E-Paper
Globalisation & development studies centre at AU soon
ALLAHABAD UNIVERSITY (AU) will soon undertake mega in-depth studies and researches to identify new challenges in the global economy and to track the multiple suitable responses for the country to deal with them.
ALLAHABAD UNIVERSITY (AU) will soon undertake mega in-depth studies and researches to identify new challenges in the global economy and to track the multiple suitable responses for the country to deal with them.
For the purpose, the varsity has decided to set up an inter-disciplinary 'Globalisation and Development Studies Centre' that will be developed as a think tank and for which the University Grants Commission (UGC) has already sanctioned six posts of teachers.
The Centre will help identify the multiple routes through which power and resource inequalities are reproduced within the global economy and the new opportunities and routes to challenge these inequalities.
"In an increasingly polarised world, knowledge of developing countries is particularly relevant. Development studies analyse social, political and cultural changes and deal with such key issues as globalisation, inequalities, poverty, gender relations, ethnicity and cultural representation," informed Head of the AU Economics Department Prof PN Mehrotra who along with his colleagues had submitted the initial proposal for setting up the Centre during the reign of Prof GK Mehta as the AU Vice-Chancellor in 2002.
"With an inter-disciplinary approach, the Centre will focus on theories and substantive issues of development, development strategy and assess the historical process of development and under-development taking into consideration both the internal and external factors," Prof Mehrotra added.
He said that the Centre will also look into the rural development issues and examine the notion of the household and the relationship between production and reproduction. "Be it integrated rural development, agri-business, land reform and settlement programmes or the patterns of transition to private sector farming, all will be assessed," Prof Mehrotra said.
He said that issues related to famine and 'food security', 'gender, globalisation and development', 'conflict, complex emergencies and global governance', 'democracy and development' as well as 'trans-national corporations and development' and 'international processes of change and development' could also be looked into besides introducing a masters programme on these specialisations.
As to whether the proposed Centre will function under the AU Economics department or as an independent unit, Prof Mehrotra said, "The final decision will be taken by the academic council and the Vice-Chancellor but we are keen and ready to shoulder the responsibilities if the varsity so desires."
Following the AU VC Prof Rajen Harshe's personal intervention and presentation in New Delhi on May 19, UGC has sanctioned one post of Professor, one post of Reader and four posts of Lecturers for the proposed Globalisation and Development Studies Centre.
