india perspectives may 2012

INDIAVOL 26 NO. 2 MAY 2012

PERSPECTIVES

IINNSS IIDDEE GLOBAL PERSPECTIVESBRICS by Brick

HERITAGEAn Exercise in History

COVER STORYIndia on a Platter

MAY 2012INDIA THIS MONTH

May 1THRISSUR POORAMThe grandest of alltemple festivals, itfeatures a procession of30 lavishly decoratedelephants carrying thetown’s deities on theirbacks. Other attractionsinclude drum concerts,ornamental parasoldisplays and fireworks.Where: VadakkumnathanTemple, Thrissur

May 1-3MOATSU MONG FESTIVALA time for feasting,dancing, singing andmerry-making as thesowing season comes toan end. The Ao tribe ofNagaland celebrates thefestival to propitiate thegods for a good harvest.Where: Nagaland

May 1-31KHOTACHIWADI FESTIVALThe month-long eventcelebrates the heritageprecinct of Khotachiwadi,a small street that hasabout 65 Portuguesehouses. Food courts,stand-alone stalls, an artgallery, a souvenir shop,a herbal garden are theother attractions.Where: Khotachiwadi,Mumbai

May 7RABINDRANATH JAYANTIThe birth anniversary ofNobel LaureateRabindranath Tagore ispopularly calledPoncheeshe Boishakh.Besides paying tribute toTagore, cultural shows,poetry recitations, music,skits, dramas, traditionalsongs are part of thecelebrations.Where: West Bengal

May 4-6SUMMER FESTIVALSham-e-Qawwali, amusical show byrenowned singers fromacross the country, is amajor attraction. Otherhighlights includesporting events like aboat race on the NakkiLake, a roller skating raceand fireworks display.Where: Mount Abu

May 6BUDDHA JAYANTICelebrates the birth ofLord Buddha. Activitiesinclude prayer meets,sermons and religiousdiscourses, recitation ofBuddhist scriptures,group meditation andprocessions.Where: Sarnath (UttarPradesh) and Bodhgaya(Bihar)

May 1-13VASANT UTSAV DANCEFESTIVALDancers showcaseclassical dance forms,including Bharatnatyam,Kuchipudi and Xatriyawith the KapaleeswararTemple as a backdrop.Where: KapaleeswararTemple, Chennai

May 6BANGANGA FAIRThis annual event payshomage to Lord Krishnaand his wife Radha. Aholy dip in the Bangangariver is the majorattraction for thousandsof devotees.Where: Radha-KrishnajiTemple, Jaipur

03MAY 2012 � INDIA PERSPECTIVES

editorialnote

Australia to Canada and Argentina to Japan, Indian restaurants dot countriesaround the world. They are popular, but, unfortunately, diners often come awaywith the idea that Indian cuisine is nothing but North Indian cooking, that ourfood is typified by chicken tikka masala and naan (a bread cooked in a special

clay oven and served fresh), that it tends to be overly rich and very spicy. Like most clichés,this is far from true. The cover story this month visits some of the country’s regionalkitchens, where each dish and each ingredient has a story to tell.

The chilli tells of sea voyages of the Portuguese. The Europeans came to India to tradein spices and settled in Goa. Even today their influence is visible in the architecture of theold town, and, of course, in the food — which is high on, what else but, chillies. Theyintroduced to India the spice that they, in turn, had got from the Americas. The tomato toojourneyed with the Portuguese and Spanish across continents and oceans into India.

Rice and tea, saffron and dates conjure up images of caravans winding their waythrough the high passes of the Himalayas connecting Central Asia, India and China.Biryani, a popular rice dish, is testimony to these cross-cultural encounters. Rice is saidto have originated in China but was first domesticated in India. Saffron for the biryani wasbrought to India by traders from Central Asia. It was the Arabs who cooked the rice, meatsand spices to produce the mouth-watering delicacy. The dish was refined and embellishedby the Mughal emperors and the Nawabs of Awadh and Hyderabad. Today, it is on themenu of most Indian restaurants around the world.

While speaking about matters global, the fourth summit of Brazil, Russia, India, Chinaand South Africa (BRICS) was held in New Delhi. This grouping of the world’s top fiveemerging economies comprises nearly half the world’s population and quarter of its GDP,and reflects the emerging shift of power from the West to the rest. In a bold move, the fivenations decided to explore the establishment of a BRICS-led Development Bank that canprovide an alternate voice in the global financial system.

We also carry a profile of S.D. Biju, who has discovered a legless amphibian that sharedthe land with dinosaurs, and has a frog named after him — Biju’s Tree Frog. And weapproach the much-awaited season of the mango, the king of fruits. The Indian summerwould be so much poorer without it.

Please keep writing with your opinions and comments.

Navdeep Suri

May 2012 � VOL 26 No. 2/2012

INDIAPERSPECTIVES

Editor: Navdeep SuriAssistant Editor: Abhay Kumar

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This edition is published for the Ministry ofExternal Affairs by Navdeep Suri,Joint Secretary, Public Diplomacy Division,New Delhi, 140 ‘A’ Wing, Shastri Bhawan,New Delhi-110001.Telephones: 91-11-23389471,91-11-23388873,Fax: 91-11-23385549

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For a copy of India Perspectives contactthe nearest Indian diplomatic mission. 6

MAY 2012

COVER PHOTO: SPICES USED IN INDIAN CUISINECOVER DESIGN: BIPIN KUMAR


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COVER STORY:INDIA ON A PLATTERIndian cuisine is a diverse mixture of flavoursand tastes reflecting a variety of culturesand regions. Be it dum pukht biryani fromLucknow, fish curry and rice from Bengal orfiery pork vindalho from Goa, our cookinguses a rich range of aromatic spices

India This Month 2

Global Perspectives: BRICS by Brick 18

Partnerships: The Indian Experience 24

Heritage: An Exercise in History 28

Profile: Froggy Saga 34

Travel: Puducherry 38

REVIEWS:

Film: Agents of Change 44

Verbatim: Gautam Sengupta 46

I N D I A N C U I S I N E BENGALI GOAN

INDIA PERSPECTIVES � MAY 201206

INDIAN CUISINE ISA DIVERSE MIXTUREOF FLAVOURS ANDTASTES REFLECTINGA VARIETY OFCULTURES ANDREGIONS. BE ITDUM PUKHTBIRYANI FROMLUCKNOW, FISHCURRY AND RICEFROM BENGAL ORFIERY PORKVINDALHO FROMGOA, OUR COOKINGUSES A RICHRANGE OFAROMATIC SPICES

C O V E R S T O R Y

INDIA ON A

KASHMIRI TAMIL AWADHI

MAY 2012 � INDIA PERSPECTIVES 07

PLATTER

Even leftoverslike spinach

stalks and peels ofvegetables aretransformed intotasty preparationsin the Bengali

kitchen.

