ISLF 29th session approves several new projects

The 29th session of the Board of Directors of the India Sri Lanka Foundation (ISLF) was held in New Delhi on October 15. The session was co-chaired by the High Commissioner of India in Sri Lanka Ashok K. Kantha and the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka in India Prasad Kariyawasam. Board members of the Foundation, ambassador M. Rasgotra, Prof. P. V. Indiresan, Sunimal Fernando and Thirukumar Nadesan also participated.

At this session, the Board approved full or partial funding for several new projects including partial funding for preparation and publication of a Crafts Map of Sri Lanka by Western Provincial Handicrafts Development Foundation in association with Dastkari Haat Samithi of New Delhi. Presently, there is no comprehensive handbook with information regarding the crafts of Sri Lanka and this initiative will support development of the crafts industry in Sri Lanka as well as would be of immense use to the tourism industry.

Project proposals, such as, preparation and publication of a Braille edition of a Sinhala practical course in Hindustani classical music; preparation and publication of a Sinhala- English- Hindi dictionary, (the first of its kind), and compilation and publication of a book ‘Bharatha Natyam - a Divine Dance’ were also approved.

Further, site visits to Sri Lanka by students of the Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, pursuing a recently-launched course on the - State, Society and Religion in Sri Lanka, third Century BCE, 13th Century CE and participation of a group of musicians (Beat Drummers) from Sri Lanka at the World Percussion Festival* at New Delhi were approved for part-funding.

The Board also approved part-support to organization of a Conference by the Mahatma Gandhi Centre, in association with the Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development (CRRID), Chandigarh; talk by an eminent woman business entrepreneur from India on the occasion of International Women's Day*being organized by Women's Chamber of Industry and Commerce of Sri Lanka; organization of an Indian Film Festival to promote peace and harmony through culture* by Samadhi Community Development Foundation and organization of a seminar by the Ramakrishna Mission on the occasion of 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda.

Considering the encouraging response to the musical presentation 'Divine Ecstasy'* held in Jaffna this year and the popular demand for it to be made an annual event, the Board also approved organization of the second leg of a Cultural Festival in the Northern Province by the Sumanasa Foundation of T. M. Krishna.

Other interesting projects which were funded by the ISLF in recent months include, inter-alia, visit of famous photographer Benoy Behl to capture images of Buddhist sites in Sri Lanka; part support to Char Adhyaya, a dance and musical tribute to Rabindranath Tagore by the alumni of Santiniketan Friends; participation of Flute Maestro Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia in the Colombo Music Festival; organization of ‘Divine Ecstasy’, a cultural event by Sumanasa Foundation with a combination of performances and workshops by Mr. T.M. Krishna, Mrs. Alarmel Valli and P. Unnikrishnan in Jaffna coinciding with the Annual Nallur Temple Festival; visit of author, publisher and festival director of the Jaipur Literary Festival Ms. Namita Gokhale to Sri Lanka, part support to Jaffna University Research Conference (JUICE 2012); participation of students from Richmond College, Galle in computer tournament in New Delhi; and staging of ‘Samhara’, a collaborative dance drama by Chitrasena Dance Company and Nrityagram Dance Ensemble from India.

The India - Sri Lanka Foundation has been successful in implementing a large number of projects due to its fast and efficient mechanism of approvals through the regular meetings of the Board of Directors.

The India - Sri Lanka Foundation continues to play a catalytic role in supplementing various initiatives by the governments of the two countries for strengthening people-to-people contacts and the bilateral relationship in general.

The next meeting of the ISLF Board is scheduled to be held in Colombo in March 2013.

The India - Sri Lanka Foundation was established by a Memorandum of Understanding between the governments of India and Sri Lanka in 1998 in order to foster India - Sri Lanka relations through the enhancement of economic, scientific, technical and cultural cooperation and to promote greater understanding between the peoples of the two countries.

The Foundation is financed through revenues from a Trust Fund set up with grants made available by the two governments.