PM Modi to inaugurate month-long 'Kashi Tamil Sangamam' tomorrow
To celebrate the ancient links between the southern state of Tamil Nadu and Kashi, two key centres of learning in the past, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate a month-long programme, Kashi Tamil Sangamam on November 19 in Varanasi. It will also be an attempt to rediscover and reaffirm this age-old association.
The programme is being organised by the ministry of education along with other ministries like culture, textiles, railways, tourism, food processing, information and broadcasting. The Uttar Pradesh government is also part of this event.
IIT Madras and the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) are the two implementing agencies for the programme, a senior ministry of education (MoE) official told the media.
This programme will drive home the new National Education Policy 2020’s emphasis on integrating the wealth of Indian knowledge systems with modern systems of knowledge. It will also provide an opportunity for scholars, students, philosophers, traders, artisans, artists and people from other walks of life from the two regions to come together, share their knowledge, culture and best practices and learn from each other’s experience.
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More than 2,500 delegates from Tamil Nadu under 12 categories such as students, teachers, literature, culture, artisans, spiritual, heritage, business, entrepreneurs, and professionals will be visiting Varanasi on an eight-day tour.
They will participate in seminars and site visits in special programmes curated for each of the 12 categories to interact with local people of the same trade, profession and interest. The delegates will also visit places of interest in and around Varanasi, including Prayagraj and Ayodhya.
BHU students and other higher educational institutions will be participating in the academic events. In these programmes, the comparative practices in various sectors in the two regions will be studied and the learnings will be documented.
The first group of delegates consisting of 200 students started their tour from Chennai on November 17 and their train was flagged off by the governor of Tamil Nadu R N Ravi from Chennai Railway Station. A month-long exhibition of handlooms, handicrafts, books, documentaries, cuisine, art forms, history, and tourist places of the two regions will be put up in Varanasi for the benefit of the local people.
During the inaugural programme, the Prime Minister will interact with the delegates coming from Tamil Nadu. The inauguration ceremony will witness various cultural performances such as vocal renditions by Ilaiyaraaja and book releases. Meanwhile, final touches are being given to the BHU event and Modi is expected to be there for about two hours, officials said.
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Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday, who was taking stock of the preparations, told reporters that he got the opportunity to meet the nephew of Tamil poet Subramania Bharathi, K V Krishnan and his family on Friday (November 18).
“The home of Bharati, one of the greatest Tamil litterateurs of all times, at the Kashi Hanuman Ghat has been a centre of learning and a holy pilgrimage,” Pradhan said.
“Bharathi’s writings on social justice and women empowerment are relevant even today. It was in Kashi where Bharathi got inclined towards spirituality and nationalism and he remained devoted to this all his life,” said Pradhan.
The district administration has made elaborate arrangements to welcome the guests from Tamil Nadu, said officials. Divisional commissioner Kaushal Raj Sharma directed all e-rickshaw drivers, auto rickshaw drivers, civil defence volunteers and tourist guides to learn some Tamil phrases and words to be able to communicate with the guests from the southern state.
