Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University Premises
Established	1969
Type	Public
Chancellor	K. Kasturirangan
Vice-Chancellor	Sudhir Kumar Sopory
Academic staff	473 (on 31 January 2011)
Admin. staff	1276 (on 31 March 2011)
Students	7304 (on 31 March 2010)
Location	New Delhi, India
Campus	Urban 1000 acres (4 km²)
Affiliations	UGC, NAAC, AIU
Website	www.jnu.ac.in

Jawaharlal Nehru University, (Hindi: जवाहरलाल नेहरू विश्वविद्यालय) also known as JNU, is a public central university in New Delhi, India. In 2012, The National Assessment and Accreditation Council gave the university a grade of 3.9 out of 4, the highest grade awarded to any educational institution in the country.^[1] The university is ranked second among the public universities, in India, as published by India Today.^[2]

History [edit]

New Delhi

Campus Location in India: New Delhi

JNU was established in 1969 by an act of parliament.^[3] It was named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister and was founded by Indira Gandhi, (Nehru's daughter), and G. Parthasarathy was the first vice-chancellor.

The objective of the founders was to make the university a premier institution of higher learning and to promote research and teaching leading to the increasing engagement of its students and teachers in higher level academic work and national and international policy making.

School of Biotechnology building

Schools [edit]

University is organised into ten schools, each of which has several centres, as well as four independent special centres:

1. School of Arts and Aesthetics:^[4] This is one of the newest schools in the university. It is one of the few places in India that offers post-graduate degree courses in the theoretical and critical study of the cinematic, visual and performing arts. Moreover, it is the only place in India where these disciplines are offered in one integrated programme that allows students to understand the individual arts in a broader context of history, sociology, politics, semiotics, gender and cultural studies apart from being able to integrate the study of one art form with the other arts. The three streams of study offered at the school are Visual Studies, Theatre and Performance Studies and Cinema Studies.
2. School of Biotechnology: This school was set up in 2006 from the earlier Center for Biotechnology. BioSpectrum magazine rated the Bio Technology program of JNU as third ranking institute among all public schools in India.

^[5]

1. School of Computational and Integrative Sciences: (earlier School of Information Technology^[6]) This school offers MTech in Computational and Systems Biology, and per-doctorate and doctorate courses in Computational Biology and Bioinformatics. The department has two centers, Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics and High Performance Computing Center.
2. School of Computer and Systems Sciences: Since its inception in 1974, this school has been attracting the largest number of applications as compared with the other schools. The school specially caters to three fields of study: Master of Computer Application (MCA), Master of Technology (M.Tech.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). The faculty and students deal with a wide range of computer science and technology areas, for example: Database Systems, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Networks, Operation Research, Mathematical Modelling, Optimization Techniques, Software Engineering and many more. A student placement cell facilitates the students to enter the global IT market after completion of the course.^[7]
3. School of Environmental Sciences: Research into remote sensing application in geosciences, especially groundwater and earthquake forewarning and Sun-Earth connection. Other research includes Environmental Biosciences, Ecology, Geomics, Glaciology, Chemistry, Cell Biology, Immunology, Pollution studies, Radiation Physics and Environmental Physics.
4. School of International Studies: This is the oldest school. It predates the establishment of JNU as the Indian School of International Studies, which was set up in 1955.^[8] The centers in this school are the Center for Canadian, US and Latin American Studies, the Center for East Asian Studies, the Center for European Studies, the Center for International Legal Studies, the Center for International Politics, Organisation and Disarmament Studies, the Center for International Trade and Development, the Center for Russian and Central Asian Studies, the Center for South, Central, Southeast Asian and Southwest Pacific Studies, the Center for West Asian Studies, Centre for African Studies and the Group of Comparative Politics & Political Theory.
5. School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies: This is the only school that offers undergraduate courses with several centers: the Center for Arabic and African Studies, the Center for Chinese and South East Asian Studies, the Center for French and Francophone Studies, the Center for German Studies, the Center of Indian Languages, the Center for Japanese Korean and North East Asian Studies, the Center for English Studies, the Center for Linguistics, the Center for Persian and Central Asian Studies, the Center for Russian Studies, the Center for Spanish, Portuguese, Italian & Latin American Studies.
6. School of Life Sciences: The School of Life Sciences (SLS) was established on the basis of a report prepared by a working group headed by Prof. M.S. Swaminathan in 1970. The school stands today as a unique institution in the country where multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary teaching and research in life sciences have established permanent roots. The uniqueness of the school essentially lies in the fact that in the faculty there are experts and active researchers representing almost all areas of modern biology. The school has been recognized as Center of Excellence under UGC-COSIST and DSA Special Assistance Programmes. Almost all the students completing Ph.D. degrees from SLS (285 till date) get opportunities for post-doctoral work abroad, and a great many return to serve the country. The school’s faculty and students publish extensively in reputed national and international journals: To date, SLS has to its credit over 2000 research publications.
7. School of Physical Sciences: This school was formed in 1986 with a faculty in Physics and later added with faculties in Chemistry and Mathematics. The degree programs offered are M.Sc. (in Physics) and Ph.D. (in Physics, Chemistry or Mathematics). The areas of research interests include Theoretical and Experimental Condensed Matter Physics, Soft-Matter Physics, Non-equilibrium Statistical Mechanics, Quantum Field Theory, Classical and Quantum Chaos, Low Temperature Physics, Materials Science, Supramolecular Chemistry, Ultrafast Laser Spectroscopy, as well as extensive computational facilities with a dedicated Nonlinear Dynamics laboratory.
8. School of Social Sciences: It is the largest school (in terms of the number of faculty members) in JNU with nine centres. Its centers include the Center for the Study of Regional Development, which is accredited as the Center for Advanced Studies (CAS) by the University Grants Commission and is the premier center in the field of geography, the Center for Economic Studies and Planning [1], which is a premier institute in the field of economics, the Center for Historical Studies, which regularly brings out a reputed peer-reviewed journal Studies in History, the Center for Philosophy, the Center for Political Studies, the Center for Studies in Science Policy, the Center for the Study of Social Systems, the Center of Social Medicine and Community Health, the Zakir Husain Center for Educational Studies,^[9]

