New Delhi, Aug 3 Demonstrating its commitment to institutional excellence, O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) brings yet another eminent personality to its academic community. Ambassador Venu Rajamony will be joining Jindal Global Law School as Professor of Diplomatic Practice.

A career diplomat with 34 years of experience, scholar and former journalist, Venu Rajamony is a well-known public speaker, author and patron of arts and culture. Rajamony was Ambassador of India to The Netherlands from 2017 to 2020. He was also the Permanent Representative of India to the Organisation for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons at The Hague, and responsible for India's relations with the International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration.

Rajamony appeared on behalf of India before the International Court of Justice in the matter of "Advisory Opinion concerning the Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius." He was Member of the Indian delegation before the ICJ in the Jadhav case (India vs. Pakistan) and Co-Agent of India in Enrica Lexie case (Italy vs. India) before the Permanent Court of Arbitration.

Rajamony authored two books during this tenure in the Netherlands -- What We Can Learn from The Dutch -- Rebuilding Kerala post 2018 Floods and India and the Netherlands -- Past, Present and Future. The latter was released by the Dutch King Hiss Royal Highness Willem-Alexander in September 2019 and has won praise as an encyclopaedia of the cross-cultural encounter between India and the Netherlands. The book 'What Can We Learn from The Dutch -- Rebuilding Kerala Post 2018 Floods' was released in January 2019.

It describes the Dutch response to floods over history, their innovations in water management, and the lessons the state of Kerala in India could learn from them. A Malayalam translation of the book titled -- 'Pralayam, Prathirodham, Punarnirmanam -Padikkaam Dutch Paadangal' was released by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in January 2021 in the presence of the Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala and former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy.

Ambassador Rajamony held the office of Press Secretary to Indian President Pranab Mukherjee from 2012 to 2017. He was part of President Mukherjee's team during interaction with visiting leaders such as Emperor Akihito of Japan, President Xi Jinping of China, President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President Barack Obama of the US. He was member of President Mukherjee's delegation during State visits to 20 countries, including China, Russia, Israel, Bangladesh, and Vietnam. He also accompanied the President on more than 100 official tours within India.

Rajamony served as Joint Secretary and head of Multilateral Institutions Division of the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India from 2010-2012. He was responsible for formulating India's policies towards the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the African Development Bank, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. In this capacity, he supervised external assistance to India of around $34 billion (spread over 140 projects). He was India's Deputy to the International Development Association and member of India's delegations to the Spring and Autumn Meetings of the International Monetary and Financial Committee of the IMF and the Development Committee of the World Bank Group as well as the Annual General Meetings of the ADB.

Rajamony's tenure as Consul General of India in Dubai from 2007 to 2010 marked a high point in relations between India and the United Arab Emirates. He capped his stint in Dubai with the publication of a coffee table book titled India and the UAE: In Celebration of a Legendary Friendship. A Malayalam version of the book was released in Kerala in 2013 and the Arabic version was published in the UAE in 2014.

Rajamony also served in the Indian missions in Hong Kong, Beijing, Geneva, and Washington, D.C. He worked as Chef de Cabinet to External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha from 2003 to 2005 and was Asia Foundation Fellow at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington DC between 2001 and 2002. He authored a monograph -- 'The India-China-US Triangle: A Soft Balance of Power in the Making' during his fellowship at the CSIS. Fluent in Chinese, which he studied at the University of Hong Kong, Rajamony is proficient in Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, and French.

Welcoming Ambassador Rajamony the Founding Vice Chancellor, O.P. Jindal Global University Professor (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar, said, "We are very excited to have Ambassador Rajamony at JGU as his vast experience will enrich the quality and diversity of teaching and learning at the University. He brings with him outstanding experience in law, international relations, diplomacy and multilateralism. His diverse career trajectories will enable him to make his contribution to institution building and academic excellence. This is going to be an extraordinary opportunity for the students of JGU to learn from his rich experience and knowledge."

Ambassador Venu Rajamony said, "I am delighted to join JGU, which has been declared as an Institution of Eminence by the Government of India and ranked India's best private University. I believe JGU is in the forefront of reimagining the role of universities and fully subscribe to its core values of interdisciplinarity, innovative pedagogy, pluralism, rigorous scholarship, globalism and international engagement. JGU has a major role to play in nurturing talent that can take India into the ranks of leading nations of the world, and I intend to contribute my utmost to this effort."

Jindal Global Law School appoints Ambassador Venu Rajamony as Professor