On January 16, 2022, Prof. Michael Brecher, SICI's architect and founder passed away peacefully at his home in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Throughout his stellar career as one of the leading political scientists of his generation, SICI & India remained close to his heart. He played a key role in enhancing and building Canada-India ties that is thriving and growing with each passing year. In these 69 years, he trained generations of scholars who will continue his legacy of excellent scholarly work.

 

SICI expresses its deepest condolences to his family and friends.

 

Read obituary here

SICI organized a virtual book launch webinar on December 15, 2021, to showcase the book called "Culture, Context & Aging of Older Indians: Narratives from India and Beyond", authored by Dr. Jagriti Gangopadhyay, SICI's Shastri Publication Grant (SPG) awardee and an Assistant Professor, and Faculty Coordinator, Center for Women’s Studies, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE). Dr. Gangopadhyay published her work with the help of SPG using a socio-cultural lens to understand the similarities and differences of aging experiences among older Indians, residing in India and Canada. The panelists included Prof. Allen P. Ugargol, Associate Professor, Practice & Public Policy, IIM Bangalore, Prof. David Parkinson Professor Emeritus, University of Saskatchewan, Dr. Mala Kapur Shankardass, Former Professor, University of Delhi, Dr. S. Siva Raju, Professor & Chairperson, Centre for Excellence in CSR, Tata Institute of Social Sciences and Dr. Prachi Kaul, Director, SICI.

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar, a member of SICI, signed MoUs with two of the renowned Universities of Canada i.e. Dalhousie University and the University of Saskatchewan.

 

The MoU between IIT Ropar and Dalhousie University was signed on January 18, 2022, followed by a workshop between faculty members of both the institutions who participated in the discussions on possible funding opportunities via online mode. The MoU was signed by Prof. Matthew Hebb, Vice-President, Government and Global Relations, Dalhousie University and Prof. Rajeev Ahuja, Director, IIT Ropar, in the presence of Dr. Prachi Kaul.

 

Pitching further, the MoU between IIT Ropar and the University of Saskatchewan was signed on January 24, 2022, via online mode. The MoU was signed by Dr. Baljit Singh, Vice-President Research, USask and Prof. Rajeev Ahuja, Director, IIT Ropar. The MoU signing ceremony was held in the presence of Honourable Gene Makowsky, Minister of Advanced Education Saskatchewan, Mr. Patrick Hébert, Consul General of Canada in Chandigarh, and Dr. Prachi Kaul. The MoU was followed by a roundtable discussion and a brainstorming session between faculty members of IIT Ropar and USask to explore research areas so as to further collaborate with each other.

 

With regards to the representatives of IIT Ropar and Dalhousie University, and the University of Saskatchewan, the programme has been coordinated by Prof. C.C.Reddy, Dean International Relations, IIT Ropar, Lagvish Malhotra, Joint Registrar, International Relations, IIT Ropar, Prof. Balakrishnan Prithiviraj, Associate Vice-President Government & Global Relations, Dalhousie University, and Dr.  Meghna Ramaswamy, Director, International Office, University of Saskatchewan.

Dr. John Kershaw, President, SICI, represented SICI at the 73rd Republic Day of India celebrations held virtually on January 26, 2022. The virtual event was organised by the High Commission of India in Ottawa, Canada. The event also marked 75 years of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Canada besides celebrating 75 years of India's independence. It also showcased the cultural diversity of India for its Indian and Canadian guests who were invited to join the virtual celebrations.