(Clockwise from above) Fried hilsa;Bengali prawn curry; roshogulla;

a man fishing

In most households, people leave for work in the morning after a hot meal comprising dal(lentils), bhaat (rice), bhaja (fry) and machher jhol (fish curry). This may appear surprisingto many, but a Bengali meal is never a shortcut affair.Bengalis are known for their partiality to fish, all the same their culinary repertoire contains

a range of vegetable dishes. Apart from the use of common vegetables like potato, gourd,cauliflower and cabbage, tubers and beans, they use mocha (banana flower) and thor (the pithof a banana plant), enchor (unripe jackfruit) and daanta (succulent drumsticks). Even leftoverssuch as spinach stalks and vegetable peels are transformed into tasty preparations.

It is customary to serve a dish of tender neem leaves at the beginning of a main meal — atraditional Bengali meal starts off with something bitter and ends with a sweet dessert. The bittertaste is said to be good for cleansing the palate and also for letting the digestive juices flow.

One of the commonest dishes on a menu is the jhol or thin stew in which vegetables or fishare cooked. Apart from fish, mutton, fowl (a late entrant to the Bengali kitchen) and eggs,Bengalis also delight in eating prawns, lobsters and crabs. The roe of hilsa fish is a delicacy. Afish head can be cooked in dal or with vegetables.

A unique spice blend used in the Bengali kitchen is the pach phoron. It is made by mixingfive spices — cumin seeds, fennel seeds, nigella seeds, fenugreek seeds and mustard seeds —in equal quantities. Traditionally, mustard oil is the cooking medium of choice in east India,especially Bengal. Mustard seeds are used for tempering dishes and shorse bata (paste ofground whole mustard) adds a sharp, fiery flavour to the food. Shorse ilish, steam-cooked hilsafish in mustard occupies pride of place on a Bengali table.

Sweets are an integral part of Bengali cuisine. Mishti doi (sweet curd), roshogulla (cottagecheese and semolina balls cooked in sugar syrup) and shondesh (sweetened cottage cheese)are some of the popular desserts.

A Bengali meal is cooked with precision and served with refinement, it is marked by multiplecourses and a formality regarding the serving sequence. �

An Elaborate RepastFrom bitter gourds and batter fries to fish, meat and chutney,

Bengal’s culinary repertoire contains an immense variety of dishes

TEXT: UTTARA GANGOPADHYAY

BENGALI


Goan cuisine is as zesty as its people. Seafood and rice hold the reins in the daily meal.Prawns, lobsters, crabs, and jumbo pomfrets are used for soups, salads, pickles, curriesand fried food. It runs the gamut from fried fish to exotic concoctions like ambot-tik, a

slightly sour curry dish which can be prepared with either fish or meat. ldeirada is a mildlyflavoured offering in which fish or prawns are cooked into a kind of stew with vegetables, andoften flavoured with wine. Racheiado is a delicious preparation in which a whole fish, usually amackerel or pomfret, is slit down the centre and stuffed with a spicy red sauce, after which it iscooked. A must have for starters is the Pao com chourico — these spicy Goan sausages aresautéed with onions and served in a bread roll.

A highlight of Goan cuisine is the pork vindalho, considered to be the king of Goan porkdishes. It is made of pork cubes spiced with the choicest spices grown in the Western Ghats,and cooked slowly over medium heat. It’s best enjoyed with rice. Balchao de Camaro is adelectable item of spicy prawns cooked in a tangy shrimp and feni sauce. For those who like theirfish less spicy, fish caldine, a mildly-spiced coconut and turmeric fish curry makes a top choice.

Goan vegetarian doesn’t have too many takers. Most of the vegetables are steamed or stir-fried and mildly spiced. Grinding spices is an integral part of any recipe, and the tastier the dishthe longer it takes to make the masala (spices). Every part of the coconut is used in Goancooking, this includes oil, milk, and grated coconut flesh, while toddy, the sap from the coconutpalm, is used to make vinegar and also acts as an yeast substitute.

Sorpotel is perhaps the most popular dish of the Goans, and is prepared from pork, liver,heart and kidney, all of which are diced small and cooked in a thick and spicy sauce, it is bestenjoyed with feni. The locally-brewed feni is made from the fruit of the cashew tree and is agreat accompaniment to wash down all food.

The most popular dessert is Bebinca, made of layers of coconut pancakes. The ingredientsinclude plain flour, egg yolks, sugar, ghee (clarified butter) and coconut milk. The dish is a mustat any celebration, be it a birthday, wedding, Christmas or Easter. �

Seafood DivineMouth-watering fish curry and rice, spicy sausages, cashew nut feni

and the 16-layered bebinca, Goan cuisine is a foodie’s delight

TEXT: RUPALI DEAN

GOAN


Sorpotel is the mostpopular dish of theGoans, and is

prepared from pork,liver, heart and

kidney, cooked in athick and spicy

sauce.

(Clockwise from above) Fried pomfretwith rice and salad; Prawn racheiado;

sorpotel; fish curry and rice

The ultimate formalbanquet in Kashmir isthe Wazwan. Of itsthirty-six courses,

as many as 15 to 30can be preparations

made of meat,especially mutton.

(Clockwise from above) A platter laden withtraditional delicacies; Kashmiri lamb korma,

chicken fry and lamb curry with chapati; kahwa(green tea) is a favourite digestive after meals

Kashmiri food is the result of an intermingling of cultures from Persia and Afghanistan.Both Kashmiri Hindus as well as Muslims are passionately fond of meat, although thereis a distinct difference in the cooking styles adopted by them.

Kashmiri Muslim cuisine boasts of some delectable and mouth-watering dishes like gushtaba(meatball in white yogurt gravy), rista (meatballs in a fiery red gravy), rogan josh (tender lambcooked with Kashmiri spices) and mirchwagan korma (a spicy lamb preparation). The generoususe of saunf (fennel powder), adrak (ginger), the ubiquitous Kashmiri mirch (chilli) and saffronis common to both cuisines.