Special centres [edit]

• Center for the Study of Law and Governance
• Center for Molecular Medicine
• Center for Research and Innovation
• Special Center for Sanskrit Studies
• Special Center for Nano-sciences

Constituent centres [edit]

The following are the constituent institutes under the university:^[10]

• Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Hyderabad
• Officers Training Academy, Chennai
• Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Lucknow
• Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Trivandrum
• Central Institute of Medicine and Aromatic Plants, Lucknow
• College of Military Engineering (CME), Pune
• C.V. Raman Research Institute, Bangalore
• International Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi
• Institute of Microbial Technology, Chandigarh
• Military College of Electronics and Mechanical Engineering (MCEME), Secunderabad
• Military College of Telecommunication Engineering (MCTE), Mhow
• Naval College of Engineering (NCE), INS Shivaji, Lonavla
• National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi
• Nuclear Science Center, New Delhi (enamed as the Inter-University Accelerator Centre (IUAC))
• The National Defence Academy, Pune
• The Army Cadet College, Dehra Dun
• National Institute of Plant Genome Research (NIPGR), New Delhi^[11]
• Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala, Kerala

In addition, the university has exchange programmes and academic collaboration through the signing of MoUs with 71 universities around the world.^[12]

Infrastructure [edit]

JNU Campus [edit]

The university is an example of the new red brick universities built in the mid-20th century.

Located in the southern part of New Delhi and spread over an area of about 1000 acres (4 km²), the campus occupies some of the northernmost reaches of the Aravalli Hills. The campus maintains large patches of scrub and forestland – the JNU ridge is home to over 200 species of birds and other wildlife such as, Nilgai, Indian Crested Porcupines, Common Palm Civet, jackals, mongoose, peacocks as well as a large number of snakes.

The JNU library is a nine-storey building in the middle of the academic block of the university and is the tallest structure on the campus. It contains large collections of books, printed journals, newspapers and archives of primary sources. On the ground floor are the reading rooms, a section of the stacks, the library's collection of the back numbers of scholarly journals, computer terminals and a newspaper and journal section. The floors are devoted to different subjects. The library houses the P.C. Joshi Archives. The library compound is fully Wi-Fi, with online access to international academic journals including Project MUSE and JSTOR.

Modernization [edit]

The university has been modernising by moving toward "paperless"^[13] transparency and e-governance with the help of Wipro and a wireless network to connect the students and the teachers to the library.

Students [edit]

Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) [edit]

The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) is primarily responsible for building and preserving a healthy political culture and an atmosphere of open debates on the campus. Students are kept informed about the public meetings, discussions and other issues through pamphlets and notices. Public Action, an objective forum, invited a variety of journalists, politicians, and academics, to debate and discuss various topics. There is a long tradition in JNU of holding serious post-dinner meetings in the hostels to which the students often invite well-known public figures, writers and intellectuals.

Student activism [edit]

The university is known to have a long tradition of alumni who now occupy important political and bureaucratic positions (see Prominent alumni). This is in part due to the strong prevalence of Left-Centric student politics and the existence of a written constitution for the university to which noted Communist Party leader Prakash Karat contributed exhaustively during his education at JNU.[2] However, on 24 October 2008 the Supreme Court of India stayed the JNU elections and banned the JNUSU for not complying with the recommendations of the Lyngdoh committee.[3] After a prolonged struggle and multi-party negotiations, the ban was lifted on 8 December 2011.[4] After a gap of more than four years, interim elections were scheduled again on 1 March 2012.^[14] Following the election results declared on 3 March 2012, AISA candidates won all four central panel seats and Sucheta De, the president of AISA became the president of JNUSU.^[15]

Communism wall painting in Jawaharlal Nehru University, based on Picasso's Guernica mural.

