To ensure and to sustain quality in every aspect of the College, Nirmala College for Women launched the Internal Quality Assurance Cell in 2004 according to the NAAC directions. The focus of the IQAC is to channelize and systematize the efforts and measures of the College towards quality initiatives and human excellence.
The first NAAC Committee visited the College in 2004 and accredited the College with 'A' Grade. The Second NAAC Committee visited the College in 2010, and Accredited the College with 'A' Grade with a CGPA 3.44 on a 4 point scale. The third cycle of the NAAC visit was on December 2015. The college was once again accredited with “A Grade” with a CGPA score of 3.62. The fourth cycle of the NAAC visit was on April 2023 and the college was reaccredited with ""A++ Grade with a CGPA score of 3.78.
To ensure quality as the defining element of education at Nirmala College through sustenance initiatives
MISSION
Education is the first line of defense for women who have to withstand various perilous circumstances that a conservative lifestyle perpetuates. Education helps women to be more familiar with their legal and personal rights and makes them fight for their privileges and rights. Keeping in view the dire need of women’s education for upgrading women’s future and create a healthy society, the college was established as a multidisciplinary college in 1948. The college has always catered to the needs of the socially down trodden to bridge the wide economic gap in the society by providing education to all classes of the society. The college particularly concentrates on the upliftment of the financially marginalized section of society with 40.85% of the students being First-Generation Learners and 55.27% students belonging to the low-income group.
The college offers Choice Based Credit System in its curriculum. Self study courses for students interested in widening their horizons. Outcome Based Education allows students to infer the relevance of their programme to employability and research. Industry 4.0, Blended learning and Beyond the curriculum bridges the students with Industries and Institutes of repute. Field visits to places of importance and internships with Industries and Corporates provide the students with hands on experience and give them a connect to the working environment. To enhance research in the campus, projectsare in practice for UG and PG students. Students participate in a number of MOOC courses like SWAYAM, NPTEL, Spoken Tutorial, and Learnathon.
To enhance the skill component of the students, skill-based courses, value added courses and certificate courses in collaboration with Corporates and Industries have been initiated. To inculcate the spirit of research, presentation of papers in seminars and conferences and publication of articles in peer reviewed journals have been encouraged. Students access E resources in the Library through INFLIBNET, DELNET, NDLI, J-GATE and E books. Coaching for NET/SET and competitive exams are in practice.
The Placement cell of the college has organized 62 training programmes in collaboration with 12 industries. Marketing Mela organized by the BBA department instills entrepreneurship and leadership capabilities in students.
Entrepreneurship Development Cell, Institution Innovation Cell and National Innovation and Start up Policy and IPR cell invite a number of talks and workshops on developing creativity, innovation skills in students and lead to fostering entrepreneurship.
NSS and NCC promote outreach programmes in the form of Scribe duty, Swachh Bharat and Swachh Pakhwada activities, awareness programmes on health and environment conscious programmes.
NECTAR (Nirmala Elevates Community Through All Resources) concentrates on service to Humanity by visiting special schools, old aged homes, destitute homes. medical camps, distribution of saplings and participation in rallies are organized.
Departments have been working consistently with the community addressing their needs with fervent commitment.
Under Unnat Bharat Abhiyan, nine villages have been adopted at Palamalai, Naickenpalayam panchayat, Coimbatore. Students organize a number of awareness programmes, health and hygiene camps, financial literacy and youth empowerment through regular visits.
Youth Red Cross (YRC) and Voluntary Blood Donation club, Road Safety Patrol(RSP) and AICUF(All India Catholic University Federation) have organized blood donation camps, maintained vigilance of road safety and focused on the needs of the youth respectively.
The Chetna Women’s cell imparts knowledge on the legal rights of women. The International Women’s Day is celebrated each year on March 8th. Sthree Needhi is a legal aid association which inculcates, educates and creates awareness on legal aid for the empowerment of women with the help of Advocates.
Impact: Students when exposed to a variety of programmes take the advantage of making the best use of the opportunity given. They capitalize the avenues for their growth and development.
We reduce the need to cut down trees when we save on paper. Producing one ton of paper requires 2-3 times its weight in trees. Making paper from recycled content rather than virgin fibre creates 74 percent less air pollution and 35 percent less water pollution. The waste generated from the college is either reduced or recycled into some useable form.
Drinking water is scarce in Coimbatore during the months of March, April and May. Water is required for the daily chores and maintenance of gardens. There is a dire need that the ground water table is sufficient to meet the daily needs. Checks have to be made at every point that fresh water is not wasted.
The use of paper for communication to staff and students has been minimized. Public address system for students and Intercom for faculty are used for day-to-day communication. The college has placed a ban on the use of plastics. A number of guest lectures have been organized on the effects of single use plastics. The canteen uses paper bags, areca plates and cups and banana leaves for packing and serving of food items.
The campus is rich in biodiversity, having 13 gardens with landscaping and 302 hardwood trees apart from shrubs, herbs and oxygen rich plants. The department of IT has digitalized the medicinal garden. The campus abounds with apiary units, vermicompost unit, ornamental fish and carp tanks maintained by the department of Zoology. Bird houses, Rabbit hutch and Turtle ponds are maintained by the Management. Parking of vehicles is restricted to the entrance of the college to minimize carbon emissions. Waste disposal systems are placed in all the blocks of the campus.
