Government Engineering College, Barton Hill (GEC-BH) is a public engineering college situated in Barton Hill, Thiruvananthapuram, India. Founded in 1999 by the Government of Kerala, it provides engineering programmes under the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, accredited to the National Board of Accreditation.
The institute has five major departments: Mechanical Engineering, Information Technology, Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Civil Engineering and Electronics and Communication Engineering. All these departments have obtained an NBA accreditation.cyberjournalist.org.in
Two of its former principals, Dr. M. S. Rajasree and Dr. Ciza Thomas, were appointed as Vice Chancellors of Kerala Technological University. However, Dr. M. S. Rajasree’s appointment was later declared void ab initio by the Supreme Court of India. Dr. Ciza Thomas first served as the Interim Vice Chancellor of KTU, then moved to Digital University, and later returned as the permanent Vice Chancellor of Kerala Technological University in 2025 December.
The college is currently ranked second among the 138 colleges affiliated to APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University according to Academic Performance Index (API) report published by the university.
Campus The campus, situated centrally in the city of Thiruvananthapuram, is less than a kilometre from Palayam, and is located beside the Government Law College, Trivandrum. Two hostels are provided for women. The campus area is about 6 acres.
Building construction The college is housed in the old seven-storey buildings. The construction of the new eight-storey main block is continuing and construction of the Mechanical Lab Complex is complete. The work on the new Mechatronics Laboratary Complex being jointly set up by Mercedes-Benz and GEC, Trivandrum is underway.
Intake +UG Programmes Branch Duration of program Seats (first year intake) Seats (lateral entry) Mechanical Engineering 4 years 66 6 Civil Engineering 4 years 66 6 Electronics and Communication Engineering 4 years 66 6 Electrical and Electronics Engineering 4 years 66 6 Information Technology 4 years 66 6 +Minor In Engineering (As per KTU-2019 scheme)Department offering MinorBasketRequired CreditsEligibilityTitle Of The DegreeInformation TechnologyBASKET I- WEB AND ANDROID DEVELOPMENT20Students from other branches of engineering(ECE,ME,CE,EEE).B.Tech in Core Department with Minor in Information TechnologyInformation TechnologyBASKET II -COMPUTER COMMUNICATIONS20Students from other branches of engineering(ECE,ME,CE,EEE).B.Tech in Core Department with Minor in Information TechnologyInformation TechnologyBASKET III- SOFTWARE ENGINEERING20Students from other branches of engineering(ECE,ME,CE,EEE).B.Tech in Core Department with Minor in Information Technology +PG ProgrammesBranchSpecializationDurationAnnual IntakeInformation technology Artificial Intelligence & Data Science2 years18Network Engineering2 years18Electronics and CommunicationSignal Processing2 years18Mechanical EngineeringMachine Design2 years18Mechatronics2 years18Electrical ElectronicsPower System and Control2 years18Power Electronics and Drives 2 years18Translational EngineeringTranslational Engineering2 years18
Admissions and fees All admissions are based exclusively on merit and arranged through the Centralized Admission Procedure (CAP) of the government of Kerala. All the students need to pay the fees only at the Government rate. Top rank holders of the Common Entrance Examination (CEE) conducted by government of Kerala opt for this college. In 2005, the admissions to the college started at rank number 254 in the Common Entrance Examination.
Courses and curriculum
GECB, Thiruvananthapuram offers five B.Tech. courses in the streams of mechanical engineering (ME), electrical and electronics engineering (EEE), information technology (IT), civil engineering (CE) and electronics and communication engineering (ECE), each with an intake of 60 regular students and six lateral entry students per year.
GECB, Thiruvananthapuram offers four M.Tech. courses in Mechanical Engineering (ME) with specialization in Machine Design, Information Technology (IT) with specialization in Network Engineering, Electronics and Communication (ECE) with specialization in signal processing and electrical and electronics engineering with specialization in power system and control with an annual intake of 18 students per stream.
The college is affiliated to the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University since 2015.
Mechanical Engineering
The Mechanical Engineering block has been completed and houses machinery lab, the ADAM course classes and the main drawing hall.
The department has a workshop that caters to the need of the entire college.