International Student's Association [edit]

The International Student's Association (ISA) is an official Jawaharlal Nehru University body. It was instituted in 1985 with a view to promoting friendly relations and cultural exchange. The ISA has a constitution and elected executive, cultural, advisory and financial committees. All foreign students of JNU are also members of the FSA. The university has 133 international students.^[16]

ISA conducts Language and Culture classes free of charge for JNU students, including Japanese, German, English, Arabic, Hindi and Urdu classes with the help of ISA members and students. In addition, the group organises tours, picnics and heritage trips. The group organises an International Film Festival at which films from different counties are screened. "Thursday Forum" is the discussion session held in ISA for foreign students for discussions around issues and topics.

ISA had started as the Foreign Students Association (FSA). The word 'foreign' was replaced with 'international' for semantic propriety.

Cultural activities [edit]

The university has nine cultural clubs: the Drama Club, Music Club, Film Club, Fine Arts Club, Photography Club, Literary Club, Debating Club, UNESCO Club, and Nature & Wildlife Club. Programs are organized by the convenor and the members of the respective clubs. Other cultural groups are Bahroop Arts Group, IPTA (Indian Peoples’ Theatre Association), Odisha Sanskrutika Parishad (OSP), Wings Cultural Society and many more.

• Bahroop Arts Group is an amateur theatre group which has been active on campus for more than 15 years. Their plays often focus on topical issues.
• IPTA is a theater group.
• Odisha Sanskrutika Parishad organises Utkal Divas celebrations in JNU for all Odia students. It also organises cultural programmes and seeks to disseminate information about the rich inclusive cultural heritage of Orissa.
• Wings Cultural Society plans cultural activities, including theatre, painting exhibitions, literary seminars, and symposiums, etc.

Annual events [edit]

• SFH – Students for Harmony started in 1997 in JNU organises cultural events throughout the year: Tastopia, the world food festival; Ahimsa Day blood donation camp on 30 January; Talents, the inter-hostel festival; Madhurima, the folk songs and dance programme; Oceania, an international cultural evening; Imprint, the handicrafts exhibition; and dignitaries lecture series are some of the events.
• Rang Bayaar: The first edition of theatre festival of Jawaharlal Nehru University kickstarted at the Convention Centre, JNU on 31 March 2012. The festival brings five plays by four in-house theatre groups and one guest group. IPTA, Bahroop, Wings Cultural Society and Sehar are the theatre groups of JNU, while Bela Theatre Group is the guest participant. The cultural coordinator of JNU, Prof. Manjushri Chauhan promised to make it an annual event
• Northeast Nite: This is organized by the Northeast Forum during the early winter season. It is a cultural festival that celebrates the cultural diversity of people from Sikkim and the Seven States of India's northeast.
• Kallol: It is the annual sports and cultural festival organized by the students of SLL&CS, JNU in the Monsoon semester.
• Summit: It is the sports and cultural festival of the SIS organized in the Winter semester.
• Kalrav: This international film festival is organised by the students of SLL&CS JNU in the Winter semester with voluntary donations from the students.
• Utkal Divas Celebration: The celebration of Utkal Divas (Odisha Day) on 1 April every year, is one of the most attractive cultural functions of the University organised by Odisha Sanskrutika Parishad (OSP), a cultural association of Oriya students at JNU.^[17][18]
• Jashn-e-Zabaan, a celebration of language and expressions, a three-day festival of theatrical performances organised by Jawaharlal Nehru University, Wings Cultural Society and students of JNU.
• Rang-o-Kalaam, an cultural extravaganza, a two-day festival of creative expressions blending theatrical performance and qawwali, from dialectics to spirituality organised by Bahroop and students of JNU.
• Rajasthani Night (पधारो म्हारे देश): Students from Rajasthan state organise a cultural night where they show the Rajasthani culture. In this colourful night of Rajasthani culture, there is Rajasthani cuisine.
• পয়লা বৈশাখ/Poila Boisakh is the Annual Bengali New year celebration either on 13 or 14 April. An evening of wonderful Bengali cultural show is followed by exquisite Bengali cuisine.
• Baisakhi: It is a cultural fest organised by the students in the second week of April to celebrate the new year for many cultures across India, blending the cultures from far Punjab in the west to Assam in the east, Kashmir in the north to Kanyakumari in the south.
• Technophilia: A technical cum fun fest of two days organised by the students of SC&SS in the final weeks of January every year which is composed of technical contests and invites students from other universities across India to participate.
• Ugadi: is the annual celebration on the occasion of Telugu new year Ugadi organised by Telugu students of JNU with colourful cultural show followed by delicious Telugu cuisine.

