JNU plans business study centre

JNU plans business study centre

Manash Pratim Gohain, TNN,

NEW DELHI: Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has embarked upon a massive expansion plan that includes a B-school to be named 'centre for informal business study', a new 544-seater hostel for boys, three new centres, expansion of the existing centres and recruiting over 300 new faculty members, among others. Most of plans are expected to see the light of the day by 2010 end. The university has already set aside over Rs 150 crore for the expansion plan. The university is planning six new centres, of which three will be independent centres. Speaking to The Times of India, vice-chancellor B B Bhattacharya said: "By 2010 we will come up with a media study research centre for MPhil and PhD programmes. The idea is to do research on media, its role in the society, values and ethics, among others. Nanotechnology will also be a full-fledged centre soon and will offer B Tech, M Tech and PhD programmes." "Of the 340 new faculty positions sanctioned for the expansion purpose in the planned and OBC reservation schemes, 53 positions are for the new areas to be introduced at the upcoming new centres,'' Bhattacharya added. The Centre for Informal Business Centre will be the first of its kind as it won't be treading the path of what a conventional MBA teaches. The university is also planning three more centres Centre for North East Studies, Centre for Womens Studies and Centre for Discrimination. "I will not call the business centre as a B-school and its degree as an MBA, because it will not be a conventional management education centre. The focus area is on informal business study which comprise 95% of the business activity, unlike the conventional MBA programme which teaches business of the corporate sector that is just 5% of the business activity,'' said Bhattacharya. The university is also planning to introduce a School of Complex Biology that will offer programmes on biology with a mathematical approach and integrate biology and mathematics. Plans are also on for offering specializations in film study, performing arts and visual arts from the School of Arts and Aesthetics. JNU will enhance its accommodation capacity both for its students and faculty, as it plans to add one more hostel for boys in line with the newly-built Koena and a housing complex of 112 houses for faculty members. "On the western part of the campus we will have our 16th hostel, a 544-seater boys hostel. We will also have a multi-storey housing complex that will have four blocks each having 28 houses. Each block will have childrens park, playground and parking lot,'' said Bhattacharya. The university is also planning expansion of its major schools in view of the OBC reservation. According to a senior university official, new multi-storey annexes will be constructed next to the existing school buildings.

Source: Times of India, 23 August 2009