India NewsletterEmbassy of India, Tel Aviv No. 59 July-September 2014

Cultural EventsTourismEducationOther Events

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Cultural Events

Raaga vedika 2014

Haifa Memorial Day: A Tribute to Indian Fallen Soldiers

The Embassy organized 3 sessions of Raaga Vedika lecture- demonstrations focused on Indian classical music in the Embassy.

The audience was exposed to the basics of Indian classical music and learnt about Indian classical music instruments like Sitar, Bansuri (Indian Bamboo Flute) and Tabla. Israeli artists Benny Djubass (Sitar), Ofra Avani (Flute), Liora Itzhak (Vocal), Daniel White and Einav Baram (Tabla) performed and conducted these sessions, which were well attended and tapped into the fascination Israelis have for the Indian culture.

The Embassy organized a moving tribute and wreath laying ceremony in Haifa on 23 September to honour the memory of Indian soldiers who lost their lives in the region during the First World War. Nearly nine hundred of them are interred in cemeteries across Israel.

The Indian Army celebrates Haifa Day every year on 23 September, the day in 1918 when elements of Indian Cavalry Units fighting under General Edmund Allenby helped to liberate Haifa. On that day, Indian mounted cavalry units led by the Jodhpur Lancers, captured the fortified town of Haifa in a daring daylight cavalry charge. Major Dalpat Singh Shekawat, MC, who was leading the Jodhpur Lancers in battle, fell gallantly during the battle.

Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador of India Jaideep Sarkar thanked the City of Haifa for honouring the sacrifices made by the soldiers of the Indian Army. He pointed out that the sacrifice of Indian soldiers in Haifa was one among many historical connections between India and Israel. Deputy Mayor of Haifa, BG (Res) Hedva Almog appreciated the valour of the Indian soldiers and reiterated the support of the city of Haifa to remember their sacrifice. The solemn ceremony was conducted by an honour guard of Indian Soldiers from the UNDOF in the Golan Heights and wreaths were placed by the Ambassador of India, the Deputy Mayor of Haifa, representatives of the Indian Army, the Israeli Defense Forces, the corps of defense attaches in Israel, and prominent Israelis of Indian origin.

Cultural Events

The Hindi Students of Tel Aviv University concluded their annual study tour to India. They visited Delhi, Allahabad, Ayodhya, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar,

Bodh-Gaya, Darjeeling, Kolkata, Puri and Bhubaneswar. The purpose of the tour was to practically use the knowledge of Hindi language acquired in the classroom at the University, as well as to witness cultural heritage and diversity of India. Hindi students were accompanied by Professor Genady Shlomper.

The group interacted with Indian faculties and students in different universities, colleges and schools and made presentations. They were felicitated by the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan Allahabad. The students also communicated with common people on the streets.

Most of the participants of the tour were first year students. Though they had primary knowledge of the language, the tour provided them an opportunity to communicate with native speakers on different levels. The tour proved to be a serious incentive to learn Hindi in Israel.

The trip was partially funded through the financial assistance under Bharat Darshan Scholarships. On Embassy’s initiative, the 20,000 Shekel annual scholarships is established by Indian diamond traders Ranjeet Barmecha, Hitesh Patel, Raxit Mehta and Praveen Kukadia.

The Embassy celebrated India’s 68th Independence Day at the Embassy residence on 15th August. The celebration started with flag hoisting by Ambassador Jaideep Sarkar and followed by National Anthem. The Ambassador read out excerpts from President’s message to the nation and addressed the gathering. About 300 people, including

Indian community in Israel, Indian nationals and students studying in Israel attended the celebrations.

Hindi students visit to India

Embassy Celebrated India’s 68th Independence Day

Indian students at the Weizmann institute of Science, Rehovot organized “Tiranga-2014”, an Indian evening of Indian cultural events, Indian food and Bollywood on 31 July at their institute. The event was inaugurated by Eldos Mathew Punnoose, Third Secretary and

Mr. Purshuothaman, CEO, State Bank of India, Tel Aviv with a traditional lamp lighting ceremony. Dean of the Feinberg Graduate School, Prof. Dr. Irit Sagi was also present on the occasion. In his remarks, Third Secretary welcomed the young Israeli entrepreneurs to utilize the huge market potential of India. Cultural events began with a Bharatnatyam performance by Anjana Shenoy, an exponent of the Indian art and a student of the Tel Aviv University. She enchanted the audience through her traditional dance pieces and a fusion performance in which she danced to the tune of Western music. It was followed by a musical performance by Sitar exponent, Benny Djubass who impressed upon the audience through his blend of fast and slow music. The traditional Indian dinner followed the cultural evening. The evening drew to a close with the screening of “Jodha Akbar”, a bollywood flick built around a 16th century love story. The evening was organized with the support of the Indian Embassy, Weizmann Institute and State Bank of India.

Tiranga 2014

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TourismBrand Family Contest

ICCR Chair at the Tel Aviv University

In order to promote Israeli family tourism to India, Embassy of India in Israel, Government of India Tourism Office (GOITO) Frankfurt, Keshet

Broadcasting and Mako.co.il launched “Brand Family Contest” in September 2014 offering a weeklong fully paid holiday in India to Israeli families. Under this contest Israeli families were asked to send a brief video clip of their family mentioning why India is special to them. About 50 Israeli families applied for the contest. Family of Galit and Ronen Deshe, incuding their three beautiful daughter won the conest and sent to India on Sukkot holidays. The family was accompanied by a media crew of Mako.co.il who recorded travel experiences and activities of the family and filmed travel attraction along the way.

The family found the trip very comfortable, entertaining and knowledgeable. Mako team will produce multimedia articles on the trip. Some of the articles and videos can be found on the following links:

http://www.mako.co.il/travel-world/vacation-in-india-blog/Article-3e2bbd1e6c06941006.htm&Partner=face-book_share

http://www.mako.co.il/travel-world/vacation-in-india?Partner=interlink

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the establishment of an Indian Studies Chair in the Tel Aviv University was signed between Ambassador Jaideep Sarkar and Prof. Aron Shai, Rector of the University on 1 September 2014. The chair is funded by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations. As per the MoU, a visiting

professor from India will teach courses on India in the East Asia Studies Department of the University every year till the academic year 2017-18. The first visiting professor, Prof. Mahesh Sharma from the Punjab University, will occupy the chair in the first semester of the academic year 2014-15. The signing ceremony was attended by the President and Vice President of the University, head and faculty members of the East Asia Studies Department and Third Secretary, Eldos Mathew Punnoose.

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Education

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Other Events

The inaugural meeting of the India-Israel Joint Steering Committee on

Homeland Security was held in Israel from Sep 21-23, 2014. The Steering Committee was set up to coordinate and direct cooperation in the area of Homeland Security as laid out in the Agreement on Cooperation in Homeland and Public Security issues signed between India and Israel on February, 2014. The nodal Ministry on the Indian side is the Ministry of Home Affairs and on the Israeli side is the Ministry of Public Security.

First India - Israel Joint Steering Committee on Homeland Security