St. Aloysius College (Autonomous), Jabalpur

St. Aloysius College  is a pioneer educational institution not only in the town but also in the state of Madhya Pradesh and is affiliated to Rani Durgavati Vishwavidalaya , Jabalpur. The College situated in the heart of the country was envisioned with the motto Virtus in Arduo in 1951. It is a Christian College owned and established by the Catholic Diocese of Jabalpur, which belongs to the minority community of Catholics and is administered by the said Diocese through the St. Aloysius College Society. It is a strategically located, co-educational college, catering to the diverse needs of both urban and rural students in Central India. The aim of the institution is to facilitate use of ICT, skill-development, development of global competencies, and ultimately to make the leaners enhance their potential to be of service to self and society. The motto of the college Virtus in Arduo – ‘ Strength through Striving’ propels the Aloysian fraternity to overcome barriers through constant perseverance. It has carried a legacy of being a beacon of efficiency and excellence.

The college is named after St. Aloysius Gonzaga, the Patron Saint of the college, who harboured a burning desire to serve God and his fellowmen.

Drawing inspiration from the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, who came into this world that we may have life and life in abundance (Jn. 10:10) and that we may learn to live as children of one loving Father, the Foundation Society made a meager beginning by establishing St. Aloysius College in 1951, in a small room of the school building with only ten students and Rev. Fr. H.van Englen O’Praem as its Founder Principal. A year later, the English Medium classes in Arts and Science commenced as the college was affiliated to the Saugor University. Degree Status was bestowed to the Arts Faculty in 1953, and the Science Faculty in 1956. This was the result of the tireless striving of Fr. H. Van. Engelen, the then Principal.

An outstanding administrator, Fr. H. Van. Engelen worked persistently, with devotion and dedication and under his able guidance, the college became a centre of education, par excellence. It was renowned for excellence in Academics, Sports and Games. The Physics and Chemistry Laboratories and the Library were set up by him.

Rev. Fr. H. Van Engelen, a person with a vision and mission in life, retired in 1962. He was succeeded by Dr. Fr. N.A. Thomas, a good administrator and disciplinarian, who served for a year. In 1963, Rev. Fr. Cecil Desa, retired Archbishop of Agra, took office and served the college till 1968. He was followed by Rev. Fr. Joseph Perumpuzha who served from 1968 to 1986. He was a strict disciplinarian who worked relentlessly for the betterment of the college. Under Fr. Joseph Perumpuzha’s Principalship the college was known for discipline and academic excellence. Rev. Fr. J.V. Ambookan took charge of the institution in 1986. Due to his ceaseless efforts the college established its own building in 1990. Rev. Fr. Joseph Perumpuzha took office for a second term in 1990 until his well deserved retirement in 1993. In 1991, new courses in Computer Science and Electronics were introduced at the undergraduate level. In 1993, Dr. Fr. Davis George took charge as the Principal. In 1994, the Electronics Lab and Multi-gym were set up and the Computer Laboratory renovated. A milestone was achieved in 1994, as the college was chosen, among the very few in the country, to run three Vocational Courses, viz. Electronic Equipment Maintenance, Communicative English and Functional Hindi.

The new Electronics Lab was blessed by The Most Rev. Bishop Theophane O. Praem and inaugurated by Dr. S.P. Koshta, the then Vice Chancellor of R.D.V.V. Jabalpur.

The NCC platoon for boys was re-established in the college in 1995. A new chapter was added in the history of the college when the New College Extension Building consisting of a large auditorium ‘Prerna’, 6 class- rooms, 3 laboratories and an audio-visual room was dedicated to the nation to mark the Golden Jubilee of our nation’s Independence in 1997.

The college continued to march onwards from strength to strength and in 1998 the post-graduate departments were established in Economics, Political Science and English Literature. In the same year, the Science Faculty was enhanced with the introduction of the Bio-stream, Botany and Zoology. Further enhancement took place in 1999, when the Post-Graduate department in Physics was established. In 2000 the college started a Cyber Center in the campus to give Internet facility, thereby giving students an exposure to the IT revolution. In the same year, the great Jubilee of Jesus Christ was solemnly celebrated and a statue of Lord Jesus Christ was blessed and erected at the centre of the college campus.

The Golden Jubilee Year (2001) of the College commenced on a momentous note with the introduction of two new Vocational Courses i.e., Industrial Microbiology and Computer Application. Moreover, it witnessed the setting-up of new laboratories for Computer Science, Industrial Microbiology, Botany, Zoology, Electronic Equipment Maintenance, Electronics and Biochemistry as well as a renovated well-furnished Library.

