Prof. Shyam Narayan Lal
We live in a time shaped by rapid connectivity, intense competition, and increasing complexity. For students, this environment offers many opportunities but also brings significant psychological challenges. Across higher education institutions, there is growing concern about the rising levels of stress, anxiety, and emotional fatigue among young people. National studies and campus report consistently point to a troubling trend: students struggling quietly beneath the surface-managing academic demands while dealing with self-doubt, social pressure, and uncertainty about the future. The emotional impact of this silent crisis is serious, and it demands thoughtful and timely attention.
IIM Jammu responded to this pressing need with thoughtful insightand a deep sense of institutional responsibility. Recognising that student well-being required more than temporary or surface-level interventions, the Institute made a sustained and purposeful commitment by establishing Anandam: The Centre for Happiness. Inaugurated in March 2021 by the then Union Minister of Education, Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’, in the esteemed presence of the Hon’ble Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Shri Manoj Sinha, and with the blessings of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, the Centre marked a significant step toward aligning education with its deeper purpose-the holistic nurturing of well-rounded, emotionally resilient, and ethically grounded individuals.
From its inception, Anandam has been guided by a foundational principle: that instead of simply adopting Western models of wellness, there exists a vast and time-tested repository within the Indian Knowledge System (IKS) offering deeply contextual and sustainable insights into emotional well-being. Drawing upon this indigenous legacy, Anandam has steadily grown into a centre of excellence in the field of mental health and holistic living. Its philosophy rests on the understanding that true academic excellence is incomplete without emotional resilience, ethical clarity, and inner balance.
Anandam’s distinctiveness lies in its integrative model, which combines classical Indian wisdom with contemporary insights from psychology, neuroscience, and organizational studies. Unlike conventional wellness programmes that remain peripheral to institutional life, Anandam is structurally embedded within the academic and administrative framework of IIM Jammu. Its programming includes mental health counselling, meditative practices, curricular innovation, faculty development, and community outreach-all designed to support the emotional, cognitive, physical, and ethical dimensions of the human experience. The Centre has ensured the accessibility of professional psychological services for students and staff, while also nurturing a shared culture of mindfulness through regular yoga sessions. These practices are not incidental but are strategically timed-particularly during examination periods and institutional milestones-to reinforce emotional composure and mental clarity.
Among Anandam’s most impactful collaborations have been its partnerships with leading spiritual and wellness organizations such as the Art of Living Foundation, led by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, and the Isha Foundation, under the guidance of Sadhguru. Through workshops and programmes developed in collaboration with these institutions, students have been introduced to practical tools like breathwork, meditation, reflective silence, and guided introspection. These sessions have helped students explore dimensions of self-awareness, emotional regulation, interpersonal relationships, and ethical leadership. The positive response-both in terms of participation and measurable outcomes-has led to the regular integration of these offerings within Anandam’s calendar. These skill-building programmes are further complemented by academic courses on happiness studies, which draw upon classical Indian texts such as the Upani?ads, the Bhagavad G?t?, and Buddhist s?tras. Blended with contemporary theories of well-being, emotional intelligence, and purpose-driven living, these courses employ diverse pedagogical methods-ranging from journaling and group dialogue to community immersion and experiential learning.
The spirit of Anandam, however, is not confined to structured learning environments. It flows into the broader culture of the Institute through a range of commemorative and outreach initiatives that reflect its civilizational grounding. Events such as the International Day of Yoga, World Mental Health Day, and International Day of Happiness have been reimagined as opportunities for experiential learning and ethical reflection. Through group ?sana sessions, interactive discussions, and lectures by renowned scholars and practitioners, these occasions reinforce the idea of well-being as a shared, participatory endeavour. These efforts echo the foundational Indian view that ?nanda is not only an individual pursuit, but a way of being that radiates into and uplifts the collective.
A critical factor in the Centre’s continued impact lies in the sustained, strategic engagement of its team, whose commitment to innovation and responsiveness drives the development and implementation of programmes that are both forward-thinking and deeply attuned to the evolving needs of the student population and the wider community. These initiatives are not only designed to enrich academic life but also to foster interdisciplinary dialogue, civic engagement, and personal growth. The Centre’s diverse portfolio includes expert-led thematic lectures that bring contemporary issues into focus, academically rigorous seminars and conferences that encourage cross-disciplinary knowledge exchange, and immersive outdoor learning experiences that cultivate environmental literacy and a deeper sense of place. Additionally, structured opportunities for community-based engagement are embedded throughout, promoting inclusive participation and a shared commitment to social and ecological responsibility. What renders Anandam particularly significant in the landscape of Indian higher education is its role in bridging young minds with their own cultural and intellectual inheritance. Through its content, activities, and ethos, the Centre reconnects students to the Indian Knowledge System-a tradition not limited to metaphysical abstraction but encompassing holistic, practical, and sustainable approaches to life. It brings renewed relevance to classical insights on ethics, governance, creativity, health, and aesthetics, showing how Indian epistemologies can illuminate universal human concerns. Anandam’s reframing of this heritage not as antiquity but as living, dynamic knowledge underscores its importance as a civilizational resource for contemporary education. In doing so, it offers a powerful counterpoint to the cultural dilution that often accompanies modern curricula and reasserts India’s enduring contribution to global thought.
One of the significant areas in which Anandam: The Centre for Happiness at IIM Jammu has begun its work is the development of its own context-specific Happiness Index. This initiative reflects a conscious departure from generic or externally imposed metrics, aiming instead to create a nuanced, culturally grounded, and empirically robust framework for assessing happiness. In parallel, Anandam is engaged in the systematic generation of primary data on a wide array of variables linked to subjective well-being, emotional resilience, social connectedness, life purpose, and other psychological and socio-cultural determinants of happiness.
The data thus collected is not merely instrumental-it forms the foundational bedrock for a larger research agenda that seeks to reposition happiness studies within mainstream academic discourse. Historically, research on happiness has remained somewhat peripheral to conventional scholarly inquiry, often overshadowed by more quantifiable economic or performance-driven paradigms. Anandam seeks to address this epistemic marginality by cultivating an indigenous knowledge base, encouraging interdisciplinary scholarship, and offering evidence-based insights that are both globally relevant and locally resonant.
The broader educational and developmental relevance of Anandam is further underscored by its alignment with national and international policy frameworks. By embodying the spirit of India’s National Education Policy (NEP) 2020-which advocates for holistic, value-based, and learner-centred education-the Centre stands as a model for institutional transformation.
In essence, Anandam is not just a centre-it is a living philosophy embedded within the educational vision of IIM Jammu. It represents an evolving commitment to human-centric learning, one that draws equally from ancient Indian wisdom and contemporary pedagogical insight. By cultivating self-awareness, ethical clarity, and emotional resilience within and beyond the classroom, Anandam exemplifies what it means to educate the whole person. In doing so, it not only addresses a growing imperative in higher education but also sets a precedent for how institutions across India can meaningfully integrate well-being, values, and cultural rootedness into the fabric of academic life.
(The writer is Senior Consultant, IIM Jammu)