The Takshashila Institution

Takshashila Institution
Motto Building the intellectual foundations of an India with global interests
Formation 2010
Type Think tank
Headquarters Bangalore, India
Location
Website takshashila.org.in

The Takshashila Institution is an independent, networked think tank and public policy school based in India. It focuses on strategic affairs, public policy and governance. The Takshashila Institution is registered as a non-profit trust.

Mission

The institution provides intellectual leadership for public policies that promote the well-being, prosperity, happiness and security of the people, based on responsible citizenship, economic freedom, realism in international relations, an open society and a culture of tolerance. It also aims to increase public awareness and education on strategic affairs, international relations, national security and economic policies, through the publication of articles, periodicals, books and online activities.[1]

Inspiration: The first school of statecraft

The institution takes its name from the ancient Indian city of Takshashila, now in Pakistan. The city was the earliest center of advanced learning of India, exerting a sort of intellectual suzerainty over the rest of the country.[2] Generally, a student entered Takshashila at the age of sixteen. The Vedas and the Eighteen Silpas or Arts, which included skills such as archery, hunting, and elephant lore, were taught, in addition to its law school, medical school, and school of military science.[3] Students came to Takshashila from far-off places such as Kashi, Kosala and Magadha, in spite of the long and arduous journey they had to undergo, on account of the excellence of the learned teachers there, all recognized as authorities on their respective subjects.[4][5]

Graduate Certificate in Public Policy

Takshashila’s Graduate Certificate in Public Policy (GCPP)[6] programme aims to equip dynamic Indians with knowledge, skills and exposure to public policy. The intensive 12 week graduate-level course provides a firm understanding of the fundamentals of public policy and governance and enable participants to apply them in their professional lives and political discourse. The programme is designed to prepare participants to better engage in the public arena, as analysts, public officials, leaders or indeed, as active citizens. It is primarily delivered through online distance learning with two weekend policy workshops. Students and faculty interact on the learning management system, interactive webinars and on social media. The faculty consists of both academic experts and senior professionals from various disciplines including applied economics, geoeconomics, urban policy, healthcare policy, energy, national security and international relations.

Journal

The institution publishes Pragati - The Indian National Interest Review[7] a monthly publication on strategic affairs, public policy and governance. Pragati has been in continuous publication since April 2007.

References

  1. ↑ http://acorn.nationalinterest.in/2009/11/22/establishing-the-takshashila-institution/
  2. ↑ Radha Kumud Mookerji (2nd ed. 1951; reprint 1989), Ancient Indian Education: Brahmanical and Buddhist (p. 478), Motilal Banarsidass Publ., ISBN 8120804236:
    "Thus the various centres of learning in different parts of the country became affiliated, as it were, to the educational centre, or the central university, of Taxila which exercised a kind of intellectual suzerainty over the wide world of letters in India."
  3. ↑ Radha Kumud Mookerji (2nd ed. 1951; reprint 1989), Ancient Indian Education: Brahmanical and Buddhist (p. 478), Motilal Banarsidass Publ., ISBN 8120804236:
  4. ↑ Political and social movements in ancient Panjab (from the Vedic age up to the Maurya period), by Buddha Prakash (Motilal Banarsidass, New Delhi, 1964)"Students from Magadha traversed the vast distances of northern India in order to join the schools and colleges of Takshashila. We learn from Pali texts that Brahmana youths, Khattiya princes and sons of setthis from Rajagriha, Kashi, Kosala and other places went to Takshashila for learning the Vedas and eighteen sciences and arts."
  5. ↑ Universities in Ancient India, by DG Apte. Page 9
  6. ↑ THE GRADUATE CERTIFICATE IN PUBLIC POLICY PROGRAMME
  7. ↑ Pragati — The Indian National Interest Review
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