Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 12 (IANS): The Congress party in Kerala has sought the immediate intervention of the Pinarayi Vijayan government to resolve alleged ills plaguing the higher education sector in the state.

Addressing the media here on Sunday, state Congress President V.M. Sudheeran said it is high time that the Vijayan government intervened strongly.

"There are various issues that have surfaced at the Kerala Law Academy, besides students unrest at the Nehru College (Thrissur) following the death of a young engineering student named Jishnu Prannoy and unruly scenes at the Toms Engineering college near Kottayam," said Sudheeran.

Sudheeran said that while there are very good colleges in the self-financing professional sector in the state, the number of institutions where problems are surfacing one after the other has been increasing.

There are over 140 institutions in the state imparting higher education in the professional sector.

"It is high time that the Vijayan government intervenes as the future of a new generation is at stake. After the Kerala Law Academy gave in to the demands after 29 days of students protests, the students are launching their next phase of protests over Prannoy's death which remains unresolved.

"We had demanded an all-party meeting to discuss all these issues and, if need be, the government should frame a new set of laws to rein in erring colleges," Sudheeran added.