Whose Ashoka;»Which Ashoka;»TALK: Ashoka and the Making of Modern IndiaCollaboration: University of Texas, Austin;Jawaharlal Nehru University; IndianCouncil for Historical Research; and AmericanInstitute of Indian Studies, August 5, 6 & 7

Ove: three long and intense days, the lIe was hostto an international conference that saw rigorousand concerted re-examination of what we know ofthe ,Mauryan emperor Ashoka. Attended by notedhistorians, Buddhist studies scholars, art historiansand archaeologists, the conference ran three parallelpublic lectures and an exhibition which underscoredthe key themes of theconference. In various ways,and from an extremely widerange of perspectives, all theparticipants strove to highlightand discriminate between wh~twe do know and can possiblyknow about the historical

, Ashoka, as differentiated fromthe various avatars of Ashoka,coming down to us fromdifferent times and places,'born from Ashoka beingremembered and appropriated.

Professor Romila Thapar'sbrilliant inaugural addresshighlighted how after Ashoka'sown time, his ideas andmemories have a long andvaried history of being narratedand reinscribed in specific ways. The Ashokan Pillar

Later Buddhist legends of Ashoka,or later rulerswho sought to draw parallels between themselves andhim, or still others whose discourses sought to silencethe Ashokan moment, all offer a complex and foldedgenealogy of the workings of social,memory. As theconference unfolded, many other contributors. eventhose specifically striving .after the historical Asoka,stressed the need to understand these diverse momentsof prior historicism and their politics, rather thansuccumbing to any easy positivism and endorsing suchpurposively constructed narratives of the Ashokanmoment in Indian history. The discussions on Nehru'sown self-identification with Ashoka, and even thebook launch of Gurcharan Das's book on 'dharma'were particularly fruitful in this regard, bringinghome how such processes of recalling the past areineluctably based in the present and its politics.

Professor Sallowman's public lecture was a lucidsurvey of the conceptualand definitional issues instudying the origins of writingsystems in ancient south Asia,which came into startlingvisibility with the Ashokanedicts. While his addressfocused on the possibledimensions of the historicalimportance of the periodof Asokan rule .itself, otherparticipants consistentlystressed the need to placethe period back within thelonger trajectories of earlyIndian history, much ofwhich is being revisited andrewritten from archaeologicalperspectives.

ASHOKAANDTHE MAKING OFMODERN INDIA

• MUDIT TRIVEDI

Fulsome and deserved tributes were paid to Ustad AliAkbar Khan, the greatest exponent of the sarod, andindeed the finest instrumentalist in Hindustani musicin the last hundred years.Vinay Bharat Ram, a pupil ofKhan Sahib,his sister Annapoorna Debi and her formerhusband, Pandit Ravi Shankar, paid a loving tribute tohis departed Guru who died on June 21 in the U.S.at the age of 87. Vinayji narrated several entertaininganecdotes, including one about Ali Akbar's debut inBombay in 1949 when he was given 45 minutes to provehis mettle before a discerning audience. He played forexactly the allotted time and mesmerized the audiencewith the rendering of an unknown raga. When pressedby his followers for information repeatedly, he said theragawas Cauri Mar!fari!

Among the others who paid tribute to Khan Sahib'smemory were Ustad Rahim Fahimuddin Dagar, UstadAsad Ali Khan, Pandit Debu Chaudhury, ShannoKhurana and Birju Maharaj. A short interview withAli Akbar Khan made for Doordarshan, and videoclips from concerts sponsored by Sangeet Kala Vihar .were also a part of the programme.

Heartfelt tributes were paid to Kamala Das whowrote prolifically both in Bnglish and in hermother tongue, Malayalam. Practically self-taughtin her craft, her poetry and prose had a sensitivityand edginess that was uniquely her own. KamalaDas burst on to the Indo-Anglian literary scenealmost 45 years ago with a collection of poems,Summer in Calcutta. At 42, she published herautobiography, which had as much fiction as fact. Itwas a restless life, often painful, but not without itscreative rewards.

