One of the oldest educational institutes in Odisha, it was founded as Union College in 1878, and became a university in 2021.

[3] The present university began as a Government Zilla School in 1856 and later upgraded for Intermediate classes (F.A.

Higgins, ICS) approached the Raja Saheb Harihar Mardaraj Deo of Khallikote who donated a lakh of rupees for the endowment fund.

[4] In 1944, Khallikote College started degree classes in Arts, Science and Commerce streams under Utkal University affiliation.

[5] With major amendments, Khallikote Autonomous College has been upgraded and has given the status of a new Unitary University in the state of Odisha from 1 August 2021.