EXTERNAL CULTURAL RELATIONS
 

A cultural activities programme, designed to promote mutual understanding and goodwill and to foster closer relations with foreign countries, is drawn up each year in consultation with the Ministry of External Affairs and the concerned Indian missions abroad. The scope of this programme is very wide and it includes exchange of delegations of artistes, students and scholars, exchange of publications, exhibitions and art objects, presentation of books, deputation of Indian teachers for service abroad, participation in international congresses and conferences, bilateral cultural agreements, creation of Chairs of Indian Studies in other countries and assisting in the translation and publication of Indian classics into foreign languages and vice-versa. At non-governmental level, a significant part of such activities is carried on by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations- an autonomous organisation financed entirely by the Ministry.

A. ACTIVITIES OF THE MINISTRY

2. The activities of the Ministry in respect of cultural relations with foreign countries were carried out on a subdued scale in view of the national emergency and stringent financial conditions- particularly of foreign exchange. The approved programme of Rs. 55.23 lakh was scaled down to Rs. 40 lakh.

3. Cultural Agreements.-For some years now the Union Government have executed a number of cultural agreements with foreign countries. At the moment India has cultural agreements with 17 countries, namely, Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Mongolia, Norway, Poland, Rumania, Turkey, the United Arab Republic, the USSR and Yugoslavia. These agreements envisage cooperation in the fields of culture, education and science. The instruments of ratification in respect of the Indo-Afghan Cultural Agreement were exchanged on February 16, 1965.

3.1. Under the provisions of the respective Cultural Agreements with the USSR and Poland, the Indo-Soviet Joint Committee and Indo- Polish Joint Committee met in New Delhi in the early months of the year 1964 and finalised cultural exchange programmes to be implemented during 1964-65 and 1965-66, respectively. Similarly, under the provi- sions of the Indo-Hungarian Cultural Agreement, representatives of the two countries met to finalise the cultural exchange plan for 1964-65.

4. Delegations to Other Countries.-Indian delegations were sponsored during the year by the Government in various fields on different occasions.

4.1. Afghanistan.-A 35-member Cultural Delegation consisting of musicians, dancers and a hockey team were sent to Kabul under the leadership of Shri D. K. Barooah, Education Minister, Government of Assam to participate in the Afghan Jashan celebrations in August, 1964. 123

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4.2. Burma, Japan and Laos.-A 31-member Cultural Delegation consisting of artistes of Kathak, Manipuri and Bharat Natyam dance styles visited Burma during January-February, 1964. While the Manipuri troupe returned to India from Burma, the other two troupes went to Laos, and the, Bharatiya Kala. Kendra troupe to Hong Kong and Tokyo.

4.3. Ceylon.-A twenty-seven-member cultural delegation consisting of dancers of Kathak and Manipuri styles visited Ceylon to participate in the `All Nations Music Festival' organised by the Government of Ceylon in connection with the Industrial exhibition in Colombo. During its stay of 11 days the delegation gave a number of performances there.

4.4. Mauritius.-Shri Nand Kishore, music teacher and Smt. Kamal Kirtikar, dance teacher have been sent to Mauritius to teach Indian music and dance at the Hindustani School of Music and Dance opened in Port Louis in April, 1964.

4.5. Nepal.-Two well-known Indian musicians-Smt. Kalyani Roy (Sitarist) and Shri M. Ali Khan (Vocalist) were sent to Nepal to participate in the Independence Day Celebrations held in Kathmandu in August, 1964.

4.5.1. A delegation of musicians consisting of Sarvashri V. B. Jog (Violinist), M. A. Kalyanakrishna Bhagavathar (Veena), Nandlal Ghosh (Sarod), Devendra Murdeshwar (Flute), Smt. Lakshmi Shankar and Malvika Kanan (Vocalists) was sent to Nepal to give recitals in connection with the Indian Trade Exhibition being held there. Some of the musicians also participated in the Indian Republic Day celebrations organised by the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu. The Kalakshetra. troupe of Madras was also sent to Nepal which gave performances in Kathmandu between January 27 to February 4, 1965. A few poets are likely to visit Kathmandu in March, 1965.

4.6. Sikkim.-A troupe of Manipuri dancers from Triveni Kala. Sangam visited Sikkim to participate in the Independence Day Celebra- tions there.