Rukmini Bhaya Nair remembered meeting KamalaDas for the first time as an impressionable nineteen-year-old. K. Satchidanandan, apart from reading outDas' poems like others before him also presented apaper on her oeuore.

Suresh Kohli's documentary had an interestinginterview with Kamala Das and perhaps helpedin understanding her better. Keki N. Daruwallaconducted the proceedings with tact and elegance.

• PARTHA CHATTERJEE

Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, Photo Credit: Avinash Pasricha Kamala Das

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Delicit ChildhoodDR. DURGABAI DESHMUKH MEMORIALLECTURE 2009: Deficit Children -Implicationsfor India's DemocracySpeaker: Dr. Shantha SinhaChair: Justice J.S. VarmaCollaboration: Council forSocial Development, July 15

Invoking the Constitution's Directive Principles,Shantha Sinha observed that after more than sixtyyears of independence, children's rights have yetto receive the whole-hearted commitment of theState. Despite achievements in expanding educationand health care and a range of initiatives targetinghistorically marginalized groups, current statisticsshow dismal outcomes.

India has the highest proportion of undernourishedchildren: 46 per cent are underweight and 79 per centare anaemic. The IMR is higher than sub-Saharan

Subverting HistorvFrontiers of History/Indian ArchaeologyLECTURE: WhoOwns the Indian Past?The Case of the Indus CivilizationSpeaker: Professor Oilip K. Chaluabarti,Emeritus Professor, CambridgeUniversityChair: Or. B.M. Pande,July 21

Following an introduction to the series by B.M.Pande,Dilip Chakrabarti sought to both assess and cautionus on the making of the Indian past, especially in thecontext of the Indus Civilization. That the question'Who Owns the Indian Past?' is not a rhetorical onebut inextricably linked to issues of identity and 'desiredpasts', was established by marshalling evidence fromthe writings of several scholars and by pegging theargument around vital and current debates that defineIndus Civilization studies. Chakrabarti began with the

Africa; 25 per cent of girls die before age 15; 30 percent of children remain unschooled. Serious gapspersist in the legal framework with no law covering the0-6 age group. Thousands of children are traffickedannually. The Child Labour Act merely prohibits57 processes and 16 occupations as hazardous forchildren. Agricultural work, home factories and workrendered for the family fall outside legal purview.

Deficit investment in children leads to a deprivationof education; they lack skills and self-esteemleading to a deficit childhood. It leads ultimatelyto deficit citizenship, preventing the enjoyment ofdemocratic rights.

What must be done to right these wrongs? State andcivil society must take a rights-based approach thatwould lead to action with respect to all children. Acompulsive optimist, Sinha believes that every rightattained sets new norms, provides opportunitiesto bridge gaps, representing a step towards a moreinclusive and enlightened citizenship that canradicalize India's democracy.

• PRODIPTO ROY

date of the beginning of the Indus Civilization (in hisopinion c. 2,700 B.C.) and through the unravelling ofpoints and counter-points related to the chronologyof the civilization, its distribution and interactionzones, artistic traditions and rituals and also Harappantechnology, reiterated how deeply embedded thiscivilization was in South Asia's past-a product ofindigenous developments and precursor of thingsto come.

Chakrabarti's own summing up of the provocativelythought-provoking talk says it all-that there is aconsistent attempt at play these days to disassociatethe Indus Civilization with later Indian history· andthat this is mostly the result of the operations of FirstWorld Archaeology in the Third World. Comparingand contrasting this with the situation on the ground,he emphasized that we should all be aware of this for,in one way or the other, all of us are inheritors of theIndus Civilization.

• DEEKSHA BHARADWAJ

holistic, juxtaposing the principles of yoga, kinetics,acupuncture, aerobics and metabolism, among others.In all these, the correctness of the presentationwith reference to aspects, such as angasuddham andsaushthavam, is an essential criterion. The sense ofposition and motion as components of kinesthetics;

have to be properly developed.

While Kanaka explained the findings of theresearch with reference to each component inthe format of the art form in a graded sequenceas generally in vogue, her students in differentage-groups gave appropriate demonstration.

