Department of South and Central Asian Studies

The evolving connotation of South and Central Asian region as a ‘transformation driver’ has irresistibly been driven not only the great powers to reconsider their strategic and economic priorities, but also a major realm of academia to review the previous drift of learning. Such a challenging task has been undertaken by the Central University of Punjab in the form of a specialized Department of South and Central Asian Studies, which was established in 2009. The Department is being the one of founding pillars among the departments under School of International Studies is unique and innovative in its focus and is committed to cutting edge research. The Department seeks to promote, conduct and disseminate interdisciplinary studies in the key areas of South and Central Asian polity, economy, geopolitics, environment, culture, society, science and technology innovations. The historical and contemporary connections between the two regions alongside multiple forms of exchange among them always are attracting the scholars to explore the region. With a firm emphasis on research based learning and knowledge creation, the Department brings all aspects relating to the region under its academic purview.

Vision
To impart quality education in order to integrate the theoretical, applied and engaged learning in Political Science, International and Area Studies and to develop an  effective, analytical research and communication skill

Mission
The Department of South and Central Asian Studies seeks to prepare the learners with a learning experience that will develop capacity to address the socio-political, geopolitical, geo-economic and science and technological challenges of the complex modern society. The Department further emphasizes to make the students as active and engaged citizens at the local, national and global levels. The department provides trans-disciplinary based political education that is embedded and strengthened by theoretical and philosophical traditions. This includes a strong background in the fundamental branches of our discipline: Indian politics, South and Central Asian Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations, Political Theory, Political Philosophy, Governance and Public Policy Studies, Environmental Relations and Geopolitics. The Departmental students have been encouraged to acquire research skills through projects based research. The Departmental Students would engage in extra-curriculum activities which helps them to cultivate leadership qualities. After the completion of the degree programme, the students would be able to understand, examine and critically analyse the contemporary political events and come out with practical and viable solutions to socio-political problems.

Faculty

1. Dr. Bawa Singh, Associate Professor & HOD
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2. Dr. Nishtha Kaushiki, Assistant Professor
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3. Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma, Assistant Professor
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4. Dr. Manabhanjan Meher, Assistant Professor
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Academic Programmes Offered

• 2020-22
  • M.A. Political Science
  • Ph.D Political Science
• 2019-21
  • M.A Political Science
  • Ph.D Political Science

