The Institute for Development and Communication (IDC) is a premier autonomous research, training and evaluation organization of North-West of India. It is a non-profit making professionally managed organization registered under the Societies Act in 1992. It concerns itself particularly with the following areas: Public Affairs and Economic, Policy Unit, Ph.D. Program Unit, Education and Evaluation Studies Unit, Governance Studies Unit, Development Studies Unit, Gender Studies Unit, and Peace Conflict Resolution and Policing Unit

In the field of Development Studies, its focus has been on issues like WTO and its impact on agriculture, rural employment, rural indebtedness, and agribusiness. It has also been engaged in the study of issues relating to liberalization and its impact on health and education.

In Governance, Peace and Human Development, the main focus has been on resolution of conflicts, globalization of the economy and the emerging conflicts in South Asia, victims of militancy with special reference to social, psycho-somatic and economic effects, alcoholism, state policy and socio-cultural milieu, drug abuse and its impact on the youth, formulating policy prescription packages, community policing for victim relief and crime prevention.

n Gender Studies, it has formulated policies and strategies for combating violence against women, including female foeticide, impact of liberalization on women’s employment, rights of the girl child, gender and AIDS interface. It has also developed printed and video resource material on gender justice and women’s development.

The main focus of Evaluation Studies is on measuring the extent and reach of social security and safety nets. A number of studies have been undertaken on issues like measurement of rural poverty in Punjab, evaluation of primary healthcare system, primary education system, community health evaluation including infant and child mortality, sanitation, AIDS, immunization and family planning.

Both macro and micro level evaluations have been conducted using innovative methodological tools, including village-level Integrated Participatory Seasonal Observatory System (IPSOS), participatory qualitative methods, neighbourhood analysis, walkthroughs, multi-cluster indicatory surveys etc.

These projects have been undertaken on behalf of the Government of India and various State Governments.

IDC has also been recognized by the Government of India, Ministry of Human Resource Development, as an educational institution for imparting non-formal adult and continuing education through Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS).

It will offer vocational education to neo-literates and unemployed youth. The Institute for Development and Communication is also recognized by the Government of India, Ministry of Human Resource Development, as a center for providing training to National Service Scheme Programme Officers of the Union Territory of Chandigarh, and the States of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana.

During the last three years, the Institute has conducted 24 orientation and refresher courses. Seven hundred eighty (780) lecturers of the region obtained certificates after successfully completing orientation and refresher courses. In addition to this, 227 teachers have been trained under University Talk AIDS programme, 880 students were trained as Peer Educators and 43 programmes were conducted on AIDS awareness in different educational institutions in Chandigarh, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh.

Professionals, academicians and training co-ordinators associated with IDC to implement and supervise its activities include such distinguished persons as Professor(s) Y.K. Alagh, J.N. Joshi, Partho Mukherji, H.S. Shergill, and Pramod Kumar. All of them have had a life-long association with democratic and nationalist thinking as also progressive movements. It has a vast pool of experts, resource persons, researchers, and investigators in Chandigarh and several other places.