The presentation thus highlighted the inherentmerits in our traditional knowledge systemwhere concepts reflect the wisdom andintuition of our ancient seers. Learningand practising a discipline based on .suchconcepts, whether an art form or any otherpursuit, confers multiple advantages.

• 'MANNA' SRINIVASAN

The benefits accruing to the body and mindby the practice of the movement andtechniques of Bharatanatyam, wassubject of this interesting lecture-demonstration. A trained dancer andqualified teacher, Kanaka has beendoing research on the therapeutic valueof the art form. The techniques, based mainlyon Bharata's 'Natya Sastra, are contained inthe different codifications. According to animportant guiding principle, vision (drishti)follows the hands (hasta); the mind (mana)follows vision; feeling (bhaava) follows themind; and sentiment (rasa) follows feeling.Kanaka's approach has been scientific and

CelelJraU.naCatlada lalCOIICERl: The Dancing SaxophonePresented by Claydia Schaetzle and Monrquede Margerie

,Collaboratlon: Canad.ian fUgh Gommi~sionand Oel~i NJusicSo~jetYi July 1

4

One of the youngest members of the orchestra, thesaxophone was developed in the 1840s by AdolpheSax, and combines properties of the Woodwindsand Brasses, allowing for an expanded dynamic andpitch range. The alto saxophone was the star of anevening of music featuring a multi-cultural mosaicof composers and compositions rendered superblyby German-Canadian Claudia Schaetzle, with pianoaccompaniment by Quebecer Monique de Margerie;The concert was an appropriate tribute to multi-cultural Canada on Canada Day.

The concert opened with Jacques Ibert's Histoires,sandwiching the contemplative 'Le vieux mendiant'between the playful 'Le petit ane blanc' and 'Bajola mesa'. Then followed 'Recit et Lied Op. 31', by

Montrealer Mathieu Lussier, with a slow aalap-likeintroduction leading into a more marked tempo.Moving into Sephardic and Latin realms, 'Three songswithout words' by Paul Ben-Haim brought in middle-eastern melodic references, and 'Petite suite Latine'by Jerome Naulais featured dance rhythms such asthe Paso Doble and Tango. 'Fantaisie impromptu'by Andre Johvet followed with a chimerical mix ofchanging harmonies and rhythms.

After the break, the concert recommenced withClaude Debussy's impressionistic piano piece 'L'islejoyeuse'. Spanish composer Pedro Itturalde's 'SuiteHellenique' followed, with four movements inunusual metres. The night-clubby 'Valse Vanite' byAmerican Rudy Wiedoeft brought out the singingtone of the sax and the flamboyant 'Fantaisie Tzigane4' by Algerian Marcel Perrin evoked colourful gypsyimages in keeping with the title.

For an encore, the duo played 'A Little Tango' byArgentinian Astor Piazzolla, concluding with thetheme from 'The Pink Panther' by Henry Mancini. Ajoyful close to an entertaining evening spent with thedancing saxophone!

• PUNITASINGH

The Second SexLECTURE: New Vulnerabilities of Women in aNew World OrderSpeaker: Professor Carmen Sarasua, Professorof Economic History, Universitat Aut6nomade BarcelonaChair: Professor Jayati Ghosh, Professor ofEconomics and Chairperson, Centre forEconomic Studies and PlanningCollaboration: Apne Aap, July 25

Carmen Sarasua's presentation of this complexinternational crisis expanded the notion of violenceto extend from the merely physical to other formsof violence. The economic slowdown, shortageof food and forms of exploitation have placed adisproportionate burden on women all over theworld. Women tend to be a vast majority of thepoor, and discriminations extend from access toemployment, education, land, credit and comparablewages. This widespread violence and the damage totheir social relations, coupled. with the ideology ofthe male-bread-winner model, affects the choices thatwomen make.

