Social progress and development should be the goal of the research, said Central University of Kerala's former Vice Chancellor Prof. Jancy James. We should make use of the research for the development of the place, state, and nation, she added. She was delivering the Foundation Day Lecture on ‘Higher Education: New Horizons' at the 15th Foundation Day celebrations of the Central University of Kerala.

Institutions of higher education should become centres of development rather than mere academic institutions. The direction, quality and content of research in such institutions need to be handled with great care. During the pandemic, the Virology Lab of the Central University of Kerala used to test for COVID-19. At a critical time, the university's facilities could be utilized as required by the community. She also pointed out that these kinds of interventions and activities should come from the university.

Vice Chancellor (i/c) Prof. K.C. Baiju who presided over the programme pointed out that the CUK has been able to progress in the academic field and infrastructure development within a short period of time. The university has grown from a teaching university to a research university. Head of the Department of Genomic Science Prof. V.B. Sameer Kumar, Students’ Council President A. Sreehari also extended their greetings. Registrar Dr. M. Muralidharan Nambiar welcomed and Executive Council Member Prof. K. Arun Kumar proposed vote of thanks.