Joint Delhi–Edinburgh lectures

The Delhi-Edinburgh Lecture Series will allow students at the University of Edinburgh and University of Delhi to watch pre-recorded talks by leading academics from each institution.

The students at both campuses will then discuss the lectures with each other in a live, interactive online session.

The first lecture and interactive session, on April 3, will be delivered by Professor Roger Jeffery, Director of the Edinburgh India Institute, and will focus on global population growth.

This will be followed on April 22 by a talk by Prof Harish Trivedi of the University of Delhi, who will discuss Indian literature with students from both campuses.

I am delighted with the progress of this unique initiative that marks a step change in how we engage with leading institutions around the world. By streaming these lectures online, students in Delhi and Edinburgh can interact with each other and discuss important issues in real time, giving both Universities a much greater understanding of other viewpoints and further strengthening the relationship between Edinburgh and Delhi.

Roger Jeffery

Edinburgh India Institute

The lectures are being organised by the University of Delhi and the Edinburgh India Institute.

The institute, recently launched at the University of Edinburgh, seeks to boost Scotland’s cultural, business and academic ties with India.

It will encourage a greater awareness of India in Scotland and aims to build a programme of training in major Indian languages.

It will also stage cultural events, attract high-profile speakers and encourage new research initiatives, student and staff exchanges that will deepen the many existing links between the two countries.

In 2013, the University has held numerous events that have brought together researchers from Edinburgh with leading Indian academics as it seeks to encourage new collaborations between the University and partners across India.

They include:

• a Particle Physics Symposium in Delhi
• a Science Roadshow in Delhi, Pune and Chennai
• an Informatics event in Coimbatore
• the launch of the Centre for Brain Development and Repair in Bangalore

Edinburgh and India

The University has a long tradition of teaching and scholarship relating to India.

Former Edinburgh figures include William Robertson, who wrote one of the earliest European texts on Indian commerce and culture, and John Brockington, who was Secretary-General of the International Association of Sanskrit Studies from 2010-2012.

The University has a dedicated India Liaison Office in Mumbai and is also home to the Centre for South Asian Studies, the principal academic unit in Scotland dedicated to the study of the Indian subcontinent.

The Centre has links with the Scottish Parliament, non-governmental organisations and major educational and cultural groups in South Asia and Scotland.

Professor Roger Jeffery, one of the founders of the Centre, is President of the European Association for South Asian Studies.

Related links

Edinburgh India Institute

Centre for South Asia Studies