Women in the Asia-Pacific region, Africa and theCaribbean are far more likelythan men to be informallyemployed, underemployed, or to beunemployed and to work withoutbenefits. This appears to be a directfallout of the creation of jobs totake advantage of the cheap labourthat women provide in the industriesof textiles, food processing andelectronics. Women are far lessprotected by unions and the first tobe made redundant, thus protectingthe ideology of men as 'breadwinners'. With the expected declinein remittances there is less income torun households and women tend towork in their own homes to replaceoutsourced labour.

With growing competition wages tend to decreaseor be offered in kind. The facility of micro credit towomen has been hit as they have far fewer sources offunding. Coupled with domestic violence, it can oftenlead women to prostitution as the only source ofincome. Tragically, three generations of women areaffected by current poverty as families tend to reduceexpenses by compromising on food, healthcare andeducation of the girl child..

Sarasua outlined policies at the macro-level dealingwith education, medical care, safe contraception,abortion, decent employment and housing to redressthis imbalance. She emphasized the enforcementof anti-crisis employment policies as most policiesprotect male jobs. Negotiation and veto powers forwomen at the domestic level are essential as thehome is where gender inequalities abound. Womentend to have low negotiation powers and not muchsay in decision-making processes, income poolingand expenditure.

Lest the scenario appear too grim and lopsided,Sarasua listed the strides taken by women overthe last thirty years, such as better access toeconomic resources, reduction in birth rates, delayedmarriages, education, information, access to politicalinstitutions, and an undisputed acceptance ofgender parity.

• RITU SINGH

Care as ValueROSALlND WILSON MEMORIAL LECTURE2009: Justice and CareSpeaker: Professor Upendra BaxiCollaboration: Rosalind Wilson MemorialTrust, July 28

Before a packed and varied audience that includedjudges of the Supreme Court of India, practisinglawyers, academics and students, Soli Sorabjeespoke at the outset of how dear the idea of care asa value in both private and public spheres was tothe late Ms. Wilson. This was the central theme ofProfessor Baxi's talk and he spoke, not just as anacademic, but as a close personal friend of Ms.Wilson, raising a host of issues that would haveresonated with her.

Higher EducaUoninSri LankaTALK: Pre-University Educational and PoliticalMovements and Their Influence on HigherEducation in Sri LankaSpeaker: Professor Jayadeva Tilakasiri,Collaboration: lIe·Asia ProjectAugust 24

In a short but sharp exposition, Professor JayadevaTilakasiri, Emeritus Professor of Sanskrit at thePeradeniya University of Sri Lanka, outlined theinfluence of pre-university movements on highereducation in the country.

Although the title of his talk was somewhatmisleading (as he did not speak of educational andpolitical movements at the level preceding universityas was expected), Professor Tilakasiri did neverthelessprovide his audience an insight into the social andpolitical processes by which higher education in SriLanka has evolved. He began by describing his own6

Quoting Mother Teresa and Mohandas Gandhias persons for whom 'care' was much more thana personal affair, Professor Baxi asked whetherone could imagine a caring State. He admitted thatthe examples of history and daily life were notencouraging. He recalled the naive observations ofSupreme Court judges in the Habeas Corpus Case,who trusted an emergency State to bestow 'maternalcare' on its detenus. He pointed to the repeated failuresof present-day public administration in the face ofcrises. And, yet, though the ideal of care in everysphere of public life-not only health, but also media,education, law, among others-is as yet unattained,Professor Baxi insisted that it cannot be discarded. .i}tpresent, there exists a 'care drain', whereby care-givingprofessionals emigrate from. the society that mostneeds them. Nevertheless, there is a duty to give backto society, and in each individual's personal fulfilmentof this duty, lies hope for the future.

• ADITYA SUDARSHAN

experiences as a young man seeking to understandthe influence of religion, language and politics onhigher education, and explained the contributionof the Buddhist monks in Sri Lanka, and the criticalrole they played in ensuring that traditional systemsof learning were not lost during colonial rule and inthe wake of the second World War. In his view, theestabli hment of the University of Colombo (a1dseveral other universities later) was greatly assisted ~ytheir support.