Where Kashmiri Hindu cuisine is concerned, there is a distinct parity vis-à-vis other culinaryarts of the state. The entire cuisine, including the meats, is cooked without onions, garlic ortomatoes. Curd is used liberally in almost everything, except certain kebabs, giving the food acreamy consistency. Festivals celebrated around the year are inextricably linked to the customsand traditions associated with each one of them.

There are variations in the way celebrations are held in each house. While some cook typicalvegetarian dishes like dum aloo (boiled potatoes cooked in gravy) and palak nadru (a preparationof spinach and lotus stem), others prepare meats just to uphold traditions. Cooking is done overa low flame in earthenware pots. It is this form of slow cooking that makes these dishes so delicious.

A personal favourite from the vast range of dishes is gogji maaz, a combination of shalgam(turnips) and mutton. Other dishes include kaalia, a mutton curry cooked with mild spices. Gaador fish is also an important part of the diet.

The ultimate formal banquet in Kashmir is the Wazwan. Of its thirty-six courses, between 15and 30 can be preparations made of meat, especially mutton. Guests are seated in groups offour and share the meal out of a large metal plate called the tarami, which is heaped with riceand the first few courses. Seven dishes are a must— rista, rogan josh, tabak maaz (fried lambribs), daniwal korma (lamb cooked with lots of coriander), aab gosht (lamb cooked in milk),mirchwagan korma and the meal ends with the gushtaba. �

Meaty AffairKashmiris are extremely fond of mutton and their cuisineboasts of some delectable and mouth-watering dishes

TEXT: UMESH MATTOO

KASHMIRI


Most cooking methods in South India are rooted in family traditions. The ingredientsplace as much emphasis on nutrition as in the choice of flavour, texture and variety.Very little oil is used, and steaming is an important cooking technique.

Tamil cuisine is spicy, and makes use of turmeric, dry red chillies, mustard, urad dal (blacklentils), coriander seeds, cumin, fenugreek and tamarind. Chettinad cuisine, food of the Chettiarcommunity, is perhaps, one of the most aromatic and spiciest in the entire country. The mostpopular breakfast items in South India are idli (steamed cakes made of fermented black lentils andrice) and dosa (fermented pancake made from rice and black lentil batter) usually served withchutney and sambhar (vegetable stew made with tamarind and yellow lentils).

The most important dishes for a feast in South India are the vadai (lentil dumplings), payasam(milk-based dessert) and fried appalam or puffy poppadoms. Poli, a sweet flat bread with fillingsof grated coconut cooked in finely ground jaggery or tuvar dal (split yellow lentils), sugar,cinnamon, cardamom and saffron is a favourite. There are standard menus for a feast. A bananaleaf with one end intact and cut at the other is placed before guests. First, a spoonful of payasamis served. Then, comes the other dishes beginning with a pachadi (chutney), raita (cucumberand tomatoes in yoghurt and seasoned with mustard and curry leaves). Next, there’s the sweetpachadi made with raw mango and jaggery. This is followed by a dry vegetable like beans,cabbage or broad beans seasoned with mustard, urad dal and curry leaves.

Avial, a melange of vegetables cooked in yoghurt, grated coconut, cumin and green chilliand tempered with coconut oil, mustard and curry leaves is served next. Tamarind rice or lemonrice is usually served before the main course.

A spoonful of cooked, salted tuvar dal is mixed with rice before the sambhar is served.Rasam, the second course is mixed with steamed rice. It is a thin mash of tuvar dal or thestock from cooked dal. Hot payasam is served next. The meal is wound up with rice andyoghurt and a pickle made of baby mangoes or tangy lemons. The final item on the menu is afat, yellow banana. �

A Heady ConcoctionTamil cuisine is spicy, and makes use of some common ingredients like

turmeric, dry red chillies, mustard, cumin, fenugreek and tamarind

TEXT: PADMINI NATARAJAN

TAMIL


The most importantdishes for a feastin South India arethe vadai (lentil

dumplings), payasam(milk-based dessert)and fried appalam orpuffy poppadoms.

(Clockwise from left) Payasam with nuts; idliswith chutney; paper dosa; Tamil cuisine is

usually served on a banana leaf

Awadhi cuisine isfamous for the galawatiand kakori kebabs.Also, popular areskewered tangri

(chicken drumsticks)and cigar-shaped

seekh kebabs

(Clockwise from left) Dum pukht biryani,mutton seekh kebab; a selection of Awadhi

delicacies; tunde kebabs


The tale of Lucknow’s famed cuisine goes back hundreds of years. Lucknow came intoprominence with the appointment of Burhan-ul-Mulk as the Nawab of Awadh by theMughal Emperor in 1722. Under the patronage of the Nawabs, Lucknow rose to become

the unrivalled leader of Indian style, music, dance, theatre and cuisine.Awadh’s cuisine is now part of the country’s culinary legend. In 1780, a famine ravaged the

kingdom of Nawab Asaf-ud-Daulah. To provide employment to the thousands who cameknocking on his door, the distraught Nawab ordered the construction of an imambara (shrine)which would be razed to the ground each night and raised again next morning. He directedhis head cook Murad Ali Qureshi to provide everyone a nutritious meal. With so many peopleto feed daily, Qureshi came up with an idea of putting everything into a large degh (pot),sealing its lid with dough and letting the flavours inside mingle over a slow fire overnight. Whenhe opened the degh, one of the greatest cuisines of the world, dum pukht (cooked underpressure) was born.

The cook built a huge bukhari (mud oven) and experimented with the technique leading todum pukht one-dish meals like biryani (a dish of rice, meats and spices), khichda (a concoctionof lentils, meat and vegetables) and haleem (a stew made of meat, pounded wheat, spices andclarified butter). One day, the Nawab passed by when the biryani pot was opened. Bewitchedby the tantalising whiff, he asked for some of it to be served at his table. Since then, neithernawab nor commoner has been able to resist the magic.

Awadhi Cuisine is also famous for its breads and kebabs. The galawati kebabs and kakorikebabs take pride of place on the Lucknowi table, followed by tangri (drumsticks) and seekh(cigar-shaped spiced minced meat grilled on skewers) kebabs. Different kinds of pulaos (ricedishes) are also popular. Exotic desserts like sewai (vermicelli pudding), phirni (rice pudding),shahi tukra (bread pudding garnished with pistachios) are relished at the end of a meal.

