# Rajagiri in Kalamassery: From 1955 to a Multi-Campus Group

> Rajagiri College of Social Sciences began in 1955 with a Diploma in Social Service and grew into an autonomous college on Rajagiri Hill in Kalamassery, run by the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate (CMI). Around it, as of October 2026, sit a business school and an engineering college at Kakkanad and a hospital near Aluva. This page traces those dates from the institutions’ own pages and Wikipedia.

- URL: https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/rajagiri-kalamassery-history/
- Publisher: Ashraf Gents Hostel, Ashraf house, NAD Rd, signal, Kalamassery, Aluva, Kerala 683563, India (+91 90746 23855)
- Published: 2026-10-08 · Updated: 2026-10-08
- Topic: History & archive
- Cite as: Ashraf Gents Hostel. “Rajagiri in Kalamassery: From 1955 to a Multi-Campus Group.” Published 8 October 2026. https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/rajagiri-kalamassery-history/

## Key facts

- Rajagiri College of Social Sciences began in 1955 with a Diploma in Social Service, first under the University of Madras.
- Wikipedia says the college was accredited to offer degrees in Social Work under the University of Kerala in 1960; it later moved to Mahatma Gandhi University.
- The University Grants Commission granted the college academic autonomy on 13 June 2014, according to RCBS; Rajagiri’s annual reports give the effective date as 1 June 2014.
- The college says it was re-accredited by NAAC with an A++ grade (CGPA 3.83/4) in 2021.
- Rajagiri School of Engineering & Technology at Kakkanad was founded in 2001 and Rajagiri Hospital near Aluva in 2014, according to Wikipedia.

## The beginning: social work in 1955

Rajagiri’s story in Kalamassery starts with social work, not management or engineering. According to the college, Rajagiri College of Social Sciences (RCSS) started in **1955** with a **Diploma in Social Service** and later launched what it describes as Kerala’s first **Master of Social Work (MSW)**. The Personnel Management and Industrial Relations stream of that MSW later became a programme of its own, now the MA in Human Resource Management.

The college is run by the **Carmelites of Mary Immaculate (CMI)**, the religious congregation that traces its inspiration to the 19th-century reformer St. Kuriakose Elias Chavara. Its first affiliation was to the **University of Madras**. Wikipedia records that in **1960** it was accredited to offer Social Work degrees under the **University of Kerala**. The college says it moved to **Mahatma Gandhi University**, Kottayam, after 1986.

That emphasis fitted its surroundings. In the 1950s and 1960s Kalamassery and Eloor were filling with factories (see [Kalamassery’s industrial history](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/kalamassery-industrial-history/) and [Udyogamandal’s history](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/udyogamandal-history/)). Labour welfare officers, personnel managers and social workers were in demand, and Rajagiri trained many of them.

## Timeline

| Date | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1955 | College begins with a Diploma in Social Service, under the University of Madras | Rajagiri: About the institution; Wikipedia |
| 1960 | Accredited to offer Social Work degrees under the University of Kerala | Wikipedia |
| After 1986 | Affiliation moves to Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam | Rajagiri: About the institution |
| 2001 | Rajagiri School of Engineering & Technology founded at Kakkanad | Wikipedia (RSET) |
| 1 or 13 Jun 2014 | UGC grants academic autonomy (sources give both dates) | RCBS autonomy page; Rajagiri annual reports |
| 2014 | Rajagiri Hospital established near Aluva | Wikipedia (Rajagiri Hospital) |
| 2015 | New autonomous programmes (BCA, B.Com, integrated MSLIS, M.Phil Social Work) start | RCBS autonomy page |
| 2020 | RSET granted autonomous status by UGC | Wikipedia (RSET) |
| 2021 | RCSS re-accredited by NAAC with A++ (CGPA 3.83) | Rajagiri home page |
| 2024 | NIRF ranks RCSS 20th among colleges | Wikipedia |
| 2025 | College reports an NIRF 2025 rank of 12th | Rajagiri home page |

## Autonomy and the two campuses

RCSS became **autonomous** in **2014**, which allowed it to write its own syllabi and run its own examinations while staying affiliated to MG University. Two Rajagiri sources give slightly different dates. The Rajagiri Centre for Business Studies (RCBS) says the UGC granted autonomy on **13 June 2014**, while the college’s annual reports say autonomy took effect from **1 June 2014**. Both agree on the year.