Explaining that universities in Sri Lanka wereestablished in response to political demands foreducation in the mother tongue, Professor Tilakasiriwas critical of the decision to introduce free educationfor all from kindergarten to university, as this createda higher burden on tax payers and compromisedquality. The quality of learning remains a seriousconcern, as graduates from universities are unable tomeet the requirements of the job market. Pointingout the difficulties in reconciling the traditional andmodern systems of learning, he concluded by sayingthat the past and the future were intertwined, addwould continue to influence the progress of high reducation in Sri Lanka in the days to come.

• AMIT KAUSHI

Earlv IndiaILLUSTRATED LECTURE: The Languages andCultures Revealed by the Rig Veda -Immigration, Localization and ConvergenceSpeaker: Professor Michael WitzelChair: Or. I<apila Vatsyayan, July 10

This distinguished speaker from Harvard wasintroduced by Dr. Vatsyayan, who charted his progressfrom linguistics to 'other areas and his phenomenalcontribution in igniting academic debates.

In his lecture, Witzel emphasized the centrality,notwithstanding the complexity, of the Rig Veda, theearliest written text from South Asia, to historicalunderstanding. Stressing the potential of the text to yieldscientific data, he briefly delved into the chronologyof the mandalas, the time-frame, the geographical areathat the culture encompassed, as well as the close

The lovs 01GardeningILLUSTRATED LECTURE: The Wonder Worldof Gardening - A TherapySpeaker: Satish 1<.MathurChair: Or. Avtar Pennathur, July 27

Outlining the objectives of his presentation, thespeaker gave a pragmatic approach to home gardening.According to these tips, planning a garden' shouldensure a pleasing and relaxing atmosphere. Preciseknowledge regarding plant material, practices, culturalrequirements, diseases etc. isrequired for a good garden.

One of the greatest charmsof a garden is the lawn, whichis like a canvas for a painting.Colour and aroma are the basicrequirements of a garden whichcan be enhanced by judiciousplanting of trees, shrubs,climbers, annuals, bulbous,seasonal and perennial plants. A Zen G(J~den

association of the archaic Sanskrit used in the text withIndo-European languages. The thrust of his lecturewas the plurality of languages and cultures in the text,reflective of a complex linguistic and cultural map ofearly India.Witzel emphasized the co-existence of theRig Vedic people with those who continued the Industradition, indicative of some amount of convergencebetween the pastoral Indo-Aryans and the settled localpopulations of Draudians. He also spoke of the readytakeover of the elite culture of the Rig Vedic people bysurrounding cultures.

In conclusion, Witzel reiterated the need to lookbeyond outdated academic notions towards a. .'multi-disciplinary approach involving archaeology,linguistics and genetics, and to collate the data withtextual evidence. Equally profound and thought-provoking was his observation that culture, ratherthan our genes, is what makes us human and that,essentially, culture is transmitted.

• SHIBANI BOSE

The kitchen garden and herb plants should find a placein the garden. A well-planned and well-maintainedgarden is appealing, exudes an aura of peace andserenity and reduces stress. If gardening is taken up asan activity shared by the family, Mathur emphasized,the therapeutic aspect of gardening would benefit theentire farni y.

Mathur's comprehensive and well-illustrated talk with97 slides, showing garden layouts and plant materialof all types was very informative. Suitable plants withbotanical and common names were recommendedfor planting. The role of the Zen garden increating a meditative mood and serenity was alsobriefly discussed.

Questions by the audiencecovered a wide spectrumperta1n1ng to facilities availablefor soil testing, termite treatmentof institutional lawns andavailability and problems withcertain plants. The participantsrequested more talks ongardening,

• AVTARPENNATHUR 7

Rousing MusicPERFORMANCE: Forgotten Songs of theIndependence Movement,Presented by Sumangala Oamodaran, OeepakCastelino and Tapan Malik, August 11

Songs on the theme of Independence are oftenstand-alone compositions, but vocalist SumangalaDamodaran, together with accompanists DeepakCastelino (guitar) and Tapan Malik(cello) introducedthe independence spirit with the selection of a dozennumbers from the repertoire of the theatre groupIPTA. Written in the forties and fifties, these musicalnumbers mingled national fervour with historic eventssuch as the Bengal Famine, Jalianwalla Bagh incident,the peasant movements of Telengana and Tebhaga,and Partition. The outcome of a two-decade longresearch study, Damodaran's presentation was bothwell-choreographed and relevant.

