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Dear Colleagues,
As the financial year was drawing to a close, SICI signed the Alberta Advanced Grant Agreement with the Government of Alberta. This agreement is the result of a lot of work done by the SICI team in Canada. I am confident that the agreement shall brighten the prospects to engage with other Canadian provinces to open up niche areas for exchange, engagement, and collaboration.
As part of the minimum programming done in the last quarter of the financial year, the results were declared for various competitions that were organized. I take this opportunity to compliment all the participants and congratulate all the winners.
Preparations were underway for the annual meetings when the India office had to brace itself for an audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General overnight. The audit went on for thirteen working days and it is a credit to the management acumen and transparency of the organization that it is well prepared to engage with the recommendations that will be coming in with the report of the CAG.
The audit is a positive development as it fulfills government mandate for continued funding. In an earlier message I had hoped that there would be light at the end of the tunnel. I would like to say now that the governmental level of engagement with SICI is indicative of an improved signalling system for smoother flow of funds as the overall experience of the audit did generate such a vibe. I am also happy to note that work has started to notify fresh competitions with the financial support of Global Affairs Canada and the provincial governments in Canada who have MoU with SICI.
With the momentum in place, I feel that the coming year holds a lot of promise in terms of programming, collaboration, and engagement with the many stakeholders committed to the vision of the organization. The last two years were quite challenging and it was very prudent management of funds that made it possible to look forward to the coming year. This is also time to discover the interrelationships between clusters as we map and match ideas and proposals in specific areas. I think it is also important to re-emphasize the idea of area studies which continues to provide the larger structural framework of bi-national engagement.
As I step down after my term in office, I acknowledge all the Indian and Canadian Member Council representatives for their support. I also express my regret that it was not possible for various reasons to meet everyone in person during my two years in office.
I place on record a special word of thanks to the office staff in both India and Canada who have ensured better prospects in the coming year with their planning and diligence. I also take this opportunity to pledge my commitment to SICI. I am confident that the new team will be ably helmed by the incoming President, Dr. Pavneesh Madan. I wish him and his team the very best to tide over the contactless interregnum that has described engagement with member institutions.
Thanks!
Dr. B. Hariharan
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Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav: 75 Years of Independence
(Logo Design Competition)
SICI is pleased to announce the winner of the Logo Design Competition announced in commemoration of 75 years of Indian independence. Ms. Anjali Dagar from Chandigarh University is the winner out of the 48 entries received.
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International Youth Day 2022: Intergenerational Solidarity: Creating a World for All Ages (Articles/Essays Writing Competition 2022-23 )
Essay writing competition is an excellent way to gauge the outlook of youth. This year, SICI introduced an essay writing competition on '
Intergenerational Solidarity: Creating a World for All Ages' on International Youth Day. After the due process of assessments, three awards were presented. Due to their similar quality and ranking, two people shared the third award.
First | Abhiram Pavithran O, IIT Madras | Read the Essay
Second | Qazi Shuaib Wasi, SRMIST | Read the Essay
Third | Sushma Shetty, MAHE | Read the Essay
Ayesha Fatima, Aligarh Muslim University | Read the Essay
Congratulations winners!
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Launch of SICI’s Bi-national Cluster on ‘One Health’ & ‘Shastri Mapping and Matching Bi-national Interest Workshop’
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Seeing the success of the Bi-national Agri-Cluster, SICI launched the second thematic cluster on ‘One Health’ and the Series of Shastri Mapping and Matching Bi-National Interest Workshops on March 2, 2023. The launch was in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IITD). This SICI-led bi-national ‘One Health Cluster’ will strengthen the collaboration between Indian and Canadian researchers, academics, and major stakeholders i.e. central and federal governments; state and provincial governments along with agencies and institutions engaged in the domain of One Health. The cluster will be chaired by Prof. Baljit Singh, Vice-President of Research, at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada.
The inaugural witnessed many prominent figures such as honorable Scott Moe, Premier of Saskatchewan, Prof. Rangan Banerjee, Director, IIT Delhi, Dr. Ashok Kumar, Assistant Director General, Animal Science Division, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Government of India. Ms. Jennifer Daubeny, Minister (Commercial), High Commission of Canada in India, New Delhi, and Shri Chinmoy Naik, Acting High Commissioner of India to Canada represented Canadian and Indian governments and shared country specific viewpoints on the subject. All present emphasized the importance of 'One Health' as well as collaborative opportunities between the two countries being created through the SICI-led cluster. The chief guest of the event, honorable Scott Moe, Premier of Saskatchewan, spoke on behalf of the Government of Saskatchewan and the relevance of Indo-Canadian engagements in the area of health.
