The Himalayas are among the world’s most environmentally sensitive and politically fraught regions with a significant influence also on the economic livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people. The new Centre of Excellence for Himalayan Studies at the Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence aims to engender a three-way conversation between central and local governments, academia and the people who live in the region even as it remains attuned to geopolitics and the policy imperatives that surround it. The Centre’s geographical coverage will be wider than just the Himalayas itself and cover the Hindu Kush and the Karakoram, as well as the governments and polities that have political jurisdiction over them. The Centre will reflect the University’s global outlook and international ambitions, identifying and creating a network of scholars in the field, both in India and abroad, as well as bring together a wide variety of disciplinary and sectoral approaches to the study of the region. As a research institution, the Centre also aims to produce academic research that is accessible to the public and policy-relevant.
Tamarind Hall, India Habitat Centre