Institute for Studies in Industrial Development

The Institute for Studies in Industrial Development (ISID) is an Indian public-funded, autonomous institution devoted to research and policy engagement on industrialization and economic development. Its work is directed particularly toward understanding how manufacturing, enterprise development, technology, trade, investment, employment, and public policy can contribute to inclusive and sustainable economic transformation in India. The institute was registered on 7 October 1986 under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. From 1988, it became one of the institutions supported by the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), an organization of the Government of India, through grants-in-aid. ISID later established its own campus in the Vasant Kunj Institutional Area of South Delhi, where it has operated since 2006. The campus supports research, documentation, seminars, conferences, residential academic activities, and interactions with policymakers and other stakeholders. ISID’s substantive agenda covers India’s industrial development and its connections with broader economic and social policy. Areas represented in its research and publications include manufacturing performance, industrial organization, foreign direct investment, multinational enterprises, small and medium-sized enterprises, industrial clusters, labour and employment, pharmaceuticals and access to medicines, trade policy, globalization, economic liberalization, regional development, digitalization, and green industrialization. The institute’s stated orientation is toward supporting a manufacturing-led transformation capable of generating productive employment and more inclusive prosperity. Its activities extend beyond conventional academic research. ISID conducts policy advocacy, policy dialogues, research seminars, conferences, outreach, and capacity-building programmes for researchers and university teachers. In 2023 it instituted an annual national conference series on India’s industrial transformation, bringing together policymakers, industry representatives, and researchers. Its policy roundtables address current economic and industrial questions, while its seminar programme provides a forum for work by both internal and external scholars. A major recent capacity-building initiative is the ISID–Jawaharlal Nehru University PhD Programme in Economics and Public Policy, launched for the 2024–25 academic cycle. The programme focuses on industrial development and related public policy and is delivered in partnership with JNU, which awards the degree. ISID also organizes research-methodology and other training programmes for faculty members and researchers, generally lasting about two weeks or, depending on the activity, a shorter period. The institute maintains a specialized library and documentation resources focused on industrialization and development. It also maintains databases on industrial development whose academic access is supported through the University Grants Commission’s INFLIBNET Centre. ISID is recognized by the Government of India as a Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (SIRO), appears on the NITI Aayog DARPAN portal as a recognized think tank, and participates in international research networks including the Asia-Pacific Research Network on Trade (ARTNeT) and the South Asia Network on the Sustainable Development Goals (SANS) associated with UNESCAP. ISID publishes and supports books, reports, indexes, policy studies, conference outputs, and other research. Its publication record includes work on India’s industrial development, trade and investment, labour, public policy, industrial competitiveness, pharmaceuticals, regional development, and economic partnerships with countries such as Japan and Korea. The institute is therefore best understood not as a consumer-facing commercial brand or industrial conglomerate, but as a research and knowledge institution whose public identity is built around evidence-based analysis, policy dialogue, academic infrastructure, and support for India’s industrial transformation.

The Institute for Studies in Industrial Development was registered on 7 October 1986 under India’s Societies Registration Act, 1860. Its institutional development took place within the wider Indian social-science and public-policy research system. In 1988, ISID became one of the institutions supported through grants-in-aid from the Indian Council of Social Science Research, an organization associated with the Government of India. This support helped establish the institute as an autonomous centre for research and policy work rather than as a commercial enterprise or a conventional university department. From its early years, ISID concentrated on industrialization and development questions affecting India. Its research and publications addressed industrial policy, economic liberalization, trade, foreign investment, manufacturing, labour, enterprise development, regional disparities, and the relationship between domestic industrial capabilities and global economic integration. The institute also developed documentation and information resources, including indexes and databases intended to support researchers working on industrial and development issues. A significant institutional step was the development of ISID’s own campus in the Vasant Kunj Institutional Area of South Delhi. The institute has operated from that campus since 2006. Its facilities include a specialized library, industrial-development documentation and databases, conference infrastructure, and accommodation that can support residential academic programmes. Through the University Grants Commission’s INFLIBNET Centre, ISID’s databases and electronic resources are available to academic users across India. ISID’s role expanded beyond the production of research publications to include policy communication and professional development. It organizes conferences, policy roundtables, and seminars that connect researchers with policymakers and other practitioners. It also conducts capacity-building activities for university teachers and researchers, including programmes on research methodology and industrialization-related subjects. These activities position the institute as an intermediary between academic research and public policy. The institute is recognized by the Government of India as a Scientific and Industrial Research Organization. It is also listed on the DARPAN portal of NITI Aayog as a recognized think tank. Internationally, ISID participates in the Asia-Pacific Research Network on Trade and the South Asia Network on Sustainable Development Goals associated with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. In 2023, ISID instituted an annual national conference series on India’s industrial transformation. The series reflects the institute’s emphasis on manufacturing-led development and on the policy challenges involved in creating productive employment and inclusive prosperity. In the 2024–25 academic cycle, it launched a specialized PhD programme in Economics and Public Policy in partnership with Jawaharlal Nehru University. The programme focuses on industrial development and related policy questions, with JNU awarding the degree. ISID’s more recent publication agenda has continued to cover foreign investment, small and medium-sized enterprises, digitalization, green industrialization, labour and capital use, economic partnerships, industrial development reporting, and inclusive growth. Its institutional identity remains centred on research, evidence, training, outreach, and policy dialogue in support of India’s industrial transformation.