4.7. Turkey, Hungary, Morocco and Yugoslavia.-The Indian Revival Group, Calcutta, visited Turkey to participate in the International Folklore Festival held in Istanbul in August, 1964. They also visited Hungary, Morocco and Yugoslavia.

4.8. U.S.S.R. and Bulgaria.-The Education Minister visited the USSR and Bulgaria during the year. As a result of discussions held by the Education Minister in the USSR, a number of proposals on educational, cultural and technical cooperation were agreed upon. The significant amongst these are the proposals for the establishment of an Institute of Russian Studies in India and Soviet assistance for setting up of 7 Regional Colleges of Technology in India.

4.9. The following visited the USSR for 4-6 weeks :

4.9.1. Sarvashri G. C. Sharma, B. B. Lal and Y. D. Sharma visited the USSR to acquaint themselves with the latest Archaeological research there.

4.9.2. Shri N. M. Ketkar, Librarian, Central Secretariat Library, New Delhi went for a study of the library system in the USSR.

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4.9.3. Dr. B. B. Lal, Archaeological Chemist visited the USSR for specialised work on "Radio Carbon Method of Time Determination."

4.9.4. Shri A. K. Narain, Principal, College of Indology, Banaras Hindu University is scheduled to visit the USSR in the near future under the Indo-USSR Cultural Programme for acquainting himself with collections of coins of the Indo-Greek, Indo-Seythian, Kushan and other Indian series and collect material on "Contacts between Central Asia and Ancient India."

4.10. Hong Kong, Malaysia.-At the invitation of some cultural organisations, Shrimati Indrani Rehman visited Hong Kong. She. also gave performances, on her return Journey in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore under the joint sponsorship of the Information Service of India and the Arts Council of Malaya.

4.11. Pakistan.-A delegation consisting of three members namely Dr. Mulk Rai Anand (Panjab University), Dr. Masood Hussain Khan (Osmania University, Hyderabad) and Prof. N. S. Bendre (M.S. University, Baroda) participated in the seminar organised by the Pakistan Thinkers Forum from February 10 to 14, 1965.

5. Delegations from Other Countries.-A number of delegations also visited India during the period for diverse purposes and on various occasions. A brief account is given below.

5.1. Burma.-Mr. U. Bo Kay, Conservator of the Archaeological Department of Burma came to India in May 1964 for six months on a study-cum-training tour. He received training in Epigraphy in the office of the Government Epigraphist for India at Ootacamund.

5.2. Hungary.-A thirtysix-member Dance and Music Ensemble from Budapest arrived in Bombay on 11th February, 1965 on a one-month visit to the country. During its stay the troupe will give performances in Bombay, Hyderabad, Delhi, Chandigarh and Jaipur. During its stay in Delhi, the troupe will give a performance in Surehra village on February 26, 1965.

5.2.1. Miss Edith Toth, Curator of Indian Art in Hungary arrived in New Delhi on 25th January, 1965 on a six-month visit of the country. During her stay, Miss Toth will do research work on the "Development of Indian Paintings" and will visit museums in Delhi, Calcutta, Varanasi and Bombay etc.

5.3. Japan.-Mr. Jiro Enjoji, Managing Director and Editor-in- Chief of Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Japan, arrived in India on 14th January on a goodwill visit, for 12 days.

5.4. Nepal.-A 15-member Nepalese delegation arrived in Patna on visit places of cultural and historical interest in the country.

5.5. Sikkim.-A 20-member Sikkimese delegation arrived in India on the 2nd February, 1965 on a one-month visit. During its stay, the delegation will visit places of cultural and historical interest.

5.6. U.A.R.-A 55-member cultural troupe (Reda Troupe) came, to India in November, 1964 for a period of four weeks. During their stay in India they gave performances in Delhi, Agra, Bhopal, Hyderabad and Calcutta.

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5.7. U.K.-Dr. P. S. Noble, Principal, King's College, London, arrived in India on 15th January on a one-month goodwill tour of the country, under the cultural activities programme of this Ministry.

5.8. U.S.S.R.-Under the Cultural Exchange Programme between India and the USSR, a Soviet Circus consisting of acrobats, magicians, dancers, jugglers, alongwith trained animals including tigers, bears, horses and birds gave performances before large audiences in Bombay, Hyderabad, Madras, Calcutta, Kanpur and New Delhi during March-April, 1964.

