General B.C. Joshi Memorial Lecture:
Savitribai Phule Pune University (formerly University of Pune) had been special to General B C Joshi from his days as the General Officer in Commanding-in-Chief of Southern Command. Gen. Joshi delivered the convocation address at Savitribai Phule Pune University (formerly University of Pune), laid the foundation stone for university gate known as “Gateway of Knowledge” which has been renamed as “General B C Joshi Dwar” after his untimely demise on November 18th 1994. General Joshi addressed the Association of Indian Universities Vice-Chancellors’ Conference, hosted at the Savitribai Phule Pune University (Formerly University of Pune), where he had said that ‘the 21st century will be India’s century’. General Joshi was instrumental in establishing a chair in policy studies and suggested the name “Chhatrapati Shivaji Chair in Policy Studies”.
In recognition of General B C. Joshi’s contribution to higher education and furtherance of interaction between the University- Armed Forces at various levels and his sensitivity to the issues of national integration, environmental protection, eco-development and perceptive of decision making in national security affairs, the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies, Savitribai Phule Pune University, and HQ, Southern command jointly instituted an annual lecture series in General Joshi’s Honour in 1995. In January 2005, the chief of staff committee resolved that the memorial lecture will be delivered by one of the three service chief, in rotation on an annual basis.
Since 1995 the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies, Savitribai Phule Pune University, and HQ, Southern command has been conducting the conduct General B C. Joshi Memorial Lecture vehemently.
Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Lecture:
Shri. Yashwantrao Chavan was born on March 21, 1913, in the karad, Bombay Province (Now Maharashtra). He was a freedom fighter, played a major role in the Indian freedom movements. He was the first Chief Minister of Maharashtra. He was the Defence Minister from 1962 to 1966, just after India-China war of 1962. He was the Union Home Minister from 1966 to 1970, Union Finance Minister from 1970 to 1974, Foreign Minister from 1974 to 1977 and was the Deputy Prime Minister of India from 1979 to 1980.
Yashwantrao Chavan was a towering figure in Indian politics and helped navigate the complex epoch of India’s foreign policy and international politics. After the India-China war he swiftly and strategically handled the situation. He restructured the civil-military relation in Indian political-administrative structure. He was instrumental in strengthening the need of self-reliance in armed forces. During his visit to the USA, impressed by the quantitative and analytical approach adopted by the US Defence Department, he initiated discussions of having a think tank to carry research on issue which are strategically important to national security.
In recognition of his contribution to India’s Foreign and Security Policy, Savitribai Phule Pune University (formerly Pune University) renamed the National Centre of International Security and Defence Analysis (NISDA) as Yashwantrao Chavan the National Centre of International Security and Defence Analysis (YC-NISDA). In 2013, the Savitribai Phule Pune University (formerly Pune University) decided to initiate annul Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Lecture series in the memory of Late Shri Yashwantrao Chavan.
