A centre established by Somerville College in the University of Oxford in 2013 with a £3 million grant from India and named after Indira Gandhi has reported the name of the former prime minister dropped after the BJP government came to power in 2014.
The Oxford India centre was named the Indira Gandhi centre of sustainable development at its establishment during the tenure of Manmohan Singh government. Indira Gandhi, an alumnus of the college, studied Modern History at the centre in 1937.
The memorandum of understanding to set up the centre was signed in May 2013 when minister for human resources development MM Pallam Raju visited the college. The Indian grant of £3 million was matched by the University of Oxford.
According to sources, it was revealed that the name of the centre was changed during these years. College officials, however, told Hindustan Times there had been no pressure or suggestion from New Delhi or the current government to change the name.
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The centre earlier known as Indira Gandhi Centre for Sustainable Development (IGCSD) has changed its name and is now known as Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development (OICSD).
Known as Empress of India Gandhi, visited the centre again in 1971 to receive an honorary doctorate. In the year 2002, Congress president Sonia Gandhi presented a portrait of the former prime minister, which hangs alongside a painting of Margaret Thatcher, another alumnus of the college
