Blog

By Dr. Mohammed Sohail Ahmed
The recent Higher Education trip to Beijing and Kunming, led by Prof. Jogen Kalita of Gauhati University, would remain etched in my memory. First and foremost it gave me and some other members of the motley group of around thirty odd college and university teachers from various disciplines the much needed mid-career fillip to explore and observe the nuances of the Higher Education system of the PRC which to say the least is rapidly growing in recent decades. Among the highlights of the trip I would like to mention the visit to the Renmin University campus of Beijing which I would cherish for a long time. Established in 1957, in the aftermath of the 1949 revolution, the university evolved as a specialised centre of higher learning and research in social sciences and humanities. Under the backdrop of the postmodern and neo liberal conditions of ‘globality’ the university appears to have adapted with the changes across the world and undertaken a rapid expansion of its fields of studies in languages, law and management. The visit to the international scholar’s hostel in the premises gave us an inside view of how the country’s ambitious plan to play a key role in geopolitics has been aligned with its desire to develop research in social sciences through exchange of scholars with other nations. It was heartening to discover a scholar from India there.

The visit and interactions at the Kunming Institute of Botany (KIB) which houses the World Institute of Agro Forestry made our team conscious about the cross-cutting and advanced research in slope management, identification of rare mushroom varieties across the Mekong Delta System, and the urge of the institute to collaborate with Indian universities. It may perhaps be mentioned here that the Gauhati University of Assam has also entered into an MoU with this institute for undertaking research projects in the coming months.

The interactions with the Deputy Dean of Kunming Minzu University made us aware how rapidly a university has expanded across disciplines. The university has been in news already for establishing a department of Yoga. The presentation of Hindi songs by the Chinese students of the Hindi department was a remarkable experience. The visit to the Ethnic Museum in Kunming gave us an opportunity to observe how the cultural traditions of diverse minority communities of the Yunnan province has been carefully show cased, and the expertise developed in the field. Similarly, the visit and interaction in the Kunming Bayio Group’s premises gave us an insight into how biotechnological advancements have been fused with ethnic and traditional medicinal plants. Apart from the interactions in various academic institutions the exchange trip enabled us to have first-hand knowledge about the rich history and cultural artefacts of China evident in the Stone Forest Park, the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, the Jan Dian Cloisonné, the Food Street etc. A lot of effort was made with a rare kind of zeal, enthusiasm and friendly guidance by the team who accommodated diverse interactive sessions and visits to all important sites. Every member of the team learned something new and the entire programme became a grand success in the end. We all look forward to their guidance in future and hope that ICAC would open up and coordinate further opportunities to college and university faculties and research scholars of the North East in general and Assam in special.

Prof Ahmed is an Associate Professor at the Department of English, Jagiroad College in Assam and was part of the delegation that went to China in 2016