For those who enjoy meats, there is no place quite like Lucknow and the real place to tastethe flavours of Awadhi cuisine is the lanes and bylanes of the older part of the city. �

A Royal TreatFrom dum pukht biryani to the sizzling hot kebabs,

the charm of an Awadhi feast is eternal

TEXT: RACHANA RANA BHATTACHARYA

AWADHI

GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES

Leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa pitched for a biggervoice for emerging countries in global governance institutionsTEXT: MANISH CHAND

BRICS by Brick

Theair was thick with scepticism when the leadersof Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa(BRICS), the world’s top five emergingeconomies, began their fourth summit in Delhion March 29. But when the summit ended with

an ambitious 50-point Delhi Declaration, the message wasloud and clear. This was no glorified photo-op or a mutualadmiration club. On the contrary, BRICS, which comprisesnearly half the world’s population and a quarter of globalGDP, was seeking to create a new world order to reflect theseismic shift of power from the West to the rest.

BRICS leaders pitched for a bigger voice for emergingcountries in global governance institutions, including theUnited Nations (UN), the International Monetary Fund (IMF)and the World Bank. Despite their varying backgrounds andprofiles, the leaders also made it clear to the West that force

and sanctions won’t do and underlined that only dialogueand diplomacy could resolve the Iranian nuclear standoffand the Syria crisis.

In their speeches, Indian Prime Minister ManmohanSingh and Presidents Hu Jintao (China), Dmitry Medvedev(Russia), Dilma Rousseff (Brazil) and Jacob Zuma (SouthAfrica) underlined the need for restructuring the world orderto accommodate emerging economies and developingcountries and closer coordination on global issues.

“While some progress has been made in internationalfinancial institutions, there is lack of movement on thepolitical side. BRICS should speak with one voice onimportant issues such as the reform of the UN SecurityCouncil,” said Manmohan Singh, the summit host. He spokeabout the need for addressing deficit in global governance.“We are committed to stepping up exchanges with other

Leaders of BRICS countries (from left) President DilmaRousseff of Brazil, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, IndianPrime Minister Manmohan Singh, Chinese President Hu Jintao

and President Jacob Zuma of South Africa in New Delhi

AFP

countries on global economic governance reforms andincreasing representation of developing countries,” said Hu.

The Delhi Declaration encapsulated these concerns andsaw BRICS leaders voicing disappointment with the slowpace of the IMF quota reforms and asking the West toimplement the 2010 governance and quota reform beforethe 2012 IMF/World Bank annual meeting. It was anamplification of master themes that dominated the firstthree summits at Yekaterinburg (2009), Brasilia (2010) andChina (2011) but the Delhi summit sought to break freshground. In a pioneering step that could prove to be a game-changer, BRICS decided to create its first institution in theform of a BRICS-led Development Bank that will mobilise“resources for infrastructure and sustainable developmentprojects in BRICS and other emerging economies anddeveloping countries.”


BRICS leaders made itclear to the West that forceand sanctions won’t doand underlined that onlydialogue and diplomacycould resolve the Iraniannuclear standoff and theSyria crisis.

AFP

The leaders directed their finance ministers “to examine thefeasibility and viability of such an initiative, set up a jointworking group for further study and report back by the nextsummit. The joint BRICS bank may emerge as the supplementto the West-dominated World Bank or the European Bank forReconstruction and Development and could hasten thereordering of the global financial management system. SouthAfrican President Jacob Zuma has voiced hope that such abank will give an impetus to developmental aspirations ofAfrica by bringing the much-needed capital for financinginfrastructure projects in the continent.

Besides the BRICS bank, the four-year-old grouping setup an ambitious target to scale intra-BRICS trade from` 11,881 billion to ` 25,829 billion by 2015 and sought topromote greater economic integration. The developmentbanks of the five countries signed two pacts on promoting

trade transactions in local currencies of BRICS countries.These included enabling the master agreement forextending credit facilities in local currencies and BRICSmultilateral letter of credit confirmation facility agreement.The mechanism envisages grant of credit lines in localcurrencies and cooperation in capital markets and otherfinancial services, treasury transactions and issuing localcurrency bonds in BRICS markets subject to national lawsand regulations.

Other key economic decisions included setting up a BRICSexchange, which has already become operational. The BRICSreport, which maps out synergies and complementaritiesamong economies of BRICS countries to spur mutual tradeand investment, was also released. The report was preparedby experts from all BRICS countries under the leadership ofKaushik Basu, India’s chief economic advisor.


Trade and Industry ministers from BRICS countries (from left)Fernando Pimentel of Brazil, Elvira Nabiullina of Russia,

Anand Sharma of India, Chen Deming of China, and Rob Daviesof South Africa during the Business Forum

Contesting the West’s narrative, the five countries warnedthe West against allowing the Iran situation to escalate into aconflict and said dialogue was the only way to resolve theIranian and Syria issues. “The situation concerning Iran cannotbe allowed to escalate into conflict, the disastrousconsequences of which will be in no one’s interest,” said thedeclaration. The declaration saw the leaders voicing “deepconcern” over Syria as they called for “an immediate end toall violence and violations of human rights in that country”,backing a Syrian-led inclusive political process. Amid differingperceptions, India played a crucial role in shaping thecollective stance of the BRICS countries on the need fordialogue to resolve the festering crisis in West Asia, home toover six million Indians, and to push continued regional andinternational cooperation in stabilising Afghanistan.

BRICS leaders took a long-range view and affirmed


The joint BRICS bankmay emerge as analternative to the WorldBank or the European Bankfor Reconstruction andDevelopment and couldhasten the reordering ofthe global financialmanagement system.

PHOTOS: AFP

their commitment to support Afghanistan’s emergence as“a peaceful, stable and democratic state, free of terrorismand extremism” and underscored “the need for moreeffective regional and international cooperation for thestabilisation of Afghanistan”.

The summit adopted an ambitious multi-layered actionplan that includes meetings of foreign ministers on sidelinesof the UN General Assembly and meetings of FinanceMinisters and Central Bank Governors on sidelines of G20meetings. They also identified new areas of cooperationthat includes multilateral energy cooperation within BRICSframework, and future long-term strategy for BRICS; BRICSYouth Policy Dialogue; and cooperation in population-related issues.

