IISWBM teams up with BRC to offer PhD in temple economics

Call it an initiative to add a dash of 'Indian Knowledge Systems' to management science or something else! IISWBM, India’s oldest B-School, affiliated to the Calcutta University, is teaming up with Bhaktivedanta Research Centre (BRC) to offer a ‘PhD’ programme in management, public systems and social welfare involving research based on Indian knowledge systems, for the first time in the country. The memorandum of understanding (MoU) to this effect was signed between the two institutes on February 27, in Kolkata. The MoU was signed by Dipankar Dasgupta, Director, IISWBM & Dr Sumanta Rudra, Trustee and Dean (Academics), BRC.

This is notwithstanding the fact that the Democratic Students Organisation (DSO) and 'breakthrough in sciences' are already up in arms against the Centre's move to embrace and introduce 'Indian knowledge system' into the modern education system through New Education Policy (NEP).

Significantly, one of ISKCON founder Bhaktivedanta Swami's (fondly referred to as Srila Prabhupada) utmost desire expressed in 1975 at Los Angeles was for ISKCON to jointly offer a serious academic degree program under the affiliation of the University of Calcutta. Quite interestingly, Calcutta University, India’s oldest running university, happens to be Srila Prabhupada’s alma mater as well.

BRC, on its parts, was founded with the objective of emerging as a leading global institution serving India’s literary heritage by collecting, preserving, researching and teaching its ancient wisdom through state of the art means for the welfare of the society at large. The new PhD programme will deal with technological interventions in faith-based organisation including voluntary behavioural aspects, group behaviour, sound therapy/sonic intervention and spirituality effects on organisational behaviour, human performance, temple economics, innovation and entrepreneurial development in the spiritual space, fraud and risk management based on value principles, spiritual quotient and organisational behaviour, Vedic methodology of learning in the contemporary management education system, to mention a few, said Aradhya Bhagaban Das, Deputy Registrar, BRC.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Sumanta Rudra, Trustee and Dean (Academics), BRC, said, "IISWBM and BRC will work together to promote the activities of the Center and terms of cooperation and governing the activities of the Center would be decided by the working authorities of the two institutes”.

“Since the programme will delve at length on Indian knowledge system: leadership models, governance practices, conflict management, performance management, HR best practices, it will have lots of topicality and relevance and will certainly leave a huge impact on management education, in particular, and on the contemporary society and the world, as a whole,” said Dipankar Dasgupta, Director, IISWBM.

BRC would look at introducing similar programmes with this or other premier institute, going forward.