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C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Institute of Indological Research
(CPRIIR)

(affiliated to the University of Madras for the Ph.D. degree in
"HistoricalStudies" and "Environmental Studies")

E-mail : cpriir@gmail.com

CPRIIR bldg

C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Institute of Indological Research (CPRIIR) was established in 1981 by the C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation. The Institute promotes the study of Indian history, culture, religion, philosophy and the environment. Besides being a centre for research, the Institute also organises conferences, symposia, seminars, lectures and courses every year.

The Institute was set up to research the rich heritage of India, to establish the historicity of Indian literature and to bring together academicians and intellectuals in a spirit of harmonious enquiry. Research into known and lesser-known aspects of Indian religions and culture, Sanskrit and Tamil literature, Indian ethno-archaeology, Hindu deities, art and artifacts and environmental history are the major focus.

The CPRIIRis recognized as a Research Institute for conducting research leading to the Ph.D Degree in Historical Studies and Environmental Studies by the University of Madras.

“Culture involves a vivid awareness of the meaning of life, a conspectus of the world's problems in the proper order and relative importance and the deliberate choice of things that are really worthwhile." -
Dr. C.P.Ramaswami Aiyar

FACULTY

Name Designation Qualification
Dr. Nanditha Krishna Professor & Director Ph.D.
Dr. V. Mohan Assistant Director & Head, Classical Languages M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.,
Dr. G.J. Sudhakar Professor & Head Historical Studies M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.,
Dr. G. Balaji Registrar & Assistant Professor, Historical Studies M.A., B.Ed., Ph.D.,
Dr. V. Sandhiya Lakshmi Assistant Professor, Historical Studies M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.,
Dr. T. Sundaramoorthy Associate Professor & Head, Environmental Studies M.Sc., Ph.D.,
Dr. P. Sudhakar Assistant Professor, Environmental Studies M.Sc., M.Phil., Ph.D.,
Dr. G. Srinivasan Assistant Professor, Environmental Studies M.Sc., M.Phil., Ph.D.,

JOURNAL OF INDIAN HISTORY AND CULTURE (JIHC) ISSN: 0975-7805

The Journal of Indian History and Culture is an annual refereed publication with ISSN registration, which encompasses all areas of historical research. The Journal provides an integrated forum for the presentation of original research papers and thought-provoking reviews to generate innovative ideas in historical research. The Journal focuses on new directions in

Editor:

Dr. G.J. Sudhakar

Head, Historical Studies,

C.P.R. Institute of Indological Research

Dr. G.J. Sudhakar is Professor and Head of the Centre for Historical Studies at the C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Institute of Indological Research, Chennai. He was educated in Madras Christian College and Jawaharlal Nehru University. He is an Executive Committee Member of the Indian History Congressand former Vice-President of the South Indian History Congress besides being the former President of the Tamilnadu History Congress.

He has several publications to his credit like the Weavers Co-operatives in the Madras Presidency and the Handloom Industry in Tamilnadu 1941-55. He has edited volumes like the Aspects of Madras, Popular Uprisings in India with Special Reference to Tamilnadu 1750-1857 and Urbanisation in Indian History. In addition, he is the Editor of the Journal of Indian History and Culture.