The opening number-and the signature tune of theIPTA one learnt-was a composition by the legendaryBenoy Roy. Its catchy rhythm set the mood of theevening, with the accompanists adding contextualityto the mood. Besides being composed by the musicalgreats of that era, the songs had telling links withinternational music .movements, making themcontemporary in spirit. Each number was renderedwith a short preview, which enhanced the impact.

Damodaran's choice of socially relevant numbers.along with her clarity of diction and technicalexpertise was commendable. Her ability to singwith authenticity in several languages also deservesappreciation. Her performance presented a widerange-from songs in the 'Heer' style of Punjab tothe Bengali folk tradition, to the rousing full-throatednorth Indian format-and thus had something forall. Though flawless in their tunefulness, the trailingof the voice at the end notes was not too pronounced,leading occasionally to abrupt endings.

• SUBHRA MAZUMDAR

Feminist CinemaTALK: New Liberal Order and Ethical Privacy:Aparna Sen's Feminist CinemaSpeaker: Professor Esha De, Universityof CaliforniaChair: Professor Savita Singh, IGNOUCollaboration: School of Gender andDevelopment Studies, July 24

'Truth at twenty-four frames per second' is how oneof the French masters described the youngest artform and Aparna Sen's films have tried to embodythis definition, in letter and spirit. Right from her firstfilm 36 Chowringhee Lane to the soon-to-be releasedThe Japanese Wife, Sen's engagement with enlightening,enriching and empowering her constituency in oneelegant, magical stroke remains unique.

Esha De's essential focus was on the post-colonialliberal order in India and how women have dealt

with it, and how Sen's magic lens has attempted tochronicle these shifts in its own powerful fashion.Rabindranath Tagore is frequently alluded to, as area whole galaxy of scholars, thinkers, sociologistsand academics, with their enlightening - sometimeseven provocative - inputs. Paromitar Ek Din,Mr. &Mrs. Iyer and 15 Park Avenue frequently serveas telling examples of the proposition that De wishesto articulate.

The trouble with serious cinema is that there are veryfew 'takers'. Globalized Bollywood may be the culprit!The good news is that there will alwaysremain a nicheaudience favouring this highly personal, powerfulvisual language, which has a healthy contempt for aform of capitalism that essentially decrees that moneyprovides the solution, market forces work, and you'llget pie-in-the-sky-when-you-die!

Just one suggestion to De and her ilk: a little more. simplicity in language and a little less academicjargon would help in connecting with the largerconstituency.

• MONOJIT LAHIRI

Whither KandhamalilDISCUSSION: Kandhamal: Where are We?Speakers: K.P. Fabian, Anto Akkara and LaxmiParidaIntroduction: Suhas BorkerCollaboration: Working Groupon AlternativeStrategies, August 3

Behind the continuing horrors of Kandhamal,according to all the panelists, lies the assurance ofHindu extremists that their most appalling acts willgo unpunished, as instanced repeatedly in Orissasince the 1980s. So, as described by KP. Fabian, evenas the government has for a year been claiming that'normalcy' is restored, there remain-officially-2,900 refugees in camps ill-provided for, who maybe denied access to water and fuel on returning totheir villages. Their neighbours will not permitthem to reconstruct their homes unless they 're-convert' and withdraw charges, and the governmentwill not grant full compensation to them until theybegin reconstruction.

For Akkara, the final proof of the state's abdicationof secularism is in Betticola, where after destroyinga church, extremists tried to build a temple on itsruins: its Christian residents are being transplantedto a new village. He noted that the official figure forarrests had not increased over five months, reservingespecial anger for Justice Mahapatra's contention thatit is unviable to arrest all killers.

