INDIA IN T&T

Vol. 1 Issue 5 June 2020 Bimonthly Cultural Newsletter of the High Commission of , Trinidad and Tobago (concurrent accreditation: Dominica, Grenada & Montserrat)

In This Issue:

Virtual 175th Anniversary Celebrations of Indian Arrival Day in Trinidad and Tobago Mahatma Gandhi Institute for Cultural Co-operation : Art Against Corona E-Celebrations of International Day of Yoga Incredible India: Development Partnership: Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme हद का चार - Promotion of Virtual Democracy at Work High Commission in the Headlines Upcoming Events and Programmes Virtual 175th Anniversary Celebrations of Indian Arrival Day in T&T #IndianArrivalDay175

Snapshot of some participants in the 'Challenges Faced by Youths of Indian Diaspora in Trinidad & Tobago Seminar

All videos published are available on India in Trinidad and Tobago's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCE2JSZZwDUButKH1AMBo4QQ

INDIA IN T&T NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 The Mahatma Gandhi Institute for Cultural Co-operation (MGICC) # A r t A g a i n s t C o r o n a

'United Against Corona- Express Through Art' Competition by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR)

Virtual Cultural Evenings

INDIA IN T&T NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 E-Celebrations of International Day of Yoga ' G h a r G h a r S e Y o g a - Y o g a f r o m H o m e '

Remarks by Senator Deoroop Teemal (top left), H.E. Mr. Arun Kumar Sahu, High Commissioner (top right) and live streams of greetings by Shri Narendra Modi, PM of India & Dr. the Honourable Nyan Gadsby-Dolly, Minister of Community Development, Culture and the Arts Press Conference for International Day of Yoga

Few of the specially invited guests practicing Yoga

Please follow MGICC's Yoga Instructor on YouTube for helpful Yoga Learning Videos: Omprakash Kuriyal

INDIA IN T&T NEWSLETTER PAGE 4 Incredible India :

https://www.incredibleindia.org 'Land of Buddha' : Bihar

Bihar's antiquity is evident from its name, which is derived from the ancient word "VIHARA" (monastery). It is indeed a land of monasteries. Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, Muslim and Sikh shrines abound in this ancient land where India's first major empires rose and fell. Where the ruins of the worlds' earliest university slumbers in the void of time. The passage of Ganga, flowing wide and deep enrich the plains of Bihar before distributing in Bengal's deltoid zone.Among all Indian states, Bihar is the one most intimately linked to the Buddha’s life, resulting in a trail of pilgrimages which have come to be known as the Buddhist circuit. The Buddhist trail begins at the capital city, , where a noteworthy museum contains a collection of Hindu and Buddhist sculptures as well as a terracotta urn said to contain the ashes of Lord Buddha.The Buddha spent five years at after having attained Complex at Bodh enlightenment, and many of the remains at Rajgir commemorate various incidents related Gaya, Patna to life of Buddha, the hill of Gridhrakuta being perhaps the most important, as this is where the Buddha delivered most of his sermons. Bodhgaya is the spot where Lord Buddha attained enlightenment, with the Mahabodhi Temple marking the precise location.A monastic university flourished in Bihar () from the 5th to the 11th century. It is said to have contained nine million books, with 2,000 teachers to impart knowledge to 10,000 students who came from all over the Buddhist world. Lord Buddha himself taught here and Hieun Tsang, the 7th century Chinese traveler, was a student. Ongoing excavations have uncovered temples, monasteries and lecture halls. Rajgir, ‘the royal palace’, 12 km south, was the venue for the first Buddhist Council.This landlocked state of Bihar is surrounded by , Bengal, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and comprises four cultural regions-Bhojpur, and and Chotanagpur. Rivers Kosi and Gandak from the north and Sone , East district from the south join the Ganga. In the fertile plains, rice, sugarcane, oilseeds, gram, maize, jute, barley and wheat are cultivated. Interesting Facts

India's 13th largest state by size 3rd largest Kesaria Stupa is the world's largest stupa by population Popular Bihari cuisine includes Dalpuri, Litthi Patna, ancient city, is the capital & sprawls Chokha, Dal Peetha, Pedakiya, Khaja,Malpua along the river

Chhath Puja is the most famous festival Nalanda city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site dedicated to Sun God Surya Home to the famous Madhubani (Mithila) Buddha preached his last sermon in the city of Litti Chokha painting from the Mithila region

Madhubani Painting T&T nationals visiting Bihar under the Pravasi Teerath Darshan Yojana 2019-20.

