Events 2019

Ronja Gottschling gave a lecture on India-Pakistan relations

On 12 December, Ronja Gottschling gave a lecture on India-Pakistan relations and the situation in Kashmir at a teachers’ training at the Baden-Württemberg state center for political education (Ladeszentrale für politische Bildung) in Freiburg. The talk was facilitated by the cooperation between the Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research and the Regional Council (Regierungspräsidium) Freiburg. The workshop aimed at secondary school teachers preparing pupils for their A-levels particularly in social studies. While her colleague Anna Feiereisen introduced the Heidelberg approach to political conflict research, Ronja explained how this approach is applied in practice, namely to the conflict about Kashmir and the dynamics within the region.

Congratulations to our Master student Marina Marri !

Marina Marri , one of our Master students in her final year, has received a Degree Completion Grant from Heidelberg University as support in the final phase of her degree in South Asian Studies.

New article by Prof. Rahul Mukherji, Dr. Himanshu Jha and Dr. M.N.Roy in Indian Politics & Policy

Prof. Rahul Mukherji, Dr. Himanshu Jha and Dr. M.N.Roy have co-authored an article on “Ideas and Policy Paradigms: Explaining the Fall of Welfare Politics in West Bengal” in the latest issue of Indian Politics & Policy Journal. In this issue, Dr. Himanshu Jha has published a review article as well on “Explaining Institutional Change in India’s Welfare Regime”. 

Prof. Ali Riaz delivered a talk

Prof. Ali Riaz delivered a lecture on "Voting in Hybrid Regime: Explaining the 2018 Bangladeshi Election". Prof. Rahul Mukherji chaired the talk.

Prof. Jakub Zajączkowski and Dr. Dorota Heidrich presented thier research work

Prof. Jakub Zajączkowski, director of the Institute of International Relations, University of Warsaw, presented his research work on ''Quad in India’s Regional Policy in the Indo-Pacific Region’’ and Dr. Dorota Heidrich, the department of Law and International Institutions, University of Warsaw, presented her research on ‘‘Analyzing external pressures and endogenous conditions in designing transitional justice mechanisms: case study of Kosovo.’’

Tanvi Deshpande delivered a talk

Our PhD candidate, Tanvi Deshpande delivered a talk on ''Urban water governance in India:in the face of climate change'', in the open discussion entitled ‘‘Right to food and nutrition in India and water policies: current challenges and climate change.’’ The discussion was organized by the "Students for Future" in Heidelberg and moderated by Dr. Dieter Reinhardt.

Lecture on "Voting in Hybrid Regime: Explaining the 2018 Bangladeshi Election" by Prof. Dr. Ali Riaz,Illinois State University, on December 7 (Saturday), 18:45-20:00 at CATS, EG SR 01 (010.00.21). See details .

Asad Ahmad presented a paper at the THAAP International Conference 2019 in Lahore

Asad Ahmad, one of our Master students, presented a paper at the 10th Trust for History Art & Architecture of Pakistan - THAAP International Conference 2019 in Lahore, Pakistan. The theme of the conference this year was “Citizen and the City: Urban Dynamics in Pakistan and the Region”. Mr. Ahmad presented a paper on “Urban Transphobia in Cityscapes: Interrogating Lahore as a Safe Space for Transgenders’’. This paper examined the issue of urban transphobia and highlighted the problems faced by this community as they challenge the deep-rooted binary gender forms of society.

Lecture on "Belt and Road Blocks: Exploring Potential Ruptures within China's Belt and Road Initiative – The Case of Sri Lanka" by Kanchana Ruwanpura, University of Edinburgh, on November 25 (Monday), 14:00 – 16:00 at CATS, EG SR 01 (010.00.21). See details .