Mechanical Engineering Laboratory facilities include CNC machines (both lathe and milling machines), Toolmaker's microscope, profile projectors, sine bar and other measuring instruments. PLC programmer and Hydraulic power pack are the new additions in this lab. Programmable Robotic Arm will soon join the list. The Mechanical Engineering Lab of seventh semester is conducted in the lab. The Thermal Engineering Laboratory has heat transfer, refrigeration and air conditioning experimental setups. Heat transfer experiments include free convection, forced convection, composite wall, and heat exchanger apparatus. Performance study setup on blowers and multistage compressors are also available. The Thermal engineering lab of seventh semester is conducted in the lab. The Strength of Materials Laboratory has a testing machine, spring testing machine, hardness-testing machine and impact test machine. Torsion meter, torsion pendulum and moment of inertia setups are also included. The Civil Engineering lab of third semester is conducted in the lab. Apart from the mechanical workshop, the college has a Metrology Lab and Heat and Mass Transfer Lab and a high tech CAD Lab . To assist in intra disciplinary studies the institution has an Electrical Lab. An Engines lab and Hydraulics lab has been set up New lab with Lathe facilities is constructed
Information Technology The four-year engineering degree in Information Technology that is being offered here is considered to be equivalent to Computer Science&Engineering degree since both of them share strikingly similar syllabi which is published by Kerala Technical University. An engineering degree in Information Technology focuses heavily on mathematical foundations of computer science and core computer science subjects like Data Structures, Algorithm Analysis, Compiler Design, Automata Theory,Computer Architecture, Computer Networks,Operating systems etc.Various government orders allow B.Tech IT graduates to claim equivalency with B.Tech. CSE degree.
The department offers two post graduate programs : M.Tech in Artificial Intelligence & Data Science and M.Tech in Network Engineering.
The Information Technology Dept has lab facilities that gives students opportunity to work on technologies like cluster computing, artificial intelligence, and multimedia processing.
The department has six lab rooms and a central server room. The department has the software and hardware infrastructure for the conduct of all the eight laboratory/practical subjects in the curriculum. Each laboratory room has networked printers over Ethernet LAN. Although the emphasis is on the use of Linux and open source software, other popular proprietary software platforms are also supported. In addition, the department provides technical support for the functioning of the campus-wide network in the college. A 1 Gbit/s internet connection is provided to the campus via a proxy server. The department is one of the nodal centers for the facilitation of the Centralized Allotment Process (cap) for admission to professional courses.
The Server Room has five server machines with SCSI/SATAa drives, Raid-5 capability, CD towers, routers, hubs and cable modem, housed within a central rack. Different servers are set apart for managing various activities. The OS platforms provided are Enterprise Linux, Windows Server and Solaris. A software-testing Laboratory with HP Functional Testing software has been set up under the MODROBS project of AICTE. Programming Laboratory has 68 dual boot desktops with internet connectivity. Web Application Laboratory has 72 Windows based desktops with internet connectivity. This lab is also used for conducting online examinations of various government and non government organizations. The Internet Laboratory runs on thin-client machines running under Enterprise Linux as well as desktops running under Windows. 36 terminals are provided for Internet connectivity and running software labs in the curriculum. The Network Laboratory has eight cisco routers, switches, high speed modems and 36 dual-boot desktop machines. A wireless LAN laboratory with wireless access points/routers, wireless site survey kit and other equipment set up under the MODROBS project of AICTE.
The construction of a centralized internet facility and Multimedia Lab for 150 students is being conducted under the department.
The students of the department, of behalf of the Computer Society of India student branch GEC Barton Hill, conduct an intercollegiate technical competition named "Inceptra" in memory of the late Prof. Krishnankutty.
Electrical and Electronics Engineering The Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering at Government Engineering College, Bartonhill, was established in the academic year 2007, offering a four-year B.Tech. course in Electrical and Electronics Engineering. All the students are allotted from among the top-ranked students of Kerala Engineering Entrance Examination The department is planning to start a new M-Tech course in Advanced Power System and Control in the academic year 2012–13 . The first batch of students have already graduated in 2011 and more than 75 percent of the students were placed in national and international companies through the campus placement drive of the Career Guidance and Placement Cell of the college. Students from the department got selection for PG programmes in Indian Institute of Technologies and top ranked foreign universities.
Efforts are made to arrange lecturers in advanced areas of Electrical and Electronics Engineering by professors from IIT and IISc.
The laboratories in the department include Electrical Machines Lab, Electronic Circuits Lab, Measurements & Instrumentation Lab, Digital Circuits Lab, Microprocessor Lab and Electrical Workshop.
Electronics and Communication Engineering The Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering has linkages with industry and scientific research organisations. Faculty and students engage themselves in technical conferences and have presented papers in journals and at conferences.
The facilities include Electronics Devices Lab, Analog Integrated Circuits Lab, Communication Engineering Lab, Microcontroller Lab, Communication Systems Lab, Digital Signal Processing Lab, Computer lab, Microwave and Optical Lab.
Civil Engineering Civil engineers are problem solvers, meeting the challenges of pollution, traffic congestion, drinking water and energy needs, urban redevelopment and community planning. engineers.
The Department of Civil Engineering was established in 2012 in the Government Engineering College, Barton Hill, with an annual intake of 60 students. The students are selected from the rank list of Kerala Engineering Entrance Examination conducted by the Office of the Commissioner for Entrance Examinations, government of Kerala. Visiting faculty programmes, invited talks by academicians, training programmes and quiz programmes are organised. A Civil Engineering Association enables the students to showcase their talents.
The department has labs such as: Strength of Materials Lab: