About Banaskantha District Kelavani Mandal

Prior to Independence, Banaskantha, situated in northern Gujarat, was known as a backward and remote district with a large tribal population. Bordering its western boundary lies the desert area of Kutch and the district itself was prone to droughts; and its populace faced much hardship.

The inhabitants of Banaskantha had little access to education, and the means to bettering their lives. In 1948, there were only three schools in the district and no colleges for several years thereafter. The Banaskantha District Kelavani Mandal (BKDKM) was established in 1961 with an aim to uplift and educate the students of all castes and classes of Banaskantha, which was still an economically backward area. With hardly any funds and no buildings or infrastructure to speak of, BKDKM took the brave step of setting up the first degree college – in the Faculty of Arts – in 1964 in a rented building, Yavar Manzil.

BKDKM has also initiated professional courses like a foundation course for Chartered Accountancy, Cost Accounting and Company Secretary; and courses for entrance examinations in the field of banking, insurance etc.

Apart from these, BKDKM offers Post Graduate courses for M.A., M.Sc., M. Com. and other degrees. Aspiring students are also offered the opportunity to do research and acquire a Ph.D.

BKDKM, which started its endeavour with a single college with 100 students, today has grown into a multifarious, multifaculty, multifaceted educational force with, totally, over 7000 students on the rolls of its colleges every academic year.

The colleges under the umbrella of BKDKM have been provided with up-to-date infrastructure including wellequipped laboratories. Its library holds pride of place on the campus. Spread over several floors, each dedicated to a specific stream, it has, arguably, the finest and widest collection of books that any educational institution in the area has to offer.

With a well-qualified and dedicated faculty for all courses and the eager determination of the students themselves, it comes as little surprise that nearly half of the Hemchandracharya North Gujarat University (to which the colleges are affiliated) merit list in any faculty comprises students from BKDKM colleges.

BKDKM is proud to have played a role in the regeneration and revitalising of the region, to whatever extent. For, by educating one young person, not only do we impact his or her own individual life, we impact the lives of their families, the larger society and upgrade their ability to contribute to the economy and the country.