This all-encompassing agenda that ranges from opposingprotectionism in trade and promoting multilateralism in

world politics to the UN reforms and collaborating in globalclimate change negotiations does not detract fromdifferences of perception and divergences on certain issuesamong the Emerging-5. The BRICS, after all, comprise twopermanent members of the UN Security Council (Russiaand China) and three aspiring members of the UNSC (India,Brazil and South Africa). But the fact that the E-5 has foundsubstantial common ground to band together on a broadcommon agenda is no mean feat and accounts forincreasing global spotlight on this nascent grouping whichis often described as the first non-Western effort atre-engineering the world order. But if the BRICS have tosucceed, they have to move from the declaratory phase toaction and its success will be judged by how it goes aroundfructifying some of the signature initiatives like the BRICSbank that emerged from the New Delhi summit. �


Russian President Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (left) receivesa memento from India’s Minister of Human Resources and

Development Kapil Sibal; (left) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh withPresident of the People’s Republic of China Hu Jintao

PARTNERSHIPS

They love actors Shah Rukh Khan and AishwaryaRai. Bollywood and Indian food rule their hearts.Monuments, culture and India’s new success story,the IT industry, fascinate them. The group of 26

students from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, who were ona 10-day visit to India, cherished each and every momentof their maiden India trip, organised by the Saudi-IndianYouth Forum.Alanoud K. Bin Khuthaila, a graduate from medical

school, was in for a surprise when she landed in India.Advised by friends and family to take vaccines andmedicines to save herself from dreadful diseases in India,and told about the poor sanitation facilities, Alanoud wasworried about her trip. But her fears were put to rest themoment she landed. India was nothing like what she hadbeen made to believe by people who had visited decadesago. “I was impressed by how developed India is. BothBangalore and Hyderabad and now Delhi are so green. Thebuildings, both new and old, are amazing. But moreimportantly, the people are so warm and nice,” she gushes.Waad Saud Al Dossary, a first-year student of law, agrees andsays, “It’s a new world. I was told that we will see only poorpeople everywhere but that has not been the case.”The Saudi-Indian Youth Forum was formed in 2011 to

foster friendly relations between Saudi and the Indian youth.The idea of the Forum is to promote better understanding,fostering enduring friendships and exchanging experiencesand information between youths in the two countries.“The idea was mooted during similar trips of Saudi youth

to China, Brazil and Germany. We want to promote thegrowing relations between Saudi Arabia and India and


The Saudi students’ visit to India will helppromote bilateral ties and foster enduringfriendships between the two countries

The IndianExperience

TEXT: MEENAKSHI KUMAR

(Above) The 26 delegatesfrom Saudi Arabia; at an

interactive session

(Above) Minister of State for External Affairs E. Ahamedwith Saudi Youth Forum led by Deputy Minister of ForeignAffairs for Economic and Cultural Affairs Dr Yousef TeradAl Saadon in New Delhi; (below) Minister of State for

Communications and Information Technology Sachin Pilotgifts a memento to a Saudi student

benefit from the Indian experience in information andcommunication technology,” says D. Thulsiaraj, deputydirector and national head, Young Indians.After an informative trip to IT hubs Bangalore and

Hyderabad, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)and telemedicine centre at Dr Devi Shetty’s NarayanaHrudayalaya hospital, Bangalore, Delhi was their last stop. Atthe concluding session of the forum, they interacted withIndia’s Minister of State for External Affairs E. Ahamed. Theyouth delegation from Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Indiapresented their visions and proposals aimed at bolsteringbilateral relations with a special focus on encouragingcooperation in the communications and IT sectors. Both thesides proposed joint solutions in science, medicine andtechnology fields, especially making available medicalservices to remote regions with the help of advancedtechnology and e-health services.In a letter to the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki

Moon, one of the representatives of the Saudi youthdelegation said, “Our language is the future. We want toutilise today’s technology to improve lives.”That’s something Mohamed Awad Al-Qahtani, an

information systems student, would like to do. “If we can usethe technology available and improve the poor people’s lives,we can do our bit to make this world a better place,” he says.Kholoud K. Ben Bakr, an information systems student, was“amazed by the harmony which exists in India despite somany religions here”. Albara Mohammed Al Ohali, a softwareengineering graduate, who now works with Google in Dubai,summed up their experience as “Incredible India!”Young Indians, an integral part of the Confederation of

Indian Industry, facilitated the visit of the Saudi delegation. Itsobjective is to become the voice of young Indians globally.The Saudi delegation was led by Deputy Minister of ForeignAffairs for Economic and Cultural Affairs of the Governmentof Saudi Arabia Dr Yousef Terad Al Saadon. �


The Asian Galleries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York

28 INDIA PERSPECTIVES � MAY 2012

It may come as a surprise that Indian art and antiques have been finding their way to the USas far back as the 1800s — long before Indian immigrants left their homeland. Back in 1800,the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, acquired its first work of art from India.Today, its holdings include thousands of works from the 18th century through the 21st century.

These consist of paintings and drawings; works in clay, wood and metal; embroideries; furniture;and a large collection of 19th century photographs. The collection also contains logs, journals, andletters recounting 18th-and 19th-century voyages to India.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York also has an old Indian connection — a Pala sculpturewas donated to it in1891. It has a treasure trove of antiquities in the South Asian Galleries donatedby Herbert and Florence Irving, well-known collectors of South Asian art. The collection here includesa seated Gandhara Buddha, which may be the earliest Gandhara metal image of the Buddhaknown, and a bronze sculpture of goddess Parvati, one of the finest Chola sculptures outside India.There is also a Gupta period terracotta of Krishna killing Keshi, the horse demon. Anothermasterpiece is a 14th century sculpture from South India showing Yashoda nursing infant Krishna.

The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, regarded as the birthplace of Indian art scholarship in theUS, is another institution with a rich collection of Mughal paintings, Indian drawings, paintings from


An Exercise inHERITAGE

HistoryMuseums in the US have built up strong collectionsof Indian art spanning centuriesTEXT: LAVINA MELWANI

the Punjab Hills, early Buddhist art and medieval stone sculptures. The museum has over 5,000objects of South Asian origin; the first Indian pieces came into the museum around 1900.

Denman Waldo Ross, an important collector, donated several pieces to the museum, includinga Yakshi figure from Sanchi, which may be the only one outside India. He also purchased theprivate collection of philosopher Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy and donated it to the museum.He was instrumental in appointing Coomaraswamy, who was of British and Sri Lankan descent, asthe museum’s first curator for Indian art.

Although British archaeologists and art experts had begun to piece together a basic chronologyof Indian art, Coomaraswamy was responsible for placing art objects in a social, religious, andpolitical context, and for explaining the art so that a Western audience could appreciate it. He wrotea definitive book on Indian painting and is regarded as the father of Indian art history in the US.

