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PARTNERS IN DEVELOPMENT
SHASTRI INDO-CANADIAN INSTITUTE
Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute
is a unique educational enterprise that promotes understanding between India
and Canada, mainly through facilitating academic activities. The Institute
funds research, links institutions in the two countries and organizes seminars
and conferences, it is named after Lal Bahadur Shastri, the Prime Minister
of India from 1964-1966 and a distinguished mediator and statesman.
Founded 1968 with a grant from the Indian Government, the Institute began
by encouraging Canadian teaching and research in India. Focusing on the humanities
and the social sciences, it funded fellowships and distributed books and journals
to the libraries of its Canadian member institutions. The Institute's success
in sparking interest in India studies among Canadian academics led to greater
interest in Canadian among Indian scholars. In the early 4980s, SICI began
to promote Canadian studies in India and, in the late 1980s, its expanded
its activities into development studies.
Shastri membership has expanded from four to twenty-one Canadian Institutions
and its scope has expanded as well to include law, management, education,
and the arts. Recognising the importance of reaching a broader public, the
Institute has launched summer programmes for Canadians in India, binational
conferences, a project for microfilming historical and cultural documents
in India, and a programme that sends distinguished speakers to both countries.
SICI's programmes and operations are funded in Canada by the Canadian International
Development Agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
Canada, member institutions and private donations. In India, they are funded
by the Department of Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government
of India, the Canadian International Development Agency and the Department
of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada.
The Institute's Canada Office is at the University of Calagary and its India
Office is at New Delhi. SICI's current activities in India included among
others, Canadian Studies Programme, which has been a part of the Institute's
programme since 1987. The main objective of this programme is to promote the
development of Canadian studies in India with a view an enhancing bilateral
understanding and cooperation between India and Canada. This objective is
met by supporting Indian scholars and institutions engaged in Canadian research
and teaching. This programme is funded by the International Academic Relatiosn
Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Canada.
This programme has enabled many Indian scholars to pursue their research interests
in Canada and to gather teaching material for Canadian studies or comparative
courses featuring substantial Canadian content. The programme has five component,
namely, fellowships for Indian faculty and doctoral students, visiting lecture
tours, support for activities of Canadian Studies Centres in India Universities,
provision of Canadian books and journals to Indian universities and the development
of the Canadian Studies Library at the Indian office.