Syllabi

• 2020-22
• 2019-21

Academic Calender

• 2019-20

Departmental Research Supervision

Ph. D in South and Central Asian Studies

S. No	Name of Student	Name of the Thesis	Supervisor	Status
1	AmandeepKaur CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2011-12/08	India and Central Asian Republics Economic Cooperation: An Analysis of Problems and Potentials	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded September 2018
2	Mansoor Lone CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2012-13/06	China and the Indian Ocean: Navigating India’s Challenges and Reciprocation	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded September 2018
3	Parvaiz Ahmad Thokar CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2012-13/10	Changing Contours of Balance of Power in Asia-Pacific: India’s Paradoxes and Pragmatism	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded September 2018
4	Bhupinder Singh CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2012-13/11	British India in World War I & II: Historicizing the Punjab’s Military Perspective	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded September 2018
5	Sandeep Singh CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2012-13/13	Eurasia in India's Energy Diplomacy: Exploring the Emerging Equations in the 21st Century	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded 26 August, 2019
6	MudasirMubarik CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2011-12/05	Locating Russia in the Emerging Geopolitics of Central Asia: Re-imaging India’s Challenges and Options	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded 26 August, 2019
7	Nitesh Patel 19phdsca01	Synopsis yet to be approved	Dr. Bawa Singh	Ongoing
8	PriyaGauttam 19phdsca02	Synopsis yet to be approved	Dr. Bawa Singh	Ongoing
9	Anu Sonia CUP/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2009-10/06	Socio-Legal Dimensions of Domestic Violence against Women: A Field Experience of Malwa and Doaba Regions of Indian Punjab	Dr. Nishtha Kaushiki	Awarded 2016
10	GhulamMohiudin CUPB/MPH-PhD/SGR/SCA/2012-13/09	Post 9/11 Triangular Dynamics of US-Pakistan and China: A Strategic Perspective	Dr. Nishtha Kaushiki	Awarded 2018
11	HilalRamzan CUPB/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2012-13/02	Post-9/11 Sino-Russo Entente: Reshaping the Asian Security Dynamics and Challenges for India	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded 2019
12	ManpreetKaur CUPB/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2012-13/08	Socio-Psychological Problems of Working Women in Service Sector: Field Study of Mansa and Sri Muktsar Sahib Districts of Punjab	Dr. Nishtha Kaushiki	Awarded 2019
13	Noushadali .K. CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/19	Repatriation of Sri Lankan Tamil Refugees from Tamil Nadu, India: Contextualising Options and Challenges	Dr. Nishtha Kaushiki	Submitted 2020
14	Kovid Kumar CUP/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2010-11/03	Human Trafficking and Its Consequences: South Asian Experience though Indian Punjab	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Awarded (2018)
15	Dinesh Bassi CUP/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2010-11/04	Role of Fourth Estate in Shaping Public Opinion: A Comparative Analysis of Print Media Representation on Punjab Militancy 1980-1984	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Awarded (2018)
16	Shiv Kumar CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013- 14/12	Emerging Security Architecture in the Indo-Pacific Region: A study from Indian Perspective	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Awarded (2020)
17	ShabazHussain Shah CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013- 14/07	Post-Cold War Power Politics in South Asia: Introspecting indo Russian Relation.	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Submitted (2019)
18	Abdul RoufBhat CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013- 14/05	Post-2001 India-Afghanistan Relations	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Ongoing
19	Davinderpal Singh 15phdsca01	India in Post-Kyoto Global Climate Change Governance	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Ongoing
20	RaghavendraPratapKushwaha CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013- 14/14	India and the Emerging Energy Governance in Central Asia	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Ongoing
21	ManinderjitSingh CUP/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2010-11/02	Military Geography and Transformational Trajectory of Punjab (1849-1947): An Appraisal.	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	2019

