Vibha Singh Chauhan
Professor Vibha Singh Chauhan is Ombudsperson at the Institute of Human Settlements, Bangalore. She is the former Principal of Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi and has had a distinguished academic and administrative career spanning several decades. She began her teaching career at Zakir Husain Delhi College, University of Delhi, where she nurtured generations of students and contributed to curriculum development and institutional growth. An accomplished author, editor, and translator, she has published extensively across English, Hindi, and Bhojpuri, with a strong repertoire of creative and critical writings. Her research primarily explores the cultural and literary life of non-urban India, and she has lectured widely across India and abroad in this field. She has also published articles on the mental health of young persons, particularly during the COVID-19 period. Professor Chauhan holds a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from Jawaharlal Nehru University (2003), an M.Ed. from the University of Delhi (1985), and an LL.B. from the University of Delhi (2014). Her longstanding interest in social and gendered discourses is reflected in her monograph “Gods People Make: A Survey of Local Deities in Eastern Uttar Pradesh”, based on a research grant from the Nehru Cambridge Trust. This work has been preserved by the Nehru Trust for Indian Collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. She was a founding member of the Institute of Lifelong Learning at the University of Delhi, where she played a pioneering role in introducing e-learning initiatives. She has served in several academic and institutional capacities, including as Member and Treasurer of the Governing Body, Dayal Singh College, and as a Member of the Governing Body of the Maithili Bhojpuri Akademi (2011-2013). She has been a UGC nominee on governing bodies of various colleges and a member of UGC expert committees for assessing autonomous colleges, women’s hostel construction, and academic performance evaluations. She is a Peer Team Member for NAAC. Prof. Chauhan has also served as a Member of the Executive Council, University of Delhi. Beyond academia, Professor Chauhan has contributed significantly to social and health initiatives. She is the Founder Secretary of HELM: Health, Equality and Literacy Movement, working for the welfare of abandoned women in Vrindavan, and the Founding Director of the ETI Foundation, which focuses on visual and mental health among children from government schools in Delhi. She has also been a part of a team of doctors and social workers addressing health challenges including malaria, tuberculosis, anaemia, and visual and oral health among indigenous communities in Chhattisgarh.
