Sreedhanya Suresh Becomes Kerala's First Tribal Woman Collector

By: Women Entrepreneurs Review Team | Thursday, 17 September 2026

Sreedhanya Suresh, a 2019-batch IAS officer, has been appointed as District Collector of Kasaragod, marking a milestone as the first Scheduled Tribe woman to head a district administration in Kerala on Wednesday.

Prior to this, Sreedhanya worked as Commissioner of Food Safety. Her assignment was part of a new government reshuffle in Kerala where she was posted in Kasaragod to head the administration and developmental activities in the region. Sreedhanya took charge from previous Collector Arjun Pandian.

Key Highlights:

• Sreedhanya Suresh becomes Kerala’s first tribal woman District Collector
• She takes charge as Kasaragod District Collector after a 36-IAS reshuffle
• Sreedhanya aims to unlock Kasaragod’s tourism potential during her tenure

Addressing the media later, she cited the state’s tourism as one of the areas with great potential in Kasaragod and stated that she will strive to overcome the shortcomings of the district in order to help develop the district.

Sreedhanya is from Kurichya Scheduled Tribe of Wayanad district in Kerala. She is well known for breaking new ground for tribal women in Kerala's civil service recruitment process as she secured All India Rank 410 in the UPSC Civil Services Examination conducted in 2018.  Prior to joining the civil services, she worked with the Tribal Tourism Development Office in Wayanad.

Sreedhanya’s journey to the civil services began from a tribal village located in Pozhuthana panchayat of Wayanad district, where she spent her childhood amidst a loving family with limited access to basic amenities. Her father was a daily wage laborer, while her mother was working under the rural employment program.

“My mother played a crucial role in my growth. She was a great source of motivation and supported me pursuing my dreams,” Sreedhanya said.

Sreedhanya studied at Malayalam-medium government schools and later went on to get her bachelor’s degree. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in zoology from Devagiri College and went on to acquire a master’s degree in Applied Zoology from Calicut University.

“My parents gave utmost priority to our education,” Sreedhanya mentioned.

She later joined the employment sector as assistant in the Tribal Tourism Project of Wayanad district and through her engagement, got acquainted with development activities at the grassroots level.

One of the most important events in her life was meeting Sriram Sambasiva Rao, a Sub-Collector at Mananthavady. It is said to be the point where her aspiration for civil services started. Impressed with the duties and obligations of public administration, she started preparing herself for civil service career.

Sreedhanya's appointment is in keeping with the Kerala state-wide reshuffle of posts which included 36 IAS officers. This marks a great milestone in the inclusion of the Scheduled Tribe members in the administration of the state.