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The National Defence College, located in
New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
, is the defence service training institute and highest seat of strategic learning for officers of the Defence Service and the
Civil Services The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...
. This is a very prestigious course attended only by a few hand-picked defence officers of One-Star rank and civil servants of the rank of
Joint secretary to the Government of India Joint Secretary to Government of India (often abbreviated as JS, GoI or Union Joint Secretary or Joint Secretary to Union of India) is a post under the Central Staffing Scheme and the third highest non-political executive rank in Government of I ...
. Each year, approximately 25 officers from friendly foreign countries like the US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Australia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Nepal, UAE and others attend the course. This college provides strategic leadership to the Government of India in national and international security matters and also acts as a think tank on defence matters and holds a very important position in shaping up the Indian defence outlook.


History

After India's independence in 1947, senior officers of the Indian Army, Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force attended the
Imperial Defence College The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest level ...
(IDC) in the United Kingdom before being appointed to important commands. The vacancies at the IDC was only about two or three each year. In 1959, the
Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...
announced that a college on the pattern of the IDC will set up in New Delhi. This would allow for a larger number of officers to be trained.
Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
Kanwar Bahadur Singh Lieutenant-General Kanwar Bahadur Singh, MBE, (5 August 1910 – 8 May 2007) was a senior officer in the Indian Army. Early life and education Bahadur Singh was born in the Thikana of Palaitha in the princely state of Kotah on 5 August 1 ...
, the Adjutant General at Army HQ was appointed the first Commandant of the college.


Location

The College is located on Tees January Marg of
Lutyens' Delhi Lutyens' Delhi is an area in New Delhi, India, named after the British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869–1944), who was responsible for much of the architectural design and building during the period of the British Raj, when India was part o ...
, in a grand British-era building spread over acres of lush green lawns. It is adjacent to the home where Mahatma Gandhi lived the last five months of his life, and the garden where he was assassinated - the
Gandhi Smriti Gandhi Smriti, formerly known as Birla House or Birla Bhavan, is a museum dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi, situated on Tees January Road, formerly Albuquerque Road, in New Delhi, India. It is the location where Mahatma Gandhi spent the last ...
. Residential facilities for the officers are located in the central vista of Delhi, on Ashok Rajpath near India Gate. The Commandant of NDC has a bungalow on the
Akbar Road Akbar Road is a Highway, main road, in central New Delhi, India. At the north-east end it stretches from the India Gate roundabout. At the south-west end it stretches up to the Teen Murti roundabout. The roundabout leads to Lok Kalyan Marg, Rajaj ...
called NDC House.


Commandant

The NDC is headed by the Commandant who is the overall in-charge of all the functioning of the college including academics and administration. The Commandant of the college is an Officer of
Three-star rank An officer of three-star rank is a senior commander in many of the armed services holding a rank described by the NATO code of OF-8. The term is also used by some armed forces which are not NATO members. Typically, three-star officers hold the ...
. The tenure of each Commandant is for 2 years which rotates between the
Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...
, the
Indian Navy The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates sig ...
and the
Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial w ...
.


Course

It conducts a 47-week National Security and Strategic Study course each year which commences in the first week of January each year and finishes in the first week of December. This course also involves extensive travel within and outside the country to visit Indian states and foreign countries where course members meet head of states and important decision makers to understand the political, social and strategic landscape of the state/country. The entire course is divided in six subjects spread over two terms, as follows: * Understanding India & Introduction to Strategy * Study on Economic Security, Science and Technology * Global Issues * International Security Environment * India’s Strategic Neighbourhood * Strategies and Structures for National Security


Method of Study

During the course of each study, the course is divided into seven groups called Integrated Analysis Groups (IAG). Each IAG comprises 13–14 members (4–5 army officers, 1 naval officer, 1–2 air force officers, 3–4 IAS/IPS/Civil Services officers and 4–5 foreign military officers). Each IAG function in a synergetic mode for the purpose of analysing issues, discussions, preparation of papers and presentations. Since 2006 the college has been formally affiliated with
Madras University The University of Madras (informally known as Madras University) is a public state university in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and among the most prestigious universities in India, incorporated by an a ...
for the award of
M.Phil. The Master of Philosophy (MPhil; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. In the United States, an MPhil typically includes a taught portion and a significant research portion, during which a thesis project is conducted under supervision. An MPhil ...
degree in 'Defence and Strategic Studies.'