Around a hundred experts from various institutions and organizations from Canada and India participated physically and virtually to explore possible collaborations on selected key sub-thematic clusters. Three to four virtual workshops planned under the banner of Shastri Mapping and Matching bi-national Interest workshops will be conducted on diverse topics related to 'One Health' to facilitate and establish the bi-lateral interest. Identified thematic clusters include zoonotic diseases, antimicrobial resistance, food safety and food security, vector-borne diseases, environmental contamination, and threats to people, animals. Please get in touch if you wish to participate in this initiative.
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A Brief Interaction with GAC funded SICI Interns
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A brief interaction took place with Shastri Student Internship in India (SSII) interns from Canadian universities on March 3, 2023. These students received the Internship administered by SICI and funded by Global Affairs Canada. The SSII project-grants aim to strengthen the global talent of Canadian post-secondary students by providing firsthand experience of living and working in India; enhancing global knowledge and work capabilities of Canadian students; enriching the multicultural understanding, networking, confidence, and overall exposure of Canadian students.
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Inter-RAI-Mental Health Workshop
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Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute had an opportunity to collaborate with interRAI Global and our members in Canada and India- University of Waterloo, Western University, University of Calcutta to organize a Workshop on the "
Use of interRAI Assessment Systems to Identify and Respond to the Mental Health Needs of Vulnerable Persons over the Life Course" on April 17, 2023. The Workshop was jointly hosted by the Department of Geography, University of Calcutta, Crystal Minds Kolkata, and Regional Science Association, India, at Museum Space, Nazrul Tirtha, Newtown, Kolkata, India. Thanks, Dr. Sumana Bandyopadhyay for the wonderful organization and hospitality!
The Workshop was primarily conducted by Dr. John Hirdes of University of Waterloo Professor, University of Waterloo & Chair INMH, and Dr. Shannon Stewart, CHRL Director, Clinical Training & Professor, Western University.
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Roundtable on Rare Earth Minerals
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The Institute in collaboration with its member, University of Saskatchewan, Canada organized an event on
‘Rare Earth Minerals Extraction and Utilization’ at New Delhi on March 2, 2023. The roundtable was inaugurated by the Honorable Scott Moe, Premier, Government of Saskatchewan, Canada. Discussions were held on research and trade policy on the extraction and utilization of the critical / rare earth minerals viz. potash, uranium, helium, and others. Prof Baljit Singh, Vice President of Research, University of Saskatchewan, Vivek Bharadwaj, Secretary, Ministry of Mines, and Ms. Annabelle Larouche, Counsellor and Senior Trade Commissioner, High Commission of Canada in India along with many scientists both from India and Canada participated at the roundtable.
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Visit to AIIMS, New Delhi, for partnership exploration
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Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute led a delegation of institutions from Canada to meet with Dr. M Srinivas, Director and Deans of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, pitching partnerships and collaborations in various verticals of health i.e. Healthcare & Leadership, Mental Health, and mobility of medical scholars from both ends. SICI is excited to align these partnerships and collaborations to its recently launched binational cluster on One Health.
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Outreach, Facilitation and Visits
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The institute facilitated Inter-RAI Group from University of Waterloo and Canadian members with their meetings at High Commission, Ministry of Health and other partners in India; Director & Deans of AIIMS along with Inter-RAI group and University of Saskatchewan officials. SICI also led a couple of meetings at Jamia Hamdard University, as a part of facilitation to the delegates from Dalhousie University and Nova Scotia Health.
As part of its outreach, officials of the institute remain engaged with many players of the bi-national corridors. Meetings were done with Mr. Arun Pandya, Country Head, Air Canada; Dr. Raju Soolanayakanahally, Research Scientist, Agri-Food Canada, Saskatchewan; Dr. R. C. Aggarwal, Deputy Director General, Indian Council of Agricultural Research; Dr. P. Behera, Assistant Professor, department of community medicine and family medicine, AIIMS Bhubaneswar. SICI continued to discuss its partnership and collaborations with states of India and in this direction met with Mr. Vikas Chandra Rastogi, Principal Secretary, Higher and Technical Education Department, Government of Maharashtra. The discussion focussed on the Partnership proposal to work in collaboration with the state governed and centrally funded higher education institutions located in the state of Maharashtra.