Congratulations to Dr. Michael Liebig

Our lecturer Dr. Michael Liebig, who was appointed as an honorary Distinguished Fellow by the United Service Institution of India, Centre for Armed Forces Historical Research ( USI -CAFHR) - a national security and defense services think tank based in New Delhi, India. The board of management of USI -CAFHR proposed to appoint a few Individuals who have been prominent in their work on Indian military history and strategic culture. USI stated that Dr. Liebig’s outstanding contribution to the field of Indian strategic culture and his long-standing association with the Centre secured him this position and believes that his academic rigor has established new benchmarks in the field. We too hope that academia will continue to benefit for his scholarship in the years to come.

Lecture on "Hindu Nationalist Upsurge in America" by Prof. Dr. Pralay Kanungo, Jawaharlal Nehru University, on November 18 (Monday), 14:00 – 16:00 at CATS, EG SR 01 (010.00.21). See details .

Heidelberg Center for the Environment Public Lecture Series 'Heidelberg Bridge' on ''India and Bangladesh in the Climate Finance Regime – From Structural Conflict to Embedded Liberalism'' by Prof. Dr. Rahul Mukherji and Dr. Himanshu Jha on 11 November 2019 (Monday), 16:00 - 18:00 at Hörsaal 010.01.05, Voßstraße 2 Gebäude 4010, 69115 Heidelberg. See details .

Prof. Thomas Risse of Freie Universität Berlin delivered a talk

Prof. Thomas Risse of Freie Universität Berlin delivered a talk on "Contestations of the Liberal International Order". Prof. Aurel Croissant chaired the talk and Prof. Rahul Mukherji gave the vote of thanks. The talk was followed by a lively Q&A session.

Herzlich Willkommen an unsere neue Ph.D. Studentin Ronja Gottschling

Ronja Gottschling wurde als Doktorandin an der Fakultät für Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften der Universität Heidelberg zugelassen. Sie hat ihren Bachelor in Politikwissenschaft an der Universität Münster und der Twente University, NL, absolviert, sowie den Master in Südasienwissenschaften am SAI, mit den Schwerpunkten Politikwissenschaft und Sprachen und dem Nebenfach Transkulturelle Studien. Während ihres Studiums hat sie längere Zeit in Pakistan und Nordindien verbracht.

Ronja wird an der Arbeit der Abteilung für Politikwissenschaft im Bereich staatlicher Wohlfahrtspolitik in Indien mitwirken und sich auf die Umsetzung des Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme im indischen Bundesstaat Bihar konzentrieren. Sie arbeitet auch als Lehrassistentin in der Abteilung.

Darüber hinaus ist Ronja Mitglied des Vorstandes des Heidelberger Instituts für Internationale Konfliktforschung, Leiterin der Abteilung Datenmanagement und Regionalleiterin für die Recherche politischer Konflikte in Pakistan und Teilen Indiens.

Congratulations to A.S.M. Mostafizur Rahman

Our PhD candidate, A.S.M. Mostafizur Rahman , was elected as the member of PhD student’s council as part of the ‘Faculty Council’ of Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, Heidelberg University. Other two elected members are Jonathan Gruhler and Anne-Marie Parth. The Council advises on the interests of the individual subjects and the associated institutes of the entire Faculty.

Vortrag "Contestations of the Liberal International Order" von Prof. Dr. Thomas Risse, Freie Universität Berlin, am 4. November (Montag), 13:00 bis 14:30 Uhr im CATS, EG SR 01 (010.00.01). Siehe Details .

Prof. Rahul Mukherji delivered a lecture at the University of Warsaw

On October 18, Prof. Rahul Mukherji delivered a lecture on "Governing India: Welfare Politics in India in the Period of Globalization" at the University of Warsaw. It was chaired by the Vice-Rector of the University - Prof. Maciej Duszczyk.

Welcome to DAAD Guest Professor Pralay Kanungo

Pralay Kanungo, Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, is currently Fellow at Max-Weber-Kolleg, Erfurt University and Guest Professor at Sichuan University, Chengdu (2015-2020). Kanungo has been ICCR Chair of Contemporary India Studies at Leiden University (2013-2018), Fellow at International Institute for Asian Studies (IIAS), Leiden, Honorary Professor at Australian Catholic University, Melbourne (2015-2018), Fellow at Nehru memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi and Visiting Professor at Maison des Sciences De L’Homme, Paris. He was also the Principal Indian Investigator of the Indian-European Social Sciences Research Networking Project on Electoral Changes in Urban and Rural India (2013-2016).