Incandescent light bulbs are replaced by LED which are energy efficient. Signage and path illumination and Monitors of systems are replaced with LED screens. 4 Solar units and 6 solar street lights have been installed in the college. The chemistry department has a 100 W solar panel and a Biogas plant in the Hostel.
The organic waste in the form of leaf litter and vegetable waste is converted into a rich organic manure - vermicompost, by the department of Zoology. On an average the department produces 1400 kgs/ year, which is sought after by the Public, faculty and students. Botany department prepares compost with an EM4 supplement. The Geography department prepares paper bags from old newspapers for use in the canteen of the college and nearby shops. The controller of examination section makes books from unused papers to be distributed to schools. Used papers from the college, cartons for packing of equipments and books and other waste which can be recycled are sold to vendors. Toxic chemicals are sparingly used in microscale in the chemistry laboratories. E waste is recycled to registered vendors and electronic goods in use are donated to the less privileged schools.
The college has rainwater harvesting pits to increase the ground water storage during the monsoon season. A sensor based technology for filling up tanks have been installed. Bore wells meet the needs of students in the campus and Hostels while fresh water is used for drinking and cooking. Water purifiers have been placed in all the floors of the blocks. RO water is used in the hostel.
As human beings we need a sense of belonging and that sense of belonging is what connects us to the many relationships we develop.
- Frances Moore Lappe
Service to the community gives students an opportunity to connect with people, to understand their needs and helps to advocate and support each other in the fight to overcome threats. It broadens their perception of the world. They gain a sense of purpose by serving people around them.
The aim of Nirmala College for Women is to equip young women with quality education and life skills that will empower them in all areas of life. The mission of the college is to sensitize students to be socially committed and encourage them to be active agents of social change. In accordance with the mission statement of the college, the students spend a minimum of 30 hours per semester in community activities.
SNEHA POSITIVE FACES is an exclusive social service organization to help HIV positive patients. Commendable service is rendered to 740 registered patients - 263 male, 450 female and 27 children. Volunteering Doctors and Pharmacists provide free medical checkup, and counselling. The departments on rotation spend one year in this service, which is organized on the first Sunday of every month. Faculty and students organize the camp by assisting Doctors, packing medicines and distributing food packets, toiletries and interacting with the patients.
Nirmala College is unique in Coimbatore region for offering its services to AIDS patients, making them feel a part of the society, understanding their needs and concerns and spending quality time with them.
The IQAC under the direction of NAAC, Bangalore has mentored 5 colleges in 2018 and has been appreciated for its efforts. Under the UGC Paramarsh scheme, 6 colleges are mentored. One of the college has undergone accreditation and obtained B++ grade in 2022, while 5 more colleges are getting ready for the process in 2023. Three colleges are mentored for the Star College Scheme of DBT.
NSS offers an opportunity for students to participate in various orientation programmes, rallies, and scribe duties, and develop a thirst for service. Assets built by the NSS unit of the college includes, a stage at Karadimadai village, two toilets at Kadambadi village and a multipurpose hall at Kangeyampalayam village. Tree saplings and seed balls were distributed to the villages. Food packets and clothes were distributed during the Pandemic. Swachh Bharat and Swachh Pakhwada activities and Medical camps are regularly organized in the villages.
NECTAR extends its service to the inmates of the old age homes, Coimbatore District Welfare Association Senior Citizens Home and special schools, where their campuses and dwellings are cleaned, Cultural programmes are organized to entertain the inmates and spend quality time with them.
Students have donated blood and certificates of appreciation were received from the Indian Red Cross Society. Active participation in project DEAF II phase, Best Performance in Youth Red Cross movement are some of the achievements. Awareness programmes on Covid Protocols and distribution of Masks/sanitizers were held in the villages.
Students participate in the RD parade each year for the District Collector’s event. Rallies are arranged to spread awareness on road safety. Students are involved in regulating the traffic at the entrance of the college. Mrudhula Sunil has been appointed as the Tamil Nadu State Joint Secretary of National Human Rights and anti- corruption force for the year 2021- 2022. MoU has been signed with Aambal Tamil Sangam, Quatar, UAE for road safety education.
The college has adopted 9 villages under UBA, MHRD. Blood grouping and Haemoglobin testing (Zoology department), Eye camps and General Medical camps are organized. English, Mathematics, Office Automation and Sciences are taught in the Union Primary and Middle schools. Hands on training are given on the preparation of panchagavyam, wire basket making, herbal soap making, detergent making, vermicomposting and mushroom cultivation.
Enables students to work in different communities and address social problems and provides health and hygiene awareness.
Works to uplift the poor and downtrodden. The team visits the special school for mentally retarded and render its services to the inmates.
Impact: Community service inculcates team work, problem solving and the ability to follow instructions by the coordinators. There is an opportunity to apply academic learning to real life events. Students improve lifelong communicative, interpersonal and critical thinking skills.
