From the JGU Archives                                                                                                                                                                                 2008 Milestones

January 2008
Mr. Naveen Jindal’s decision to financially support the establishment of JGU and JGLS through philanthropy
   

April 2008
Constitution of JGU and JGLS Academic Planning Committee
 

9 May 2008
Agreement between SPA Design Pvt. Ltd. And Om Prakash Jindal Gramin Jan Kalyan Sansthan to prepare the design and architectural plans of O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) and Jindal Global Law School (JGLS)
 

June to July 2008
Acquisition of 54 acres of land in Sonipat, Haryana, India
 
 

20 August 2008
Grant of Permission for Change of Land Use (CLU) from agricultural to institutional for establishing O.P. Jindal Global University in Sonipat, Haryana
 

21 August 2008
Bhoomi Poojan at the construction site of JGU in Sonipat
 

18 September 2008
Compliance of Grant of Permission for Change of Land Use for establishing of O.P. Jindal Global University in Sonipat, Haryana
 

6 October 2008
Agreement between Larsen & Toubro and Om Prakash Jindal Gramin Jan Kalyan Sansthan to undertake the construction of O.P. Jindal Global University and Jindal Global Law School
 

10 October 2008
Letter of Intent (LOI) issued by the Government of Haryana for establishing O.P. Jindal Global University in Sonipat, Haryana

JGU has broken into QS Asia University Rankings 2019. In a short span of nine years, JGU has been recognized as a world class educational institution. JGU is the youngest Indian university to break into this prestigious international ranking. Having been ranked among the top 450 universities in Asia, it puts JGU in the top 3% of more than 13,000 universities in Asia.

JGU was also ranked as the youngest Indian University in the QS BRICS University Rankings 2019 across five major countries that comprise the BRICS group (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) among 9,000 universities.

Read the full story: https://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/o-p-jindal-global-university-breaks-into-qs-asia-university-rankings-2019-118102500641_1.html

JGU has been awarded the 2^nd rank in the ‘Swachh Campus Ranking 2018’ of all Higher Educational Institutions in India. The Rankings were announced at the Swachh Campus Ranking Award Ceremony held on 1 October 2018 in New Delhi by Honourable Union Minister of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India, Mr. Prakash Javadekar. More than 6,000 higher educational institutions participated in the ranking exercise. Based on marks obtained in the notified parameters such as overall campus upkeep, quality of essential services, greenery, waste disposal mechanisms, and extension work, JGU was awarded the same. The ranking exercise is part of the “Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan” initiative of the Government of India.

Read the full story: http://bweducation.businessworld.in/article/O-P-Jindal-Global-University-Secures-Second-Rank-/02-10-2018-161336/

The Jindal Institute of Behavioural Sciences (JIBS) at JGU undertook several initiatives to strengthen their teaching and research collaborations. This includes organising of the 7th International Conference on Victim Assistance, delegation visits to Bangkok and Vietnam, and multiple talks on several issues conducted in India, and abroad. In addition, the renowned film ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ (2012) was screened during Mental Health Week by the Centre of Community Mental Health in collaboration with the film society at JGU to create awareness about mental health problems.

JGU delegation visits Bangkok and Vietnam  

• Bangkok Visit 

Dr. Sanjeev Sahni, Principal Director, Jindal Institute of Behavioral Sciences visited Bangkok as part of a JGU delegation in September 2018. During the visit, Dr. Sahni delivered a talk titled “Developing High Performance Teams – A successful team beats with Behavior” at Thammasat University, Bangkok.

• Vietnam Visit

Dr. Sanjeev Sahni, Principal Director, Jindal Institute of Behavioral Sciences (JIBS) along with Mr. Rahul Bhandari, Assistant Director, Office of International Affairs & Global Initiatives (IAGI) visited several institutional partners in Vietnam from 30 September – 1 October 2018 and held meetings to strengthen existing partnerships and explore new collaborations.

The primary objective of this visit was to sign a statement of Intent with VNU University of Social Sciences, Vietnam National University to open JGU’s first international centre at Hanoi, Vietnam.

Dr. Sanjeev Sahni also delivered a talk at FPT University, Vietnam (a private university) on the topic “Testing for competence rather than for Intelligence”.

In addition, the delegation also met with Vietnam International Education Cooperation Department, the Ministry responsible for general/academic education and higher education (training) in Vietnam.