Editorial Board

Dr. Nanditha Krishna

Director
C.P.R. Institute of Indological Research

www.nandithakrishna.in

Dr. Nanditha Krishna is a historian, environmentalist and writer based in Chennai. She has a Ph.D. in Ancient Indian Culture from Bombay University. She is the President of The C. P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation. She is the Founder of its many constituents, including C.P. Art Centre and CPR Institute of Indological Research (affiliated to University of Madras). She has been a Professor and a Research Guide for the Ph.D. degree of the University of Madras. She is the author of several books including The Book of Avatars and Divinities; Mahabalipuram-The Ganga Comes to Tamilnadu; You are the Supreme Light: Life Lessons from Adi Shankara; Hinduism and Nature; Deva Pratima; Sacred Plants of India; Sacred Animals of India; Paintings of the Varadaraja Perumal Temple; Madras Then, Chennai Now; Book of Demons; Book of Vishnu; Balaji Venkateshwara; Ganesha; Painted Manuscripts of the Sarasvati Mahal Library; The Arts and Crafts of Tamilnadu; and The Art and Iconography of Vishnu-Narayana (her Ph.D. thesis), among others, besides several research papers and popular articles. In 2001, she established the Shakunthala Jagannathan Museum of Folk Art at Kanchipuram. She was responsible for the revival of the painting traditions of the Kurumba tribes and pottery traditions of Kota women. She restored the Varahishwarar Temple in Damal and a 450 year old building in Kanchipuram. She has been documenting Indias ecological heritage traditions; revived traditional drawing and painting in Mamallapuram; and Tamil Folk Art Forms in Schools. In 1990, she was deputed to the Archaeological Survey of Indias restoration of Angkor Wat in Cambodia. She has researched extensively the Khmer temples and reported on the restoration process. She has received the Nari Shakti Puraskar from the Government of India.

Dr. K.V. Raman

Former Professor & Head
Department of Ancient History and Archaeology
University of Madras

Prof. K.V. Raman is one of the senior and distinguished scholars whose valuable contributions to the field of archaeology, history and art are well known by his discoveries and publications such as The Early History of the Madras Region (1957);Some Aspects of Pandyan History (1972);Sri Varadaraja Swamy Temple, Kanchi (1975);Sculptural Art of Tirumala Tirupati (1997);Excavations in Uraiyur (Ed.) (1988);Temple Art, Icons and Culture of India and South Asia (2006);Archaeology, History and Numismatics of South India, a collection of research papers in 2017, besides many other books and research papers and endowment lectures.

He was formerly Superintending Archaeologist in the Archaeological Survey of India and later became Professor of Ancient History and Archaeology. University of Madras, from 1976 to 1995. He is the recipient of many honours from India and abroad like the UNESCO Regional Educational Award for 1972, Fulbright Fellow in USA in 1983 and Senior Fellow of the Association of Commonwealth Universities in UK in 1989. He visited South-East Asian countries from 1992-1995 as a member of the Indo-Japanese team headed by Prof. Noboru Karashima to study the historical and cultural relations and was Visiting Professor of Art History in the University of Georgia, Athens, USA (1998).

He was the President of the Indian History Congress in Amritsar (Ancient History section) in 1985; President of the Numismatic Society of India at Shantiniketan in 1989; General President South Indian Numismatic Society in 1996; President of the South Indian History Congress at Gulbarga in 1996; and President of the Tamil Nadu History Congress in 1997. He received the Dr. V.S. Wakankar Award for excellence in Field Archaeology for the year 2002 from the Indian Archaeological Society, New Delhi. In 2017, K.V. Raman was honoured by the National Fellow Award of the Indian Council for Historical Research (ICHR) for his lifetime contributions to the field of History and Archaeology.

Dr. V. Mohan

Assistant Director and Head
Department of Classical Languages
C.P.R. Institute of Indological Research

Dr. V. Mohan has obtained his Doctorate in Sanskrit from the University of Madras. He is also a post graduate in English, Tamil and Education. He has been teaching Sanskrit at the junior college level for more than three decades and retired from service as Vice-Principal. He has attended and presented many papers in various seminars and conferences. He has published his Ph.D. thesis entitled Abdullah Carita of Lakshmipati A Study, a chronicle and analytical study on Mughal history in 2015. He has co-authored the second and third volumes of Upanishada Sindanaigal, a lucid explanation of the Upanishads in Tamil along with Sri. K. S. Chandrasekar Guruji. Hailing from a traditional and orthodox family, Dr. V. Mohan has a great inclination towards spiritual pursuits. He is also interested in giving spiritual discourses on various topics including Bhagavata Puranam. He presented a paper titled Historical Kavyas in Sanskrit on Saint Thyagaraja in the 17th World Sanskrit Conference held at Vancover, Canada, in July 2018. Presently, he is the Assistant Director and Head, Department of Classical Languages in the C. P. Ramaswami Aiyar Institute of Indological Research, Chennai.

