A Hub for Transforming Lives through Education

It is said that providing education to the masses is the best way to empower them. There are very few institutions in the country which can boast of educating people in all spheres of life and careers and still adhere to the values and principles of their founders. One such rare group of institutions, the hub of education and beacon of trust is KLE Society and its educational institutions.

The Karnataka Lingayat Education Society (KLE Society) was founded in 1916 by seven educated youths with the objective of bringing education to the Kannada-speaking region of the erstwhile Bombay Presidency and what is today the North Karnataka region. KLE Society is a Public Charitable Trust registered under the Bombay Public Trust Act, 1950. All through its 100-year journey of “Transforming Lives through Education”, the organisation has adhered to democratic values in letter and spirit.

The founders philosophy of taking the best of facilities and infrastructure to the rural areas continues to be the guiding beacon. The endeavour is to provide people from all walks of life with the opportunity for fundamental, technical and professional education of global standards. Today under the leadership of Rajya Sabha MP Shri. Prabhakar Kore, the KLE Society runs 256 institutions.

The KLE Centenary Celebrations were graced by Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modiji. Hailing the legacy of the founding fathers, he called upon the organization to take immediate steps to transcend operations to match global standards in an attempt to facilitate the emergence of India as a global destination for education. In April 2019, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu addressed the convocation of the KLE University in Belagavi.

The growth of the organization over the ages has been catalyzed by magnanimous support from donors across the spectrum. This has been a symbol of societal acceptance and the trust in the ability of KLE Society to transform lives.

The KLE University was established in 2006 on the recommendations of the UGC. The University is accredited ‘A’ Grade by NAAC and is placed in Category ‘A’ by the MHRD (Government of India) on the basis of the academic and research achievements. KLE University today has under its ambit, 8 health science institutions of KLE offering courses in Medicine, Pharmacy, Nursing, Physiotherapy and Ayurveda at Belagavi, Hubbali and Bengaluru. The University has signed MoUs with institutes of national and international repute for collaborating in various fields.

Research has been the mainstay of the KLE University. The University has established KLEU’s Research Foundation & has research collaborations with 6 National, 14 International funding agencies from USA, Europe and Canada. KLE University has partnerships with several district health organizations and is working with 26 PHC clusters and also with the District Health System in the management of Primary Health Centers and Urban Health Centers under the Public-Private Initiative as part of the Prime Ministers National Rural Health Mission.

Technical education has been the focus of KLE Society right since the establishment of BV Bhoomraddi College of Engineering at Hubbali in 1947. KLE’s Technical institutions include 4 Engineering Colleges, 5 Polytechnics, 10 institutions offering a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Applications, 5 institutions offering a Master’s degree in Computer Applications in addition to ITI’s, Institutes of Fashion Technology and Job oriented courses. KLE is especially focused on its ever-growing presence in technical education, especially in rural areas to facilitate employment and entrepreneurship.

The key features of the Technical Institutions include a continually expanding Academia-Industry interface & skill enhancement through projects, fieldwork and industry interactions and the establishment of incubation centers on campus. The prestigious BV Bhoomraddi College of Engineering & Technology has been elevated to the status of KLE Technological University in 2015 and soon, all the technical institutions will be brought under the ambit of the University. Students who have passed out of the university and working in various companies in India and abroad opine that KLE technical institutions symbolise KLE’s commitment to nurturing capable and empowered professionals for industry at large.

Management education is a quintessential aspect of the modern world. The management institutions of KLE Society have set benchmarks in their domain of expertise and experience and the same have been endorsed by the industry. Students of KLE Management institutes are rendering services in top companies in India and abroad.

Beyond the traditional training for discharging corporate responsibilities, the students are also being oriented to fulfil their social mandate. The Society has in its fold, 10 institutions across Karnataka, that are offering a Bachelor’s Program in Management while two institutions at Hubbali and one at Belagavi are offering the MBA Degree. KLE’s also has institutions at Bengaluru, offering the Master’s Degree in Tourism Administration and a degree in Hotel Management. KLE Institute of Management Studies and Research, Hubbali is a nodal centre for ‘The Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India’ (EDI) a premier National level institute in the field of entrepreneurship and provides human resource and infrastructure for EDI’s one year diploma course on entrepreneurship.

KLE Society forayed into healthcare in 1986 with the establishment of a Hospital at Belagavi. Encouraged by the response and need for a better healthcare facility in Belagavi region, the hospital was transformed into a meticulously planned state-of-the-art setup in 1996. The hospital named Dr Prabhakar Kore Hospital and Medical Research Centre is today a 2200 bedded facility with modern systems of diagnosis and treatment and includes a Charitable Hospital which has nearly 1000 beds. In order to expand its offerings for society at large, KLE Society has set up a 500 bed Centenary Charitable Hospital at Yellur, Belagavi.

The 250-bed KLE’s Belgaum Cancer Hospital is catering to individuals at Belagavi and adjoining areas for diagnosis and treatment of Cancer. KLE’s Ayurveda Hospital at Belagavi is providing various treatments using an alternative, traditional medicine to people in the region. With a total, the combined capacity of over 4000 beds, KLE Society is the largest, private sector organisation in providing healthcare in Karnataka. People from the surrounding regions of Maharashtra and Goa also trust KLE’s Healthcare institutions as a source of economical yet modern and efficient healthcare.

KLE Society institutions have collaborated with International and National universities and institutions. Prominent among them are mentioned below:

• TATA ELXSI LTD
• CISCO Networking Local Academy Agreement
• TATA Consultancy Services Ltd Bengaluru
• INFOSYS—Campus connect
• IBM
• TERI
• WIPRO Campus Connect Programme.
• University of Illinois, Chicago, USA
• University of Michigan, USA
• University of Missouri, USA
• Sunderland University, UK
• Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Malaysia
• Copperbelt University at Republic of Zambia
• Rhodes University, South Africa, Middlesex University, UK
• University of Alabama, Birmingham, USA
• Christina Care Health Services, Delaware, USA
• Vanderbilt University, Nashville, USA
• University of Colorado, Denver, USA
• Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, USA
• Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, USA
• University of California at San Francisco, USA
• Fortius World School, London United Kingdom

KLE Society ran 38 institutions in the year 1984 and over the years, 227 institutions have been set up during the period from 1984 to 2019 at different localities offering various courses. Here’s a look into some of the mind-boggling institutional facts of KLE Society.