Police Reforms – 20 years

Chair: Justice Vineet Saran, former Judge, Supreme Court of India

Discussants:  Prakash Singh, Former Director General BSF, DGP UP, and DGP Assam; G K Pillai, Former Home Secretary; and Vipul Mudgal, Director Common Cause

The British left behind a colonial police structure at the time of Independence, which continues nearly eight decades later. Despite the Supreme Court’s directions of September 22, 2006 for comprehensive police reforms, implementation by the states has remained largely half-hearted. Police reforms are a must for a progressive India. The vision of a Viksit Bharat cannot be achieved without the solid foundation of good law and order, which only a professional police force upholding the rule of law can provide. Twenty years after the judicial directions, it is essential that the campaign for police reforms is sustained and given greater impetus. 
 

INDIAN ARCHAEOLOGY
Prehistoric Vindhyan Childhoods: Investigating Rock Art as a Knowledge System in Indian Prehistory

Speaker: Dr. Ajay Pratap is former Head and Professor, Department of History, Banaras Hindu University.

Chair: K. N. Shrivastava, Director, IIC

Moderator: Pratap Bhanu Singh Sengar, former Director (Monuments) Archaeological Survey of India

The emergence of an archaeology of childhood recognises the crucial roles of women and children in prehistoric cultures and communities. The presentation explores their role as active users of visual symbolic representation, as teachers and learners, through rock art depicting self-images, designs, narrative scenes, line drawings and practice figures. It examines rock art as a means of transmitting traditional knowledge, aesthetics and memory. 
 

BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP

What the Shadow Said
By K. Jayakumar (Alcove Publishers, 2026)

Discussants: Dr. Sukrita Paul Kumar, Guest Editor, Indian Literature, Poet, Academic & Critic; Jatin Das, Artist, Prof. Radha Chakravarty, Writer, Critic & Translator; K. Abhay, Hindi Poet; Gagan Gill, Writer and Poet; C P Surendran, Indian poet, novelist, journalist, columnist and screenplay writer; K Jayakumar, Former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, Former Chief Secretary of Kerala, and a renowned poet, lyricist

BOOK DISCUSSION GROUP 

Ashes to Light: Stories of Hope Towards Gender Justice
By Priyadarshini Bhattacharya (Vintage Books, 2026)

Discussants: Prof Dev Nath Pathak, South Asian University ; Prof Pushpesh Pant,  Food Critic and Historian ; Dr. Saswati Bhattacharya, LSR, DU ; Dr. Savita Singh,  IGNOU ; Dr. Sukrita Paul Kumar , Poet and Translator ; Yauvanika Chopra, New India Foundation, Dr. Preeti Vajpeyi, Vinyaas Society; Kabir Vajpeyi, Vinyaas Society; Girija Borkar, Economist and Development Professional; Sushmit Ghosh, Filmmaker; Preeti Sudan, Former Union Health Secretary, Chairperson, UPSC; Kiran Bedi,  Former Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry; Dr. Raviraj Shetty, Therapist and Author, Narrative Practices India; Priyadarshini Bhattacharya, Joint Secretary, Panchayat and Rural Development Department & Author of the Book
 

1940s–1960s: The 13th Dalai Lama's ‘Declaration’ in Tsepon Shakabpa's Tibet: A Political History

Speaker: Dr. Scott Relyea, Associate Professor of East Asian History and Assistant Chair, Department of History, Appalachian State University

Chair: Prof. Kaveri Gill, Non-Resident Senior Fellow, Centre of Excellence for Himalayan Studies, Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence.

Discussant: Dr Swati Chawla, Associate Professor, Jindal School of Liberal Arts and Humanities, O.P Jindal Global University, Sonepat

In 1967, Tsepon W.D. Shakabpa published Tibet: A Political History, the first book to focus on the political history of Tibet, based on research begun in the early 1950s. This lecture examines the intellectual, political and geopolitical contexts—from India and the United States to the United Nations and Yale University—that shaped this decision and influenced the framing of Tibet's political history during the era of decolonisation.

(Collaboration: Institute of Chinese Studies (ICS)
 

MAHARASHTRA SANSKRITIK DIWAS 2026

Dr Prakash Baba Amte - The Real Hero
(2014;137 minutes; Marathi with English subtitles)
Director: Samruddhi Porey
With Nana Patekar, Sonali Kulkarni, Mohan Agashe

Introduction: Suhas Borker, Co-Convener, Maharashtra Sanskrtik ani Rannaniti Adhyayan Samiti

Young Prakash graduates with a Bachelor of Medicine degree. Instead of settling down to a comfortable city life along with his wife Manda they both move to a most backward area of Maharashtra. From government apathy to Naxal threats, from a US Visa refusal due to financial issues to returning his civilian honour, the Padmashri. The film is an incredible true story of hope, courage and compassion.

(Collaboration: Maharashtra Sanskritik ani Rannaniti Adhyayan Samiti)
 

Curandera: The Path from Tragedy to Truth
(2025; 37 minutes; English and Spanish with English Subtitles)
Director: Alexia Kraft de la Saulx

A powerful journey of healing, transformation and reconnection—following one woman’s extraordinary path from personal trauma to becoming a traditional Amazonian healer.

(Collaboration: Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness The Dalai Lama)
 

Kriya Yoga and Peace of Individual and Planet Earth
Speaker: Nayaswami Jyotish (John Novak) and Nayaswami Devi Novak, Spiritual Directors, Ananda Worldwide, Nevada, USA
A talk exploring the philosophy and practice of Kriya Yoga, its spiritual lineage, and its relevance for contemporary life. The speakers will reflect on the teachings of Mahavatar Babaji and Paramahansa Yogananda, whose Autobiography of a Yogi introduced generations across the world to India’s yogic traditions, and explore Kriya Yoga as a path to meditation and self-realisation. 
 

Book Discussion Group  

Rabindranath Tagore: The Myriad Minded Man.
By Krishna Dutta and Andrew Robinson (Rupa Publications, 2026)

Chair: Ashok Vajpeyi, hindi poet, critic and art lover

Discussants: Prof Irfan Habib, historian and former Abdul Kalam Azad Chair, National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration; Reba Som, writer, academic, historian; and Dr Ananya Vajpeyi, writer and academician.
 

Connected Histories, Shared Present: Cross-Cultural Experiences between Latin America, the Caribbean and India
Release of the book edited by Sonya Surabhi Gupta (New Delhi: Tulika Books, 2026)

The book will be released by Shri N.N. Vohra, Life Trustee, IIC

Followed by a discussion with Ambassador R. Viswanathan, Latin America expert and former Ambassador to Latin American countries; H.E. Mr Jason Hall, Dean GRULAC and High Commissioner of Jamaica to India; Prof. Sonya Surabhi Gupta, former Professor of Latin American Studies, Jamia Millia Islamia; and Prof. Carlos Frederico Pereira da Silva Gama, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Shiv Nadar Institute of Eminence

(Organised by IIC-International Research Division)