Jamia Millia Islamia has created two new administrative posts — Dean (Academics) and Dean (Research) — to further all of its new plans to introduce several new academic courses, as well as to improve its performance in the field of research.
There are several new research projects — ongoing as well as in the pipeline — and these will be administered by the Dean (Research). The several new academic courses that are being contemplated upon as well as the ongoing academic programmes will come under the office of the Dean (Academics)
“All universities have these two offices, and it is high time we did too,” said Vice-Chancellor Talat Ahmad.
A slew of reforms, as well as the action plan to achieve them, were announced when he took over as the V-C recently. Prof. Ahmad is a geologist, who has spent a major part of his academic life at Jawaharlal Nehru University, as well as teaching at Delhi University.
“In fact, I am still with DU and have been ‘lent out’ by my Department for this post and for my earlier post as Jammu and Kashmir University V-C. It is due to my interest in geology, and several academic and research programmes connected to climate change that I have thought of setting up some new schools,” added Prof. Ahmad.
A School of Earth, Atmosphere and Planetary Sciences, meant to help students understand climate change and human needs, is also in the planning stage.
“I want the students and faculty to look into some of the scientific problems that the country had or has to contend with — like aerosol study, the Uttarakhand disaster and glacial meltdown. The focus will be on the study of sensitive areas in terms of the eco-system. An interface between social sciences and natural sciences is what we want to achieve.”
