| | AUGUST 20218Till a few years ago, the words `diversity' and `in-clusion' were not so prominently mentioned in the context of the workforce in organisations , but most progressive organizations today, are not only aware but are also convinced of the criticality of en-suring `diversity' in their organizations. Designations like `Chief Diversity Officer' or `Diversity Consultants' are seen in organizations now in start-ups such as Zom-ato, Myntra and more traditional companies too- the Tata Group, Godrej group, Johnson & Johnson etc. Along with diversity of gender and age, regional, lin-guistic and ethnic diversity is also being consciously built into organizations. And it is worth mentioning that it also helps business, since research shows that the companies with a higher proportion of women in decision-making roles, generate higher returns on eq-uity, while running more conservative balance sheets.(Credit Suisse Research Institute ­`CS Gender 300 : The Reward for Change' report, 2016 )If Universities are to provide the future employ-ees of such organizations, it is essential that they instil these ideas amongst the students, by adopting the same diversity and inclusive practices within Universities.While the corporate world in general is more aware of the advantages to be reaped by embracing diversity ­ gaining diverse view-points and a better understanding of the needs of approximately 50 percent of the popu-lation, the same is not true uniformly across sectors. The Education sector for instance, often seen as a `safe' sector for the employment of women, especially at the school level, shows a fair degree of lack of gender di-THOUGHT LEADERSHIPHOW CAN DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION BE ACHIEVED IN UNIVERSITIES?By Dr. Rajani Gupte, Vice Chancellor, Symbiosis International (Deemed University)For more than 30 years, Dr. Rajani Gupte is working as a professor and researcher for the education sector progress and Gokhale Institute of Economics and Politics honored Dr. Rajani Gupte with Doctorate degree in Economics.
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