| Summary/Abstract |
The idea of modern think tank is largely a western concept. Historically, its roots could be traced in the British society, which gradually extended to the United States of America. Subsequently, it has spread all over the world, predominantly in Europe. It is to be noted that even in the ancient world of the Orient and Occident have had their own think tanks like Kautilya, Platonic Academy and Ashrams of Vedic and Upanishadic sages. Old academia largely grew around the thought processes and personality of a single individual like Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Kautilya and a number of saints and sages. The saints and sages of the medieval times also fall in the same category. Some of the great thinkers, whose thought processes led to transition of Europe from medieval to modern times, had their own contributions in the entire process. In the subsequent period, some of the discoveries and inventions, which led to the emergence of modern industrial civilization, were also the result of individual efforts. At still later stage, seminal thinkers like Karl Marx, Sigmund Freud, Albert Einstein, Gandhi et al influenced the minds and hearts of the people and to a great extent the policies and actions of governments at a universal scale.
|