On the west coast, the Los Angeles County Museum displays a diverse range of 11th centuryPala dynasty manuscripts, Mughal dynasty paintings from the 16th to the 19th century, and modernSouth Asian graphic arts. The earliest material on exhibit is from the Harappan civilisation, whichflourished around 5,000 years ago.

San Francisco is the home of the Asian Art Museum, which has one of the world’s mostcomprehensive collections of its kind. It has temple sculptures, bronze images, miniature paintingsand wood carvings, reflecting trends in religions of India over 2,000 years. The museum also hasa strong collection of Sikh art. Narinder Singh Kapany of California, who coined the term Sikh art,is one of the prominent donors for this section. The Janam Sakhi manuscripts, which form thenucleus of Kapany’s collection, belonged to his ancestors two centuries ago. The large collectionincludes paintings as well as arms and armour.

To see the best of Indian art a visit to Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California is a must.Industrialist Norton Simon, who was married to actress Jennifer Jones, travelled to India on his

Game artChess set from Delhiregion, c. 1850, with ivorypieces and wood boardinlaid with ivory; a gift fromindustrialist Norton Simon


Fine showKrishna battling Keshi, the horse demon,a 5th century Gupta period terracottasculpture from Uttar Pradesh


Deity in stoneAn 8th century sandstoneGanesha from Uttar Pradesh atthe Asia Society, New York

Piece of historyA sculpture in beige

sandstone from MadhyaPradesh; from the

Norton SimonFoundation collection


honeymoon in 1971. Simon’s trip to India sparked his interest in collecting Indian art, and thisremained a lifelong passion. While still in India, he made his first acquisition, which included a19th-century Mughal ivory chess set. This was the beginning of many acquisitions from galleriesin New York over the years.

Washington is also a place to see great Indian art, a stone’s throw from the White House. The Freerand Sackler galleries of the Smithsonian have a rich collection of South Asian art with over 1,200objects from the 1st century BC to the present. The highlights include a Gandhara frieze illustratingthe life of Buddha, the Freer Ramayana — an illustrated manuscript of the Hindu epic painted for aMughal nobleman, as well as a small but superb collection of Chola bronzes and paintings from theMughal and Rajput courts and Company school works by Indian artists for British patrons.

Newark Museum of Art has many Indian artworks. It received a major gift in 1941. The holdingsare particularly strong in textiles and folk art, but many fine examples of Buddhist and Hindusculpture have entered the collection in the last 40 years.

This is by no means a comprehensive map of the museums that house Indian art butencompasses some of the most noteworthy. The greatest Indian art is in India and will always remainin India. Says Steven Kossak, an expert on South Asian art, “What we have is first class, but the bestof what exists in India is beyond first class.”

The Indian-American community has also supported several galleries and sponsored and fundedexhibitions. A generous gift by two philanthropic organisations from the community inMassachusetts enabled the Peabody to almost triple its gallery space for traditional art of India.

The expanded galleries, named the Prashant H. Fadia Foundation and Deshpande FoundationGallery, are one of the first South Asian galleries in an American art museum named after membersof the Indian-American community. �

A VIRTUAL TOUR OF INDIA IN AMERICAA click of the mouse can transport you toa world of Indian art and artefacts:Asian Arts Museum: www.asianart.orgMuseum of Fine Arts, Boston: www.mfa.orgBrooklyn Museum: www.brooklynmuseum.orgPhiladelphia Museum: www.philamuseum.orgThe Cleveland Museum of Arts: www.clemusart.comFreer Sackler Gallery: www.asia.si.eduThe Honolulu Academy of the Arts: www.honoluluacademy.orgLos Angeles County Museum of Art: www.lacma.orgNewark Museum: www.newarkmuseum.orgNorton Simon Museum: www.nortonsimon.orgPeabody Essex Museum: www.pem.orgSan Diego Museum of Art: www.sdmart.orgThe Metropolitan Museum of Art: www.metmuseum.org

Diagonal, (1974), oil on canvas by Tyeb Mehta,a gift from the Chester and Davida HerwitzCollection to the Peabody Essex Museum


Froggy SagaBiju, an amphibian researcher, has discovered the earthworm-likelegless amphibian of the chikilidae family, one of the few livingspecies that shared the earth with dinosaursTEXT: BINOO K. JOHN

Sathyabhama Das Biju, an amphibian researcher, has given us new stories of evolution,growth and extinction after scouring the forests of India. Over the last three decades, hehas lived his life in search of many unknown and extinct species of frogs from the deepjungles in south India to the Northeast.

“I go to see the forests. I watch the rains. I wait. I listen. If the frogs don’t croak that is also aquestion to be asked. It is not necessary that you will see or find something new. Nature willcome to you. For me spending a night in a forest, listening to the call of the frogs is eternallyfascinating,” says Biju, sitting in the Systematics Lab of the Centre for Environment Studies in DelhiUniversity, surrounded by formaldehyde bottles of creepies and crawlies that can unlock for usthe story of the universe.

When two years ago he dug out the earthworm-like legless amphibian of the chikilidae familyin the deep forests of Meghalaya, he was holding in his hands one of the few living species thatshared the earth with dinosaurs. The discovery published in the Proceedings of the Royal Societyof London, after strenuous scientific scrutiny and recognised protocols, has proved that India’sdeep forests hide many secrets of evolution.

In 2003, Biju and his team had given science a wonderful story of survival from the Jurassicage. The purple frog which he discovered in the Western Ghats near Idukki in Kerala, also sharedlife with the dinosaurs and survived four mass extinctions that wiped out huge numbers of species.

Over the last two decades Biju has discovered and documented over 150 species ofamphibians one of which, Biju’s Tree Frog or the Polypedates Bijui is named after him. Of the 150species he has published 70 species, eight genera and two families.

PROFILE

Over the last two decades Biju hasdiscovered and documented over150 species of amphibians one of which,Biju’s Tree Frog or the PolypedatesBijui is named after him.

Sathyabhama Das Biju


(Clockwise from above) Biju’s discoveries PolypedatesBijui; Nyctibatrachus Poocha; and Chikilidae


Says Vivek Menon , director of Wildlife Trust of India, “Biju is a brilliant amphibian researcher,”a view echoed by his colleague Aniruddha Mookherjee, who says that the web of life has a billionunseen bits that keep the top going and it is people like Biju who can make the government seehow significant their point of view is.