Dr. G. Balaji

Registrar and Assistant Professor
C.P.R. Institute of Indological Research

https://universiyofmadras.academia.edu/Balaji Gopalakrishnan

Dr. G. Balaji is Assistant Professor at C.P.R. Institute of Indological Research, which is affiliated to the University of Madras. He has obtained his Doctorate in Ancient History and Archaeology from the University of Madras. His Ph. D thesis is on Narasimha Incarnation of Vishnu in Art, Iconography and Literature. His areas of specialization include Art, Architecture, Iconography, Numismatics, Epigraphy, Field Archaeology and Ethno Archaeology. He has done extensive field research in India. He has published his Research Project entitled Arts and Crafts of the Nilgiri Tribes, an ethno archaeological study of the indigenous people of the Nilgiri hills and has over 20 research articles to his credit. Earlier, he completed his M.A., from the Department of Ancient History and Archaeology, University of Madras, Chennai. He is now a recognised Ph.D. supervisor of University of Madras. He guides Ph.D. research scholars in the field of Historical studies.

Dr. V. Sandhiya lakshmi

Assistant Professor,
C.P.R. Institute of Indological Research

Dr. V. Sandhiyalakshmi has an M.A., M.Phil and Ph.D. in Ancient History and Archaeology from the University of Madras. Her Ph.D. thesis was on 'Iconography of Karttikeya', and was published by C.P.R. Institute of Indological Research. She is Assistant Professor, Historical Studies, of C.P.R. Institute of Indological Research, and guides students registered for the Ph.D. degree. She has written several research articles in reputed journals and presented papers at various seminars and conferences.

Advisory Board

Dr. V. Balambal Former Professor of History, University of Madras

Dr. A. Chandrasekharan Former Professor of History, University of Madras

Dr. Chithra Madhavan Historian and Writer, Chennai

Dr. S. Vasanthi Former Deputy Director, State Archaeology Department, Tamilnadu

Dr. A. Chandhrika Professor, Department of History, School of Social Sciences & International Studies, Pondicherry University

The first issue of the Journal (JIHC) was published in September 1996

Annual Issue

Subscription amount:


Rs. 500/- for 1 issue

Rs. 900/- for 2 issues

Guidelines for Contributors and other details click here

Research

The Foundation is recognized as a Research Institution for conducting research leading to the Ph.D. Degree in Historical Studies and Environmental Studies by the University of Madras.

Recognised Faculty Details

Sl.no. Name, Qualification & Designation Subject/Discipline Recognition of Guideship by the Madras University
Historical Studies
1. Dr. G. Balaji
M.A., B.Ed., Ph.D.,
Assistant Professor
History/Ancient History & Archaeology/ Historical Studies Recognised Supervisor of University of Madras for conducting Ph.D. Programmes in Historical Studies
2. Dr. V. Sandhiyalakshmi
M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.,
Assistant Professor
History/Ancient History & Archaeology/ Historical Studies Recognised Supervisor of University of Madras for conducting Ph.D. Programmes in Historical Studies
Environmental Studies
1. Dr. T. Sundaramoorthy
M.Sc, M.Phil, Ph.D.,
Associate Professor
Zoology/ Environmental Studies Recognised Supervisor of University of Madras for conducting Ph.D. Programmes in Environmental Studies
2. Dr. P. Sudhakar
M.Sc, M.Phil, Ph.D.,
Assistant Professor
Botany/ Environmental Studies Recognised Supervisor of University of Madras for conducting Ph.D. Programmes in Environmental Studies

Details of the Research Scholars / Students enrolled:

Programmes Full-Time Part-Time Total
Male Female Male Female
Ph.D Historical Studies 1 2 2 5
Ph.D. Environmental Studies 1 1 2

Research Projects (Current)

