Understanding the India-China Border: The Enduring Threat of War in High Himalaya

By Manoj K. Joshi (HarperCollins India: 2022)

Chair: Shri Shyam Saran, President, IIC
 

Discussants: Prof. Hemant Adlakha, Associate Professor, Centre for Chinese and South East Asian Studies, School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University; Dr. Sanjaya Baru, political commentator and policy analyst; Ms Suhasini Haidar, Diplomatic Editor, The Hindu; and Dr. Manoj Joshi, Distinguished Fellow, Observer Research Foundation, senior journalist specialising in national and international politics, and author of the book

Speaker: Mr. James Kondo, Chairman, International House of Japan, Tokyo

Chair: Shri K.N. Shrivastava, Director, IIC

A World Without War
By Sundeep Waslekar (HarperCollins India: 2022)

Chair: Shri Shyam Saran, President, IIC

Discussants: Amb. Meera Shankar, former Indian Ambassador to USA; Amb. Pankaj Saran, former Indian Ambassador to Russia, High Commissioner to Bangladesh and former Deputy National Security Adviser; Amb. Thomas Greminger, Director, Geneva Centre for Security Policy and former Secretary General, Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe; and Dr. Sundeep Waslekar, thought leader on conflict resolution and global future, President, Strategic Foresight Group and author of the book
 

Presentations by Prof. K. Warikoo, formerly Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University and Hon’y Secretary General, Himalayan Research and Cultural Foundation; Prof. Shashibala, Head, Indology Centre, Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan, New Delhi; Prof. Rajnish Mishra, School of Sanskrit and Indic Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University; and Dr. Mahesh Ranjan Debata, Centre for Inner Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University

Gornyi Altai (part of Russian Siberia in mountainous Altai) is treated as sacred territory by its indigenous people since old times. The famed Sumeru Parvat is also located here. There are commonalities between the traditions and practices prevalent in Altai and in India. The discussion will outline some of these commonalities, highlighting the importance of these traditions and practices for the preservation of the eco-system and biodiversity

(Collaboration: Himalayan Research and Cultural Foundation)

Workshop Session III: Culture and Heritage: Temples in Context
To be conducted in hybrid mode

Chairperson: Dr. Neeru Misra, Academic Advisor, BL Institute of Indology, New Delhi

Presentations:
The Multiple Lives of Temples
By Dr. Emma Stein, Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, Washington DC

Reception History, Nautical Iconography and Local Agency in Angkor
By Dr. Veronica Walker Vadillo, University of Helsinki

At 16:00
Workshop Session IV: Culture and Heritage: Monuments in Context (contd.)
To be conducted in hybrid mode

Chairperson: Dr. Gouri Parimoo Krishna, PM Museum, New Delhi

Presentations:
Deciphering the 9th century Dông Du’o’ng vihara in Vietnam
By Dr. Tran Ky Phuong and Nguyên, Independent researchers, Vietnam

‘Amoghapasa’ Manifestation of Avalokitesvara: South Bihar and the Malay-Javanese World
By Dr. Elora Tribedy, Nalanda University, Rajgir

Saiva Kaula Rituals, Tantric Buddhism and Royalty: Parallels between Bhaumakaras of Odisha and Singhasari of Java
By Umakant Mishra, Assistant Professor, Ravenshaw University, Cuttack
 

Workshop Session I: Re-examining the ‘Indianization’ Legacy in History and Archaeology
To be conducted in hybrid mode

Chair: Prof. Anjana Sharma, University of Delhi

Presentations:

The Diversity of Cultural Sharing Between Indonesia and South Asia
Presentation by Dr. Wayan Jarrah Sastrawan, Research Fellow, École Française d’Extrême-Orient (Paris) at present in Jakarta

Colonising the El dorado: The Vo-Canh inscription, R.C. Majumdar, and the Making of Greater India
Presentation by Dr. Ashish Kumar, Assistant Professor, Punjab University, Chandigarh