M. Phil Research

S. No	Name of Student	Name of the Thesis	Supervisor	Status
1	MohamadArif Mir (CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2011-12/02)-2013	Nuclearisation in South Asia: The China Factor.	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
2	Mansoor Ahmad Lone (CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2012-13/06)- 2014	China’s Strategic Foray in South Asia: Contextualizing India’s Concerns	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
3	Pervaiz Ahmad Thoker (CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2012-13/10)-2014	The New Great Game in Central Asia: India’s Interests and Challenges.	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
4	MudassirGhulam (CUPB/MPh- PhD/SGR/ SCA/2012-13/05).	Democratic Transformation in South Asia: Emerging Trends	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
5	Niraj Kumar (CUPB/MPH-PHD/SGR/SCA/2013- 14/02)	IBSA in a New Regional Architecture: Role of India	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
6	Abdul RoufBhat (CUP/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/05)	Post -2014 Afghanistan: An Analysis of Regional Implications and Reciprocation.	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
7	ShabazHussain Shah (CUP/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/07)	Changing Dynamics of China Nepal Relations: Mapping India’s Concerns.	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
8	KambleAbitodhanBaburao (CUPB/M.Phil.-Ph.D./SGR/SCA/2013- 14/22)	Caste and Gender Discrimination in India: Comparative Analysis of B. G. Tilak Verses Mahatma JyotibaPhule.	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
9	Rupinder Singh (CUPB/MPh/SGR/SCA/2015-16/09)	Nepal’s Constitutional Crisis of 2015: A Madhesi Perspective	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
10	Vikramjeet Singh (CUPB/MPh/SGR/SCA/2015-16/10)	Militarization of South China Sea: Reconnoitring of India’s Reciprocation.	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
11	Balinder Singh CUPB/MPh/SGR/SCA/2015-16/08	Politics of Ethnic Conflict in Bhutan: A Nepalese Perspective	Dr. Bawa Singh	Awarded
12	MudasirMubarik	Indo-Russian Defence Cooperation: 1991-2011	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded June 2013
13	HilalRamzan CUPB/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2012-13/02	Obama’s Asia Pivot Policy: Implications for India	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded July 2014
14	GhulamMohiuddin	China-Pakistan Strategic Relationship: Implications for South Asia	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded June 2014
15	ManpreetKaur CUPB/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2012-13/08	Women’s Exploitation in Contemporary South Asia: Field Experience of Child Marriage in Bathinda District	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded February 2014
16	Shiv Kumar CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/12	The Great Rebalancing: Changing Security Architecture in Asia and its implications for India	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded July 2015
17	CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/ 2013-14/	Geopolitical Significance of Kashmir’s Accession: An Analysis of Dogra Rule	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded July 2015
18	YassirNazir CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/23	India and Pakistan in post 2001 Afghanistan: A Gathering Storm	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded July 2015
19	AmanpreetKaur CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/11	Emerging Energy Geopolitics of Iran and Pakistan: Prospects and Challenges for India	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded July 2015
20	Raghavendra P. Kushwaha CUPB/Mph-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/14	Sino-Indian Maritime Competition in Indian Ocean: An Analysis	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded April 2016
21	Shah SajadHussain Baba CUPB/MPH/SGR/SCA/2014-15/06	Pakistan’s Rising Geo-Strategic Relevance in South Asia: An Insight into Post 9/11 Changing Equilibrium	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	AwardedJune 2016
22	Hardeep Singh CUPB/MPh/SGR/SCA/2014-15/02	“One Belt, One Road” Policy: Interpreting the Past and Present Beijing’s Geostrategic Policies	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded April 2017
23	Gurjant Singh CUPB/MPh/SGR/SCA/2014-15/13	Changing Paradigm of India’s Counter Terrorism Policy: An Analysis	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded April 2017