Centre of Community Mental Health at JIBS conducted inaugural talk

The Inaugural talk of Centre of Community Mental Health being started by JIBS was conducted on 3 October 2018. The Centre for Community Mental Health was established in October, 2017. It aims to create awareness regarding mental health, provide excellent education and training at par with international standards to professionally train students and engage in capacity building of existing professionals. The Institute shall focus on preventive approach to promote positive mental health in society. The main aim is to create critical workforce groomed to provide services in various settings namely educational institutions, government institutions, primary and tertiary health care setting, policy developing institutes. JIBS invited two experts in the field of mental health from Lady Hardinge Medical College- Dr. Dinesh Kataria and Dr. Sumit Rana delivered talk on “Young People and Mental Health in a Changing World and Sleep Hygiene”.

JIBS Director Dr. Sanjeev P. Sahni conducts awareness programme in Jaipur

Dr. Sanjeev Sahni, Principal Director, Jindal Institute of Behavioral Sciences conducted an awareness programme on “Best Teaching Practices for School Leaders” at Jaipur on 6^th October 2018. Hundred participants from twenty-three schools comprising Heads of Schools, Teachers and Counsellors participated in the awareness programme.

Centre of Community Mental Health screened the renowned film Silver Linings Playbook in association with the film society 

The film society screened the renowned film Silver Linings Playbook (2012) in association with Centre of Community Mental Health, JIBS during the Mental health week (8 – 12 October 2018) to see how mental health can affect the things we thought it would have no nexus to, and how the little things in life can end up making a big difference, depending on what feels rather than thinks. The plot revolved around the efforts of Pat (Bradley Cooper) to amend his relationship with his wife, which was hampered by his anger issues. In the process of the same, he enters into a dance competition alongside Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), through dance, in a way. Both of them are able to channel their energy, and somewhat their minds. The movie is based on the novel by Mathew Quick and the screenplay was adapted and directed by David O. Russell (American Hustle, Three Kings, Joy). Jennifer Lawrence won the Oscar for Best Actress for her role in this movie. The big caste names include stars Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, Anupam Kher, Chris Tucker, Jacki Weaver etc. The film was followed up with a discussion by members of the Centre of Community Mental Health led by Dr Mohita Junnarkar (Assistant Director, JIBS) who brought light to certain issues surfacing from the movie.

JIBS participates in panel discussion at Lady Hardinge Medical College during the World Mental Health Week

The members of the Community Mental Health Centre- Shivjot Gill, Shivani Sachdev, Karishma and Vipin attended an invited talk and Panel Discussion at Lady Hardinge Medical College on the occasion of the World Mental Health Week Seminar held by the Medical College on 13 October 2018. Dr. Mohita Junnarkar, Deputy Director, CCMH, JIBS was invited as a Panelist for the discussion. The seminar was divided in two parts which addressed two different issues. The invited talk was delivered by Dr. Jiloha on the Mental Health Care Act 2017: Challenges for Practice and the Role of Clinical Psychologists in the same. The Panel Discussion focused on the employment opportunities available for Clinical Psychologists. The panel discussion commenced with students presenting on the Opportunities and the Challenges existing for Clinical Psychologists. The panel discussion was moderated by Dr. Dinesh Kataria, HOD of the psychiatry department Lady Hardinge Medical College. Each panelist then brought out their views on the topic and new ideas were generated.

JIBS gets a Neuro-feedback Machine to measures the brain’s electrical waves

Jindal Institute of Behavioral Sciences has recently upgraded the Psychology Laboratory. JIBS procured a new Neuro-feedback Machine. Neuro-feedback measures the brain’s electrical waves. Neuro-feedback aims to change behavior by changing the brain. The brain produces measurable electrical signals. Neuro-feedback measures these electrical waves, usually with a device called an electroencephalograph (EEG). It has got multiple applications such as from courtroom to corporate setting. The seminar held by JIBS shed light on neuro-feedback, on Brain Basics by Ms. Karishma and on Neuropsychological Assessment Parameters by Ms. Shivani. This was followed by a live demonstration guided by Prof. (Dr.) Sanjeev P. Sahni. Dr. Sahni, the pioneer to develop norms for neuro-feedback for Indian Sportsperson then discussed the application of neuro-feedback.