The College celebrated its Golden Jubilee on the 24th of February 2002 with Shri. Digvijay Singh, Chief Minister of M.P, as the Chief Guest. Our Guests of Honour were The Most Rev.Gerald Almeida, Bishop Diocese of Jabalpur, The Most Rev. Theophane O. Praem, Bishop Emeritus of Jabalpur, Justice Prakash Naik, Justice Deepak Verma, Shri Ishwar Das Rohani, Deputy Speaker, M.P., Shri Shravan Bhai Patel, Minister, P.W.D., M.P., Shri Ratnesh Solomon, Minister of Higher Education, M.P., Shrimati Jayshree Banerjee, Member of Parliament, Shri Vivek Tankha, Adv. Gen., High Court M.P and presently Member of Rajya Sabha, Shri Vishwanath Dubey, Mayor, Jabalpur Corporation and Shri Arun Gurtoo, Vice Chancellor, R.D.V.V., Jabalpur.

To mark the Golden Jubilee of the College the new Administrative block, the Science Laboratories, the Post Graduate Department, the Canteen and the Golden Jubilee Gate depicting the rich cultural heritage of India were dedicated to the glory of God and service of humankind.

The Jubilee Year has also witnessed the starting of the St. Aloysius’ College Alumni Association (SACAA). The college is proud to have outstanding ex-students as Lt. Gen. R. J. Mordecai, Brig. Inayat A Yusufji (VrC), Justice Prakash Naik, Justice Deepak Verma, Mr. Shravan Bhai Patel, Minister, Ex PWD (MP), Mr. Prashant Mehta I. A. S., Mr. Vivek Tankha, Ex Advocate General (M. P.) and presently Member of Rajya Sabha, Rt. Rev. Abbot Nicholas Ambrose, Rt. Rev. Bishop Vincent Barwa, Rt. Rev. Abbot Rocky D’Souza and many more.

St. Aloysius College was in the National Limelight in 2001 when it was bestowed two National Awards among all the Christian Colleges in the country. The College was conferred Dr. P.S. Job Memorial Award for Innovative Educational Programsby All India Association for Christian Higher Education in recognition of the innovative educational program “Sunrise for the Underprivileged”. The college also received Sr. Hedwige Annual Award by Xavier Board of Higher Education in India for conducting sustained programs for spiritual welfare and human value formation.

In 2002 the college introduced two vocational subjects, Computer Maintenance and Biochemistry and established two well-furnished labs for the same. Post-Graduate in Computer Science was also introduced in the same year. In 2003 the college introduced Commerce with two vocational subject combinations, i.e., Tax Procedure and Practices and Computer Application. In the same year the college introduced NCC platoon for Senior Wing girls. I

The college was in the International limelight when it was bestowed with “Sir John Templeton Award” from “Local Societies Initiative Metanexus University USA for dialogue between Science and Religion. In 2004, the College introduced Biotechnology at the Under-Graduate level and Microbiology at the Post-Graduate level. In the same year another milestone was achieved by starting the Faculty of Education in the college. The New College Extension Building having a reading room, Internet centre, conference room, microbiology and biotechnology laboratories were dedicated to the service of humankind in the same year. Dr. Fr. Davis George received Rev. Fr. T. A. Mathias Award for Innovative College Principals (2004), for professional competence and community service.

The first assessment by NAAC in 2005 with A+ Accreditation opened avenues for several new initiatives and also became a point for introspection which urged the Aloysian family to give a revised thrust towards holistic education of students.In 2007 UGC awarded the status of ‘College with Potential for Excellence’ and also granted ‘Autonomous Status’ to the college for a period of 5 years, i.e., from 2007-08 to 2012-13.

The College achieved many milestones: It held an undisputed top ranking position in the state of Madhya Pradesh consistently for three years- 2008, 2009 and 2010 as per the survey conducted by Hello Hindustan. Other recognitions include Sr. Hedwige’s National Award 2007-08 by Xavier Board of Higher Education in India, for Social Religoius Programmes, State Government Award for Donor Motivation (Blood Donation) and awards received from State and Central Government for awareness campaigns. The institution has also received a certificate of Appreciation from MP State Women Commission Bhopal. The College also received an award from Adult and Continuing Education State Resource Centre, Bhopal for its contributions under Literacy under Saakshar Bharat Programme.