Faculty

Faculty of National Defence College is drawn from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Civil services. Usually, there are 7 faculty members (
Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
– 3,
Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
– 1,
Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...
– 1,
IAS IAS may refer to: Science * Institute for Advanced Study, in Princeton, New Jersey, United States * Image Analysis & Stereology, the official journal of the International Society for Stereology & Image Analysis. * Iowa Archeological Society, Uni ...
– 1 and IFS – 1). Apart from these 7 regular faculties, the college regularly invites think tanks, ambassadors of different nations, business leaders, ministers from India and friendly countries, defence chiefs of friendly countries to give lectures in the college.http://ndc.nic.in/Site/FormTemplete/frmTempSevenCentrePhotoTwentyOnePara.aspx?MnId=xDUoPCzA2D5G/XZ6K4O+sA

&ParentID=IjaSQJyesLD3T70MTQax/w


Notable Alumni, Foreign


Army

*
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Denis Perera General Deshamanya Joseph Everard Denis Perera, VSV, FCMI (10 October 1930 – 11 August 2013) was a senior Sri Lanka Army officer who served as Commander of the Sri Lankan Army from 1977 to 1981. He was also the Sri Lankan High Commissioner ...
, 8th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Army The Commander of the Army ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ යුද්ධ හමුදාපති, śrī laṁkāvē yuddha hamudāpati) is the title of the professional head of the Sri Lanka Army. The current Commander of the Army is ...
*
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Tissa Weeratunga General Tissa Indraka Weeratunga, VSV (August 29, 1930 – November 2003) was a Sri Lankan senior army officer. He was a former Commander of the Sri Lankan Army (1981 – 1985) and first General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Joint Oper ...
, 9th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Army The Commander of the Army ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ යුද්ධ හමුදාපති, śrī laṁkāvē yuddha hamudāpati) is the title of the professional head of the Sri Lanka Army. The current Commander of the Army is ...
*
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Nalin Seneviratne General Ganegoda Appuhamelage Don Granville Nalin Seneviratne, VSV (August 25, 1931 – August 12, 2009) was a Sri Lankan Army officer. He was the Commander of the Sri Lankan Army from 1985 to 1988 and first Governor of the North East Provi ...
, 10th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Army The Commander of the Army ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ යුද්ධ හමුදාපති, śrī laṁkāvē yuddha hamudāpati) is the title of the professional head of the Sri Lanka Army. The current Commander of the Army is ...
*
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Hamilton Wanasinghe General Hamilton Wanasinghe, VSV (born 1935) was a Full General in the Sri Lanka Army. He served as the 11th Commander of the Sri Lankan Army (1988–1991), third General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Joint Operations Headquarters (JOH) (at ...
, 11th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Army The Commander of the Army ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ යුද්ධ හමුදාපති, śrī laṁkāvē yuddha hamudāpati) is the title of the professional head of the Sri Lanka Army. The current Commander of the Army is ...
*
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Chandrika Srilal Weerasooriya, 15th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Army The Commander of the Army ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ යුද්ධ හමුදාපති, śrī laṁkāvē yuddha hamudāpati) is the title of the professional head of the Sri Lanka Army. The current Commander of the Army is ...
*
Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...
Hassan Ngwilizi,
Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
*
Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
Hussain Muhammad Ershad Lt. Gen. Hussain Muhammad Ershad ( bn, হুসেইন মুহাম্মদ এরশাদ; 1 February 1930 – 14 July 2019) was a Bangladeshi Army Chief politician who served as the President of Bangladesh from 1983 to 1990, a time ma ...
, 10th
President of Bangladesh The president of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের রাষ্ট্রপতি — ) officially the President of the People's Republic of Bangladesh ( bn, গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশে ...
& 4th Chief of Army Staff of the Bangladesh Army *
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Sir Peter Cosgrove General (Australia), General Sir Peter John Cosgrove, (born 28 July 1947) is a retired senior Australian Army officer who served as the 26th governor-general of Australia, in office from 2014 to 2019. A graduate of the Royal Military College, ...
, 10th Chief of Australian Defence Force, and 26th
Governor-General of Australia The governor-general of Australia is the representative of the monarch, currently King Charles III, in Australia.Fred Akuffo Lieutenant General Frederick William "Fred" Kwasi Akuffo (21 March 1937 – 26 June 1979) was a Ghanaian soldier and politician. He was Chief of the Defence Staff of the Ghana Armed Forces from 1976 to 1978, and chairman of the ruling Supr ...
, former Chief of the Defence Staff,
Ghana Armed Forces The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) is the unified armed force of Ghana, consisting of the Army (GA), Navy (GN), and Ghana Air Force. The Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces is the president of Ghana, who is also the supreme military commander ...
and
Head of State A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
*
Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
Matheus Alueendo Major General Matheus Alueendo (born 4 March 1961) is a Namibian military officer who is the current commander of the Namibian Army since 31 July 2019. Career Alueendo's military career began in 1978 when he joined the People's Liberation Army o ...
7th Commander of the
Namibian Army The Namibian Army is the ground warfare branch of the Namibian Defence Force. History Development of Namibia's army was fastest of the three arms of Service. The first units of the Army were deployed as early as 1990. The Army was formed when ...