5.8.1. Two Soviet Scholars, Mr. Y. V. Gankovsky and V. M. Moskalenko came to India in August, 1964 on a six-week tour to study and collect material on the problems, of National Consolidation of the People in India.

5.8.2. A 25-member troupe of Dancers and Musicians came to India in December, 1964-January 1965. During their stay in India, the troupe gave performances in Madras, Hyderabad, Bombay, Jaipur, Delhi, Lucknow and Patna.

6. Delegations Expected.-The following delegations are expected

(i) Hungarian composers-February-March, 1965.

(ii) 10-member Delegation from Afghanistan-March, 1965.

7. Exhibitions Sent Abroad.-A brief account of the various exhibitions sent or objects loaned out to foreign countries is given in the following paragraphs.

7.1. Ceylon.-An exhibition consisting of paintings, calligraphy, handicrafts etc. having an Islamic background, was sent to Ceylon.

7.2. Europe.-An amount of Rs. 15,000 was given to Shri Amarnath Sehgal, an eminent Indian Sculptor, for taking an exhibition of his sculptures to Europe. Exhibitions at Belgrade (Yugoslavia.) and Frankfurt (West Germany) have already been held. An Exhibition at Paris (France) is being held during January-February, 1965. An additional sum of approximately Rs. 11,500 has been sanctioned for the purpose.

7.3. Japan.-On a request made by the Nihon Keizai Shimbun of Tokyo, the Government loaned three art objects including the sculpture "Preaching Buddha", from Sarnath for an Exhibition of Ancient Arts of Oriental Countries, organised in Tokyo during October-Novernber, 1964.

7.4. U.S.A.-Of the 247 art objects loaned for the Exhibition in Japan, 118 sculptures and terracottas have been further loaned to five American Museums for exhibitions in five cities in the U.S.A. The Exhibition has already been held at San Francisco, Seattle and Cleveland, and will be taken to New York and Honolulu.

8. Exhibition From Hungary.-A photographic exhibition from Hungary is likely to be organised in India in March, 1965.

9. Presentation and Exchange of Indian Art Objects, Books, etc.Indian art and other objects have been presented to various individuals,

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institutions and organisations, in Afghanistan, Australia, Brazil, Burma, Canada, Chile, Cuba, Ghana, Iran, Indonesia, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mexico, Poland, Switzerland, Turkey, UAR, USA and USSR.

9.1. Books on Indian history, art, literature etc. were presented to various organisations and institutions abroad through the respective Indian Missions.

9.2. During the current financial year, various Indian Missions abroad organised essay competitions on subjects relating to India in their accredited territories. The winners are being awarded prizes in the form of books, objects of Indian art and handicrafts, gramaphone records of Indian music etc.

10. Fellowships and Scholarships to Tibetan Lamas.-Twelve learn- ed Tibetan refugee lamas are being given fellowships at the rate of Rs. 300 p.m. per head. They are presently engaged in research work in various Indian universities and institutions of higher learning. Twenty five undergraduate Tibetan refugee lamas are receiving scholarships at the rate of Rs. 100 per month per head for prosecuting their studies at degree level at the Sanskrit University, Varanasi, Nava Nalanda Mahavihara, Nalanda and Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, Gangtok.

11. Participation in International Congresses and Conferences Abroad.-Shri Kanti Chandra Pandey of Lucknow participated in the Fifth International Congress on Aesthetics held in Amsterdam during August- September, 1964. (2) The Children's Little Theatre, Calcutta participated in the Commonwealth Art Festival in the U.K. (3) Kumari Kamala participated in the Theatre des Nations Festival, Paris, hold in May, 1964. (4) The Dagar Brothers gave performances in the Berlin International Festival held in September, 1964.

12. Subsidies for Travel Abroad for Approved Purpose.-Swami Ranganathananda of the Ramakrishna Mission, Calcutta, was granted a travel subsidy to enable him to participate in the Swami Vivekananda birth Centenary celebrations in Indonesia. (2) Shri E. M. Aryanayakam was given a travel subsidy to visit West Germany at an invitation from the University of Saarbrucken to lecture oft the system of Basic education and the educational experiment at Sewagram. (3) A travel subsidy was given to the Asia Society, New York, who sponsored Shri Ravi Shankar accompanied by two artistes, for visiting the U.S.A. during September 1964-February 1965. The party gave performances at various places under the sponsorship of the Society. (4) Shri M. Zaheer visited France on a Government travel subsidy to study museology and administration of museums in France.

