JU bags major project under UGC-Ukieri Thematic Partnerships
Jammu University has been able to bag a major Project under the University Grants Commission (UGC)-UK India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI) Thematic Partnerships Scheme.
Prof. Parikshat Singh Manhas presently working as Director – School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, who is also the Coordinator, Global Understanding Course is the member of the International team has bagged the project, a handout issued by the varsity said.
This is an important research project jointly funded by the British Council and University Grants Commission of India under the UK-India Education and Research Initiative. The project will focus on one of the much-disputed areas in Asia, Jammu and Kashmir, which used to be a leading tourist destination benefiting numerous businesses and local communities.
This project will run from April 2017 to March 2020 and is expected to have very high impact benefiting local businesses, communities and Jammu and Kashmir’s tourism economy, the hand-out said.
The team includes some of the leading international experts in tourism and disaster management who have extensive experience in advising national governments and national and international tourism bodies regarding the management of natural and human-induced crises.
The team will be led by Dr Maharaj Vijay Reddy (Head of Aviation, Tourism and Events, University of West London), with co-investigators Professor Stephen Boyd (Professor of Tourism, Ulster University, Northern Ireland) from UK side.
Professor Parikshat Singh Manhas (Director of the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management in Jammu University) is the Principal Investigator of the Indian Team which also includes Dr. Sandeep Kulshreshtha, Director, Indian institute of Tourism and Travel Management, this is the first international team to examine how tourism can be a development tool for communities in the post-conflict region.
The UK India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI) started in April 2006 with the aim of enhancing educational links between India and the UK. In the last five years, UKIERI has played a pivotal role in establishing a step change in the education relations between the two countries. The projects were announced by the prime ministers of two countries. UGC-UKIERI Thematic Partnerships are intended to be between institution-based research teams in the UK and India of proven research ability.
This project of Dr. Reddy and Prof Manhas will strengthen engagement and encourage future potential collaborations between the Indian and UK higher education institutions by facilitating collaborations along with promoting and assisting registered Ph. D students and post-docs in India and the UK to undertake short-term visits to work on the proposed theme.
The Project leaders have been able to ward of stiff competition from top UK and Indian Universities like University of Cambridge, Oxford. IIM’s, IIT’s etc. This is one of the most coveted and sought after projects amongst the Universities/Higher Education Institutions in India and UK.
KV Correspondent