JIBS organises 7^th International Conference on Victim Assistance

The Centre for Victimology and Psychological Studies (CVPS) of Jindal Institute of Behavioral Sciences (JIBS) organised the 7th International Conference on Victim Assistance from 26-27 October 2018 at the JGU campus. The conference was organised in association with the Indian Society of Victimology (ISV) and South Asian Society of Criminology and Victimology (SASCV).

This year over 200 delegates from across the globe attended the conference. Leading victimologists, criminologists and victim assistance professionals from the United States, United Kingdom, China, Australia, Hungary, Romania, Kenya, Bangladesh, Nepal and India. The inaugural ceremony of the conference was presided by Mr. Chaman Lal, IPS (Retd.), Former Director General of Police and Former Special Rapporteur, National Human Rights Commission and Ms. Enakshi Gangulay, Co-Founder, HAQ: Centre for Child Rights.  CVPS had also launched its bi-annual peer-reviewed journal, Global Advances in Victimology and Psychological Studies. The selected papers from this conference will become part of the first issue of the journal scheduled for January 2019.

Read the full story:  http://indiaeducationdiary.in/jindal-institute-behavioural-sciences-hosts-7th-edition-international-conference-victim-assistance/

JGU has been awarded a prestigious funding grant from USAID to conduct capacity building and faculty development programmes for teachers and lecturers from Afghanistan in pedagogy, curriculum development, academic standard-setting and other teaching techniques.

This project, titled ‘Regional Afghan Junior Faculty Development Program’ is worth US $275,000 and JGU will receive approximately $1,10,000 out of this amount for the first batch of participants, early next year. The remaining amount will be shared by JGU’s partner, Ball State University (BSU), Indiana, USA. JGU and BSU jointly bid for this competitive grant and won against nearly one dozen other academic institutions from around the world. The applicants were reviewed in three stages – first by the US Embassy in Kabul, second by USAID, and third by the US State Department.

JGU Book Club and Literary and Fine Arts Society at JGU organised second edition of Literature Festival- Sahityam which was celebrated from 28 – 30 September 2018 at the campus. The festival also marked the Ninth Anniversary of University, culminating on 30 September, which is celebrated as the University Day. This year the festival witnessed participation from 32 authors and poets from across India flying down to Sonipat to deliver a slice of life from their articulate perspective.

With panel discussions, author’s talks, stage plays, stand-up comedy acts; all forms of art were on display throughout the three days. Laden with Poetry Writing competitions, Story Writing Competition and Declamation where students from universities across Delhi and NCR participated, the festival provided individual spaces for creative expression.

The event revealed in the goodness of living in and around Delhi with Saif Mahmood’s rendition of his poetic book and Swapna Liddle’s narrative of the Literary History of Monuments. Rakhshanda Jalil embellished the lingo about how to translate and her works around Manto. Day one of the festival culminated with a Stand-Up Comedy Competition where students across the schools of JGU competed.  The competition was judged by Kishore Dayani of Canvas Laugh Club who was the star performer for the Comedy Night.

Poetry beyond rhyming came alive with poets like Akhil Katyal, Nabina Das, CP Surendran, Sudhanshu Firdaus, Arvind Joshi, Huzaifa Pandit, Arunava Sinha, Nitoo Das to name a few. Saikat Majumdar, Lipika Bhushan, Juggi Bhasin, Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan, Sameena Dalwai, Ritu Lalit, Aarish Chhabra and Rita Kothari discussed the method and magic behind the act of writing.

Gita Aravamudan and Upasana Mahanta gave new meanings to Feminism during this Festival. Day two culminated with Theatre Night where students of Performing Arts Society presented a riveting performance on a play based on Agatha work ‘A Murder is announced’.

Stalwarts like Gurcharan Das, Ayesha Kidwai and Anjum Hasan made all the processes of the festival very smooth. Day 3 culminated with Endnote talk by Author Gurcharan Das who spoke on his book Kama: The Riddle of Desire.

Sahityam 2018 saw a confluence of the eight schools of JGU with students, staff and faculty members enthusiastically coming together to contribute and celebrate the three days of Literature Festival.

The Office of International Affairs & Global Initiatives (IAGI) at JGU launched its flagship project the “India Semester Abroad Programme (InSAP)” – a first of its kind programme by an Indian university. It aims to invite foreign students to JGU campus for making it a multi-cultural, diverse, and a truly global student community. InSAP was launched by the ambassadors of Netherlands, Poland and Argentina in the presence of American, Indonesian and South Korean diplomats during JGU’s International Day celebration on 25 October 2018 at JGU campus.