An eyewitness of the 'undertaking to 'destroyChristmas' in Bramunigaon (2007), when Christianshops were looted by rival traders, Laxmi Paridamentioned how the police arrived accompanying theattackers, leaving Christians no refuge but the forests.She described her own extraordinary facing down ofmen who came to killher for opposing them, and howover the next five months she and other SHG leadershelped to recover the village's traditions of bhaicharathrough meetings convened between communities.

Speakers detailed the organization around attacks:fines levied according to' income were imposed onHindus who would not participate (Laxmi Parida);those hired have to video tape the attacks to receivefull payment (Fabian); witnesses are being threatenedwith death (Anto Akkara).

• NIHARlKA GUPTA

Notices

New IIC Facilities

With the completion of construction work on the nchostel wing in July 2009, one additional double guestroom and nine extra single rooms are now availableto our guests.

Since November 2008, its thirty eight single roomswere unavailable to guests so that major renovationand extension work could be carried out. After amajor overhaul and upgradation of the electricalpower supply, emergency power system and air-conditioning load, the new hostel wing services havebeen integrated with .the new infrastructure facilities

proposed to be commissioned by next year.

The facilities.of the new Conference Block area areplanned to be made available to members by the endof August 2010.

IIC Membership

Members are requested to inform the nc MembershipDepartment (E-mail: member.iic@nic.in) of anychange in address/telephone numbers/mobile/email.

This will help us to update our records.

9

@The IIC EXPERIENCE

A FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS(8-14 October 2009)

TheRiverInauguration of the festival by

Professor M.G.K.Menon, President, IIC

PERFORMANCES

8 October 2009 at 6:30 pmInvocation to the RiversVocal Recitalby Bhuvanesh Komkali, grandson ofPt. Kumar Gandharva

9 October 2009 at 6:30 pmFolk Dance from EgyptPresented by Aswan Folklore group

10 October at 6:30 pmMississippi Blues and Jazz from New OrleansPresented by Sunny Side Up from Delhi -Vasudhara Vidalur (vocal); Adil Manuel(guitar); Rainer Pusch(saxophone); Brennon Denfer(bass guitar); and Joshua (drums) ,

11 October at 10:30 amThe Music of Banaras-Thumri-Dadra; RiverChaiti and Kajriby Purnima ChaudhuriAccompanists: UjjwalBharati (harmonium); andDebaprosad Dey (harmonium)

11 October at 6:00 pmConfluence of Cultures:Flamenco GalaPresented by Mara Rey (vocal

1 & dance); Antonio FernandezMontoya (vocal); and Antonio

10 Rey Navas (guitar)

12 October 2009 at 6:30 pmSongs to the Kaveri - Carnatic Vocal

by Sudha Raghunathan

13 October 2009 at .6:30 pmN armada ParikramaRecitation by Priests from

Amarkantak

Odissi by Bindu JunejaAccompanists: PrashantMaharana (pakhawcy); VishalMoghe (vocal); Abhay Pha-

gre (flute); Sunil Saxena(sitar); and Shamb-hunath Bhattacharjee

(manjira)

14 October 2009 at6:30 pm (Fountainlawns)Confluence ofCultures: GangaJamuni Tehzeeb

Interweaving poetrywith dance to presentthe composite cultureof north India

Recitation by ~.teedNaqvi

Kathak by Pt. Birju Maharaj and his students

~>EXHIBITIONS

The River as Goddess in IndiaPhotographs from the collection ofthe American Institute of IndianStudies

Conceptualized by Dr. KapilaVatsyayan

On view at the GroundFloor,lie AnnexeThe Brahmaputra

People of the Siang, ArunachalPradesh

People of Majuli Island,Assam

On view in the basement,IIC AnnexeAlong the Banks ofthe Volga River

Masterpieces of Russian photography of the secondhalf of the nineteenth century. From the collectionof the National Library of Russia,St. Petersburg

On view in Conference Room - I, IIC main building

.f•

. ~1.1imf

David Puig;temples of theMalaprabhaRiver-photographsfrom thecollection ofIndira Menon;On the Banks ofthe Tungabhadra - Hampi, photographs by Nalini.Thakur; Danube - The Magyar River and The EternalCity on the Tiber; and The Yangtse River, photographsby Sumant Barooah

