media reporting were debated upon passionately.

WOMEN'S STUDY CELL

The Women's Study Cell too organized a seminar on the very relevant topic of 'Violence and Women' in which the Inspector General of Police(Vigilance)

Mr. Sibi Mathew was the chief speaker. There was also a session on self-defense techniques. This shows that Women's Liberation has gone way beyond conventional ideas and the focus is on awareness of rights and the practical ways of defending oneself.

COMMERCE

The Value Added Tax or VAT created a furore in India. Kerala was one of the states that implemented VAT.In order to keep our students abreast with the intricasies of VAT, the Department of Commerce organized a seminar on VAT for which Dr.Ramalingam, faculty member of centre for Direct Taxation was the chief speaker.

PHYSICS

The Department of Physics organized a seminar on Computer Languages.

'Oceano Della Fisica' was an exhibition by the Department of Physics, celebrating the International Year of Physics.

MATHEMATICS

The Department organized a seminar on the 'Application of Mathematics'.Different aspects of Algebra, Real Analysis and Graph Theory were discussed.

The Department of Maths organized a National Seminar - 'Facts of Astronomy'- on 19 January,2006, sponsored by the Kerala Mathematics Association. Prominent speakers like Dr.A.R.Rajan and Dr.S.Madhavan were the resource persons.

MALAYALAM

The National Seminar on 'Kerala Literature and culture', sponsored by the UGC was held on 29th and 30th June, 2005 by the Department of Malayalam. A unique seminar, it combined the cultural scenario of Kerala with a demonstration of Kathakali - one of our most ancient dance forms.