Bhubaneswar: The 36th Meeting of the Board of Governors (BoG) of the Nabakrushna Choudhury Centre for Development Studies was held in Bhubaneswar on Thursday under the chairmanship of Deoranjan Kumar Singh, Development Commissioner-cum-Additional Chief Secretary, setting a forward-looking agenda to strengthen the institute’s institutional vision and global standing.
The meeting, held at the institute’s Seminar Hall, concluded with a consensus to transform NCDS into a globally recognised centre of excellence rooted in Odisha’s developmental priorities.
Eminent members from academia, government, and policy institutions participated in the deliberations. Key attendees included Prakash Chandra Mohanty, Director of NCDS; Jagneshwar Dandpat; Bidhu Bhusan Mishra; Uday Shankar Mishra; Navaneeta Rath; Sanghamitra Sheel Acharya; Umakant Dash; Nitin Kumar; Sambit Tripathy; and Prashant Kumar Mishra, along with faculty members of the institute.
The Board engaged in detailed discussions on strengthening the institutional framework, improving the quality and impact of research, and expanding collaborations with leading national and international institutions. Members stressed the need for interdisciplinary and policy-oriented research aligned with Odisha’s priorities, particularly in areas such as social inclusion, gender equity, livelihood enhancement, and sustainable development.
The BoG also appreciated initiatives undertaken by the Government of Odisha, noting that sustained investments in higher education, research, and innovation have helped position the state as an emerging hub of academic excellence.
In his concluding remarks, Singh highlighted the importance of stronger collaboration between academia, government, and civil society to address evolving socio-economic challenges. The meeting ended with a collective resolve to further develop NCDS as a premier institution for advanced research, policy engagement, and capacity building at national and global levels.