A double doctorate, one in plant taxonomy from Calicut University and the other on Indian frogsfrom the University of Brussels, he has scaled the big stories of the universe and made the Jurassicage so much more real to us. “People ask me why I shifted from plants to amphibians. It is allthe same. I don’t see much difference between zoology, biology or history,” he says.

It was Biju’s childhood pastoral fascination that led him to dig out the many secrets that theforests hid. “I have no memory of school life at all. For me school was secondary. Helping myparents milk the cow and taking the cattle to graze is what I recollect. There I sat in the forestswondering at the might and the wonders it hid.”

For him the night time is the most fascinating and he can hear frogs playing out their matinggame. It was one such catcall that made him discover the meowing night frog in the WesternGhats which he named the Nyctibatrachus poocha (poocha meaning cat in Malayalam).

The purple frog and the chikilidae (a caecilian variety) may have survived over millions of yearsbecause they are burrowing amphibians and live underground, cushioned by the soil. Thechikilidae of the Garo Hills, whose ancestors would have been trampled underfoot by dinosaurs,can burrow through the toughest soil using its hard skull and can vanish quickly at the slightestvibration, a great survival skill. As Biju says, “It’s like a rocket. If you miss it during the first try, you’llnever catch it again.”

The purple frog, the first new frog family to be discovered since 1926, also burrows with itssnout nose and lives underground and sucks up food. The male only comes over ground to mate.This purple frog and the chikilidae lived in the southern super continent Gondwana of which Indiaformed the eastern part. When tectonic shifts forced the continents to split and drift apart about120 million years ago, such species also drifted away. For millions of years they survived withoutscience discovering them and the locals in the Garo Hills thought the chikilidae to be small snakes.

Thirty two per cent of all amphibians are facing extinction today. Biju and the Lost Amphibiansof India Society are working on conserving them. Here’s wishing them success. �

The night time is the most fascinating forBiju when he can hear frogs playing out

their mating game. It was one such catcallthat made him discover the meowing

night frog in the Western Ghats

TRAVEL The

Puducherry, a charming little town tucked away ina quiet corner of Tamil Nadu, has a fascinating Frenchflavour and makes for leisurely strollsTEXT: PRIYA SUNDARAVALLI

StreetsTell Stories

teeped in European influencesince the 16th century, there isclearly a Mediterranean feel about

this little seaside town in Tamil Nadu. Puducherry, asPondicherry has been renamed, is small compared toother Indian cities, it is a miniature jewel. With its quaintstreetscapes and unique building façades, Pondy, as it ispopularly called, is a quintessential salad bowl ofarchitectural expression; a picturesque reminder of itsvibrant and chequered colonial past which included thePortuguese, the Dutch, the Danes, the French, the British,and then the French again.Not only its architecture, but also the plan of the old

town is unique to India. Though the Dutch made thetown plan, they did not stay long enough to put it intooperation. The French, soon after they established theirsettlement in 1674, effectively built it. A French influencepervades the entire town. It finds expression in therestaurants with their French and fusion cuisine.The town abounds with 19th century mansions and

monuments, private villas, stately government offices,French institutions, and many properties of the churchand the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, all in their characteristicstyles. The street façades of the French quarter arecharacterised by continuous wall-to-wall construction,with high garden walls and ornate gateways. The use ofvertical pilasters and horizontal cornices is a distinctFrench detail, along with arched windows with louveredwooden shutters. Wooden balconies over iron bracketsare also a defining feature.The centre of the French Quarter is the Government

Square built around the largest green public space, theBharathi park. Recently restored, it is modelled on theFrench urban gardens. Surrounded by a cast-iron fencewith four grand gateways, it is a vehicle-free zone open

The townabounds with19th centurymansions,

monuments,private villas,

statelygovernmentoffices and

Frenchinstitutions,all in their

typical styles.

S

(Clockwise from above)Mahatma Gandhi’s statue on

the beachfront is surrounded byeight exquisitely carved

pillars; tourists enjoying anevening at a restaurant; and the

unique Auroville building


until ten at night. At its centre is nestled the AayiMandapam, a monument to a courtesan built by aFrench king. When the sun goes down and the park issoftly lit, the work of French light designer Noel Le Riche,and an air of magic and romance takes over.The Rue Dumas, parallel to the beachfront, is a

treasure trove of visual delights. The imposing whitestructure of the Mairie or Hôtel de Ville, is the first buildingthat meets the eye. Once the town hall during the Frenchadministration, it is now Puducherry’s Municipal Office.Further down the road, is the Église Notre Dame desAnges or Our Lady of the Angels church, a delightful pink-and-cream structure. Built in 1855, it is both a sanctuaryfor peace and prayer with Sunday mass in French.Opposite the Église lies a forlorn garden that is easy tomiss. There, dramatically silhouetted against the backdropof the steel grey sea, is the statue of the young Frenchwarrior girl, Joan d’ Arc. With will and idealism writ uponher stucco face, she holds one fist to her heart as theother plants down a flag.Turning into the Rue Bazar Saint Laurent street

towards the Romain Rolland junction is the famed HotelLagrenee de Meziere (1774). Once a private house, thisplace has now become a workshop of the religious orderof Saint Joseph De Cluny that turns out exquisiteembroidery and table linen.A little north (some 10 km) is the eye-soothingly

green Auroville with it majestic architecture of the MatriMandir. In the shape of a huge globe made up of goldendiscs, it has a white, marble-clad inner chamber meantfor meditation. The area also includes the amphitheatreand a lake.The beach remains populated throughout the day. As

the sun sets, a cool wind begins to blow, perfect featuresfor a beautiful evening. �

NAVIGATORBy Air: The nearest airport is Chennai (160 km).By Rail: A passenger train runs once a day from Puducherryto Chennai passing via Villupuram Junction (32 km away).By Road: The best way to reach Puducherry is to drivedown the lovely East Coast Road from Chennai (150 km).Buses also ply from Chennai.

Puducherry, asPondicherry

has beenrenamed, is

small comparedto other Indiancities, but is a

miniature jewel.

