# Former Kerala ACS PH Kurian dies at 67 after cancer battle 2026-08-26T22:42:19+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Former Additional Chief Secretary PH Kurian, a 1986-batch Kerala cadre IAS officer, died on Wednesday at a private hospital after undergoing treatment for cancer. He was 67. Kurian served as Principal Secretary in the Revenue, Industries and IT departments and held several other posts including District Collector, Labour Commissioner, and Special Secretary. He played a key role in formulating Kerala's startup policy and served as Executive Vice President of the Department of Science and Technology from December 7, 2018. Born on January 20, 1959, Kurian held a degree in chemistry. His last rites will be held on Saturday in his hometown of Pampady in Kottayam. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Kurian's death removes a senior technocrat who was central to Kerala's push for a startup ecosystem at a time when the state was competing with Bengaluru and Hyderabad for tech investment. Under the state's 2017 startup policy, which he helped draft, Kerala established the Kerala Startup Mission and targeted creating 15,000 startups by 2023. His previous tenure as Revenue Secretary also saw him manage land allocation for industrial corridors in the state. The government now faces the task of finding a replacement with comparable experience in both IT and revenue administration to lead the science and technology department. ## Coverage - english.mathrubhumi.com Straightforward obituary with factual career details and no editorial slant. This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: IAS, Kerala, Kerala Startup Mission, PH Kurian Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/former-kerala-acs-ph-kurian-dies-at-67-after-cancer-battle/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/former-kerala-acs-ph-kurian-dies-at-67-after-cancer-battle/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/