InSAP would allow any student who is studying at a university outside India to come to JGU for a semester. The consolidated cost of this programme will be USD 5500 covering all tuition and living expenses. JGU’s InSAP is a not-for-profit programme where JGU will only charge the actual costs that would be borne per student.

Read More: [PDF]

Jindal School of Banking and Finance (JSBF) launched its data-analytics driven centre, Jindal Empirical Analytics Lab (JEAL) on 22 October 2018 with an inaugural lecture on ‘Image Classification Using Deep Learning in Python’ by Mr. Swapan Kumar Sharan at the university campus.

• About the Centre:

Jindal Empirical Analytics Lab (JEAL or the Lab), envisages to conduct data-intensive analytical work primarily in the domain of banking and finance as well as other areas such as health care, social media, customer service analytics etc.  Apart from analysing traditional datasets, JEAL aims to exploit big data across various domains and apply newer techniques in the area of data analytics such as machine learning and artificial intelligence to answer research questions.  The Lab also aims to foster external collaboration, within academia and businesses to help meet its goal.

• About the Speaker:

Mr. Swapan, a senior data scientist with United Health Group (UHG), leads their fraud analytics practice. He is currently working on oncology fraud waste abuse and error detection using US healthcare claims data. Prior to joining UHG he has worked in data science and analytics practices across organizations like AbsolutData, Genpact and RSG Media Pvt. Ltd. He has developed artificial intelligence and machine learning tools like chat bot, optical character recognition system, viral post detection on social media, and social influencer ranking system. He holds a Master’s degree in Mathematics from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Swapan is passionate about how block chain, artificial intelligence and machine learning can be integrated with digital technologies to generate meaningful impact.

Mr. Sharan, introduced the audience to the current trends in data analytics space, specifically, image classification using deep learning artificial intelligence. Self-driving cars, face recognition on phones, Google’s search by image, augmented reality, and Amazon’s plan to use drones for order deliveries, all use face recognition to operate. Deep learning, a subfield of machine learning, is a popular technique that is used to recognize faces. In this talk, Mr. Sharan applied this technique to classify images of dogs and cats, and explore the mainstream algorithm of deep learning: The Convolution Neural Network (CNN).

Jindal Global Law School (JGLS) inaugurated the Jindal Law Lectures & Debate Series – a student driven academic endeavor towards generating public interest in legal issues. The inaugural lecture was delivered by Honourable (Mr.) Justice L. Nageswara Rao Judge Supreme Court of India on ‘Law and Religion in Courts: The Essential Practices Doctrine’ 26 October 2018 at the JGU campus in Sonipat. The lecture aims at exploring the justifications for the ‘Essential Religious Practice’ principle in light of the recent Sabarimala controversy.

• About Jindal Law Lecture and Debates

The “Jindal Law Lecture and Debates” series is a student-driven academic endeavor towards generating public interest in legal issues in the form of lectures and interactive sessions by distinguished legal minds on contemporary and persistent issues in law. It is inspired by the heritage of the Hamlyn Law Lectures in the UK and the Tagore Law Lectures in India through which gifted legal minds have left behind a treasure of enlightening and inspirational academic work.

• About the Speaker

Justice L. Nageswara Rao was born on 8-6-1957 at Chirala, Prakasam District, Andhra Pradesh. He completed his B.Com., B.L., from Nagarjuna University, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh. He was enrolled as an Advocate on 29-7-1982 with Bar Council of Andhra Pradesh. From January 1985 to December 1994, he established himself at the High Court of Andhra Pradesh. He then moved his practice to the Supreme Court of India, on January 1995 and was a practicing advocate till May 2016. He was designated as a Senior Advocate by the Andhra Pradesh High Court in December 2000.

He also served as an Additional Solicitor General of India from August 2003 to May 2004 and again from 26-8-2013 to 18-12-2014.

He was elevated as a Judge of Supreme Court on 13-5-2016 and was the seventh individual to be directly elevated from the bar.

• The Essential Practices Doctrine: A Background

Last month the Supreme Court of India delivered its decision regarding the ban on the entry of women aged between 10 to 50 years inside the Sabarimala temple. The constitutional question presented to the Supreme Court in this matter involved competing claims on two Fundamental Rights: the Fundamental Right to practice one’s own religion and the Fundamental Right to equality. The majority of the court ruled in favour of equality as opposed to protection of the practice under the right to religion.

