Rajiv Gandhi College of Veterinary & Animal Sciences

Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Veterinary Education and Research (RIVER), earlier called Rajiv Gandhi College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (RAGACOVAS), is a veterinary college in Puducherry, India. It was inaugurated on 14 October 1994 as the Pondicherry Veterinary College, with an initial intake of 30 students, and was later renamed after Rajiv Gandhi. In 2013 it was renamed RIVER. The college is affiliated to Pondicherry University and was recognized by the Veterinary Council of India in 1999. It operates across three campus locations in Kurumbapet and Mettupalayam, comprising administrative blocks, departments, a library, hostels, and a teaching hospital. The institute has 18 academic departments and 56 faculty members, offering a Bachelor of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry (B.V.Sc and A.H.) degree through a ten-semester program followed by a six-month internship, as well as Master of Veterinary Sciences (M.V.Sc.) programs in eight specializations. Admission to the undergraduate program is through the Joint Entrance Test conducted by CENTAC and other quota-based entrance tests, with a total intake of 55 to 60 students annually. The institute has had several deans since its founding, including Dr. R. Sabarinathan Nair and Dr. Sejian Veerasamy.