24	KatariAkhilesh Kumar 15mphsca07	Saudi Arabia –Pakistan Relations: Strategic Perspectives on the Role of Major Powers	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Awarded August 2017
25	Besakh Singh CUPB/Mph/SGR/SCA/2014- 15/11	Pakistan and Russia Relationship: Changing Dynamics in the Post-Cold War Era	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Awarded (2016)
26	Gitesh Kumar 15mphsca05	Political and Economic Cooperation between India and Uzbekistan, 1991-2015	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Awarded (2017)
27	SandeepKaur 15mphsca01	The Politics of Water in India: An Evaluation of National Water Policy	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Awarded (2017)
28	Hushiar Singh 15mphsca03	Neoliberal Politics: A Study of Restructuring of the Indian State	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Awarded (2018)
29	Manish Kumar 15mphsca12	The Post-Cold War Global Politics: A Study of India’s Role in Nonaligned Movement	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Awarded
30	GurpreetKaur	Foreign Direct Investment In South Asia: Trends And Prospects	Dr. SandeepKaur	Awarded
31	Rajbir Singh	Violation of Human Rights of Women in South Asia: A Case Study of Punjab 1978-1992	Dr. SandeepKaur	Awarded
32	JaspreetKaur	Indo-Kazakhstan Trade: Trends and Prospects in the post-Cold War era	Dr. SandeepKaur	Awarded
33	Anu Sonia	India’s Relations with Turkmenistan	Dr. SandeepKaur	Awarded
34	Gurvinder Singh	Problems of Land Acquisition: A Case Study of Gobindpura, District Mansa (Punjab)	Dr. SandeepKaur	Awarded
35	AmandeepKaur	India’s Trade with Six EU Countries: Trends and Patterns	Dr. SandeepKaur	Awarded
36	Swati Raikhy (Reg. No. CUP/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/ 2011-12/04)	Indian Ocean: a Life - Line for South Asia”	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	Awarded October 2013.
37	Mairu Reg. No. CUP/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2011-12/06	Women’s Participation in Politics and Local Governance	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	Awarded October 2013.
38	AmandeepKaur Reg. No. CUPB/MPhPhD/SGR/SCA/2012-13/03	Water Consumption Pattern in Households of Urban South Asia: A Study of Bathinda City	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	Awarded October 2014.
39	MohdHussainNaik Reg. No. CUPB/MPhPhD/SGR/SCA/2012-13/04	Transboundary Implications of Damming River Brahmaputra and Response of Indian Government	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	Awarded October 2014
40	Gaurav Kumar Reg. No. CUPB/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2012-13/16	Public Transport and Mobility in Urban South Asia (A Study of Bathinda City)	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	Awarded October 2014
41	Kuldip Singh Reg. No. CUPB/MPH-PHD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/13	Hydro politics and emerging conflicts: A study of Central Asian water complexities	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	Awarded 2015
42	Noushadali K Reg. No. CUPB/MPhPhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/19	Ethno-Nationalism in Sri Lanka: Its Political Implications on Indo-Sri Lanka Bilateral Relations	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	Awarded 2015
43	Amandeep Singh CUPB/MphPhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/18	Water in South Asia: Source of Conflict or Cooperation (A Study of Interstate Water Disputes in India	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	Awarded 2015
44	GopaleAmarnath CUPB/MPh-PhD/SGR/SCA/2013-14/04	Naxalism and Development Challenges in Gadchiroli District of Maharashtra	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	September 2016
45	Bilal Ahamad Lone   CUPB/MPh-/SGR/SCA/2014-15/05	Youth Unemployment and Employment (A study of skill based youth employment initiatives in India)	Dr. Kiran K. Singh	September 2016
46	Meenakshi CUPB/MPH/SGR/SCA/2014-15/01	Depiction of Jataka in Art of Madhya Desha and Andhra Region: A Comparative Study of Artistic Elements in Sculptural Art	Dr. Vinay Kumar	Awarded August 2016
47	AvinashPratap Singh CUPB/MPH/SGR/SCA/2014-15/14	Depiction of Contemporary Society in Jatakas	Dr. Vinay Kumar
48	SurajPrakashUpadhyay CUPB/MPH/SGR/SCA/2014-15/12	Development and Displacement: A Case study of DLF Project in Gurgaon Haryana, India	Dr. Vinay Kumar	Awarded August 2016
49	RadheyShyam Sharma CUPB/MPH/SGR/SCA/2014-15/12	Topic Name- Livelihood pattern of tribal people in Chhattisgarh: A study of Indian forest policy	Dr. Vinay Kumar	Awarded August 2016

