The Indian Council of Social Science Research launched a research scheme worth ₹18 crore [1] to support undergraduate students across India.
The initiative seeks to shift the academic landscape by promoting research frameworks that are rooted in Indian perspectives. By targeting undergraduates, the council aims to cultivate a new generation of scholars focused on indigenous methodologies and the historical process of reclaiming intellectual autonomy.
The program focuses specifically on the theme of "Youth and Decolonisation" [1]. Under this framework, the ICSSR will provide fellowships of ₹3 lakh [1] for each project. The funding is designed to support a total of 600 undergraduate projects [1].
These grants are intended to encourage students to explore how youth engage with the concepts of decolonisation in a modern context. The council intends for these projects to challenge Western-centric academic norms, a move that aligns with broader national efforts to prioritize Indian-centric scholarship in the social sciences.
By providing direct financial support to students at the undergraduate level, the ICSSR is lowering the barrier to entry for high-level social research. This approach allows students to engage in rigorous academic inquiry before pursuing postgraduate degrees, potentially increasing the volume of localized data and analysis available to policymakers and historians [1].
“The program provides fellowships for 600 students to study youth and decolonisation.”
This move represents a strategic investment in 'intellectual decolonisation,' shifting the focus of social science from inherited colonial frameworks to indigenous ones. By funding 600 separate projects, the ICSSR is attempting to decentralize research and create a wide-reaching database of perspectives on how India's youth perceive national identity and academic independence.