His research areas include: Religion, Culture and Politics: Hindu Nationalism (ideology/everyday practice/mobilisation/ regional variations/ethnography at the grassroots); Diaspora: Hinduism/Hindu Diaspora; Indian Politics: Institutions and Processes, Electoral and Party Politics, Regional/State Politics, Urban Governance; Indigenous Communities/Adivasis: Cultural/Political Mobilisation, Development and Resistance; India-China Connection: Civilizational and Contemporary.

Kanungo is the author of RSS’s Tryst with Politics: From Hedgewar to Sudarshan (2002) and co-edited The Algebra of Warfare-Welfare: A Long View of India’s 2014 Election (Oxford, 2019), The Politics of Ethnicity in India, Nepal and China (Primus, 2014), Public Hinduisms (Sage, 2012) and Cultural Entrenchment of Hindutva: Local Mediations and Forms of Convergence (Routledge, 2011).

He will be staying at the Political Science Department at SAI for 11 months. In the upcoming winter semester, he will be teaching two courses.

Prof. Rahul Mukherji at Copenhagen conference

On August 22 and August 23, Prof. Rahul Mukherji attended a conference in Copenhagen titled 'Trading and the World'. The focus was on the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative. Area scholars largely from Singapore and Africa participated who discussed Chinese initiatives in the Middle-East, Central Asia, South Asia and other parts of the world. Prof. Mukherji gave the delivery remarks in a final plenary session.

New article by Prof. Rahul Mukherji in The Hindu

Prof. Rahul Mukherji's recent article was recently published in The Hindu. In the article titled "The monk who shaped India’s secularism", Prof. Mukherji discusses the question 'What is the kind of nationalism that one can associate with Hindu tradition?' 

Congratulations to Ronja Gottschling

Ronja Gottschling has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research (HIIK). The HIIK documents and categorizes political conflicts around the world. Ronja will be the Co-Editor in Chief of the Conflict Barometer, the annual report of the HIIK (published along with a dataset), which is accessed and used by governmental and non-governmental organizations around the world. Besides being responsible especially for the data management, she also continues to be one of the regional heads of the Working Group Asia&Oceania, supervising research work on conflicts in Pakistan and parts of India. Ronja has just completed her MA in South Asian Studies, majoring in political science.

New article by Prof. Sumit Ganguly and Jai Shankar Prasad in Foreign Policy

The article "India Faces a Looming Disaster" by Prof. Sumit Ganguly and Jai Shankar Prasad was recently published in Foreign Policy. In the article, the authors argue that Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is an election-winning machine; but also that its ideology is sharply at odds with economic or social common sense. The article can be found .

Vortrag "Marrying for a Future: Transnational Sri Lankan Tamil Marriages in the Shadow of War" von Dr. Sidharthan Maunaguru, National University of Sri Lanka, am 22. Juli (Montag), 16:00 bis 18:00 Uhr im CATS, EG SR 01 (010.00.21). Siehe Details .

Vortrag "The politics of authenticity: Culture and Sinhala nationalism in Sri Lanka" von Prof. Dr. Harshana Rambukwella, Open University of Sri Lanka, am 1. Juli (Montag), 16:00 bis 18:00 Uhr im CATS, EG SR 01 (010.00.21). Siehe Details.

Prof. Rahul Mukherji at the National Police Academy in Hyderabad

On June 28, Prof. Rahul Mukherji gave a lecture at the Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy in Hyderabad. His talk titled "Economic Security: Impact of Economic Policy on National Security Policy" was part of a seminar on national security for a selected group of officers from the police, the armed forces and other administrative services.

Vortrag "Why India May Never Be A Great Power?" von Prof. Sumit Ganguly, Indiana University, Bloomington, am 24. Juni (Montag), 16:00 bis 18:00 Uhr im CATS, EG SR 01 (010.00.21). Siehe Details .

