Latest news with #UniversityofLancaster
Hans India
26-06-2025
- Business
- Hans India
IIMB to host two-day global symposium on economic development
Bengaluru: The Economics area at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB) will host the second edition of the Symposium on Evidence of Economic Development (SEED) on June 28 and 29, 2025. The two-day is set to convene a distinguished panel of researchers from leading global institutions to present empirical work in the areas of behavioural economics, firm dynamics, and development outcomes. Curated by Prof. Pavel Chakraborty (University of Lancaster), Prof. Anindya Chakrabarti (IIM Ahmedabad), and Prof. Ritwik Banerjee (Chairperson, Economics Area, IIMB), the symposium continues its mission of promoting rigorous evidence-based research in development economics. Day 1 will open with two sessions focused on behavioural economics, covering topics such as gender gaps in science education, rural infrastructure's role in market access, and conflict resolution. Later sessions will shift focus to firm-level dynamics and market behaviour, including analyses of bureaucrat assignment mechanisms, telecommunications market spillovers, and credit supply shocks. Day 2 will explore development-related themes, beginning with research on healthcare access, land inequality, cash transfers, and social norms. The concluding session will address the influence of neighbourhood attitudes on the acceptance of intimate partner violence in India, based on data from the National Family Health Survey.
BBC News
19-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
University of Lancaster to cut jobs to save £30m from budget
A university is to cut jobs in a bid to save £30m in the wake of rising costs and a drop in international student numbers. The University of Lancaster said there were no plans to close any departments and it hoped to reduce staff by voluntary it said it could not rule out compulsory job City councillors said they had "grave concerns" about the job losses. The university employs the full-time equivalent of 1,300 academic staff and 1,700 professional services staff. Almost 40% of full-time research and teaching staff are non-British, and it recruits staff from over 60 countries and has students from 142 university has around 10,000 students from Great Britain and the EU, with another 3,000 from overseas.A university spokesperson said it "achieved significant savings on non-payroll and through a voluntary severance scheme this year". But the spokesperson added: "Unfortunately our financial projections show that payroll savings of about £30m are required over the next academic year to ensure our ongoing financial sustainability."The University Executive Board has proposed a plan to ensure its "future size and shape is sustainable, while also enabling the university to continue to thrive".This plan is being shared with staff and "recognised" trade spokesperson said it is not "planning to reduce payroll costs through the closure of academic departments". "Proposed savings have been identified to achieve strategic efficiencies which will be shared across all academic departments and professional services"."Our preference has always been to achieve these changes through voluntary means... we can't rule out the possibility of compulsory redundancies as a last resort," the spokesperson added. 'Important for area' The university said it was in a "better financial position than some other universities", which had "bought us time to work through strategic options" that would "ensure that research and the student experience is prioritised and protected".Councillors highlighting the potential impact on staff, students and the wider district's economy at council meeting on Wednesday. Green council leader Caroline Jackson said: "I guess we knew this might happen. I have great concerns about the loss of jobs."Labour Councillor Sandra Thornberry added: "We used to have a representative on the university council. But the city council lost its seat. "However, would the university re-accept a representative? The university is a major employer and how it works is very important for the area, for students, for staff, and local businesses."Ms Jackson said she would ask the city council's chief executive to pass on the request to the university. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
Hindustan Times
19-05-2025
- Hindustan Times
Chandigarh hit-and-run: Court slams BMW racer, says he didn't stop, left constable to die
Noting his utter disregard for traffic rules and safety of others on the road, a local court rejected the bail plea of 24-year-old Ishan Shankar, accused in the fatal BMW hit-and-run case that claimed the life of a young Chandigarh police constable on May 11. In a strongly worded order, chief judicial magistrate Sachin Yadav observed that the act was not mere rash driving but bore prima facie elements of culpable homicide under the new Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). He wilfully flouted the general traffic rules of safe driving, the court said. Shankar, a postgraduate from the University of Lancaster and an aspiring air force officer, was arrested on May 12 in an FIR registered at the Sector 3 police station, Chandigarh. Accused was speeding at 180 km per hour: Police Police informed the court that scrutiny of CCTV footage from various roundabouts in Chandigarh revealed that on May 11 at 6.52 pm, two BMW cars were seen crossing Old Barricade Chowk simultaneously. At 6.54 pm, both the cars crossed Matka Chowk, covering a distance of 1,800 metres in just one minute 2 seconds, indicating that they were driving at approximately 180 km per hour. CCTV footage of racing cars played in court The court reviewed CCTV footage showing the offending BMW car reaching Matka Chowk from Old Barricade Chowk, with its front number plate and windshield appearing damaged, prima facie showing the video captured the accused fleeing from the accident site. 'The footage also shows the car hitting the bicycle, and the deceased being thrown onto the front windshield — something that could not happen if the car were moving slowly,' court observed. In another footage of Old Barricade Chowk, both BMWs are seen taking a U-turn, stopping briefly side by side, and then accelerating simultaneously — prima facie suggesting both drivers were racing or performing stunts on a busy road,' the court noted. 'Stopping two BMW cars in the middle of a busy road, parallel with each other and thereafter starting at the same time, prima facie shows that both drivers were trying to race or perform a stunt,' it remarked. The order further cited a precedent from the Punjab and Haryana high court, stating, 'When someone does stunts on a public road, endangering public safety... such acts would not fall only under Section 106 BNS (analogous to Section 304A IPC) but prima facie amount to culpable homicide.' The court further remarked that 'it is not the case that the accused was not aware about the consequences of his act. After the alleged accident, the accused did not stop and take the victim to hospital. Instead, he fled away from the spot, leaving the deceased at the mercy of passers-by'. 'No right to take law in his hands' The defence informed the court that Shankar was scheduled to appear for an interview before the Air Force Selection Board in Mysore on June 2, 2025. Dismissing the defence's argument that the accused's academic excellence and upcoming air force interview warranted leniency, the CJM held, 'Just because the accused is a meritorious student does not mean he had a right to take law in his hands... He was supposed to be more careful while driving a BMW car, but prima facie, he was not.' The deceased constable, Anand Dev, 35, was deployed in UT police's communication wing as a wireless operator. He was reportedly the sole breadwinner of his family, further intensifying the gravity of the offence in the eyes of the court. The medical report revealed 10 injuries on the deceased's body, including multiple fractures, lacerations and abrasions on the left leg, knee, lower back, buttock and forehead. The nature and extent of injuries prima facie indicate that the deceased was hit by a fast-moving car, the court observed.
