The renowned educational organization ‘Mannar Thirumalai Naicker College’, Madurai has created a niche on the educational map of South India. It is a unique alma mater and has shaped a galaxy of eminent men and women shining in various realms of life in India and abroad. This educational epitome was established by the untiring efforts of the philanthropic organization, ‘Tamilnadu Naidu MahajanaSangam’, “under the patronage of like-minded patrons” in 1974 for the welfare, benefit and development of the educationally and economically backward Telugu speaking Naidu minority community.
The college has been christened with the name of ‘Mannar Thirumalai Naicker’, the most notable king of this region of the ancient past who has left a rich legacy and heritage to the city of Madurai, whose dictum was “To rule is to serve”. Undoubtedly, this dictum is carried forward by the college over the span of forty-five years nurturing the young minds to educate and live strong in the macrocosm taking with them the efficacy of the college ‘Mannar Thirumalai Naicker’.
The former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Dr.KalaingarM.Karunanidhi inaugurated the college on 18th August, 1974 and the foundation for the college building was laid by Cavalier Mr.G.K.Devarajulu Naidu. The College which had initially operated at ‘Shri Rama Villas Mandapam’ in Shenoy Nagar, Madurai, with 153 students and was shifted to its own sprawling premises in Pasumalai on 4thSeptember 1979.It is befitting to bring to concern at this juncture that the Central Government allotted 24.52 acres of land adjoining National Highway for the expansion of this college. Fortunately, the State Government allotted 7.31 acres of land for the development of the college. However, the credit of initiating the allotment of land from the central and state governments goes to late Mr.K.Rajaram Naidu, Former Minister and the Speaker of the Assembly of Tamil Nadu.
With all the initiations, it became a bountiful privilege that the college has been included in the list of colleges which have been affiliated permanently under section 2(f) and 12 (B) of the UGC Act, 1956 vie appendix. Following the decorum, our college was upgraded to the status of imparting graduate program to the students from the academic year 1979-80 that it became the pioneering institution to open the doors of higher education to the women students in the city providing opportunities to pursue higher education along with their male counterparts in the early eighties. Foremost, our college has been rendering significant service to the society by fulfilling the aspirations of thousands of first generation learners which made the institution witness an exponential growth in the last four decades.
Remarkably, the resolute efforts taken by the present management of our college, nearly 3 lakhs sq. feet of buildings were built in a very short span of time for the academic and administrative benefit of the officials and of the students. It is a phenomenal milestone in the growth of our college. The members of the management along with the teaching and non- teaching staff are wholeheartedly committed to the task of making the institution, one of the most sought after colleges in the city of Madurai. Nevertheless, the perseverance of the management, the hard work of the members of the teaching staff and non-teaching with the cooperation of the students has paid rich dividends for a grand futurity and propensity.
The college instituted self-financing courses in the year 1998-1999. At present, the college offers 22 Under Graduate programs, 8 Post Graduate programs and 5 Ph.D programs on varied disciplines of interest to the students. The college has five research departments which widen the research ambience of the scholars and the faculties of Commerce, English, Mathematics, Tamil and Physics.
More so, the institution has built a good understanding with University Grants Commission, philanthropists from the community and the Members of Parliament and Assembly and benefits crores of funds to strengthen the infrastructure of the campus. The paramount structure is our library building that covers an area of 51, 662 sq. feet, which houses the library in the ground floor with departments, classrooms and conference halls in the rest of the three floors. This huge palace like a structure has been constructed owing to the sacrificial initiatives and commitment of the present management. Our library has a computerized central system with a barcoding facility which houses about 61370 books and 46 Journals 15 Magazines. The salient feature of our library is the vast reading hall which can accommodate about 150 students at a time. Picturesque stone benches have been erected under the cool and shadowy trees in front of the library building for the academic advantage of the students. Arrangements have been made to provide safe drinking water with RO facility at vantage points of the campus.
Further, the administrative block which abodes a magnificent office of the Controller of Examinations, Dean’s office, Valuation Halls in the ground floor along with classrooms in the first, Second and third floors have been constructed in an expanse of 74753 sq.feet. This block is the crowning glory of the institution and stands as an eloquent testimony to the devotion of the management. There are hundred well-furnished class rooms with very good ventilation and a huge auditorium equipped with spectacular seating arrangements to accommodate more than 2000 delegates ingrained with efficient lighting system and acoustics. However, the institution can also boast of a playground encompassing a sprawling area of 7.48 acres having the facilities of 400mts standard track, multipurpose cricket ground, cricket nets, football field, kabaddi, kho-kho, volley ball and badminton courts.
No institution can be a holistic wholeness without an eatery, a place where students gather to freshen and satiate their appetite. It’s for this reason two hygienic canteens function within the campus providing nutritive food at nominal charges to the happiness of the students of the college. Being in the digital world, it is noteworthy to bring to focus the presence of well-structured modern conference halls, smart classrooms, digital language lab, fitness centre, health centre, net café in the campus provisioning comfort zone of academic performances for students. Apart from all the modernization, the campus has well-built structured buildings with modern amenities encompassing a women’s hostel, a student amenity centre along with exclusive office rooms for Controller of Examinations, Deans of Arts, Science, Research, Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC) along with 6 Computer labs comprising 534 systems, 6 Servers, 100 Projectors and 36 WiFi points with 100mbps of Wi-Fi and lane-lines being the infrastructure facilities which make our institution a ‘state of art’ of the region.
As like any other colleges of the area, our college owns a bus for the help of the rural students of the adjacent areas of the college. Besides, transport facility has been arranged exclusively for women students and TNSTC plies a few buses for them from the campus to key destinations.
University Grants Commission has granted Autonomy in 2015-16 and it paves the way for having not only the academic freedom but also the flexibility in functioning at all levels. At present, 3,597 students are pursuing higher education, are being served by 188 Teaching Staff and 88 Administrative Staff, working with commitment and devotion to scale the institution on par excellence with the best institutions of the state.