Vizianagaram revives educational legacy with new institutions in 2025

Vizianagaram, which was a major educational hub 150 years ago, seems to be regaining its lost glory with the establishment of several major educational institutions in and around the Fort City in 2025.

When Vizianagaram was a princely state prior to India’s independence, hundreds of students from different regions thronged the Fort City to pursue higher education. Several colleges, including Maharaja Degree and PG College, M.R. Music College, and M.R. Sanskrit College, offered educational facilities on par with institutions in Varanasi, Chennai, New Delhi, and other places.

Maharaja Alak Narayana Society of Arts and Science (MANSAS) trust, established in the year-1958 by the last king of the princely State P.V.G. Raju, entered into an agreement with the GMR group and State government on December 16, 2025, for the establishment of GMR-MANSAS Aviation, Aerospace and Defence Education City.

The trust allocated around 120 acres of land in Annavaram village near Bhogapuram international city which is expected to begin its operations in June, 2026. Vizianagaram MLA Pusapati Aditi Vijaya Lakshmi Gajapathi Raju said that the Trust had allocated land at free of cost to ensure the construction of the AAD Educity in Vizianagaram.

Many other educational institutions have also taken several initiatives in the year-2025, enhancing the image of Vizianagaram which was the most sought after destination for higher education.

Centurion University of Technology and Management (CUTM), which has campuses in Bhubaneswar, Parlakhemundi, Rayagada, and other parts of Odisha, placed special focus on its Vizianagaram campus in 2025 by constructing new blocks and launching 112 skill-oriented courses, along with 30 manufacturing units to meet practical training needs.

“Quality education in Vizianagaram is more affordable compared to educational institutions in metro cities. This is one of the main reasons students choose Vizianagaram to pursue their higher education. Job opportunities will also increase with the establishment of the Google data centre, along with campuses of Infosys, Cognizant, and other companies in nearby Visakhapatnam,” said D. N. Rao, Vice President of CUTM.

JNTU engineering college, which was upgraded as the University recently, got more powers in the year-2025. Now, its jurisdiction has been expanded to all engineering and pharmacy colleges located in the North Andhra region. The government medical college management constructed many new blocks this year. The public representatives of Vizianagaram district requested the government to establish a dental college also in the Fort city.