PU holds seminar on ‘contemporary struggle for identity in India’

LAHORE: Punjab University’s Pakistan Study Centre (PSC) organised a seminar on ‘Politics of Crisis and Development: Contemporary Struggle for Identity in India.’

According to a press release, David Karnail Singh, a scholar from France, Director PSC Prof Dr Naumana Kiran, Associate Professor Dr Amjad Abbas Magsi, Dr Ahmad Ajaz, faculty members and students were present on this occasion.

In her address, Dr Naumana Kiran said that it would be of great interest to know and analyse the colonial context of identity-formation with the developments taking place in this regard in contemporary India. In his keynote address, Dr Karnail Singh talked about politics of crisis and development in India’s border region of Kutch. He said that Congress government started anti-Muslim bias since early years after independence to control the region; however, after 2001 earthquake Muslims and Dalits were gradually excluded from development move of the region. He said that the rise of industrial development had further marginalised Muslims of Kutch. The other aspect of the discussion was the one-year long movement of the farmers of Punjab, which started in 2020 and proved to be the most large-scale social movement in India in current times. He said that this movement and many other small-scale movements which had been initiated in 21st century India were the result of neo-liberalism and Hindu-Nationalism / extremism of the current regime.

Dr Singh concluded while adding that marginalised sections of society were reacting to extremist Hindu-identity of the state and approach of Modi and that in case of crisis, like during farmers’ movement, plural identity prevails only.

Russian varsity team visits PU

A delegation from People's Friendship University Moscow, which is Russia's leading and one of the largest universities, visited Punjab University and called on Acting Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Abdullah Khan Durrani.

In his address, Dr Abdullah Khan Durrani welcomed the delegates and said that PU was promoting academic relations with Russia and Central Asian states. He said that quality higher education was being imparted at Russian universities and therefore Pakistani universities must develop relations with Russian universities to benefit from their advanced knowledge and experiences.