13. Grant-in-Aid For External Cultural Relations.-Financial assistance in the form of ad-hoc grants was given to various cultural organisations, individuals etc. as mentioned below :

(i) Educational institution in Nepal through the Indian Embassy, Nepal.

(ii) Friends of India Society, Santiago, Chile.

(iii) India League, Sydney, Australia.

(iv) Indian Council for Africa, New Delhi.

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(v) Indo-Iranian Culture Association, Teheran, Iran.

(vi) Indian Hospice, Jerusalem, Jordan (Building grant).

(vii) Indo-Nepal Friendship Association, Kathmandu, Nepal.

(viii) Indo-Turkish Cultural Association, Istanbul, Turkey.

(ix) Indo-Arab Friendship Society, Cairo, U.A.R.

(x) Indo-Austrian Association, Vienna.

(xi) Italo-Indian Association, Rome, Italy.

(xii) Japan-India Societies at Tokyo and Kyoto, Japan.

(xiii) New University Law Library, Oxford.

(xiv) Pracya Vidya Vihara, Calcutta.

(xv) Ramakrishna, Mission Society, Rangoon, Burma.

(xvi) Ramakrishna Vedanta Society, Tokyo, Japan.

(xvii) Ramakrishna Mission Vedanta Centre, London.

(xviii) Royal School of Medicine, Vientaine, Laos.

(xix) Royal Asiatic Society, London.

(xx) Subsidy for Nepali Literary publications through Indian Embassy, Nepal.

1.4. International Students Houses.-A prestige International hostel building, India House, is being erected at the Cite Universitaire, Paris, at a cost of approximately Rs. 44 lakh. The hostel, when completed, will provide accommodation for 100 students/scholars, 30 per cent of which will be utilised by foreign students and the rest will be placed at the disposal of the Indian student community in Paris.

15. Financial Provisions.-Activities similar to those mentioned in foregoing pages are likely to be undertaken during 1965-66. A pro- gramme of Cultural Activities with a financial limit of Rs. 73,59,800 has been drawn up in consultation with the Ministry of External Affairs, against which a budget provision of Rs. 38,35,000 only has been suggested in the Demands for Grants. A break-up of the financial provisions under broad categories of activities is given below :

                                          

 
        
        Sl.                                Provision for            Provision
        No.            Scheme              1964-65                for 1965-66
        
                                          

                                           Original       Revised
        
                                          

        
        1. Grants-in-aid for International 
             Cultural  Activities          4,03,900       7,00,000   2,40,900
        
        2. Cultural Delegations            10,05,500      7,00,000  10,00,000
        
        3. Other Cultural Activities       15,90,600     16,00,000  15,94,100
        
        4. Hospitality and Entertainment 
             Cultural Relations with 
             foreign countries for incoming 
             delegations, visitors, etc.   10,00,000      10,00,000  10,00,000
        
                                          

                                          

B. INDIAN COUNCIL FOR CULTURAL RELATIONS

16. The Government grant to the Indian Council for Cultural, Relations for the year 1964-65 amounted to Rs. 12 lakh. A brief account of the activities of the Council during the period is given below.

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17. Cultural Exchange.-Under this programme the Council received a variety of visitors, played hosts to several delegations, awarded travel grants and organised exhibitions: and lectures. These are described in the following paragraphs.

17.1. Visitors.-Among a large number of distinguished scholars, artists, writers and specialists in different fields who visited India at the invitation of the Council or were given hospitality by the Council during their stay here, mention may be made of Dr. R. R. Ralarosy, Director General of the Public Health and President of the Malagasy Academy, Madagascar; Chief Mrs. T. Ayo Manuwa of Nigeria; Madame Pung Peng Cheng, Deputy in the Cambodian National Assembly; Mr. C. Minderovic, the distinguished author of Yugoslavia; Dr. M. A. Lahababi, poet and Dean of the Faculty of Letters of Morocco; Dr. Kenneth O. Dike, Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Nigeria; Lord Robbins, Chairman of the Financial Times and Chairman of the Committee for Higher Education in Britain; and Dr. J. V. Narlikar, the distinguished Indian Scientist. The Council also assisted in the arrangements for the visit of other foreign dignitories.