While deciding this matter, the Supreme Court was faced with the reasoning in the 1951 judgment of the Bombay High Court in The State of Bombay vs. Narasu Appa Mali that held that ‘personal laws’, i.e., uncodified religious laws, were outside the purview of fundamental rights review. This judgment, until recently, was followed in all subsequent judgments of the Apex court. The “Essential Religious Practice” principle is a judicial doctrine created by the judgments that relied upon Narasu Appa Mali. The doctrine espouses a need to maintain judicial aversion towards adopting review of practices, rituals and customs held fundamental to the beliefs of any religion.

The majority of judges in the Sabarimala verdict expressly overruled the Narasu Appa Mali dictum and held that the fundamental right to practice one’s religion and the essential religious practice doctrine must yield to the constitutional right of women to non-discrimination in matters of temple entry. This judgment has however, invited criticisms from a section of legal scholars concerned about the judicial approach towards religion adopted in the verdict. The lecture aims at exploring the justifications for the ‘Essential Religious Practice’ principle in light of the recent Sabarimala controversy.

The Centre for Afghanistan Studies (CAS) at Jindal School of International Affairs (JSIA) conducted a two-day training workshop on Interfaith Peacebuilding, in collaboration with United Religions Initiative (URI) on 17-18 October 2018 at the University campus.

In the workshop 16 JSIA students, along with 10 Delhi University students who work with different NGO’s in and around Delhi/NCR participated. The URI trainers, Ms. Subhi Dhupar from Delhi and Mr. Suchith Abeyewickreme from Sri Lanka, conducted many engaging sessions that allowed participants to reflect on the meanings and implications of identity and its impact on everyday lived experiences. One among the several tools used was the application of the conflict tree wherein participants drew a tree depicting their lives and wrote about certain personal aspects of their lives that influence their identities. During one of the session, participants reflected on themselves and identified the changes in their personalities from the past to the present in order to learn about themselves and to understand others better.

Additionally, the workshop made the participants to unbox concepts of peace, conflict and violence enabling them to approach these from a multi-faceted perspective. As trainers and trainees belonged to different religious, socio-economic and ideological backgrounds, they shared their perspectives, ideas and opinions about how religion and culture can shape one’s identity, playing the role of a divider, as well as a connector in the society. Furthermore, the students from Delhi University shared the work being done by them through their Delhi-based NGOs Gram Swalambhi Swadeshi Swaraj Foundation (G3S) which focuses on environmental development, women empowerment and educating underprivileged children, and Choti Si Khushi, which empowers women by providing them with free education along with skill-based and self-defence trainings.

On the last day the participants learnt steps to resolving conflict through positive communication, which involves active listening and speaking. The trainers also assisted the participants to draw the qualities they possess in brining change in the society. It was a motivation for the participants to realise the power to be a change-maker. Also, inspiring stories were shared by JSIA students and the NGO-volunteers that prompted the stimulating discussion on non-discrimination, co-existence and peace building.

The two-day workshop concluded with a felicitation ceremony and certificates distribution. The workshop was an enriching experience for all the participants. Coming from different backgrounds the participants from Delhi university and JGU/JSIA after communicating and working together in the workshop mentioned that the workshop was a dynamic and unique experience and they have learned a lot from each other and from trainers. CAS–URI intend to build on this initiative further by building a network of young scholars and practitioners who will promote the idea interfaith peacebuilding not only in theory but in action be change makers in the society.

The first faculty retreat for the faculty members of Jindal School of Government and Public Policy (JSGP) was held on 12-13 October 2018 at Noor Mahal, Karnal. The purpose of this retreat at Noor Mahal was to enhance the faculty bonding to enable them to work together for a common objective. The discussions at retreat meeting included how to establish JSGP as a research oriented school through collective research work, distinct from individual faculty research projects. It also included discussions on community engagement of students through various courses. The purpose of the faculty retreat was to build on collective knowledge about teaching and learning, to share innovative ideas and approaches, and to promote partnerships within and beyond the campus community. It helped to explore key issues related to faculty affairs and development in regards to teaching, research, and service. This retreat provided opportunities for cross-disciplinary partnerships, innovative thinking, and supportive engagements for the faculty.

