Hyderabad: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the National Institute of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj (NIRDPR) and Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI) on Thursday in a virtual mode with a view to collaborating in teaching, training, research and consultancy areas namely Social Business, Sustainable Development Goals, Rural Management Organizational Development, Finance, etc.,
The MoU was signed by Dr. G. Narendra Kumar, IAS, Director General, NIRDPR and Dr. Nirmalya Bagchi, Director General (i/c), ASCI, and, in the presence of Dr.Valli Manickam, Professor, Dean of Training Programs & Director, Centre for Innovation and Technology, ASCI and Shashi Bhushan, Deputy Director-General, and Dr. M. Srikanth, Associate Professor and Registrar & Director (Admn.) I/c, NIRDPR and other officials from ASCI and NIRDPR.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Narendra Kumar felt that both the organizations have unique strengths and the collaboration would be a catalyst in further synergizing their operations through joint bidding of research projects, conducting of joint management development programmes, among others. Dr. Narendra Kumar opined that the experience of ASCI may be leveraged, in view of the increasing need for ‘autonomy of NIRDPR’ in the near future.
Dr. Bagchi stated that ASCI has been a self-financing organization since 1984 by conducting executive development programmes for top and middle-level managers both in government and private sectors. Dr. Bagchi further mentioned that the MoU could be perpetual in nature and a core committee would be constituted soon to finalize the annual action plan to achieve the intended objectives of the MoU. (INN)