Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN),2015 – Effectiveness and Implementation

Policy Update
Aditi Singh Kaushik

Background 

Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN) was launched in 2015 by the erstwhile Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani at IIT Gandhinagar. This programme aims to foster an enriching collaboration between Indian and international academia, thereby increasing the footprint of reputed international faculty in Indian academic institutes. The first two courses under GIAN are 3D Digitisation for Cultural Heritage and Orthopaedic Biomechanics: Implants and Biomaterials. These courses were launched at IIT Gandhinagar and IIT Kharagpur, respectively.

Initially, IIT Kharagpur was designated as the National Coordinating Institute and Group Coordinating Institute for Group One. Additional group coordinators included IISc Bangalore, JNU, UGC, IIM Bangalore, and AICTE. Currently, IIT Hyderabad serves as the National Coordinating Institute for GIAN. Since its inception, the programme has constantly evolved in terms of its outreach and inclusion. Today, several state universities throughout the country are included within the purview of the programme.

Functioning 

1. Submission of Proposals – Several institutions have been approved across India, including IITs, IIITs, IISCs, NLUs, Central Universities, and State Universities, for submitting proposals under GIAN. Since 2015, the number of approved institutions has increased substantially. 

All approved institutions have a Local Institute Coordinator who is entrusted to submit a proposal online through the GIAN Portal in the prescribed proforma. It is the responsibility of a proposing institution to ensure that the international faculty can communicate in English, or the medium of instruction required for the proposed course.

2. Host Institutes – An institute organising a course or an activity under GIAN is termed as a host institute. Their responsibilities include registration, selection of participants, arrangement for classes, and content creation related to the selected course. Additionally, host institutions are responsible for maintaining a local GIAN portal, which will be connected to the main portal. Following the completion of the course, a host institute will allow for the transfer of credits if required by participating institutions. 

3.Sectional Committees – There are twelve sectional committees spread across different areas under GIAN for shortlisting and recommending proposals under various topics. These areas include Physical Sciences, Mathematical and Computer Science, Humanities, Liberal Arts, and other categories. These committees are also tasked with consolidating reviews and conducting special activities through courses, lecture series, and workshops. 

The chairperson of the committee designates some of its members to review proposals. Selected proposals are forwarded to the GIAN Implementation Committee, which assesses proposals for their final approval. In certain cases, reputed institutions, such as the national and foreign academies and Embassies, send their proposals to the Implementation Committee directly.

4. National Coordinating Institute – A National Coordinating Institute, under the supervision of a Coordinator and Co-Coordinator, creates and manages national portals for various activities under GIAN. They also maintain archives, coordinate among institutes to propose joint programmes, amongst other myriad functions.

Impact and Performance – 

Studies have evaluated the structure, functioning, and performance of GIAN programmes at various levels – 

  1. Participation of Indian Institutions – Studies highlight that Institutions of National Importance, including all IITs, twenty-three NITs, and five IISERs, actively participate in GIAN–led activities. IITs lead with around 865 courses (45.12%), State Universities with 413 courses (21.54%), followed by Central Universities with 80 courses (5% representation). 
  2. Geographical Connectivity – As far as the geographical distribution of the programme is concerned, nine institutions in the state of Tamil Nadu have offered the highest number of courses – 240 (12.52%), followed by six institutions in Telangana that have offered 173 courses (9.02%). As far as the number of participating institutions is concerned, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh have the highest number of such institutions – twelve institutions each. 
  3. Performance of Courses under GIAN- Top approved courses under the GIAN program include Mechanical Sciences, Electronics, Electrical, Information & Communication Technology, and Mathematical and Computer Sciences. 
  4. Institutions and Approved Courses – There are around 151 institutions with approved courses. Institutions like IIT Madras, with 164 courses (8.56%), followed by IIT Kharagpur with 104 courses (5.43%), and NIT Warangal with 84 courses (4.38%), are amongst the top institutions in India in terms of the number of courses provided.            
  5. Participation of Foreign Countries – Countries that have actively participated in GIAN–led courses include the United States (810), the United Kingdom (175), and Australia (111). European nations have also been supporting the GIAN initiative, such as Germany (110), Italy (63), and France (61). The United States has offered the most courses in almost every discipline under the program. It is also vital to highlight that around 600 courses under GIAN have resource persons from different European nations.
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Fig 1.0

Emerging Issues –

  1. Low Participation – Certain institutions of national importance, like the IIMs, have a low participation rate in the programme. Other entities, such as some State Universities and Deemed- to – be Universities, have also offered minimal courses under GIAN. 
  2. Involvement of States – Although states like Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu have vigorously promoted courses under GIAN, a few states have made no significant contributions to the programme. 
  3. Minimal Foreign Collaboration – Although collaborations with American and European academia have provided impetus to GIAN, there still appears to be little involvement by Asian, African, and Middle–Eastern nations. Only a few countries, such as South Africa and China, appear to be active collaborators from these geographical territories. Inclusion of BRICS countries will be an asset to the program. 

Way Forward –

The Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN) has achieved significant milestones since its inception in 2015, like creating a cooperative learning environment and forging international networks within academia. Some scholars suggest creating state-level academic networks to increase awareness about the myriad courses and collaboration opportunities available under GIAN.

There have also been suggestions to involve additional overseas resource persons to teach courses in Humanities, Management, and Social Sciences, which have recorded low participation as compared to other courses under the programme. Such an addition will ensure that students from different institutions participate in courses in niche areas. With the implementation of  these suggestions and its existing achievements, GIAN will provide significant impetus to the higher education sector in India.

References

  • gian@iitkgp.ac.in, Global Initiative of Academic Networks GIAN. (n.d.-b). Global Initiative of Academic Networks GIAN). https://gian.iitkgp.ac.in/cgenmenu/objectives
  • GIAN – Global Initiative of Academic Networks. (n.d.). Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN). https://gian.iith.ac.in/

About the Contributor: Aditi Singh Kaushik is a Research Intern at IMPRI. She also holds a Master’s degree in Political Science from Banaras Hindu University. Her research interest lies in understanding the evolving roles of traditional and organic intellectuals in post-colonial countries, within a Gramscian framework. 

Acknowledgement: The author sincerely thanks Aasthaba Jadeja and IMPRI fellows for their valuable contribution.

Disclaimer: All views expressed in the article belong solely to the author and not necessarily to the organisation.

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