Indira Gandhi Chair for environmental sciences to be set up in NIAS

Speaking at the virtual event where the MoU was signed, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh lauded the role of Indira Gandhi saying it was during her tenure that the 42nd Amendment to the Constitution in 1976 introduced the concept of Fundamental Duties of citizens among which was to develop scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform. He said she is recognised as one of the builders of modern India and besides her political achievements, her firmness in the face of military challenges, and her numerous policy initiatives are well recognised.


PTI | New Delhi | Updated: 09-09-2020 13:48 IST | Created: 09-09-2020 13:48 IST
Indira Gandhi Chair for environmental sciences to be set up in NIAS
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  • India

The Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust on Wednesday signed an MoU with the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, to set up the first-ever Indira Gandhi Chair for Environmental Sciences for the study of science and technology. Speaking at the virtual event where the MoU was signed, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh lauded the role of Indira Gandhi saying it was during her tenure that the 42nd Amendment to the Constitution in 1976 introduced the concept of Fundamental Duties of citizens among which was to develop scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform.

He said she is recognised as one of the builders of modern India and besides her political achievements, her firmness in the face of military challenges, and her numerous policy initiatives are well recognised. Singh said her staunch commitment to developing science and technology in India and its application was not only to issues connected with the well-being of the environment, the protection of our forests and wildlife, the well-being of tribal areas, but also science and technology on a wider scale. "The Chair that is being sanctioned today will focus on environmental sciences, which are gaining in urgency as we witness global warming and numerous environment-related challenges. The cause of much of the challenge humankind is facing is because humankind has forgotten that it is usurping far far more than its due, and certainly far more than its fair share of nature and natural resources," he said.

The former PM said the Earth has been sending out warnings for decades and "humankind must heed them if it wants to survive, let alone thrive. We share this earth with other living beings, big and small, and it belongs to us all". Congress president Sonia Gandhi, in her address, said this is a first for the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust, as it has organized seminars, awarded prizes and mounted exhibitions, "But we haven't had long-term partnerships with academic institutions of the type we are launching today".

The Indira Gandhi Chair in Environmental Sciences that is being instituted reflects two of Indira Gandhi's abiding passions: ecology and science..

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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