Prof. Sumit Ganguly at the DAI Heidelberg

On 18th June, Prof. Sumit Ganguly, Distinguished Professor of political science, Humboldt Research Award winner and current guest scholar at our department, gave a talk at the German-American Institute (Deutsch-Amerikanisches Institut - DAI) in Heidelberg with the title: "India after the elections".

Third China-India Workshop on Development and Governance

The third China-India Workshop on Development and Governance was held on June 7, 2019 at University of California, Riverside, CA., USA. Professor Rahul Mukherji and the Mari-Curie PhD fellows Mr. Jai Prasad and Ms. Tanvi Deshpande attended and presented their work at the workshop. Professor Rahul Mukherji chaired a session of the workshop and discussed the relevance of area studies and endogenous ideas from China and India. Mr Jai Prasad presented his paper on "Forest Governance and Tribal Welfare in India​". Ms. Tanvi Deshpande presented a paper titled "Institutional change: Evolution of India’s National Action Plan on Climate Change​" co-authored with Dr Himanshu Jha and Professor Rahul Mukherji. The workshop brought together scholars working on China and India to share and discuss issues of common interest and concerns.

Vortrag "Drinking Water Safety and Governance of Water Supply Systems in India" von Dr. M.N. Roy & Dr. Debasri Mukherjee, SIGMA Foundation, am 17. Juni (Montag), 16:00 bis 18:00 Uhr im CATS, EG SR 01 (010.00.21). Siehe Details .

Congratulations to A.S.M. Mostafizur Rahman

The Doctoral Studies Funding Committee of the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences and the Graduate Academy, Heidelberg University, awarded a travel grant to doctoral candidate A.S.M. Mostafizur Rahman for his planned research stay in Bangladesh. Mr. Mostafiz is currently working towards his doctoral dissertation on the political economy of Bangladesh - understanding the rise of the garment industry.

Panel discussion on the Indian General Elections

On 3rd June, Prof. Sumit Ganguly and Dr. Himanshu Jha participated in a panel discussion on the Indian elections, Northeast India and Sino-Indian relations, held at the South Asia Institute.
Prof. Dr. Harshana Rambukwella (Director, Postgraduate Institute of English/Open University of Sri Lanka), Dr. Himanshu Jha (lecturer at SAI), Prof. Sumit Ganguly (Rabindranath Tagore Chair in Indian Cultures and Civilizations, Indiana University/Bloomington), Dr. P. Zingel (Ass. Member SAI), Nora Wagner (Political Scientist, Consultant) and Dr. T. Rathgeber (Asienhaus, Köln) were the panelists. Dr. D. Reinhardt (Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences) was the moderator of the discussion.

New article by Prof. Rahul Mukherji, Prof. Sumit Ganguly and Dr. Himanshu Jha

The joint article by Prof. Rahul Mukherji, Prof. Sumit Ganguly and Dr. Himanshu Jha titled "The Modi Mystery" was recently published in Foreign Policy. In the article, they argue that while poor economic performance should have hurt the prime minister at the polls, appeals to nationalism won him the vote. You can find the article .

Congratulations to our MA student Namia Akhtar!

From 20-25 May, Namia Akhtar participated in the Venice Summer School "Sources of Democracy: Citizenship, Social Cohesion and Ethical Values", organised by ResetDoc. She was part of the working group that presented on the topic “Is diversity compatibility with democracy?” She  argued that the presence of diverse communities in a given state might be volatile in the short run, but it enhances long run stability, leading to better institutional designs. Furthermore, she stated that the quality of democracy largely depends on the ideas of the political elites and the way they construct national identity. The diverse communities and their impact on democracy is a secondary factor.

Dr. Bernhard Beitelmair-Berini at the University of Warsaw

Dr. Beitelmair-Berini gave a talk on contemporary Indian strategic thinking on the Indo-Pacific at a conference addressing the "Power Politics in the Indo-Pacific Region: Implications for the Liberal International Order", organized by the Institute of International Relations, Faculty of Political Science and International Studies, University of Warsaw, on May 7th 2019.