(Clockwise from left) A viewfrom Le Café, the first French

port in Puducherry, now acoffee shop; bicycles, a

common mode of conveyance,are a perfect way to tour the

city; and Our Lady of theAngels church


REVIEWS

The Pathbreakers (Part 1, 2 and 3) showcases the work of ordinary peoplewith extraordinary courage who show the way forward to people in need

In a vast, diverse and populous nation where swathes of rural poor face social, economicand environmental challenges, the interventions of intrepid men and womendetermined to make a difference to their communities are of enormous significance.Fighting deeply ingrained prejudices and confronting seemingly insurmountable

problems in the backwoods can never be easy. But ordinary people with extraordinarycourage baulk at nothing. These grassroots activists know that no battle is a cakewalk.Yet, in different parts of India, they step up when it counts and show the way forwardto people in need. The Pathbreakers (Part 1, 2 and 3) showcases the work of nineunsung change leaders who have achieved success in their chosen missions.Part 1, directed by Anu Radha, travels from Leh in the nation’s northern extremity

to Mirzapur and Hardoi in the heart of India to record the incredible deeds of threeremarkable individuals who surmounted huge obstacles to trigger far-reaching solutionsfor those in dire need of real-life miracles. Among these three stories is that ofseptuagenarian Chewang Norphel, a retired government employee who transformedthe lives of Leh’s farmers by trapping excess water and building stone dams to store it,thereby creating artificial glaciers. The peasants now have access to flowing streams ofwater during the summer months in what is a difficult and dry terrain. But Norphel ismore than just the “glacier man” of Leh. He also encourages the people of the area tolook for other sources of income to tide over the economic hardships.No less laudable are the efforts of anti-child labour activist Shamshad Khan, who has

rescued many young people from the clutches of the exploitative carpet industry ofMirzapur, and Hardoi’s Chandralekha, a battered and abused woman who has gone onto empower many like her in Natpurwa village to revolt against the flesh trade thatenslaves them. Both Shamshad and Chandralekha were up against heavy odds, butthey championed their causes without backing off in the face of threats and setbacks.The two subsequent parts of The Pathbreakers are devoted to six courageous women

who have risen way above their limitations to emerge as role models for an entire nation.The second documentary, directed by Naazish Husain and Sanjay Barnela, opensliterally in the heart of darkness – in a Rajasthan village that does not have electricity.But it has Kamla, a barefoot solar engineer who steps out of her conservative Jat maritalhome to acquire the skill to dispel the darkness around her. There is also the tale of

THE PATHBREAKERSPART 1, 2 AND 3Genre: DocumentaryDirectors:Part I: Anu RadhaPart II: Naazish Husain andSanjay BarnelaPart III: Srenik and Sujata SettProducer: Public DiplomacyDivision, Ministry ofExternal Affairs

Agents of ChangeFILM



Congress Kunwar, a Rajput girl who defied her orthodox family and resisted childmarriage. No wonder she is UNICEF’s poster girl in Rajasthan.While formal education was an uphill task for Congress Kunwar, it was an integral part

of Vidya Devi’s life. As sarpanch of Shanag village in Himachal Pradesh’s Kullu district, shetook on the timber mafia. Even after her term ended, the mother of two continued hercrusade against deforestation and, in addition, mooted the idea of responsible tourism.Part 3, directed by Srenik and Sujata Sett, tracks the work of Patna-born activist

Indrani Sinha who founded the Kolkata NGO, Sanlaap, in 1987 and set up a series ofshelters for sexually abused victims of human trafficking. Sinha has taken her missionbeyond the boundaries of India, networking with organisations in Bangladesh, Nepaland other parts of the subcontinent. At the other end of the spectrum is the self-madeentrepreneur Moslema Bibi, who set up a doormat business in the orthodox ruralcommunity of Baikunthapur in Bengal’s West Midnapore district. She balances herdomestic responsibilities with the demands of her trade with striking equanimity. Asdoes Martha Badraita, sarpanch of a village in Orissa’s Gajpati district. She has broughtdown distress migration from her area by tapping the provisions of the National RuralEmployments Guarantee Scheme for the betterment of the people she represents.These stories of hope and courage deserve to be celebrated. They are about real

achievers in a land that needs many more of their ilk.—Saibal Chatterjee is a film and media critic

The films areabout leadersand theirstories of hopeand couragethat need to beemulated.

Chewang Norphel, the glacier man of Leh; (below) Congress Kunwar AFP


The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), India’spremier organisation for archaeological researchand protection of cultural heritage, is celebrating150 years of its existence. The Prime Minister,

Dr Manmohan Singh, has launched a year-long programmeto commemorate the sesquicentennial anniversary. The ASIis responsible for the conservation of 3,677 monumentsacross the country. Dr Gautam Sengupta, Director General,ASI, spoke to Smita Singh on the organisation’s role.

What is the vision for the ASI as it completes 150 years?We are focusing on restructuring the organisation andworking on an ambitious programme of publishingpending reports, research and exploration to reach out tothe people and the professional community. Upgradingand developing our 44 site museums are on the agenda.

What do you think are the biggest challenges for ASI?It is true that there is some enthusiasm, some emotionalbonding with monuments, but it is also true that we are notsufficiently concerned about our monuments and areinactive in protecting them. Problems like urban expansionand environmental hazards are a threat.

How do you plan to bring heritage and conservation tothe forefront?We are already mobilising assistance from interestedindividuals, institutions and commercial houses. We are

reaching out to schools, colleges and universities and it isour endeavour to reach out as much as possible tochildren, college-going youngsters, senior citizens,professionals and people from all walks of life. But we haveto refine our tools of communications.

What is planned for the 150-year celebrations?The year-long celebrations for ASI's 150th year anniversarywill kick-off with an exhibition, Rediscovering India, whichwill highlight the achievements of the ASI. The ASI plans toshowcase its achievements, including excavations, popularmonuments and successful conservation projects carriedout from 1961 till 2011. The organisation had held asimilar exhibition in Delhi in 1961, when it completed 100years. The celebrations will feature three internationalseminars in Delhi and five regional-level seminars acrossIndia. Besides this, various circle offices across the countrywill also hold exhibitions during the year-long celebrations.The international seminar will be held on the Archaeologyof Buddhism in Asia, Agro-Pastoral Communities and Indo-Islamic Architecture.

How is ASI helping other countries with conservation?At the government’s request and support from the Ministryof External Affairs, we are helping in the conservation workof many monuments in South East Asian countries, likeAngkor Wat in Cambodia, Vat Phou or Wat Phu temple inLaos, My Son temple in Vietnam and Ananda temple,Bagan in Myanmar. �

“We are helpingto conserve manymonuments inSouth East Asia”

VERBATIM

AFP

The Buland Darwaza inFatehpur Sikri is the

world’s biggest gateway

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