The Host Institution Charge to go to the Department of the PI In the 80's, truly, the institutional charge was something

quite unheard of in respect of research projects funded by the agencies/ministries of the GoI. But it became the norm by the late 80's or so. Say like 10% of the total outlay of the project was share of the host institution allowed by the funding agencies. Now this practice is rather the new norm. The institutions are immensely happy to receive the 10% of the total coast, which is announced in the financial statement or budget of the project. I guess when that proviso was approved, the universities were happy to receive the money. In general, such monies ought to go to the University common fund. When such money goes to the university fund the beneficiaries are not necessarily the academic or the department he belonged to, despite the fact that right for such monies rest with the department. This, for me was kind of displeasing and disgusting as the policy ensures only equity and not selective equity to compensate the select few. So when in one of my projects that came with a handsome institutional grant, I went out and lobbied for the sum to be directed back to the dept. of geology. All said and done those days some members of the syndicate, despite their strong political ideologies, more than pleasingly appreciated the efforts of hard workers in the academia and lent a patient listening to their points, which either influenced the final decision or helped to shape the final outcome in far more useful manner. This is what exactly happened to my lobbying on the institutional charge. In fact my plea was that at least fifty percent of the institutional charge shall go to the department where the project resided. However, when the final decision was made the university did a policy initiative, which appreciated the efforts of the academic in bringing the project, by totally allocating the full amount of institutional grant the department in question and the final modalities of expenditure will be with the consent of the Principal Investigator of the project that earned the grant. I shall say that such pragmatism and not partisanism was the oxygen of the organization. It was more than pleasing unequivocally. --------