A warm welcome to our visiting scholar 

Prof. Ganguly is a Distinguished Professor of Political Science, and holds the Rabindranath Tagore Chair in Indian Cultures and Civilizations, at Indiana University, Bloomington. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (elected 2017), and a recipient of the Humboldt Research Award (2017), to be hosted by the Department of Politics, SAI, Heidelberg University. He is a specialist on the contemporary politics of South Asia, Professor Ganguly’s research spans security, ethnic conflict, democratization, foreign policy, and international politics of that region. He is the author, co-author, editor, or co-editor of over 20 books on the region. His most recent books include The Oxford Handbook of India’s National Security (Oxford University Press, 2015, coedited with Nicolas Blarel and Manjeet S. Pardesi); Deadly Impasse: Indo-Pakistani Relations at the Dawn of a New Century (Cambridge University Press, 2016); and, with William R. Thompson, Ascending India and Its State Capacity (Yale University Press, 2017).

Prof. Ganguly will stay with us until July and contribute both to our lecture series and teaching. Jointly with Prof. Mukjerji, he will offer a block seminar on India's Foreign Policy. His guest lecture on 24th June will soon be announced.

Vortrag “Climate Action in India: Some Key Considerations” von Amir Bashir Bazaz, Indian Institute for Human Settlements, am 23. Mai (Donnerstag), 11:00 bis 12:30 Uhr im Karl Jaspers Centre, Gebäude 4400, Seminarraum 002. 

Prof. Rahul Mukherji at Yale University

On April 27, at a conference on Federalism in South Asia organized by the South Asia Council at Yale, Prof. Rahul Mukherji presented a paper titled "Ideas, Tipping Point and State Capacity in India: Comparing Welfare Politics in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal".

New article by Prof. Rahul Mukherji, Dr. Seyed Hossein Zarhani, Jai Shankar Prasad and A.S.M. Mostafizur Rahman

Prof. Rahul Mukherji, Dr. Seyed Hossein Zarhani, Jai Shankar Prasad and A.S.M. Mostafizur Rahman recently published an article titled "Analysing the Modi Years – Credit and Criticism" in The Wire, in which they argue that Modi's relatively few successes built substantially upon decades of policy experimentation. The article can be found .

Das Südasieninstitut zieht um!

Vom 1. bis 4. April zieht das SAI zum  (CATS) in die Voßstr. 2, 69115 Heidelberg. Wir werden alle Adressen und Raumnummern schnellstmöglich aktualisieren, sobald alles in den Büroräumen im neuen Gebäude aufgestellt und ausgepackt ist. Bis dahin bitten wir um ein bisschen Geduld. Bis bald im CATS!

Vortrag von Prof. Rahul Mukherji im Völkerkundemuseum Heidelberg

Am Samstag, 6. April, um 19 Uhr wird Prof. Rahul Mukherji einen Vortrag halten nach dem Jahrestreffen der Deutsch-Indischen Gesellschaft im Völkerkundemuseum Heidelberg (Hauptstraße 235). Der Vortrag mit dem Titel "Governing India - What difference does Mr. Modi make?" wird vor allem folgende Frage adressieren: Is Modi changing the nature of democratic governance in India?

Der Eintritt ist frei. 

Dr. Himanshu Jha along with Dr. Jivanta Schottli co-edits the special Issue of India Review on "Globalization and Governance in India"

Prof. Rahul Mukherji provides the introduction to the latest journal issue which has insightful articles authored by Dr.Jivanta Schottli and Prof. Markus Pohlmann, Dr.Himanshu Jha, Dr.Aseema Sinha and Dr. Markus Pauli. The special issue ends with an epilogue by Prof. Subrata K Mitra. This special issue can be accessed .

Congratulations to our student Namia Akhtar!

Namia Akhtar, one of our Master students in her final year, received a scholarship from Ca’ Foscari University of Venice and ResetDOC to attend the summer school "Sources of Democracy: Citizenship, Social Cohesion and Ethical Values", which will take place in Venice at the end of May.

