THE REDISCOVERY OF A NATIONAL ICON
Had Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel lived longer, he would have resolved many issues that continue to trouble the country even decades after independence Like October, this December too saw a renewed debate and discussion on the life and legacy of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Such a debate augurs well for our public …
Sardar Patel: Other Facets – SPMRF Monograph
In the words of Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was “the most valiant champion of India’s freedom and the strongest unifying force in our national life.” It is to commemorate him as the architect of India’s unity that Hon’ble Shri Narendra Modiji has given a galvanizing call for …
HE WAS A MAN WITH A MIND OF HIS OWN
RC Majumdar’s work of history had a genre of its own. It was varied, continental and epochal, all at the same time. He refused to toe the official line What Arnold Toynbee and Will Durant have been to the study of civilisation and history in the West, Ramesh Chandra Majumdar, …
ANTI-SEMITISM ON A RISE IN THE WEST
The great United States Commission for International Religious Freedom, which rants against violations of religious freedom in India, should mind its backyard Describing the reason for penning down his hellish experiences at Auschwitz, legendary and prolific chronicler of the holocaust, Elie Wiesel, movingly wrote, “Did I write it so as …
NOT JUST POLISHING UP OF THE OUTSIDE
The civilisational goals of education cannot be met unless India rediscovers its ancient ‘science of the interior’ or adhyatmavidya Later this week 300 odd heads of educational institutions from across the country shall converge upon the national capital to deliberate upon the goal, the vision and the status of Indian education. …
AROUSE, MOTHER OF ALL CIVILISATIONS!
It requires great mettle and vision to create anew a cultural dream that earns world recognition. The Chinese have formulated theirs. We must too The late Huh Shih, nationalist scholar, diplomat and one of the legendary leaders of Chinese thought, in a paper presented at the Harvard Tercentenary Conference of …
AGE-OLD CIVILISATION LACKS CULTURAL GOAL
India’s premier institution for soft power projection, the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, faces a severe existential crisis due to paucity of funds India seems to lack a coherent and well-articulated strategic cultural vision. When it comes to projecting our soft power and through it to secure our civilisational space …
DECAY AND DEATH OF OUR HERITAGE SITES
Cultural landmarks of the country are languishing for want of proper care and protection. Humayun’s Tomb has been refurbished; others too deserve attention …
Attention Fr. Victor Ferrao: Goa’s rich Hindu past can’t be brushed away
“The truth is that Hindus had historically existed and thrived in the entire region of Goa, the truth is that they were gradually exterminated or exiled through a genocidal process known as the Inquisition and the truth is that for such a past treatment, the Hindus never sought to retaliate …
EUROPE’S NEW CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS
The growing immigrant Islamic population in the West has failed to blend with the mainstream society of the nations it has voluntarily made its home This May, while Stockholm burnt, London seethed and Paris was reminded of the radical activism of Islamist extremists, the politically correct European media was busy …
Can Congress hear Assam’s wake up call now?
Just about four years ago, between August and October 2008, around 70 people were killed in clashes between the Bodos and the Muslims in the northern Assam districts of Udalhuri and Darrang. The clashes had seen 100,000 people rendered homeless on either side. The Tarun Gogoi-led Congress government in Assam, …
What are Mamata’s political options now?
Political equations are changing rapidly and post the monsoon session, national politics seems to be poised for another swivel. Can the West Bengal chief minister handle it, asks Anirban Ganguly. Even as she loudly applauds the first ‘Bengali’ President at his swearing-in, Mamata Banerjee will perhaps be plotting her next …
Purno Sangma: The rise and the tumble
After the presidential poll, Sangma may well realise that ‘miracles’ and ‘conscience’ do not really exist, especially in Indian politics, they have long become extinct, says Anirban Ganguly. Purno Agitok Sangma’s finest moment — according to his own admission — came when he, an ordinary person, ‘a tribal from the …
Notes from past: President as holder of other offices
Our current presidential candidates can perhaps take a cue from history and subject themselves to greater self-examination and scrutiny; it will surely augur well for the dignity of the exalted office that they so eagerly aspire for, says Anirban Ganguly. Despite their — at times — acute political differences and …