To explore collaborative avenues with SICI and its member institutions in India, Dr. Anurag Saxena, Associate Dean, Postgraduate Medical Education, University of Saskatchewan and Mr. Scott Matthies, Managing Director, Government of Saskatchewan met Dr. Kaul at SICI office. Prof. V. Venkataraman, Vice-Chairman, Telangana State Council of Higher Education (TSCHE) & Vice-Chancellor, Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge and Technologies, Telangana visited Shastri Institute. He interacted with the institute Director to understand how SICI and TSCHE can come together to bring international perspective to higher education.
Other important visitors to SICI were Dr. Rhonda Lenton, President, and Dr. Vinitha Gengatharan, Assistant Vice-President, York International; Ms. Stacy Chappel, Chair of the faculty of management, Dr. Carolyn Russell, Associate Vice-President of international recruitment, and Mr. Bruce Condie, Director of International Recruitment,Vancouver Island University (VIU); Mr Kapil Verma, Deputy General Manager, International Collaboration, National Skill Development Council International and Dr. V. Geethalakshmi, Vice-Chancellor, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University (TNAU).
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Shastri Conference & Lecture Series Grant (SCLSG) Events |
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SCLSG grant provides an opportunity for experts to discuss a variety of important topics and opens doors for bigger collaborative projects. It offers a platform to exchange ideas and experiences, and to identify potential solutions to current challenges. Through collaborative dialogue, the grant seeks to foster innovation and develop new practices that can help shape the future. As representatives of SICI, Dr. Prachi Kaul, Director, and Dr B. Hariharan, President attended the SCLSG inaugural events and talked about SICI's programmes and activities. A total of eight lectures/conferences were held in February while ten lectures/conferences were held in March-April, 2023. Listed below are the events that took place in March-April under SCLSG grant.
Conferences
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Chronobiology and Mental Health by Dr. Archana Burman and Dr. Meenakshi Vachher, University of Delhi (Institute of Home Economics), March 6-7, 2023
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Sustainability Indo-Canadian Symposium on Water Management: Sustainability & Impact of Climate Change by Dr. Narendra Singh, Indian Institute of Technology Tirupati, March 6-7, 2023
- Two-Day Symposium on
Port Privatization Law, Policy and Practice in India: A Business and Human Rights Perspective by Ms. Shanthi Samandha K, The Tamil Nadu National Law University, March 10-11, 2023
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Emerging Trends in Cancer Research by Dr. Ruchika Kaul-Ghanekar Symbiosis International (Deemed University) , March 11, 2023
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Trade in Marine Life and Fisheries by Dr. Ankit Awasthi, Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur on
International, March 25-26, 2023
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Necessity and Challenges towards Clean Energy Production for a Sustainable Environment Clean Energy by Dr. Md Aurangzeb, Pandit Deendayal Energy University, March 20-21, 2023
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Emerging Trends in the Application of Digital Technology in Post-Disaster Management by Dr. Kiran Kumar Pattanaik, ABV-Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management, Gwalior, March 16-17, 2023
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International Workshop on Cyber Security and Law, Cyber Security and Law by Dr. Navtika Nautiyal, National Forensic Sciences University, March 22, 2023
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Amendment of Fly Ash as a Construction Material for Infrastructure Development: A Life Cycle Assessment by Prof. Sarat Kumar Das, Indian Institute of Technology (ISM), Dhanbad, March 24-25, 2023
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Update on Short-Term Virtual Courses
SICI launched the Shastri Short-Term Virtual Course as its first initiative to become self-reliant. These revenue-generating courses are offered through collaborations with faculty from India and Canada. It’s a humble beginning but we hope to make it a flagship programme in the coming years. So far, four short-term courses have been completed, and a fifth course '
Spatial Dynamics, Urban Transportation and Planning' is currently open to receive registration.
This eight week long course will cover transportation, planning and its spatial dynamics.
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- Anger is red, sadness is blue: Emotion depictions in abstract visual art by artists and non-artists."
Journal of Vision 23, no. 4 (2023): 1-1 - Damiano, Claudia, Pinaki Gayen, Morteza Rezanejad, Archi Banerjee, Gobinda Banik, Priyadarshi Patnaik, Johan Wagemans, and Dirk B. Walther. : Shastri Research Student Fellowship (SRSF) 2018-19
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Check out previous issues of Engage...
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