• 2024

  Starts ISID–JNU PhD programme

  [1]Institute for Studies in Industrial Developmenten.wikipedia.org

  A doctoral programme in Economics and Public Policy began in partnership with Jawaharlal Nehru University for the 2024–25 academic cycle.

• 2023

  Launches annual industrial-transformation conference series

  [1]Institute for Studies in Industrial Developmenten.wikipedia.org

  ISID instituted an annual national conference series bringing together policymakers, industry participants, and researchers.

• 2006

  Moves to its South Delhi campus

  [1]Institute for Studies in Industrial Developmenten.wikipedia.org

  ISID began operating from its own campus in the Vasant Kunj Institutional Area.

• 1988

  Receives ICSSR support

  [1]Institute for Studies in Industrial Developmenten.wikipedia.org

  The institute became one of the institutions supported by the Indian Council of Social Science Research through grants-in-aid.

• 1986

  Institute registered as a society

  [1]Institute for Studies in Industrial Developmenten.wikipedia.org

  ISID was registered on 7 October under the Indian Societies Registration Act, 1860.

A public-funded Indian policy research and capacity-building institution specializing in industrial transformation, manufacturing-led development, and evidence-based economic policy.

• Research · 1986

  Policy research and studies

  ISID produces research on industrial transformation and related economic-policy questions. Its subject areas include manufacturing, industrial organization, trade, foreign direct investment, multinational enterprises, MSMEs, labour, pharmaceuticals, regional development, digitalization, green industrialization, and inclusive growth. Outputs may take the form of books, reports, working papers, commissioned studies, and contributions to academic and policy publications.

• Information services

  Industrial development databases and library resources

  The institute maintains a specialized library, documentation resources, and databases relating to industrialization and development. These resources support academic research and are accessed by institutions through the INFLIBNET Centre of the University Grants Commission.

• Policy engagement · 2023

  Conferences, policy dialogues, and seminars

  ISID convenes an annual conference series on India’s industrial transformation, policy roundtables on contemporary issues, and a seminar series for in-house and external researchers. These activities provide forums for exchanging evidence and perspectives among scholars, officials, industry representatives, and other stakeholders.

• Higher education and capacity-building · 2024

  ISID–JNU PhD Programme in Economics and Public Policy

  This specialized doctoral programme, conducted with Jawaharlal Nehru University, focuses on industrial development and connected public-policy issues. JNU provides the degree framework, while the partnership uses ISID’s subject expertise and research environment to develop national capacity in industrial and economic policy research.

• Professional training

  Capacity-building programmes for university teachers and researchers

  ISID conducts training and research-methodology programmes for faculty members and researchers. Programmes generally focus on industrialization and related development questions and may run for approximately two weeks or for shorter periods depending on the format.

• 2024

  Launches doctoral partnership with Jawaharlal Nehru UniversityProduct launch

  Background

  ISID identified a need for specialized national expertise in industrial development and related public policy.

  Action taken

  It launched the ISID–JNU PhD Programme in Economics and Public Policy for the 2024–25 academic cycle.

  Aftermath

  The programme admitted doctoral students from different parts of India and became a core capacity-building initiative.

  Source

• 2023

  Institutionalizes annual industrial-transformation conferencesOther

  Background

  ISID sought to strengthen sustained public discussion of India’s industrialization and connect research with policymaking and industry experience.

  Action taken

  It created an annual national conference series focused on India’s industrial transformation.

  Aftermath

  The conference became part of ISID’s continuing policy-engagement and outreach activities.

  Source

1. 1Institute for Studies in Industrial Developmenten.wikipedia.org
2. 2Institute for Studies in Industrial Development official websiteisid.org.in