Kerala Council for Historical Research (KCHR)

Kerala Council for Historical Research [KCHR] is an autonomous institution committed to scientific research in history and social sciences. Funded by the Ministry of Higher Education, Government of Kerala, KCHR is a recognised research centre of the University of Kerala.

KCHR is located at Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala State, India , in the multi-purpose cultural complex Vyloppilly Samskrithi Bhavan, at Nalanda.  It is housed in the blocks dedicated to the memory of pioneering researchers of Kerala history, Sri.K.P.Padmanabha Menon and Prof. Elamkulam Kunjan Pillai.

KCHR offers doctoral, post-doctoral and internship programmes and short term courses in social theory, research methods, epigraphy, palaeography and numismatics. Research, publication, documentation, training and co-ordination are the major domains of KCHR activities.

KCHR has a well-equipped library and research resource centre with a fairly large collection of books on Kerala history and society.KCHR publications include twenty-seven volumes on Kerala society that are of vital research significance.

Aims and Objectives

• To form a forum of professional historians to promote research and exchange of ideas on history;
• To create a comprehensive worldwide database of research on Kerala History;
• To publish source materials and studies to further historical research;
• To set up a library and resource centre with the latest facilities;
• To identify important research areas and initiate and encourage research in those areas;
• To organise and sponsor seminars, workshops and conferences for the promotion and dissemination of historical knowledge;
• To institute and administer fellowships, scholarships and sponsorships on historical research;
• To provide professional advice and direction for the proper conservation of archival materials and archaeological artefacts as a nodal agency of the State Archives Department and the Archaeology Department;
• To facilitate exchange programmes for teachers and scholars of history to provide exposure to advanced scholarly practices;
• To attempt to historicise areas like science, technology, industry, music, media etc. conventionally held to be beyond the range of historical analysis;
• To assist and aidthe Education Department in restructuring history curricula and syllabi, so as to instil the critical component in teaching and learning practices;
• To restore local history to its rightful position and help set up local museums and archives;
• To develop popular and non-reductive modes of historical writing;
• To undertake the publication of a research journal on Kerala History;
• To optimally utilise the electronic media and information technology in the dissemination of historical knowledge worldwide;
• To undertake projects entrusted by the Government.