IIMB welcomes 25 participants to the Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy & Management
Pandemic has made this academic program more relevant than ever as policy frameworks in areas such as health & economic growth are being rewritten, say experts
19 June, 2020: IIM Bangalore welcomed the 19th batch of students to the Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy & Management (PGPPM) in a virtual inauguration, this afternoon.
The batch comprises 25 participants, from both Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Govt. of India, and non-DoPT candidates.
In his welcome address, PGPPM Chairperson Professor Anil B. Suraj, faculty from the Centre of Public Policy at IIMB, observed that IIMB endeavours to keep things as normal as far as the delivery of its programmes is concerned in the current context. “We have ensured innovations in delivering the programme to you. Do share your learning feedback with us.”
The inauguration was marked by the lamp lighting by IIMB Director Professor G. Raghuram and Dean Programmes Professor Abhoy K. Ojha.
Congratulating the participants for making it to the prestigious PGPPM programme at IIMB, Dean Programmes Professor Abhoy Ojha, said he was confident that IIMB would deliver a seamless programme to them. “This is a batch that will get a degree in Public Policy and Management – this is a milestone,” he said, adding that credits and rigor of the programme had gone up.
Listing four areas for the participants, Professor Ojha explained: “You will be attending classes after a long gap as you all have illustrious careers. This will call for a certain discipline and rigor in attending classes – even if they are online. The faculty will follow certain frameworks and the programme design is based on peer learning. You will get an opportunity to hear other points of view, be it from the government or from civil society. Networking is important and I hope that you will establish these bonds – both online and when you come to campus.”
Professor of Strategy and Director Designate Dr. Rishikesha T. Krishnan, who joined the inauguration online, welcomed the participants. “The pandemic has shown all of us that we need to build capacity to handle crises on many fronts – economic growth, public health, policy, innovation and competition. The policy of Atmanirbhar India is gaining ground. All of this is going to involve significant effort in policy framework. This is not going to be easy – because there are many constraints and trade-offs. This programme will help all of you to look at these challenges in a new light. The country must manage all these trade-offs. The programme will provide you with tools and techniques to deal with this. This is bound to be an enriching and complex time to go through the Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy & Management at IIMB.”
In his address, IIMB Director Professor G. Raghuram, who is closely involved in public systems, listed the macro challenges posed by the pandemic in areas such as infrastructure, including broadband connectivity, transport, land, labour, health, defense, and hoped the PGPPM programme would help the participants learn and contribute to the development of the country.
“A good policy is one that is easy to implement. Management is all about creating good organizations to enable good thought process for policy making or implementation. It is about understanding client needs. It is about understanding people behaviour, funds and information. The PGPPM programme’s course structure revolves around these elements,” he explained.
Dean Administration Professor M.S. Narasimhan and Dean Alumni Relations & Management Professor K. Kumar, and IIMB’s CAO Col. (Retd.) S.D. Aravendan were present at the inauguration.
Even as the participants gear up for training about the online classes, they expressed their desire to attend classes on the sylvan campus at the earliest.
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