Halls of residence [edit]

The residential character of JNU is an important component of the intellectual and cultural life of the campus. There are 17 residences (hostels), including one for married students. Of the 17 residences, 7 are for men, 5 are for women and 4 have mixed wings for women and men. They are all named on the rivers of India.

• HOSTELS-

Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari, Koyna and Shipra (women). Jhelum, Satluj, Periyar, Narmada, Kaveri, Mahi-Mandavi and Brahmaputra(men). Sabarmati, Tapti, Lohit, Chandrabhaga( co-ed, mixed wings). Mahanadi ( married research scholar).

Sports [edit]

There are sports clubs in the university. The practice sessions are organised by the convenor with help of the Sport Office, which provides the necessary kit and other equipment. All the clubs organise annual tournaments in the winter semester. There are three main venues where the following games are played:

• Sports Complex/JNU Stadium: For football, cricket, volleyball, lawn tennis, weight lifting/gymnasium, yoga and athletics.
• Badminton Hall inside the Students Activity Centre (Tefla's Building): For badminton and taekwondo (with a qualified instructor, Black Belt 4th Dan).
• Central School Grounds Basketball Court' (near Tapti Hostel): basketball.

Notable alumni [edit]

• Palagummi Sainath, journalist
• Ahmed bin Saif Al Nahyan, chairman of Etihad Airways
• Muzaffar Alam, George V. Bobrinsky Professor of History, University of Chicago, USA
• Abhijit Banerjee, Ford Foundation Professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
• Baburam Bhattarai, former (36th) prime minister and former finance minister of Nepal
• Seyed Ehtesham Hasnain, professor IIT, Delhi, India
• Thomas Issac, former finance minister of Kerala
• Aditya Jha, Canadian entrepreneur; philanthropist and philosopher; active in Canadian public affairs
• Satish Jha, The Times of India, former editor, Dinamaan
• Prakash Karat, general secretary, Communist Party of India (Marxist)
• Abhay Kumar, diplomat, Public Diplomacy Division of the Ministry of External Affairs India
• Lalit Mansingh, Dean of Foreign Service Institute, New Delhi
• Udayan Mukherjee, CNBC News
• Ranjit Nayak, World Bank Country Representative in Kosovo
• Digvijay Singh, former Union Minister of State for Foreign Affairs
• D.P. Tripathi, general secretary NCP, Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha
• Nirmala Sitaraman, spokeswoman for Bharatiya Janata Party
• Ashok Tanwar, Secretary, All India Congress Committee and Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
• Sitaram Yechury, Member, Polit Bureau, Communist Party of India (Marxist)
• Ajit Seth, Indian Civil Servant,Cabinet Secretary of Republic of India

Notable faculty [edit]

• Namvar Singh, Hindi Literature, Chancellor of Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtirya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya, Wardha
• H.S. Shivaprakash, Theatre and Performance Studies, Poet, Dramatist and Director,ICCR- Tagore Centre, Berlin
• U. P. Arora, Greek history and Culture, Indo-Greek studies.
• Kanti Bajpai, Former Professor of International Relations, Wolfson College, Oxford
• Bipan Chandra, Chairman, National Book Trust, New Delhi
• Satish Chandra, former chairman, University Grants Commission, New Delhi
• B. S. Chimni, Former Vice Chancellor, National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata
• Muchkund Dubey, Former Foreign Secretary of India
• Jayati Ghosh, Member of National Knowledge Commission, India
• Sarvepalli Gopal, Biographer of Jawaharlal Nehru; also former chairman, National Book Trust
• Satish Jha, Chairman, One Laptop per Child India Foundation
• Sudipta Kaviraj
• V. S. Mani, Director of the School of Law and Governance, Jaipur National University
• Lalit Mansingh, Former Ambassador to the United States
• Amitabh Mattoo, Director Australia India Institute and Professor of International relations, University of Melbourne
• Madhavan K. Palat
• K. N. Panikkar, Vice Chancellor, Sree Sankaracharya Sanskrit University, Kalady, Kerala
• Prabhat Patnaik, Deputy Chairman of the Kerala Planning Commission
• Tanika Sarkar
• Abhijit Sen, Member of Planning Commission of India
• Romila Thapar, former Chancellor of Hyderabad University
• Khwaja Ekram, Center of Indian Languages and also Director of NCPUL India

See also [edit]

• List of universities in India
• Universities and colleges in India
• Education in India
• Education in Delhi
• Distance Education Council
• University Grants Commission (India)

References [edit]

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jawaharlal Nehru University

• JNU Official website