Last modified: Wednesday, October 25, 2006
IU's Ganguly to be honored in Italy for his contributions to South Asian studies
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 25, 2006
Sumit Ganguly
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Sumit Ganguly, director of the Indiana University India Studies Institute, professor of political science, and holder of the Rabindranath Tagore Professorship in Indian Cultures and Civilizations at Indiana University Bloomington, will be presented the Medal of the Italian Chamber of Deputies on Sunday (Oct. 29). The presentation will be made in Rimini, Italy.
In addition to Ganguly, two other South Asian experts will receive the award this year -- Jagdish Bhagwati, an economist at Columbia University, who was mentioned as a Noble Prize candidate this year; and Gurcharan Das, former chief executive of Procter & Gamble India and now a public intellectual in India.
The award will recognize Ganguly's "remarkable work and contribution to promoting greater understanding of South Asian culture and history, and in particular its recent economic and political development."
Ganguly, who was nominated by the Pio Manzł International Research Centre -- an organization associated with the United Nations and based in Italy -- also will make a presentation, "India's Aspirations to Growth and Global Standing," to the Pio Manzł Centre's annual conference.
The award ceremony will be broadcast live on Italian television.
"I am obviously delighted at being given this award," Ganguly said. "On the other hand, I am also pleasantly surprised by this, because there are a number of other people in the field of South Asian studies who have made significant contributions. I am happy to see that my scholarship and public affairs contributions are receiving this kind of recognition."
Editors: Ganguly is available for interviews on Wednesday. Call George Vlahakis at 812-855-0846 to arrange for an interview.
