Date:28/06/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/06/28/stories/2007062855792200.htm

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LSE promised Jamsetji Tata Trust largesse

Hasan Suroor

LONDON: The Jamsetji Tata Trust has pledged £1.8 million to the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) to support research collaboration between the LSE and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in India.

The partnership was announced at a public event on “Sustaining growth and promoting inclusion in India’s economy and society” chaired here by Lord Meghnad Desai, economist and emeritus professor at the LSE.

S. Parasuraman, director, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, said: “I feel deeply privileged to be present here today to mark the commencement of a new, and what promises to be an exciting and fruitful, intellectual partnership between two highly distinguished institutions, the London School of Economics and Political Science and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences.”

S.N. Batliwalla, secretary and chief accountant, Jamsetji Tata Trust, said: “What distinguishes the Tata Trust is not only to give, or the extent or range of the giving, but the character of the giving. The Tata Trust fosters and pioneers initiatives for new types of research and services to the society. For the Tata Trust, a large programme, carefully designed and executed to advance knowledge, is the major objective.”

Sir Nicholas Stern, director, India Observatory at the LSE, said: “We are very grateful to the Jamsetji Tata Trust for this generous pledge. LSE’s association with the Tata family dates back almost a century, and this pledge further strengthens this relationship by supporting collaborative research between academics at LSE and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences.”

Stuart Corbridge, head of the Development Studies Institute at the LSE, and Anwar Hasan, managing director, Tata Ltd. U.K., spoke.