Open lecture by Dr. Soumitro Chakraborty, Chief Executive Officer of Fiinovation on 12 September, 2018

Dr. Soumitro Chakraborty actively works as a consultant to various organizations and has strategised and implemented impactful social interventions. In addition, he vividly writes on socio-political issues and contributes to various publications, while he is also a notable keynote speaker at various national and international conferences on CSR and Sustainability. He also serves on the board of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Northern India Chapter on both on Corporate social responsibility and Affirmative action. The following issues were discussed in his talk.

• Public policy with Socialistic Capitalism and Case studies
• As the private sector forms as an important pillar, with the flow of economic growth, social responsibility increases
• The inseparable link between CSR and sustainability
• Dichotomy of section 135
• Case studies — Nike sweatshop and BP Oil spill
• Going beyond 2% mandate, focusing on- Convergent and inclusive growth
• Way ahead- Top Down Policy making and Bottoms Up implementation
• Role of Private sectors in ensuring Affirmative actions
• How CSR can advance gender parity

Prof. Behal delivered the lecture on State Mediation in Capital Labour Relations in Assam Tea Plantations. Tea Plantations in Assam was the first major Agro-Industrial enterprise set by British capitalists in colonial India which was to remain their monopoly for over a century form its inception in 1839 till 1960s. By the end of the nineteenth century Assam tea plantations became the largest employer of labour mostly migrants from Bihar, Bengal, Orissa and United Provinces under indenture contract sanctioned under labour laws passed by colonial state. Assam plantations transformed agrarian communities of these areas into tea ‘coolies’ producing for a hugely lucrative global market. Planters established an enclave indenture regime where thousands of labourers mobilised through ‘coolie trade’ were immobilized inside the plantation complex tied for a minimum five years’ non-compliance of which was criminal offence inflicting imprisonment. The colonial state policies played a crucial role in the opening and functioning of these plantations from its very inception: setting up tea experimental nurseries and handing over successful plantations to British capital, grant of waste spaces of land at very lucrative terms and conditions, building infrastructure which connecting Assam with Calcutta port for the export of tea as well as for the transportation of labour force from the catchment areas to Assam. State legislative policy shaped the nature of capital labour relations in the plantations. The lecture covered the nuisances of these policies and its impact on labour life.

Open lecture by Prof. Llerena Guiu Searle, Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology – University of Rochester, USA on 3 October 2018

Prof. Searle delivered the lecture about the contradictions of mediation: Intermediaries and the financialization of urban production. Professor examines the failure of an international real estate fund established to invest in Indian construction projects in order to understand ‘the financialization of urban production’, or the integration of finance and urban property development. She argues that chains of intermediaries’ transform fixed, illiquid parcels of land into financial assets open to mobile capital, and by investigating how such chains are made, she highlights the agency of the actors who build them. Yet an examination of foreign investment in Indian real estate before and after the 2008 global crisis demonstrates that the very intermediaries that capitalists rely on in order to make liquidity possible can actually generate risks and slow transactions, contributing to illiquidity.  Thus, to understand the financialization of urban production, we must take into account both the ‘dialectics of spatial fixity and liquidity’ (Gotham, 2009, p. 360) which other scholars have documented and the contradictions of mediation that shape it.

Open lecture by Ms. Seema Chowdhry, Editor, Business of Life and Philanthropy, Mint on 10 October 2018

Ms. Chowdhry delivered the lecture on social media, fake news and public opinion. Why do we trust social media and the news that comes through it more than we trust traditional media sources?  Is it because social media has ways and means to feed information that is consistent with our preexisting beliefs, making us overconfident in our mental frameworks, dramatically amplifying our confirmation biases and increase group polarization? Can the medium be responsible for spreading fake news, or is it happening because readers/consumers generally do not process all visible source cues when assessing the credibility of the information? The talk focused on the complexity of public opinion formation in the time of fake news and, assess if traditional media has a role to play in downplaying or propagating these narratives.

Open lecture by Dr. Swagato Sarkar, Associate Professor, JSGP on 17 October 2018

Dr. Swagato Sarkar delivered the lecture on Land and Modernity: A genealogy of the land question in India. The land question in India has lost its singularity and coherency. The land question has been intricately coupled with the national and the agrarian questions. The programme of land reform attempted to create a direct contractual relationship between the state and the tiller, making the peasants rights-bearing citizens. The removal of non-cultivating interests from the land, securing tenancy contracts, and the imposition of ceiling on land holding were supposed to lay the foundation of a just society. Parallel to this, the modernisation of agriculture was undertaken.

