AWANTIPORA: Averroes Centre for Philosophical Studies, IUST held the first meeting of its Advisory Council on 26 August 2022 under the chairpersonship of the HVC, Prof Shakil A Romshoo. The meeting was held in the hybrid mode with Prof RP Singh (Centre of Philosophy, JNU), Prof Sanaullah Al-Nadawi (Department of Arabic, Aligarh Muslim University) and Dr Leila Chamankhah (University of Dayton, Ohio, USA) joining the meeting online.
The internal members of the Council who were present were Prof Manzoor A Malik (DAA, IUST), Prof Ayaz Hassan Moon (Dean Research, IUST), Prof Naseer Iqbal (Registrar, IUST), Dr Munejah Khan (Associate Dean, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, IUST), Prof Fozia Qazi (Head, Deptt of Mathematical Sciences, IUST) and Prof Abdul Rashid Bhat (Department of Islamic Studies, IUST).
Averroes Centre for Philosophical Studies, IUST is the first of its kind in the valley to offer a PhD programme and Open Elective Courses in Philosophy. It offers an all-inclusive and comprehensive understanding of the basic and advanced philosophical concepts in Indian, Western and Eastern philosophical traditions.
Welcoming the Council Members, Prof. Lily Want (Director, Averroes Centre) said, “The Centre has put together concepts from Western and Eastern philosophy in their course curriculum to give a comprehensive introduction to the vast discipline of philosophy”, She also made a presentation about the objectives, curriculum, research and extension activities of the Centre.
Prof. Romshoo suggested that interdisciplinary courses, like Philosophy & Science and Philosophy & Technology, have greater applicability and that such courses with an appropriate level of difficulty should be framed from UG to PhD levels. He further added, “the onus of integrating philosophy with science and technology to offer multidisciplinary education lies on the Centre”.
Prof RP Singh stated that the study of Philosophy is indispensable to the understanding of the Sciences. Prof. Nadawirecommended that the Centre should also develop advanced interdisciplinary courses related to Philosophy and promote quality research in this area.
Appreciating the efforts of the Centre, Dr Leila Chamankhah said that the Centre has come up a long way in a short period and ensured her full collaboration in the centre’s activities).Prof. Manzoor A Malik said that “in conformity with the guidelines of NEP 2020, the Centre underscores a multidisciplinary approach to higher education and hopes to attract a good number of students for its multi-disciplinary courses”. The Centre’s strategic plan was discussed and deliberated upon by all the members of the Advisory Council.

KR Desk