Gandhi's Charkha bags award

Mention India abroad and chances are people will immediately think of the marble marvel, the Taj Mahal. But what architectural symbol stands for contemporary India? To find the answer, a leading architecture magazine and a Tata company ran a design competition. The winner is a futuristic version of the other symbol you think of when you say India - the Mahatma's Charkha. See it in 3-D and you get a sense of what this award-winning piece of architecture is attempting to celebrate - Mahatma Gandhi's spinning wheel or charkha and all that it has stood for in the last 60 years and will stand for in future. ''We were taken by it not purely by the image of the charkha but the philosophy behind it, that it stood for non-violence, self reliance of an individual, self sustainability. It stood for national pride,'' said Nuru Karim, VOID Architects. There were 110 entries for Notions of a Nation, the competition run by Tata Structura and the Indian Architect and Builders magazine. A jury including architect BV Doshi pruned that to 12 and Nuru Karim's charkha made the final cut. ''It was a combination of rootedness, it was a combination of the contemporary, it was a combination of the interpretation of the charkha. I think they were really excited with that when they said it exploded into the future. I think that really clinched it,'' said Sarita Vijayan, IA&B Magazine. For Mumbai-based Nuru Karim, the entire experience has been life-changing. ''More than the prize money or winning the competition or coming out tops, we have discovered the Indian in our selves. That was the icing on the cake for us,'' said Karim. The futuristic charkha, which will stand almost 60 feet tall, will be located at Pune over a 3 acre plot. No date of completion just yet but the charka hopes symbolize India for at least the whole of the 21st century.
Courtesy: NDTV.com - India - by Monideepa Banerjie - August 14, 2007

Gandhi Jayanti Programmes in Pune city

Celebrations at Gandhi National Memorial Aga Khan Palace
Gandhi Rashtriya Smarak Samiti organised a freedom fighters’ meeting and the ‘Ba-Bapu’ award distribution ceremony on October 2. This was part of the Programmes being organised to celebrate the Gandhi week from October 2 to 8, 2007.

On October 2, around 600 freedom fighters gathered at the Ag Khan palace at 10 am for the meeting, organised jointly with the Maharashtra Pradesh Swatantrya Sainik Mahasangh. The Ba-Bapu award was presented to R. Kausalyadevi of Gandhigram trust, Tamil Nadu and the Bapu award to Jayant Patil of Bordi. Union minister Sushilkumar Shinde was the chief guest at the award function.

The week-long programmes included prize distribution of district level inter-college essay competition and street plays on de-addiction. An exhibition by Khadi and village industries on October 6., a peace march by students’ has been organised from the University of Pune gate to Aga Khan palace. Various schools from the city participated in the march.

A seminar on ‘Literate India: Gandhiji’s dream’ was held on October 8 the final day of the celebrations. For the first time ever the Aga Khan Place hosted a cultural programme, Shanti naad, an evening of music and dance, which broughy forth the Mahatma’s message with renewed emphasis on his birth anniversary this year.

World Peace Centre of MAEER's MIT, Pune, WORLD PEACE MARCH

On the auspicious occasion of 2nd October, 2007 to commemorate the Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri a Peace March was organized on the occasion of our "Silver Jubilee Year Celebrations of MAEER's MIT, Pune", coinciding with 60th Anniversary of India's Independence and World Non-violence Day, as recently declared by United Nation.

Save farmers Save India! Protest March and Mass Candle-light vigil
to support Indian farmers

On 2nd October, a peace march started from Agriculture college and walked down Fergusson college Road and JM Road (two busy streets in Pune) shouting slogans, holding banners and distributing pamphlets. About 20 odd people participate in the
march including one farmer.

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The march was followed by a candle light vigil in front of Sambhaji Park. Some agriculture college students from Vidharba and many bystanders also joined for the vigil.

The event was organized in collaboration with few local NGOs - Bharat Uday Mission, Maitri, Friends of Gandhi Museum.

