Dr. Rachna Mehra
Assistant Professor
E-mail: rmehra[at]aud[dot]ac[dot]in
Assistant Professor , School of Global Affairs
Qualification
- Ph.D in Modern Indian History from Centre for Historical Studies (CHS), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi, 2014.
- M.Phil, CHS, JNU, Delhi, 2009.
- M.A. in Modern Indian History, CHS, JNU, Delhi, 2006.
- B.A Hons. (History), St. Stephens College, Delhi University, 2004.
Past Experience
Academic Appointments
- Assistant Professor in School of Liberal Studies, Ambedkar University Delhi (2014-2018).
- Assistant Professor (History), Bhim Rao Ambedkar College in Delhi University (2013-14).
- Taught MA students in School of Open Learning, Delhi University, from Dec 2010-Feb 2011.
- Taught as a guest lecturer in Dayal Singh College, Delhi University in Sept 2009.
- Research Assistant for an ICHR Project “Towards Freedom”1947, Volume X, from Dec 2006-Dec 2007.
Administrative Appointments
- Deputy Dean, Academic and Governance, AUD (2018-21)
- Member, Board of Studies, School of Global Affairs, AUD (2019-22)
- BA Program Coordinator, SGA, AUD (2018-20)
My Zone / Area of Expertise
- Urban history of small towns and cities
- Partition of the Indian subcontinent
- Gender and refugee rehabilitation policies
Courses taught at AUD
Masters
- Urban Space and Experiences
- Writing Seminar (Coordinator)
- Dissertation and Internship supervision
- Making of the Modern World
- Partitions in South Asia
Undergraduate
- The City in Literature
- Claims to the City
- Colonial Urbanism
- Urban Worlds
- Introduction to Social Science and Humanities
- Understanding the Past
- Early India
- Modern India
Lectures to research students pursuing M.Phil/PhD
- Historiography of the Annales School
- Oral history and partition
- Approaches to urban history
- ‘Archives: Custodian of the past or past in a custody?’
- ‘Archives: Episteme, theory and praxis’
Awards
- One year internship with Centre for the study of Developing Societies, Delhi 2011-12
- Qualified UGC-NET for lectureship 2009.
- The Sanwa Bank (UFJ bank) Scholarship, for all round academic merit combined with participation in co-curricular activities, St.Stephen’s College (2003-4)
- Asha Chatterjee Prize (2003-4), Raghuvansh K.Balbir Prize (2003-4), Vikas Dhaka Scholarship (2002), St.Stephen’s College, Delhi.
Publications
Chapters in edited volumes
- 2021,‘Land(e)scapes of Utopia: Reconciling Old Ways of Living in New Towns in India’ in Radical City Imagining Possibilities for the Indian City (ed.) Pithamber R. Polsani, SAGE, Yoda Press, pp. 131-146,
- 2020,‘Mapping the Core-Periphery Dynamics of Delhi Metropolis’ in Urbanism in South Asia, North East India, Outside In (ed.) Prof. Meeta Deka, Primus publications: Delhi, pp.190-212.
Educational resources
- 2017, Resource person for MA History Urban Studies course material IGNOU,
- (Unit 31) Cities in Eighteenth Century 2
- (Unit 32) Lucknow: A Case Study.
Publications in Journals
- 2020, https://www.identitiesjournal.com/the-viral-condition-virtual-symposium/invisible-virus-visible-bodies-the-biological-exposition-of-a-socio-historical-malaise published online
- 2015, Won the Nasreen Ahmad Memorial Prize for best paper in Gender History titled ‘The Birth pangs of a divided ation: Articulating the experiences of women and children in the post partition period’, published in Indian History Congress, ISSN 2249-1937, pp.1247-1252.
- 2015,‘Midnight’s Discarded Progeny: Articulating Experiences of Children (post 1947)’, Journal of History and Culture, ISSN 2348-3830, pp.113-123.
- 2013, ‘A Nation Partitioned or Homes Divided? The severed relationship between the state, community and abducted women in the post partition period’, Indian History Congress, ISSN 2249-1937, pp.1391-97.
Book Reviews
- 2020 Pondicherry under the French, Illuminating the Urban Landscape, 1674-1793 (2018), S. Jeyaseela Stephen in newbooks.asia@IIAS.
- 2018 Urban Spaces in Modern India (2018) (ed.) Narayani Gupta and Partho Datta, (IIAS:Shimla) in Summerhill, IIAS Review Vol. XXIV, No. 1, ISSN: 0972-1452, pp.84-85.
Seminar / Conferences
PARTICIPATION IN CONFERENCES
- Speaker ‘Partition: a kaleidoscope of memory, fiction and reality’, webinar conducted by department of history, Ganga Devi Mahavidyalaya, Patna, 9th March 2021.
- Speaker ‘Literary Musings: Exploring Fictional representations of partition of India’, Intersections, Dept of Liberal Arts, IIT Bhilai, 8th March 2021.
- Panelist in ‘The City in India: before and after COVID19’ in an online webinar organized by Indiana University Bloomington (USA) on 14th Oct 2020.
- Presented a paper titled ‘Land(e)scapes of Utopia..’ in a National Conference on the theme Radical City’ (Art, Design and Culture) in Srishti, Bengaluru (20th-21st December 2019)
- Presented a paper titled ‘The American Dream and Indian Realities: Community Development Program in the Post Colonial Era’ in an international conference ‘Measuring Futures: Politics of Expertise in Asia’, 10-11 Dec 2018 University of Chicago Centre Delhi.
- Participated in a GIAN workshop on ‘Geographies of Waste: Surplus Value, Surplus Matter, Surplus Humanity’ by Prof. Vinay Gidwani held in AUD from 19-23 Dec 2017.
- Chaired a panel on ‘Post-Colonialism Perspective from History and Literature (Hybrid spaces)’ and presented a paper titled ‘The Urban Spatial Conundrum in a Post Colonial Nation’ in a national conference in Amity NOIDA on 22nd August 2017
- Presented a paper titled, ‘Transnational Application of Perry’s ‘Neighborhood Unit’ to Indian Town Planning: A Case Study of Faridabad (1950-1980s)’, in the 79th Urban Workshop Series organised by Centre for Policy Research (CPR) and Centres de Sciences Humaines (CSH), Delhi on 30 August 2016.
- Presented a paper titled, ‘The Derailed Terrain: Memorialising the ‘Shahids’ of the Gujrat Train’ in a National Conference organised by Oral History Association of India, Mumbai 19-20 January 2015.
- Paper titled ‘Mapping the Metropolis: Understanding the expansive dynamics between the core and the peripheral regions’ presented in an International Seminar on Understanding Urban History organised by ICHR and Guwahati University in September 2014.
- Paper presented in a National Seminar ‘The Line that Divides- Understanding Partition from Women and/in Partition Narratives’, Shivaji College Delhi, January 2013.