MA Projects

S. No	Name of Student	Name of the Thesis	Supervisor	Status
1	Zulfiqar Ahmed 15maplsc01	Indo-Nepal Relations in the 21st Century	Dr. Bawa Singh	Completed
2	JasvirKour 15maplsc02	SAARC in the 21st Century: A Lesson Form the European Union	Dr. Bawa Singh	Completed
3	Mansoor Ahmed 15maplsc03	The Role of Afghan Women in the Reconstruction Processes in Post-Talban Afghanistan	Dr. Bawa Singh	Completed
4	Khushdeep Singh 16maplsc02	India’s Neighbourhood Policy under NDA-II Government: A Maldivian Perspective	Dr. Bawa Singh	Completed
5	Gurmit Singh 16maplsc03	Rohingya Crisis: An Analysis of Indian Security Perspective	Dr. Bawa Singh	Completed
6	Arvind S 17maplsc09	Belt and Road Initiative: India’s National Security Perspective	Dr. Bawa Singh	Completed
7	Gurpreet Singh 17maplsc10	India and Central Asian Energy Cooperation	Dr. Bawa Singh	Completed
8	FazalUlRehman 17maplsc14	Role of India and SCO in Afghanistan: An Indian Perspective	Dr. Bawa Singh	Completed
9	Gagandeep Singh 18maplsc06	Women’s Rights in Afghanistan: A Social Perspective	Dr. Bawa Singh	Ongoing
10	ArdraRasmin 18maplsc07	Socio-Political Apartheid of LGB in India: An Analysis	Dr. Bawa Singh	Ongoing
11	RajaniMol 18maplsc09	Trumps’s Nuclear Diplomacy: North Korea as a Geopolitical Faultline	Dr. Bawa Singh	Ongoing
12	KarampalKaur 18maplsc11	Women Sarpanch in Punjab: A Case Study of Blocks Sangat and Bathinda in Bathinda District	Dr. Bawa Singh	Ongoing
13	Ranvijay Singh Panwar 15maplsc06	Iran Iraq War and the Role of U.S.	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Completed June 2017
14	VedPrakashSaini 15maplsc07	Political Participation of Women in India	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Completed June 2017
15	MuzaffarHussain 15maplsc04	Post 9/11 China’s Strategic Engagement with Pakistan: An Assessment	Dr. Nishtha Kaushiki	Completed June 2017
16	Neerudi Gopal 16maplsc04	Humanitarian Intervention and the Iraq Crisis: A Breach of International Law	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Completed May 2018
17	Hafiz Ikram 16maplsc05	The Geopolitics of Peace Process: A Case Study of Post 9/11 Afghanistan	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Completed May 2018
18	PriyaGauttam 17maplsc03	Sovereignty of States: Its Relevance in the Globalised World	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Completed May 2019
19	ShahidRaza 17maplsc06	Post 26/11 India’s Strategic Dealing with Pakistan: An Analysis	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Completed May 2019
20	Meetu Devi 17maplsc12	Objectification of Women in Entertainment Media and its Impacts	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Completed May 2019
21	Victor Sathyadas 17maplsc08	Marital Rape- Husband’s Privilege or Crime? Analysing through the Lens of Progressive Constitution	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Completed May 2019
22	Ajay Kumar 18maplsc05	Post 9/11 U.S. Strategic Manoeuvring in Afghanistan: An Analysis	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Ongoing
23	Soorya K. 18maplsc07	Commercial Surrogacy in India: Ethical and Legal Perspectives	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Ongoing
24	Donn George Varghese 18maplsc02	Iran’s Contemporary Geopolitical Resistance against American Hegemony: An Analysis	Dr. NishthaKaushiki	Ongoing
25	Mohd. Reza Farhang 18maplsc01	Effects of Polythink Syndrome on Peace Negotiations in Afghanistan, in Context of U.S. Parapolitics	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Ongoing
26	J. Uday Kumar 18maplsc03	Accountability and Transparency ensuring Good Governance in India	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Ongoing
27	UmmarMukhtar 18maplsc10	Role of Regional Political Parties in Indian Political Process	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Ongoing
28	Nitesh Patel 17maplsc04	Environmental Governance in India	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Completed (2019)
29	YadwinderKaur 17maplsc11	Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA): Study of Multania and Jhumba Villages of Bathinda District, Punjab	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Completed (2019)
30	Feroz Ahmad 17maplsc02	India’s National Education Policy 1986: An Evaluation	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Completed (2019)
31	SarabjeetKaur 17maplsc01	Water Governance in India: A Case Study of Punjab	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Completed (2019)
32	Jitendra Kumar 16maplsc07	Politics of Social Movements in India: An Assessment of Chipko Movement and Narmada BachaoAndolan	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Completed (2018)
33	Husanpreet Singh 16maplsc08	Women’s Participation in Punchayati Raj Institution in India: A case study of Villages, BahadergarhJandian and RaikeKhurd of District Bathinda	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Completed (2018)
34	Adarsh Kumar CUPB/MA-POL/SGR/SCA/2015-16/08	Evolution of Political Culture in India	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Completed (2017)
35	Mohammed Waseem CUPB/MA-POL/SGR/SCA/2015-16/09	The United Nations Security Council Reforms	Dr. Sudheer Singh Verma	Completed (2017)