Realizing the importance of education research in animal and fisheries sciences so as to increase its productivity towards better income generation for the resource poor farmers, the government of Tamilnadu established the first veterinary and animal sciences university in Asia on 20th September 1989 with its head quarters at Chennai with the name Tamilnadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (popularly abbreviated as TANUVAS). The Fisheries College and Research Institute, Thoothukkudi was also made as another constituent college of this university. The mandates of the University are to impart education, to ensure advancement of learning and prosecution of research and to undertake extension to rural people in cooperation with the government departments in different branches of veterinary and animal sciences. It needs emphasis that in recognition of the University’s credentials, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research has accredited this university for a period of five years from 14.8.2001. Two more veterinary colleges, one at Tirunelveli and another at Orathandu in Thanjavur district were started in the year 2012 - 13. The Institute of Food and Dairy Technology, Koduvalli, Chennai which was established in the year 1993 was upgraded as College of Food and Dairy Technology (CFDT) on 10.04.2012.