The Seville Statement on Violence was drafted in 1986, by a group of natural and social scientists from several countries. Later adopted by UNESCO, the Seville Statement marshalled scientific evidence to show that violent behaviour is not generally programmed into human nature. 

Prof. Ashis Nandy from India and Prof. David Adams from USA, were two of the leading academics who drafted the Seville Statement. In this episode of Ahimsa Conversations recorded on 13th August 2021, both scholars look back on the significance of the Seville Statement and reflect on possibilities of nonviolence in our times

Moderator: Rajni Bakshi, freelance journalist and author

Hindustani Vocal Recital |  ( Click here to watch ) 
By Ayush Dwivedi from Kanpur, disciple of Pt. Vinod Kumar Dwivedi

Kathak Recital  | ( Click here to watch )  
By Pratibha Sharma from Delhi, disciple of Smt Geetanjali Lal

PHYSICAL PROGRAMME

Bengal and its Partition: An Untold Story
By Bhaswati Mukherjee (Rupa Publications, New Delhi: 2021)

Panelists: Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas and Housing and Urban Affairs, Govt. of India; Amb. Rajiv Dogra, writer and former Indian Ambassador to Italy; Shri K.N. Shrivastava, IAS (retd.), Director, IIC; and Ms Bhaswati Mukerjee, author of the book, former Indian Ambassador to The Netherlands

Chair: Shri K. Natwar Singh, former Union Cabinet Minister, and writer

Kindly please make a note
-    Physical programmes will be held as per the Covid -19 guidelines with 50% seating capacity in the C.D. Deshmukh Auditorium.
-    Wearing of face masks is mandatory and will be strictly enforced. Entry will not be permitted to anyone not wearing a mask
-    Audiences are requested to arrive at the venues, at least 30 minutes prior to the programmes in order to facilitate the screening process at the Door
-    There will be separate doors earmarked for Entry and Exit

We request audiences to kindly abide by the above regulations
 

Speaker: Prof. Aparna Vaidik, Associate Professor of History, Ashoka University and author of the recently published Waiting for Swaraj: Inner Lives of Indian Revolutionaries (Cambridge University Press, 2021)

Discussant: Prof. Himanshu Prabha Ray, former Chairperson of the National Monuments Authority, Ministry of Culture, and former Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University

Chair: Prof. Madhavan K. Palat, historian, scholar of modern world, and political commentator

The talk examines the issues that a historian encounters while researching and writing the history of revolutionaries in the Indian context. Revolution is an idea and revolutionaries as agents of political change seem almost natural when studying Russian or Latin American history. However, when it comes to Indian history the revolutionaries appear as anomalies – a rag-tag bunch of misfits who were misguided and out of step with the times they lived in. The questions that this talk explores are: How do we study the history of revolutionaries? Does studying their history have any significance? What relationship does revolutionaries’ history have with Indian nationalism?

Panelists: Ms Nancy Sahay, IAS, CEO Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society and MD, JMHIDPCL; Prof. S. Narayan, Emeritus Professor, Member, Commission on Nomadic Tribe, Govt. of India; Shri N.N. Pandey IAS (retd.), former Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary (Home), Govt. of Jharkhand; Dr. Shiwani, academic and journalist with The Hindustan Times; Ms Vandana Tete, journalist and social worker who has worked for Adivasi and Dalit women’s education, and is a former Senior Fellow, Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India; Dr. A.K. Pandey, Chairman, SLSMC, Urban Development & Housing Department, Govt. of Jharkhand 

Coordinator: Ms Swayam Siddha Dash

The panel will discuss the current status of tribal women and what should be done in terms of policy, programme implementation and to bring them into mainstream

(Collaboration: Society for Empowerment, Patna)

Facebook: 
https://www.facebook.com/groups/286518512438740/permalink/5155679328671…

Panelists: Shri Amit Kolassery, General Manager, NORKA ROOTS, Govt. of Kerala; Ms Nazeem Beegum, author and journalist; and Shri Reaven D’Souza, Managing Editor, The Times, Kuwait

Chair: Amb. K.P. Fabian, Professor, Indian Society of International Law, New Delhi 

The outbreak of the pandemic has caused lakhs of Indian nationals to return, and the State of Kerala alone has received more than 15 lakhs. We do not have even reasonably accurate information in the public domain on the total number of returnees. The discussion will address the issue of the plight of the returnees, the rehabilitation measures undertaken by the Union and State Governments, the adequacy thereof, and related issues. Does India have a comprehensive policy set-up to address the plight of these citizens who have been sending billions of US $ annually, supporting the economy

Ikebana lecture – demonstration by Mr. Takayuki Fukazawa, award winning artist and leader of the Ikebana performance unit ‘Za-Sogetsu’. 

Introduction: Smt Veena Dass, Director, Sogetsu School of Ikebana

Mr. Fukazawa will present a demonstration of ‘All the way from Japan’ – his own unique and innovative composition

(Collaboration: Sogetsu School of Ikebana, New Delhi; and The Japan Foundation)

Zoom link:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89904034928?pwd=ek5WaG9JczF2ZkY5ZnIzT0h0QXZnQ…
Meeting ID: 899 0403 4928 
Passcode: Sogetsu