Fourth Global India Training Network, March 10th -13th 2019, Leuven, Belgium

Prof. Rahul Mukherji, Dr Himanshu Jha, Mr Jai Prasad, and Ms Tanvi V Deshpande, attended the fourth Global India workshop hosted by the Leuven Centre for Global Governance, KU Leuven from the 10th-13th March 2019. Mr Prasad and Ms Deshpande presented their PhD progress as part of the project mid-term review followed by a paper presentation on their respective research topics. Prof. Mukherji and Dr Jha reviewed and commented on the PhD student presentations and papers. Prof. Mukherji further spoke about the EU and India partnership in the context of the International Solar Alliance at the European Commission in Brussels on the 12th of March 2019. The meeting concluded on the 13th of March 2019 with a visit of the fellows to the Indian embassy in Belgium.

New article by Prof. Rahul Mukherji and Tanvi Deshpande

The article “Modi's good governance agenda needs a relook” by Prof. Rahul Mukherji and PhD student Tanvi Deshpande was recently published in Firstpost.

Congratulations to Dr. Seyed Hossein Zarhani

Dr. Hossein Zarhani's application for habilitation has been accepted by the Habilitation Conference of the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, Heidelberg University. His habilitation of around 4 years will be mentored by Prof. Rahul Mukherji. Dr. Zarhani's research project for the habilitation will compare the political economy, particularly the telecommunication sector in Iran and India.

Habilitation constitutes the qualification to conduct self-contained university teaching and is the key for access to a professorship in Germany. It is the highest qualification issued by a university.

Third China-India Workshop on Development and Governance

The third China-India Workshop on Development and Governance will take place on June 7, 2019 at University of California, Riverside, CA., USA. The workshop will seek to bring together scholars working on China and India to share and discuss issues of common interest and concern. These issues may include, but are not limited to, the following: the political economy of economic growth, intergovernmental
relations and local governance, policy innovations among local governments, the use of information technology to improve governance, public service delivery, modernization and reform of the civil service, deliberative democracy and civic participation, public accountability and transparency, policy response to demographic challenges such as population growth and aging, as well as Sino-Indian relations.

Co-Sponsors
School of Public Policy, University of California, Riverside (USA)
Center for Comparative Political Development Studies, SIRPA, Fudan University
Institute for Global Public Policy, Fudan University
Center for Gandhian and Indian Studies, Fudan University
South Asia Institute, Heidelberg University (Germany)

Prof. Rahul Mukherji at the Embassy of India in Berlin

On January 16, Prof. Rahul Mukherji spoke at the conference “Good Governance – How Innovative Approaches Can Really Make a Difference: Indian Experience”, organised at the Embassy of India, Berlin, in cooperation with the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR).
He was part of the panel on “Changing Face of Democratic Governance through Innovations and Greater Public participation”.

New publication by Prof. Rahul Mukherji & Dr. Himanshu Jha

Prof. Rahul Mukherji and Dr. Himanshu Jha have published their study on The State, Social Policy and Welfare: Reflections on Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal as a chapter in an edited book on The State in India: Ideas, Norms and Politics, recently published by Orient Blackswan.

The chapter examines some of the conditions under which the state is likely to be more capable in delivering welfare results. It argues that ideas held within the bureaucracy are as important as the political will to support such proposals. Ideas and competence within the technocracy matter, as much as the political support for governance projects. This framework is then applied to welfare provisioning in two comparable cases.The first was the successful implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in undivided Andhra Pradesh. The second is the relative failure of the state in West Bengal to implement the same program in the early years.

The edited book offers an insightful overview of the literature on the state and showcases the interplay of state and society in new sites: processes of globalisation, assertions of sovereignty, and across the regional and local.The volume moves beyond the state question to interrogate how the state can shape concepts, ideas, and institutions central to our lives. The rise of the welfare state with extensive social policies of affirmative action and the emerging penal state are some of the core themes of the volume.