Organic farmers want methods to blossom, grow: Booklets on their experiences will be published for larger good on Gandhi Jayanti 2007

Nearly 40 farmers from across the state, practicing organic farming—growing crop using nature’s resources, avoiding artificial fertilizers and pesticides—is a way of walking the Gandhian path. They have been meeting since January 2006 to discuss eco-friendly techniques of farming at Khalad, 35 km from Pune under the aegis of Pune-based NGOs Gram Parivartan and Pani Panchayat.

Now, their pearls of wisdom, are being compiled into booklets with the first set slated for release this Gandhi Jayanti.

“We want organic farmers to take advantage of our shared experiences. At each study group session, we take an aspect and discuss it in great details. We talk about 12 to 13 hours in two days. We try to find logical answers to experiments and try to find reasons for the failure or success,” said founder of Gram Parivartan Pandurang Shitole.

The study group zeroes in on subjects like soil, seed water, manure, fertilizers, harvesting of sunlight, and crop pattern. They have also conducted field visits to organic farms, all of which has been documented. “They study group aims to get to the depth of the principles of organic farming. We want to create a knowledge base for the ideology and demonstrate it. We are not looking at the extension work,” said Shitole.

Courtesy: Ranjani Raghavan, Pune News line

Museum at Central Jail Yerawada to showcase Poona Pact

Pune: A museum displaying archival documents about the historic Poona pact is being planned at the Yerwada central prison to mark the 75th anniversary of the pact.

Prison superintendent Rajendra Dhamne told TOI on Monday that the prison authorities have decided to collect all the literature on the pact, original copies if possible, and preserve them.

The jail is collecting documents pertaining to the pact, which will be displayed in the Yard. The Poona Pact is the popular name of an agreement between the untouchables referred as the depressed classes of India led by Ambedkar and Hindus, which was signed in the Yerwada jail.

While drafting the constitution of India, involving self rule for native Indians, the British invited various leaders for round table conferences in 1930-32. Mahatma Gandhi attended these conferences. The concept of separate electorates for the untouchables was raised by Ambedkar, a provision already available for minorities such as Muslims and Sikhs at that time.

The British agreed with Ambedkar’s contention. However, Mahatma Gandhi strongly opposed it on the grounds that the move would disintegrate society. He launched and indefinite hunger strike on September 20, 1932 in the Yerwada prison. The strike was against the then British prime minister J. Ramsay MacDonald’s Communal Award to the depressed classes (untouchables) in the constitution for governance of British India.

The nation was deeply concerned about the health of Mahatma Gandhi, and Ambedkar was under tremendous pressure. A compromise was reached between the two leaders on September 24, 1932 when the Poona Pact was signed.

Courtesy: Gitesh Shelke TNN

Rajiv Gandhi award for Pune’s Gandhian - Shobnatai Ranade

Noted Pune Gandhian and social worker Shobhana Ranade was selected for the Rajiv Gandhi Manav Seva award given by the Union Ministry of women and child development to recognise outstanding contributions towards child development, protection and welfare.

The award, instituted in 1994, carries Rs 1 lakh cash and a citation and will be presented in a function in New Delhi.

Shobhanatai, as she is fondly called, continues to be active even at the age of 83 and regularly visits various balwadis started by her in villages across Maharashtra. She is the pioneer of SOS Children’s Village in Maharashtra and was influenced by Herman Gmeiner who set up a chain of villages for children orphaned in World War II. She is currently Secretary of the Gandhi National Memorial Society at the Aga Khan Palace, Pune.


Even on Monday, when the award was announced in New Delhi, she was in Delhi attending the constitution committee meting of All India Women’s Council with another meeting of SOS Children’s Village lined up.

“It was a pleasant surprise for me and I feel happy that my work for women and children has got recognition from the government. The award has boosted my enthusiasm and I plan to start new projects,” said Shobhanatai while speaking to TOI from Delhi.

(excerpts from the local Pune newspapers)