The acceleration in land acquisition in the post-liberalisation period has ruptured the coupling between the land and the agrarian questions. The land can now be distinguished according to the use it is put into. The change in the use of land (mostly from agricultural to industrial and real estate) leads to its commodification, which has become one of the central political problems in mainland India. The mainstream media and a dominant section of the academia consider the commodification of land and the resultant displacement and dispossession of original land holders as common features of all land-related politics in India, and thereby create a new meta-narrative of land and social justice. However, the history begs to differ and points to the split at the heart of the land question. This talk dwells upon this split and tries to reframe the land question in contemporary India.

JGU hosted the Justice P. N. Bhagwati First Memorial Lecture on ‘Environmental Activism: Expanding the Legal and Constitutional Boundaries for Promoting Environmental Justice’ with Mr. M. C. Mehta, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India on October 17, 2018 at the JGU campus.

• About the Speaker:

Mr. M. C. Mehta, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India

Born on October 12, 1946 Mahesh Chander Mehta belongs to a small village in district Rajouri in the State of Jammu & Kashmir. He got his education up to primary level in his village Dhangri. Later, to get higher education he had to join School at Rajouri. After his schooling at Rajouri he moved to Jammu and completed his Post Graduation in Political Science and Law degree from Jammu University and started his practice in Jammu & Kashmir High Court. He remained President of the Youth Action Committee and pioneered the Social and Political causes. His career as a Supreme Court lawyer began in 1983, when he migrated to Delhi. In 1984, he began focusing on environmental litigation.

In the words of Ms. Smita Gate “Often described as the One Man Enviro-legal Brigade, Mr Mehta is probably the only Supreme Court lawyer to have taken up legal cudgels with the polluting Indian Industries and come out victorious. A dedicated, fearless and extremely honest man, he pursues his goals with single-minded devotion. He has been conferred with several prestigious awards. Some of these are the Governor’s Gold Medal, the Goldman Environmental Prize, considered on alternative Noble Prize in USA and Europe, the UN’s Global 500 Award for 1993 and above all the Magsaysay Award for 1997.”

• About Justice P. N. Bhagwati

Former Chief Justice of India (21 December 1921 – 15 June 2017)

Justice Prafullachandra Natwarlal Bhagwati was the 17th Chief Justice of India, serving from 12 July 1985 until his retirement on 20 December 1986. He introduced the concepts of public interest litigation and absolute liability in India, and for this reason is held, along with Justice V. R. Krishna Iyer, to be a pioneer of judicial activism in the country. Justice Bhagwati began his career practicing at the Bombay High Court. In July 1960, he was appointed a judge of the Gujarat High Court. In September 1967, he was appointed the Chief Justice of that court. On two occasions, he acted temporarily as Governor of Gujarat (7 December 1967 to 25 December 1967 and 17 March 1973 to 3 April 1973. In July 1973, he was appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of India.

In August 1985, he became Chief Justice of India. In 2007 Bhagwati was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in public affairs, India’s second highest civilian award.

In 1982, Bhagwati was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences while being affiliated with the Columbia University. He had been a member of the United Nations Human Rights Committee from 1995 to 2009, being re-elected after every two year on expiry of his term. He was also chairman of the committee in 2001-03. As of 2006, he had also served as a member of the Committee of Experts of the International Labour Organisation for over 27 years. He was appointed Chancellor of Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning on 6 May 2011. Justice Bhagwati died on 15 June 2017 at the age of 95 after a brief illness.

Jindal Global Law School (JGLS) hosted the second Jindal Initiative on Advocacy and Litigation (JiAL) Summit on creating awareness and knowledge of litigation among students to prepare for a career in the field of litigation. The summit was held on 13 October 2018 at the JGU Campus.

The Second Litigation Summit focused on creating awareness and knowledge of litigation among students to prepare for a career in the field of litigation. Through this summit, JGLS take a step closer to the vision of bringing the advocacy culture to the doorstep of law schools. It aims to provide a platform for practitioners, law students and future lawyer to come together and discuss the issues which industries faces today in order to develop a strong legal community. It is also a platform for many interaction and networking among students, academicians, professors, judges, advocates and law firms. stand Inspired by the success of the first JiAL summit, the 2 summit brings together lawyers from a variety of fields ranging from criminal law, family law, commercial law, constitutional law, labour law, environmental law, intellectual property law, among many others.

