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Messages CNC

A Tribute to Prof. C. N. Chakravarti

The Centre of Russian Studies deeply mourns the demise of the Founder Director of Institute of Russian Studies, Prof. C. N. Chakravarti, on November 9, 2017. Prof. C. N. Chakravarti’s name is synonymous to the Russian Language Programme as his entire life was dedicated to the promotion of Russian Studies in India.

Having started his career by teaching Russian at the Department of Modern European Languages at Delhi University, he rose to the position of heading the Department after which he became instrumental in setting up the Institute of Russian Studies (IRS) in 1965. As the Founder Director of the Institute of Russian Studies he played an important role in promoting Russian Language. He held several prominent positions at the Jawaharlal Nehru University when the Institute of Russian Studies became a part of JNU in 1969 and was renamed as the Centre of Russian Studies as a part of School of Languages. He was the Chairperson, CRS; the 4th Dean of School of Languages from 1975 to 1978; the Dean of Students Welfare from 1983 to 1985 and the hostel warden too.

As a pioneer of Russian Language, he contributed towards the writing and teaching methodologies of the language. Not only was he a conscientious, meticulous and an ardent promoter of the language, but was a simple, genuine and a loving person who guided several generations of students and teachers. He was the first recipient of the PUSHKIN MEDAL in 1979, given for promotion of Russian Language, which made his name equally renowned in the erstwhile USSR, where his books and his personality became an inspiration for both Indian and Foreign students.

He will be deeply missed by the Centre of Russian Studies, the vacuum created by his demise will never be filled, but he will forever be living with us through his books and vision, which will continue to pave the path for generations to come.

The Centre of Russian Studies salutes to Prof. C. N. Chakravarti, the pioneer of Russian Language and we are sure that his rich persona will continue to guide us in years to come. The Centre stands with Sushmita, his daughter and the family in this hour and ensures them of our support always.

May his soul rest in peace !!!

A warm welcome to the modified and updated website of the Centre for East Asian Studies. The East Asian region has been at the forefront of several path-breaking changes since 1970s beginning with the redefining the development architecture with its State-led development model besides emerging as a major region in the global politics and a key hub of the sophisticated technologies. The Centre is one of the thirteen Centres of the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi that provides a holistic understanding of the region.

Initially, established as a Centre for Chinese and Japanese Studies, it subsequently grew to include Korean Studies as well. At present there are eight faculty members in the Centre. Several distinguished faculty who have now retired include the late Prof. Gargi Dutt, Prof. P.A.N. Murthy, Prof. G.P. Deshpande, Dr. Nranarayan Das, Prof. R.R. Krishnan and Prof. K.V. Kesavan. Besides, Dr. Madhu Bhalla served at the Centre in Chinese Studies Programme during 1994-2006. In addition, Ms. Kamlesh Jain and Dr. M. M. Kunju served the Centre as the Documentation Officers in Chinese and Japanese Studies respectively.

The academic curriculum covers both modern and contemporary facets of East Asia as each scholar specializes in an area of his/her interest in the region. The integrated course involves two semesters of classes at the M. Phil programme and a dissertation for the M. Phil and a thesis for Ph. D programme respectively. The central objective is to impart an interdisciplinary knowledge and understanding of history, foreign policy, government and politics, society and culture and political economy of the respective areas. Students can explore new and emerging themes such as East Asian regionalism, the evolving East Asian Community, the rise of China, resurgence of Japan and the prospects for reunification of the Korean peninsula. Additionally, the Centre lays great emphasis on the building of language skills. The background of scholars includes mostly from the social science disciplines; History, Political Science, Economics, Sociology, International Relations and language.

Several students of the centre have been recipients of prestigious research fellowships awarded by Japan Foundation, Mombusho (Ministry of Education, Government of Japan), Saburo Okita Memorial Fellowship, Nippon Foundation, Korea Foundation, Nehru Memorial Fellowship, and Fellowship from the Chinese and Taiwanese Governments. Besides, students from Japan receive fellowship from the Indian Council of Cultural Relations.