• illqr.r I"• • • .~

N armada Parikrama

Photographs on the circumambulation of the riverby Rajendra Jangley

On view in the Gandhi·King Plaza, IIC main buildingAlong the Rivers of the W()dd

Photographs of Kailas and Manas by Deb Mukharji;archival photographs of Pagan, Mandalay andYangon from the collection of ArchaeologicalSurvey of India; recent travels through Iguazu Fallsand Argentina- photographsby AngusMcDonald;Kamo and theFloating Worldof Kyoto by

SEMINAR ON SATURDAY, 10 OCTOBER 2009 AT 10:30 AM

Ganga: The Rise and Decline of CivilizationOrganised in collaboration with Centre for Scienceand Environment

River Sutra: An Evening of PoetryOn Tuesday, 13 October 2009 at 5:00 pm

FILM FESTIVAL (lIC AUDITORIUM)

The River in World Cinema - A Festival of Films

Food FestivalThe food festival will feature cuisine found along thrivers of the world prepared by leading Chefs. Thesinclude Egyptian dinner, Cajun food, Malwa cuisineand Assamese repast among others.

11

Obiluarv -

Forward BudgetTALK: TheUnionBudget 2009-2010Speaker: Bishwajit BhattacharyyaChair: Hiranmay Karlekar, July 6

While commending the path-breaking measures ofthis forward Budget, the speaker highlighted thesalient issues by facts and figures.

A major highlight of the budget is the increase inexpenditure beyond Rs.l 0 lakh crores. This comprises:Plan Expenditure components totalling Rs. 6.951akhcrores, consisting interest payment on public debt,defence expenses, subsidy, grants given to states,pension payments, budgeted expenses for police andthe para-military, general and social services and othermiscellaneous expenses and; Non-Plan expenditureof Rs. 3.25 lakh crores.

The increase in the food subsidy is of particularconcern. Moreover, as 11 states are now directly

procuring from farmers, such huge subsidies for thefood sector indicate an unaccounted margin in thedirect purchase procedure.

On the income side, the highlights were the reductionin the direct personal taxes 'due to slight revisionsin the taxable income limits and increase in thecorporate taxes even without any changes to thecorporate tax rates. The collection figures of indirecttaxes are abysmal due to an im!ffective and inefficientcollection mechanism. There is a huge buoyancy in

-the non-tax revenue largely contributed (about 90 percent) by receipts from telecom sector on auctioningthe 3G spectrum.

While commenting that the. fiscal deficit would bearound 10 per cent of the GDP if we factor in statefiscal deficits-the debt-to-GDP-ratio of India willbe around 59.7 per cent-Bhattacharyya was quickto sound an optimistic note that the situation is muchbetter than US. or UK. where the debt-to-GDP-ratios are more than 75 per cent each.

• ~OTHI~SHNAMOORTHY

A-0428 Shri M. Gopal Menon L-0387 Rajmata Gayatri Devi

A-1748 Shri UP Bhatt M-l01O Shri P.N. Bahl

A-2349 Smt. C. Ujjal Singh M-1186 Shri T.N. Saraf

A-235l Professor Yashpal Kapur M-2353 Shri Habib Tanvir

A-3320 Mrs. Jhini S. Mehta M-2930 Shri Tyeb Mehta

A-3983 Shri Sudhir ath M-3552 Dr. A.nilWilson

L-0283 Dr. Raja J. Chelliah M-3621 Professor Sudeep Kumar Banerjee

This issue of the Diary has been assembled and edited by Ira Pande. Chief Editor; Rachna [oshi, Senior Asst. Editor; andRitu Singh, Asst. Editor. Published by Ravinder Datta, for the India International Centre, 40, Max Mueller Marg, NewDelhi-HO 003. Designed by Poonam Bevli Sahi at FACET Design, D-9, Defence Colony, New Delhi - 110 024, Ph: 24616720, 24624336and printed by Mastan Singh at I.G. Printers, 104, DSIDC Shed, Okhla Phase-I, New Delhi - 110 020.