Call for Papers: Kautilya Colloquy 2026 (4th Edition), Kautilya School of Public Policy, GITAM Hyderabad [26 September 2026]

The Kautilya School of Public Policy at GITAM (Deemed to be University), Hyderabad, presents the 4th edition of Kautilya Colloquy, its flagship academic conference, on 26 September 2026 at the GITAM Hyderabad campus. The Colloquy brings together scholars, researchers, policymakers, practitioners and students to examine pressing challenges in governance and public policy through keynote addresses, panel discussions, paper presentations and interactive policy engagements.

Across its earlier editions the conference has engaged over 500 participants, featured more than 50 eminent speakers, attracted over 150 research submissions and showcased more than 40 peer-reviewed paper presentations.

The 2026 edition explores how public policy evolves across time, shaped by historical legacies, present-day choices and future possibilities. Participants are invited to reflect on the roots of contemporary governance while charting new pathways for resilient, inclusive and evidence-based policymaking. The organisers seek submissions that critically engage with the past, interrogate the present and imagine alternative policy futures.

• Inherited Futures: The Weight of Yesterday - how early policy choices and institutional legacies continue to shape modern governance and constrain present possibilities.
• Scrying Futures: The Lock-Ins of Today - how current policy decisions create long-term trajectories and self-reinforcing systems that may limit future freedoms.
• Looking Glass: The Spectre of Untaken Paths - revisiting moments where alternative policy pathways were possible, challenging the inevitability of history.

• Institutions and Administration: land administration and acquisition frameworks; preventive law and emergency governance; administrative language systems and access to public services.
• Geopolitical Structures and Strategic Memory: borders, migration and regional security dynamics; trade networks, resource geopolitics and strategic dependencies; identity, memory and national narratives in foreign policy.
• Social Systems and Ecological Transformation: infrastructure models and public mobility; waste management and urban climate; labour informality and social protection.
• Economic Structures and Financial Governance: currency and public trust; agriculture security frameworks; tax structures and digital compliance; economic institutions as enablers or extensions of red-tapism.
• Technological Governance and Institutional Futures: digital identity, data governance and state infrastructures; cybersecurity and technological regulation; emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence for governance.

Interdisciplinary topics are encouraged.

Students, researchers, practitioners and policy enthusiasts are welcome to submit. No particular academic background is required and first-time researchers are encouraged to take part. Submissions may be individual or co-authored, and international participation is welcome.

Entries are made through the paper submission form linked below. The organisers' schedule sets 30 August 2026 as the submission date, with acceptance of papers announced on 14 September 2026 and the presentation deck due by 23 September 2026. Selected participants are notified by email with further instructions.

All papers undergo a review for academic rigour, originality and relevance. Each selected paper is presented at the conference and followed by a Q&A session with scholars, practitioners and peers. The selected best paper will be considered for publication in the Kautilya Working Paper Series, subject to revisions, and the best two papers receive cash prizes and special recognition. All participants receive a certificate of participation and access to policy networking sessions.

• AI usage must be declared. Submissions with more than 20% AI-generated content will not be accepted.
• Similarity is allowed up to 15%. All sources must be properly cited and referenced.

The paper presentation registration fee is Rs 500, applicable to individual presenters as well as teams, and is exclusive of all taxes. The fee is payable only after the abstract is selected, through the GITAM events registration portal, which applies 18% GST at checkout.

Alongside the paper presentations, the Colloquy hosts two more competitions on the same day. Niti-in-Quest is a policy quiz for two-member teams at Rs 500 per team, with registration closing on 25 September 2026. Policy Play is an online vlog competition for individuals or teams of up to three members at Rs 200 per entry, with registration closing on 1 September 2026, submissions due on 7 September 2026 and results declared between 14 and 19 September 2026.