Institution Building: The Story of IISERs
Starting form Takhshashila and Nalanda, several academic institutions have been built over the centuries. While Takshashila and Nalanda did not survive the onslaught of time, more recent institutions like Oxford, Harvard, and Stanford have not only survived but also flourished over the years and they continue to remain at the top of the list of academic institutions in the world. University of Calcutta and University of Madras, established in 1857 have had a glorious past, but seem to be languishing at present. IISc is slightly more than 100 years old and it has gone through its ups and downs. In the post-independence era IITs seem to have done reasonably well in the first fifty years and they seem to be facing their mid life crisis. IISERs have been established in the last ten years and they seem to have started off well. The speaker would like to present an analysis of what it takes to build a vibrant academic institution and keep it going.