Navy

*
Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...
Basil Gunasekara Admiral Deshamanya D. Basil Gunasekara (born 7 May 1929) was the Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy from 1973 to 1979. Early life and education Born to a planter in Katana, Gunasekara was the youngest child of a family of five members. Educated a ...
, 7th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy The Commander of the Navy is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Navy. The current Commander of the Navy is Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera. It is a position equivalent to that of First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy or Chief of Naval Operations ...
*
Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...
Henry Perera, 8th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy The Commander of the Navy is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Navy. The current Commander of the Navy is Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera. It is a position equivalent to that of First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy or Chief of Naval Operations ...
* Vice Admiral Asoka de Silva, 9th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy The Commander of the Navy is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Navy. The current Commander of the Navy is Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera. It is a position equivalent to that of First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy or Chief of Naval Operations ...
*
Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...
H. A. Silva, 10th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy The Commander of the Navy is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Navy. The current Commander of the Navy is Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera. It is a position equivalent to that of First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy or Chief of Naval Operations ...
*
Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...
Ravindra Wijegunaratne Admiral Ravindra Chandrasiri Wijegunaratne, WV, RWP & Bar, RSP, VSV, USP, NI(M), ndc, psn, is a retired Sri Lankan naval officer, and former Chief of Defence Staff of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. He has also served as the Commander ...
, 20th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy The Commander of the Navy is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Navy. The current Commander of the Navy is Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera. It is a position equivalent to that of First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy or Chief of Naval Operations ...
*
Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...
Sirimevan Ranasinghe Admiral Sirimevan Sarathchandra Ranasinghe, WWV, RWP, USP is a retired Sri Lankan admiral and the former Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy. Early life and education Ranasinghe received his education from St. Joseph's College, Anuradhapura an ...
, 22nd
Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy The Commander of the Navy is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Navy. The current Commander of the Navy is Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera. It is a position equivalent to that of First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy or Chief of Naval Operations ...
* Vice Admiral
Robert Walls Robert Walls (born 21 July 1950) is a former Australian rules footballer who represented and in the Victorian Football League (VFL) during the 1960s and 1970s. In a playing career that spanned three decades Robert played a combined 259 gam ...
, former
Vice Chief of the Defence Force (Australia) The Vice Chief of the Defence Force (VCDF) is the military deputy to the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF) of Australia, and acts as the CDF in his absence under standing acting arrangements. Vice Admiral David Johnston, the incumbent VCDF, has ...
* Vice Admiral Jonathan Mead, former
Commander Australian Fleet Fleet Command is responsible for the command, operations, readiness, training and force generation of all ships, submarines, aircraft squadrons, diving teams, and shore establishments of the Royal Australian Navy. Fleet Command is headquartered a ...
* Vice Admiral Tan Sri Mohd Shariff Ishak, former
Chief of Navy (Malaysia) The Chief of Navy ( ms, Panglima Tentera Laut) is the most senior appointment in the Royal Malaysian Navy and has been held by a four-star officer in the rank of Admiral since 2002. The Chief of Navy is a member of the Malaysian Armed Forces Coun ...


