Panaji: Goa University has signed two MoUs, one with the Drepung Losel Ling Monastery, Mundgod, Karnataka, and one with the Goa Institute of Public Administration and Rural Development (GIPARD).
The Drepung Losel Ling Monastery is located near one of India’s largest Tibetan settlements near Hubballi, and is often visited by the Dalai Lama.The MoU “for friendship and cooperation” will be for a duration of five years and will allow joint research activities, conduct of cultural programmes, and exchange of faculty members, students, managers and academic material, states the MoU.Special short-term academic programmes are likely to be conducted as part of the understanding.Meanwhile, the MoU with GIPARD will be for a period of two years. The MoU is “to enable GIPARD to conduct a number of training programmes thereby trying to achieve the targets as mandated in the state training policy of Goa and to cater to the training programmes for the elected representatives at the block levels and district levels”.GIPARD will get faculty support in conducting its training programmes. It will also collaborate with GU in research and consultancy activities wherever the need arises.
GU will provide student support for minor data collection if required by GIPARD.GU’s infrastructure will be utilised to carry out the training programmes, workshops, and seminars. GIPARD will also help provide student internship opportunities. GIPARD will prepare a yearly training calendar and identify one faculty member from GU to coordinate programmes and research activities.

