Two-day event explored embedding Indian wisdom in management curricula in line with NEP 2020

MUMBAI, India, April 16, 2025 -- Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan's S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research (SPJIMR) successfully hosted a two-day Faculty Development Workshop (FDP) on Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) for Business Education on April 10–11, 2025. The workshop brought together over 40 faculty members from across the country, providing a unique platform for dialogue, reflection, and curriculum development centred on the integration of Indian thought into management education.

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 underscores the importance of integrating IKS into higher education to foster holistic, multidisciplinary learning rooted in India's rich intellectual traditions. SPJIMR, with its long standing focus on Indian wisdom in management, is well placed to advance this through meaningful academic engagement.

Commenting on the initiative, Prof. Varun Nagaraj, Dean, SPJIMR said, "As we look to infuse IKS principles in the management education curriculum, it is important that we are specific about what is new and additive to existing approaches that have been built on the liberal arts, ethics, and systems thinking. I thank our conference attendees for engaging in an intellectually rigorous discussion around this question."

The workshop began with a session by Prof. (Retd.) B. Mahadevan (IIM Bangalore), who offered a clear overview of IKS. He highlighted their interdisciplinary nature, drawing on examples from Aryabhatta to Kalidasa, and emphasised the importance of Sanskrit for accessing original sources without distortion. Prof. Jitesh Mohnot (IIT Jodhpur) followed with an exploration of Marwari and indigenous business practices. He described India's economic landscape as shaped by 'vernacular capitalism', rooted in family firms and informal trust networks, and noted the publishing challenges IKS scholars face without aligning their work to global academic frameworks.

Prof. Ashish Pandey (IIT Bombay) explored leadership through Indian psychology, drawing on the Bhagavad Gita and Rājayoga to connect concepts like karma yoga and mind management with modern leadership. Prof. Varadraj Bapat (IIT Bombay) discussed indigenous financial systems, linking instruments like hundis and insights from the Arthashastra to current economic models and classroom teaching.

The workshop concluded with a synthesis session and curriculum development framework presented by Prof. Surya Tahora, Executive Director of the Centre for Wisdom in Leadership (CWIL), SPJIMR. "This workshop is part of a larger inquiry," he remarked. "It reflects a growing recognition that our academic institutions can be spaces of intellectual decolonisation, but also creative renewal. Not by rejecting modernity, but by deepening it with the wisdom and subtlety of our indigenous traditions."

The two-day workshop culminated in a spirited panel discussion and certificate distribution ceremony, marking a meaningful step in SPJIMR's ongoing efforts to develop contextually rooted yet globally relevant business education.

About SPJIMR

Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan's S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research (SPJIMR) is a leading postgraduate management institute, recognised by the Financial Times MiM Global Rankings as India's #1 business school, by Business Today as one of the country's top five business schools, and by the Positive Impact Rating as one of the top five business schools worldwide for societal impact. Known for its innovative and socially conscious approach to management education, research, and community engagement, SPJIMR aims to influence managerial practice and promote the value-based growth of its students, alumni, organisations and their leaders, and society. SPJIMR holds the international 'triple crown' of accreditations from EQUIS, AACSB, and AMBA.

Visit SPJIMR.org for more information.

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