‘Centre of Excellence’ after Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj: Open to teach about thinkers from different states if govts provide funding, says JNU V-C

The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Centre for Security & Strategic Studies in the School of International Studies, which will be supported by the Maharashtra government, will focus on teaching Indian strategic thought, Maratha military history, Shivaji’s naval strategy and guerilla warfare among other subjects.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Pandit said, “The aim is to be a knowledge multiplier… The initiative to start the centre came from me, as I was always interested in Indic narratives. When I was a student at JNU, I always questioned why we were not studying more about Indian narratives and Indian thinkers.”

“There must be a lot of material in the archives about Shivaji whose strategy is nationally recognised… the aim is to bring these bits forward and tell the world that Indians are original thinkers. We have neglected many of our thinkers’ strategies and it is time to change that,” she added.

Pandit said that if any state government shows interest and supports JNU with funding to carry out research on other Indian thinkers, it would be happy to grab the opportunity.

“For instance, if the Tamil Nadu government or the Odisha government would be willing to support us with funds, we would be more than happy to introduce historical lessons about the Cholas and the Kalinga’s trading in South East Asia… There is a lack of material regarding historical lessons when it comes to a lot of Indian thinkers and JNU being the most premium institute of the country, wants to change this by strengthening humanities and social sciences branches and focusing on holistic development,” she added.

The Shivaji centre, Pandit said, would be open for students who are already pursuing their Masters and PhD at JNU. The centre is expected to offer diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate courses starting July 2025.