KSU proposes the idea of student activism based on progressive thought, secular vision and democratic action. KSU entered the center stage of student politics in Kerala with the famous"Orana Samaram", a strike for travel concessions for students in boats of the state.The agitation was successful, and the government had to relentto the demands of KSU. Antony,Vayalar Ravi,Oommen Chandy, A.C.Jose,V.
Sudheeranand M.R.Prasad went up the ladder of INC . It injected fresh blood into the Congress party and a whole generation of new leaders entered into the political arena, a lot of them M.P.s, M.L.A.s and even two Chief Ministers.The NSUI was formed at the national level taking inspiration from KSU in Kerala and the 'Chhatra parishad' in West Bengal. But KSU suffered somesetbacks after the emergency period (1975–77) and consequent split in the Congress party. By then, factionalism in the Congress peeped into this organization also, which made it somewhat weak. And by this time its student support base incampuses had largely eroded and other student organisations had started to emerge in the horizon.The Kerala Students' Union, or KSU as it is commonly known, is the premier student organization in the state of Kerala. Right from its inception in 1957, it played a leading role in giving the student community of the state a new vision, outlook and a platform for creative academic and social interventions.