At 16:00
Workshop Session II: Of Continuities and Ruptures
To be conducted in hybrid mode

Chair: Prof. Kishor K. Basa, Chairperson, National Monuments Authority

Presentations:
Indianization, Indigenization and Maritime Archaeology: What can shipwrecks tell us?
Presentation by Dr. Stephen Murphy, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London

A Continuity of Rupture: The Periods of ‘Hindu-Buddha’ and ‘Islam’ in Indonesia’s Art History and Archaeology and Their Epistemic Implications
Presentation by Mr. Panggah Ardiyansyah, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London

Musical Exchanges between India and Southeast Asia: A Reappraisal
Presentation by Dr. Arsenio Nicolas, College of Music, Mahasarakham University, Thailand

Webinar on 9 February 2023 at 18:30
 

Indian Sailors on Socotra – The Inscriptions and Drawings of Cave HOQ

Speaker: Prof. Ingo Strauch, Professor for Sanskrit and Buddhist Studies, University of Lausanne who is the Editor of Foreign Sailors on Socotra. The inscriptions and drawings from the Cave Hoq, 2012. His current research focusses on early Buddhist manuscripts from Gandhara and Buddhist epigraphy in Brahmi and Kharosthi script

Chair: Mr. Ajay Yadav, former Additional Director General, Archaeological Survey of India

Coordinated by Shri Siraj Hussain

Sustainability of Palm Oil 
Speaker: Shri Ashwin Selvaraj, Deputy Director Market Transformation, Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO)

Chair: Shri Siraj Hussain, former Union Agriculture Secretary

The talk will highlight the challenges and opportunities in mainstreaming sustainability in the oil palm sector and what the experience has been on this subject so far. India has a critical role to play in the oil palm sector and such opportunities help in creating awareness and provide one with inspiration to continue the engagement with the relevant public sector and private sector stakeholders
 

Challenges Before the Indian Judiciary and Overcoming Them

Speaker: Justice Madan Lokur, former Judge of the Supreme Court of India

Moderator of the series: Suhas Borker
Introduction: Vinay Kumar, Secretary General, Press Club of India

The series of Conversations with Media is jointly presented by IIC and PCI and is hosted by them alternatively every month
 

Coordinated by Maj. Gen. (Retd.) Ashok K. Mehta

Whither Afghanistan?

Panelists: Amb. Gautam Mukhopadhyay, former Indian Ambassador to Afghanistan; Lt. Gen. Ravi Sawhney, Senior Fellow, Vivekananda Foundation; Ms Maya Mirchandani, Counter Terrorism Specialist, Observer Research Foundation; Shri Kabir Taneja, Fellow, Strategic Studies Programme, Observer Research Foundation; and Mr. David Loyn, former BBC correspondent and author of The Long War: The Inside Story of America and Afghanistan since 9/11

Chair: Maj. Gen. Ashok K. Mehta

It is 18 months since the Taliban re-conquered Afghanistan and rolled back the two-decade old experiment with democracy. Unlike 1996, not a single country has recognized the Emirate. The humanitarian crisis has worsened as ISIS and the National Resistance Front led by Ahmed Massoud continue to challenge the Taliban. The panel will discussed the charmed future of the Taliban government
 

Economic Security in Indo-Pacific: Gradation of Regional Responses

Lead presentations by IIC and International House of Japan (I-House) Distinguished Visiting Scholars

- Prof. Ken Jimbo, Managing Director (Representative Director), President, Asia-Pacific Initiative and Professor, Faculty of Policy Management, Keio University, Tokyo; and Prof. Kazuto Suzuki, Director, Institute of Geoeconomics, and Professor of Science and Technology Policy, Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Tokyo, Japan

Speakers: Prof Manoj Pant, former Dean, SIS, JNU and  Ms Indrani Bagchi, CEO, Ananta Centre 

Chair: Dr. Shankar Acharya, former Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India and currently Professor at the ICRIER 
 

(Collaboration: International House of Japan, Tokyo)