Sl.no. Title of the Project Funding Agency
1. Special Project on Environmental History of India - Project Convener - Dr. Nanditha Krishna Indian Council for Historical Research (ICHR), New Delhi
2. An Epigraphical Study of Science and Technology of Tamils 600 to 1400 CE - Project Director - Dr. G. Balaji Indian Council for Historical Research (ICHR), New Delhi
3. Eco Eureka Youth Engagement Workshops on Nature and Labs Project Coordinator Dr. T. Sundaramoorthy National Council for Science & Technology Communication (NCSTC), Department of Science & Technology, Government of India
4. Ecological Studies of Sacred Groves in five agro-climatic zones of Tamil Nadu Project coordinator - Dr. T. Sundaramoorthy Tamil Nadu Forest Department, Government of Tamil Nadu

Ongoing Research by Ph.D Students

RESEARCH PROJECTS (COMPLETED)

Ethnological Museum of the Nilgiri Tribes

Tribes culture

The Nilgiris was designated as a tribal district sheltering several ancient tribes. A project, sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Youth Affairs and Sports, Department of Culture, Government of India, was taken up in 2000 to survey the art and craft traditions of four tribes Kota, Kurumba, Irula and Paniya. The purpose of the documentation was to record the important traditions of each tribe which are in danger of disappearing today. CPRIIR also collected several ethno-archaeological items of the tribes which are on display at CPRIIRs private museum.

LIBRARY

The C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation has excellent reference library facilities, with over 20,000 books and manuscripts on various areas of Indian philosophy and religion, art and culture, literature, history, sociology and economics, environment and the humanities, from all over the world. The library contains Sanskrit and Tamil books; rare and old books on Indian religion, art, literature and culture; and modern publications. The library is regularly updated with new books on Indian religion, art, history and the environment.

library


MANUSCRIPTS

The Institute is a partner of the Government of Indias National Manuscripts Mission. There are about 5000 paper manuscripts (Sanskrit) and 1500 palm leaf manuscripts.

LIBRARY OF NEGATIVES

Rare photographs and negatives of historical events, national leaders, monuments, and places of cultural importance are available in the Library.

CONSERVATION OF BOOKS AND MANUSCRIPTS

manuscript


The Institute has a conservation room with de-acidification and fumigation chambers. Chiffon binding of paper and citronella application on palmleaf manuscripts are carried out regularly.

CPRIIR also conducts regular courses on conservation of books, paper and palmleaf manuscripts, especially for librarians of schools, colleges and other institutions.

PARTNERSHIPS

C.P.R. ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION CENTRE (CPREEC), is a Centre of Excellence of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Government of India, jointly established bythe C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation and the Ministry. CPRIIR collaborates with CPREEC to study the Ecological Traditions and Environmental History of India.

NATIONAL MISSION FOR MANUSCRIPTS, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA, is for the documentation and maintenance of manuscripts.

OXFORD CENTRE FOR HINDU STUDIES (OCHS), is a recognized independent centre of Oxford University, established for the study of Hindu religion, culture, society, philosophies, and languages, in all periods and in all parts of the world and dedicated to preserving and promoting Indias cultural heritage through education, publishing, and research. CPRIIR and OCHS have entered into an MOU to cooperate in their efforts to enhance the field of Hindu studies by promoting academic interchange between the two institutes and exchange between the faculty and students.

CONFERENCES, SEMINARS & SYMPOSIA

LECTURES

AWARDS

Dr. K.V. Raman and Dr. R. Nagaswamy were honoured with LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS for their contribution to Indian Art History by Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam, artist and scholar.

COURSES OFFERED

courses

The Institute conducts a course annually in one or more of these topics :

The courses include theory and practical study.

CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

CPRIIR has developed curricula and written the text books for standards 5 to 10 for students on Indian history and culture.

PUBLICATIONS

On C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar

Books authored by C.P.

Dr. C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar was a scholar in English, Tamil, Sanskrit and French. He published many books, and booklets on politics, economics, Indian culture, philosophy, religion, etc.

He delivered twenty-one Convocation Addresses at various Indian Universities, which were brought out in book form by Annamalai University, Chidambaram.

Also see C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar.

History, Art, Architecture & Archaeology

Folk / Tribal Culture

Performing Arts

Religion & Philosophy

Other Publishers

Environmental Studies

Ecological Heritage of India series (published by C.P.R. Environmental Education Centre)



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