The Contribution of Ukrainian Scientists to the Formation of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (1950–1970s) within the Context of the UNESCO Mission
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Abstract
The paper examines the history of successful cooperation between Ukraine and India in the fields of science, education, and cultural heritage, using the example of the participation of the Odesa Polytechnic Institute in the establishment of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay). The study is based on archival materials of Professor G. N. Meshcheriakov, Doctor of Technical Sciences, who served as the head of UNESCO missions in India from the late 1950s. This mission lasted ten years (1956–1966) and was aimed at laying the foundations of Indian technological education. The results of the study of IIT Bombay establishment demonstrate that this process was not exclusively a Soviet initiative but was carried out with the involvement of other republics of the former USSR, particularly Ukraine, which has its own history of partnership and cooperation with India in education, science, and culture. Ukrainian Indologists are actively researching, systematizing, and introducing into academic circulation the legacy of Ukrainian scientists who contributed to India’s development, especially to the formation of its system of higher technical education. The purpose of the study is to place this history within the broader context of Ukraine–India technological cooperation during the Soviet period, as well as within the framework of UNESCO educational missions. The paper has an innovative character as it addresses an under-researched topic, provides its reassessment in a broader context, and opens new prospects for further studies in the history of international scientific cooperation and cultural diplomacy.
How to Cite
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Ukraine–India relations; UNESCO mission; technical education; IIT Bombay; photographic archives; Indology; cultural diplomacy
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Sukhatme S. P. and Mahadevan I. (1988), “Brain Drain and the IIT Graduate”, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 23, No. 25, pp. 1285–1287+1289–1293.
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