After autonomy, the college says it added **BCA, B.Com, an integrated MSLIS and an M.Phil in Social Work in 2015**, taught across its two campuses. The **Hill campus** is at Rajagiri P.O., Kalamassery; OpenStreetMap places it about 4.8 km south-west of the NAD Road signal. The **Valley campus**, home to the business programmes, is at Kakkanad, about 10 km away according to the college. We found no published date for when the Valley campus opened.

## The wider Rajagiri group

The name “Rajagiri” now covers several CMI institutions that people often mix up. Wikipedia says **Rajagiri School of Engineering & Technology (RSET)** was founded in **2001**, is affiliated to APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University and became **autonomous in 2020**. It is a separate college at Kakkanad, not part of the Kalamassery campus. **Rajagiri Hospital**, also CMI-run, was established in **2014** at Chunangamvely near Aluva, in the Edathala area (Wikipedia; some directories give other years). Rajagiri’s home page also lists schools, but we could not verify their founding dates from primary sources, so they are not in the timeline.

> The hospital’s bed count varies between sources (Wikipedia gives 570). We have not used any figure as a current fact.

## Rankings and accreditation

As of October 2026 the college’s home page shows an **A++** NAAC grade from **2021** with a CGPA of 3.83 out of 4. On NIRF, Wikipedia records a **20th** place among colleges in **2024**, and the college reports **12th** in **2025**. Rankings change every year, so treat them as snapshots rather than fixed facts.

For daily life near the Hill campus, see [Men’s Stay near Rajagiri College of Social Sciences](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/hostel-near-rajagiri-kalamassery/). Neighbouring histories include [St. Paul’s College](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/st-pauls-college-kalamassery-history/), [CUSAT](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/cusat-history-timeline/) and [Model Engineering College](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/model-engineering-college-history/).

## Why it matters near the NAD signal

Rajagiri shows how Kalamassery’s colleges grew alongside its factories, starting with labour welfare and moving into management, engineering and healthcare. Students, interns and hospital staff from the group sometimes look for rooms north of the campus. Ashraf Gents Hostel at the NAD Road signal is a men-only option for monthly or per-night stays. Rates are indicative and confirmed on WhatsApp (+91 90746 23855). Browse the full [Kalamassery history archive](https://ashrafgentspghostel.adserr.com/kalamassery-history-archive/) for related pages.

## Frequently asked questions

**When was Rajagiri College of Social Sciences founded?**

In 1955, when it began a Diploma in Social Service. It later introduced what it describes as Kerala’s first MSW programme.

**Who runs Rajagiri?**

The Carmelites of Mary Immaculate (CMI), a Catholic religious congregation.

**When did Rajagiri become autonomous?**

In June 2014. The college’s RCBS page gives 13 June 2014 as the date of the UGC grant, and its annual reports give 1 June 2014 as the effective date.

**Is RSET on the Kalamassery campus?**

No. Rajagiri School of Engineering & Technology, founded in 2001, is a separate college at Kakkanad.

**What is Rajagiri’s NAAC grade?**

The college says it was re-accredited with A++ (CGPA 3.83/4) in 2021.

## Sources

- [Rajagiri: About the institution](https://www.rajagiri.edu/about-institution)
- [RCBS: Autonomous status](https://rcbs.rajagiri.edu/about/autonomous-status)
- [Rajagiri College of Social Sciences: Home page](https://www.rajagiri.edu/)
- [Wikipedia: Rajagiri College of Social Sciences](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rajagiri_College_of_Social_Sciences)
- [Wikipedia: Rajagiri School of Engineering & Technology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rajagiri_School_of_Engineering_%26_Technology)
- [Wikipedia: Rajagiri Hospital](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rajagiri_Hospital)

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