New Delhi: The Centre for Culture, Media and Governance (CCMG), Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) a two-day National Seminar titled “Public Policy: Pedagogy, Knowledge and Communication” on November 21st and 22nd, 2024. The Inaugural ceremony took place in the Seminar Hall of FTK CIT, JMI, and was honored by the presence of the Chief Guest, Prof. Mazhar Asif, Vice Chancellor of JMI. Prof. Md. Mahtab Alam Rizvi was the Guest of Honour of the function. The event was attended by distinguished guests including Prof Muslim Khan, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, Prof. Amarjeet Singh Parihar, and the Keynote Speaker, Prof. Chandra Bhushan Sharma. During the session, the book ‘Pedagogy in Practice’ edited by Biswajit Das, Santosh panda, Vibodh Parthasarthi was released. The seminar was introduced by Dr. Vibodh Parthasarathi, who acted as the convenor.
The inaugural speech by the Vice Chancellor focused on education, knowledge, and culture, drawing upon various anecdotes from traditional Indian texts and verses from the Holy Quran and the Bhagavad Gita, effectively encapsulating the seminar's central theme. Additionally, the illuminating keynote speech by Prof. Chandra Bhushan Sharma, on ‘Evolving Landscape of Pedagogy’ offered valuable perspectives on policy making in India, highlighting necessary interventions on public policy, pedagogy, and knowledge production. The remarks made by esteemed guests underscored the significance of this dialogue in social sciences within the changing contexts of policy studies.
The seminar was conceptualised by Dr. Vibodh Parthasarathi under the guidance of the honorary director of the centre, Prof. Tarjeet Sabharwal to honour the superannuation of the founding director of the centre, Prof. Biswajit Das. The theme is central to the CCMG, since the centre has witnessed teaching and research in media policy, organising policy dialogues, and participation in public consultations with the Government of India. The Centre has immensely benefited through such knowledge exchange; consequently, it has been able to strengthen its course and curricular offerings.
The insightful papers presented by eminent panellists on the first day by Prof. Amit Prakash, Dr. Saradindu Bhaduri, and Prof. Biswajit Das in the first session on “Pedagogy and Public Policy” helped us reflect deeply on the academic engagements with public policy and pedagogy in the growing environment of policy studies in India. Sessions on “Interests and Institutions chaired by Furqan Qamar along with the panellists Prof. E. Sridharan, Prof. Ajay K. Mehra, and Suraj Kumar, deliberated upon the intricacies of the relationship between political institutions and expertise in policy making. The third session and the last session on “Interdisciplinarity and Policy Studies”, a significant take away from the discussion was the importance of the interdisciplinary exchanges in public policy studies. The key speakers in this session were Prof. Babu P. Remesh from Ambedkar university, Delhi and Veena Naregal from Institute of economic Growth and Dr. Ritu Sinha from CCMG.
On the second day, extensive discussions were held regarding complex policy research issues. Discussions on topics from "The Legal Construction of Information" by Prof. Lawrence Liang to "Researching Climate Politics" by Dr. Sucharita Sengupta provided a deeper understanding about the constraints and opportunities in policy research. And finally, our closing session, with the address by T.K. Arun on "Communicating Policy," was a reflection of the interactions of media and the sphere of policy.
In sum, this seminar has reaffirmed that public policy is not a static or monolithic field, and it is an evolving discipline which requires reflection, creative pedagogical approaches, and constant interaction with the public policy scenario in India. Clearly, the future of policy research and teaching lies in fostering interdisciplinary collaborations, ensuring not only knowledge but also effective communication across various sectors and constituencies.
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