Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA), is an Indian

think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

for advanced research in

international relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

, especially defence, strategic and security issues. It also provides training to civilian, military and police officers of the

Indian government The Government of India (ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of 36 states and union territor ...

. It is non-partisan and autonomous. It is funded by the India's Ministry of Defence. It aims to promote national and international security by carrying out research on defence and security-related issues and disseminating the knowledge among the policy-makers and wider public. The current director general is Ambassador Sujan R. Chinoy, who took over the reins of MP-IDSA on 3 January 2019 on a three-year assignment. MP-IDSA is the only think-tank in India whose director general is appointed by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, chaired by the prime minister of India. MPIDSA has long been regarded as one of India's most influential think-tanks. The University of Pennsylvania's Global Go To Think Tank Index ranked IDSA 41st in the world in 2017. It received the top position among Indian think tanks.

History

Stamp of India - 2015 - Colnect 637812 - Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses

IDSA was established on 11 November 1965 as a non-partisan and autonomous body. It is funded by the Indian Ministry of Defence and plays a key role in shaping India's foreign and security policies. In February 2020 IDSA was renamed as 'Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA)' after former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.

Governance

MP-IDSA is governed by an Executive Council, whose members are distinguished personalities from various walks of life and which is headed by a president. The council is supported by committees covering different aspects of the institute's work. Executive Council Committees cover subjects such as administration, academics, finance, membership, etc. Members of the council are elected for two-year terms at the Annual General Body meeting. The president of the Executive Council is by convention, an ex-officio position, held by the incumbent

defence minister A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

. The current president is

Rajnath Singh Rajnath Singh (; born 10 July 1951) is an Indian politician and lecturer who is serving the Defence Minister of India since 20 May 2019. He was also the Deputy Leader of the House, Lok Sabha since 2014. He also served the Home Minister in th ...

Activities

Research

The institute's presently focused research areas are divided in following categories:

South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

and

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

West Asia West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenian ...

and

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

, Military Affairs, Non-Traditional Security,

Weapons of Mass Destruction A weapon of mass destruction (WMD) is a Biological agent, biological, chemical weapon, chemical, Radiological weapon, radiological, nuclear weapon, nuclear, or any other weapon that can kill or significantly harm many people or cause great dam ...

, and

Terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...

and

International Security ''International Security'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal in the field of international and national security. It was founded in 1976 and is edited by the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University and publis ...

. The institute has a strong research faculty of more than fifty distinguished scholars drawn from academia, defence, foreign affairs, media and other civil services. The institute's state-of-the-art library, situated at the heart of the

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n capital

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

caters to the needs of policymakers.

Training

The institute provides training and refresher courses to senior government officers drawn from various branches of Indian Civil Service, i.e., the Indian Administrative Service, the Indian Foreign Service, the Indian Police Service, the Armed Forces and the Para-Military Forces.

International interactions

MP-IDSA has international interactions through various means. The institute holds international seminars and conferences, publishes journals, hosts to visiting scholars, and ties up with institutes from all over the world.

Government policy

The MP-IDSA plays a role in shaping the Indian government's foreign and security policies. For example; the

Indian Parliament The Parliament of India (ISO: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Government of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People). The President o ...

's Standing Committee on Defence frequently calls on the institute's experts. Officers of the armed forces come to spend up to two years at the institute to gain a policy perspective. The institute's annual report is tabled in the Indian Parliament.Prashant Jha
India's most influential think-tanks
Hindustan Times, 16 August 2015. The Defence Minister of India informed the Indian parliament in 2012 that the IDSA appoints both civilian and military personnel to publish books, journal articles and reviews.

Publications

The institute's flagship journal ''Strategic Analysis'' is published bimonthly in collaboration with

Taylor & Francis Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in the United Kingdom that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, CRC Press, Routledge, F1000 (publisher), F1000 Research and Dovepress. It i ...

. It aims to promote an understanding of Indian strategic thinking on national and international themes. Other periodical publications include: * ''Journal of Defence Studies'' – a quarterly journal focusing on core issues of defence. * ''Africa Trends'' – a quarterly magazine on providing information on significant and strategic developments taking place in Africa. * ''CBW Magazine'' – a magazine focusing on arms control, disarmament, roles of state and non-state actors, regarding chemical and biological weapons. * Various policy briefs, issue briefs, occasional papers and newsletters. The members of the institute actively publish various books and monographs via regular publishing houses in India and overseas.

Ranking

The Global Go To Think Tank Index, prepared annually by the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

Foreign Policy Research Institute, ranked IDSA 55th in the world in 2013,Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) has been ranked 55th amongst the top think tanks worldwide (non US), in the 2013 Global Go To Think Tank Index published by The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) of the University of Pennsylvania
Times of India, 22 January 2014. 105th in 2016 and 41st in 2017.IDSA retains top position among Indian think tanks in the 2017 Global Go To Think Tank Survey
Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, 5 February 2018. This was the top position received by any Indian think tank in 2017.

Past heads

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Institute For Defence Studies And Analysis Think tanks based in India Research institutes in Delhi Research institutes of international relations Organisations based in Delhi Think tanks established in 1965 Foreign policy and strategy think tanks in India Political and economic think tanks based in India