Air Force

*
Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer originating from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. An air chief marshal is equivalent to an Admir ...
Walter Fernando Air Chief Marshal Andibuduge Walter Fernando, VSV, ndc, psc was a senior Sri Lanka Air Force officer, who served as the 7th Commander of the Sri Lankan Air Force and thereafter Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Defence. Air force career ...
, 7th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force The Commander of the Air Force is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Air Force. The current Commander of the Air Force is Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana. It is a position comparable to that of Chief of the Air Staff of the Royal Air Fo ...
*
Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer originating from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. An air chief marshal is equivalent to an Admir ...
Oliver Ranasinghe Air Chief Marshal Oliver Matthew Ranasinghe, RWP, VSV, USP, ndc, psc was the 9th Commander of the Sri Lankan Air Force. Educated at Dharmapala College, Pannipitiya Ranasinghe joined the Royal Ceylon Air Force on 7 February 1968 as a Ser ...
, 9th
Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force The Commander of the Air Force is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Air Force. The current Commander of the Air Force is Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana. It is a position comparable to that of Chief of the Air Staff of the Royal Air Fo ...


Heads of State, Heads of Government, and Representatives

*
Hussain Muhammad Ershad Lt. Gen. Hussain Muhammad Ershad ( bn, হুসেইন মুহাম্মদ এরশাদ; 1 February 1930 – 14 July 2019) was a Bangladeshi Army Chief politician who served as the President of Bangladesh from 1983 to 1990, a time ma ...
, former Bangladesh Army Chief and
President of Bangladesh The president of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের রাষ্ট্রপতি — ) officially the President of the People's Republic of Bangladesh ( bn, গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশে ...
*
Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck ( dz, འཇིགས་མེད་གེ་སར་རྣམ་རྒྱལ་དབང་ཕྱུག་, ; born 21 February 1980) is the Druk Gyalpo (Dzongkha: Dragon King) of the Kingdom of Bhutan. After his ...
,
Druk Gyalpo The Druk Gyalpo (; 'Dragon King') is the head of state of the Bhutan, Kingdom of Bhutan. In the Dzongkha, Dzongkha language, Bhutan is known as ''Drukyul'' which translates as "The Land of the Thunder Dragon". Thus, while kings of Bhutan are ...
(King of Bhutan) *
Fred Akuffo Lieutenant General Frederick William "Fred" Kwasi Akuffo (21 March 1937 – 26 June 1979) was a Ghanaian soldier and politician. He was Chief of the Defence Staff of the Ghana Armed Forces from 1976 to 1978, and chairman of the ruling Supr ...
, former Chief of the Defence Staff,
Ghana Armed Forces The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) is the unified armed force of Ghana, consisting of the Army (GA), Navy (GN), and Ghana Air Force. The Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces is the president of Ghana, who is also the supreme military commander ...
and
Head of State A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
*
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Sir Peter Cosgrove General (Australia), General Sir Peter John Cosgrove, (born 28 July 1947) is a retired senior Australian Army officer who served as the 26th governor-general of Australia, in office from 2014 to 2019. A graduate of the Royal Military College, ...
, 10th Chief of Australian Defence Force, and 26th
Governor-General of Australia The governor-general of Australia is the representative of the monarch, currently King Charles III, in Australia.Indian National Defence University Indian Defence University (IDU), formerly Indian National Defence University (INDU) is a defence service university set up for the affiliation of training academies of union government defence servants working under the Government of India. T ...
*
Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses The Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA) (formerly known as: Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA)), New Delhi, is India's foremost think tank for advanced research in international relations, espec ...
*
Ministry of Defence (India) The Ministry of Defence (MoD) ( IAST: ''Rakshā Mantrālaya'') is charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government relating directly to national security and the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India ...
*
Military academies in India The Indian Defence services have established numerous academies and staff colleges across India for the purpose of training professional soldiers in military sciences, warfare command and strategy, and associated technologies. Education and traini ...
*
Sainik school The Sainik Schools are a system of schools in India established and managed by the Sainik Schools Society under Ministry of Defence (MoD). They were conceived in 1961 by V. K. Krishna Menon, the then Defence Minister of India, to rectify the reg ...


References


External links

* {{Authority control Military academies of India Staff colleges Universities and colleges in Delhi Colleges affiliated to University of Madras Educational institutions established in 1960 1960 establishments in Delhi