Centre for Post Graduate Legal Studies (CPGLS) at JGU hosted a conference on “What Ails Legal Education in India? Reforming Indian Law Schools for the Future” along with a distinguished public lecture delivered by Mr. Prashant Bhushan, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India on ‘Role of the Judiciary in Protecting the Rule of Law and Democracy’ on 23 October 2018 at the JGU campus.

Mr. Prashant Bhushan Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India Prashant Bhushan is a senior public interest advocate practising at the Supreme Court of India and an anticorruption activist. He is the convenor of the Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms. He has been a relentless crusader for the rights of the poor and the marginalised and is noted for his use of public interest litigation (PIL) to support a number of causes related to corruption, environmental protection and human rights. Prashant studied mechanical engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras but left after a semester. He subsequently studied economics and philosophy at Princeton University but left and returned to India where he received a law degree from the Allahabad University. He is a well-known social activist. In his career of 15 years, he has worked on around 500 PILs.

JGU hosted an interactive session on ‘Rights, Politics and Governance’ with Varun Gandhi, Member of Parliament, India on 10 October 2018 at the JGU campus.

Shri Feroze Varun Gandhi is a second-term Member of Parliament, who represented the Pilibhit constituency in 2009, and was elected from the Sultanpur constituency in 2014, winning both elections by record margins. He was the youngest ever National Secretary of the BJP from 2008-2011, and the youngest ever National General Secretary of the party from 2011-2014. He is a member of its National Executive.

Shri Gandhi has been a member of a number of Parliamentary Standing Committees, including those on Defence and External Affairs. He is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.

A poet by inclination, Shri Gandhi has published 2 bestselling volumes of poetry, ‘The Otherness of Self’ and ‘Stillness’. ‘Stillness’ broke sales records, becoming the best bestselling non-fiction book of the 2015, selling over 10,000 copies in its first 2 days of release. He is currently working on his third book of poetry, titled ‘Surrender’, and his next work, ‘A Rural Manifesto’ will be published in November this year. It is a book seeped in agrarian economics and seeks to answer the fundamental question – ‘What is the economic future of Indian villages?’.

JGU hosted an art exhibition ART SHO from 11-15 October 2018 at the Moot Court Hall, JGU campus. This exhibition was a culmination of an assignment in the elective, Cultural Policies and the Art Market, where students have been closely working with students and faculty artists, advising them on artist rights and gallery functions and have also assisted them in creating certificates of authenticity, consignment contracts and agreements of sale. Most of the works exhibited were available for sale.

Jindal Global of Liberal Arts & Humanities and JGU Library organised an art and writing collaborative show titled as “Ekphrasis In The Stacks” from 12-26 October 2018 at Library Central Block Gallery, JGU.

The event was a collaboration between the artist Nupur Kundu and writer and Associate Professor, Jindal School of Liberal Arts & Humanities, Andrew Rooney.

The show included 9 original abstract paintings and 9 original complementary flash fictions.

JGU celebrated Biswamil – the annual cultural festival of the University from 5-7 October 2018. The three-day long festival included a number of activities and events such as Slam Poetry, Mono Act, Stand Up Comedy, Stage Play and several fun-filled games and other activities. In addition, JGU celebrated a band night with Lagori, a lyrical DJ with Zephyrtone and a Punjabi rock night with Harrdy Sandhu.

This fifth edition of the annual cultural extravaganza hosted 800+ participants from various colleges from India and abroad, distributed cash prizes worth Rs. 5 Lacs.

The University fest started as an attempt to spread happiness to a few people around, but turned into a legacy of fun and laughter at JGU. Despite being situated amongst the fields of Haryana, Biswamil has in its short tenure of four years, witnessed performances of youth influencers like The Local Train, Sunburn Campus, Coke Studio, Agnee and Benny Dayal among others.

The JGU Sports Contingent participated in National Tournaments of NLSIU Bangalore, BML Munjal University, Haryana and NLIU, Bhopal and won a number of medals including 31 Gold, 45 Silver and 2 Bronze. The JGU contingent was also declared as “Overall Champions” in 13 events.

• The detailed result is as follows: –

“VIRUDHAKA X” Sports Competition-2018 Date –  12^th to 14^th October, 2018                                Venue – NLIU, Bhopal

• “Hero Challenge” Sports Competition-2018

Date –  5^th to 7^th October, 2018                          Venue –BML, Munjal University