INDIA IN T&T NEWSLETTER PAGE 5 DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIP: Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme

ITEC Scholars' Programme Reviews

"I attended a course entitled “Short Course on Remote Sensing with Special Emphasis on Digital Image Processing.” It spanned two months and was offered by the very prestigious Indian Institute of Remote Sensing, Dehradun India which is a subsidiary of the Indian Space Research Organisation which for those not familiar with the field is basically NASA of India. The prestige of this institute could not go unnoticed as I was thought by many extremely intelligent scientists. Being in the presence of people so advanced in the field was very inspirational to me. They upheld a distinctly high reputation as they presented a course which was very well thought out and managed to fit a lot of material and resources in a professional manner in a short space of two months. Additionally, they taught us about various softwares that could be used in performing remote sensing, GPS and GIS tasks. Overall it was no doubt and expertly designed and intricately detailed course that was nothing short of a dream come true for a budding professional with great passion for the field of spatial sciences. I learnt about various types of family structures and religious and cultural practices of many different countries and I gained a world of different perspectives on many topics which was truly eye opening to me. I will forever cherish the friendship of these wonderful people who just like me are hoping to contribute to society in some way through our profession" -Ms. Shivani Deonarine, ITEC Scholar (2019-20) What is e-ITEC? e-ITEC e-ITEC is a modality of ITEC programme wherein "I was very impressed with the information and the content presented by the training is imparted in partner countries by various Speakers, who were very knowledgeable in their respective technical Indian Institutes online in real time. Under e- areas and presented their information, professionally. The underlying theme ITEC, the classrooms are shifted to our partner was that of adhering to the strict protocol guidelines for Quarantine, Social countries and tailor made courses are delivered by - Distancing, provision of Personal Protective Equipment for example masks, for Indian faculties online/ through video both Health Care Professionals and citizens. Helplines were established to conferencing. The facilities in the classroom required are desired internet bandwidth, provide counselling and to address the concerns of citizens, meals were telecommunication links and a focal person to provided to those in need and yoga sessions for Health Care Professionalswere coordinate. introduced, to assist them in dealing with the stresses associated with Covid 19." For more information & list of available online -Ms. Dianne Rampadarath, Participant in the two-day Webinar entitled ' Covid-19 - Good courses: https://itecgoi.in/e-itec.php Governance Practices in a Pandemic' (18-19 June, 2020) hosted by the National Centre for Good Governance

HTTPS://WWW.HCIPOS.GOV.IN/PAGE /ITECnetwork @ITECnetwork -LINK/?PAGE=ITEC

INDIA IN T&T NEWSLETTER PAGE 6 हद का चार -Promotion of Hindi

आज का शद (Word of the Day)

Daily words are posted based on a weekly theme on Twitter & YouTube. Themes covered thus far include greetings, weather, garden, agriculture & vegetables.

हद वातालाप ृंखला (Conversational Hindi Series) Short videos are posted weekly in tandem with the Word of the Day for useful phrases & vocabulary when conversing in Hindi.

आभासी का (Virtual Class) Online classes are free of charge and held every Thursday at 4:30pm where the class focuses primarily on conversational Hindi

For further information & to stay connected:

'Learning Hindi' playlist on India @HindiInTnT in Trinidad and Tobago's Page [email protected]

INDIA IN T&T NEWSLETTER PAGE 7 V i r t u a l D e m o c r a c y a t W o r k

H.E. Mr. Arun Kumar Sahu, High Commissioner and High Commission of India Officials observed Passport Seva Diwas (24 June, 2020) . Shri Dr. S. Jaishankar,Minister of External Affairs, New Delhi, addressed all Missions abroad via video conferencing.

Did You Know? Every year, 24 June is celebrated as the Passport Seva Divas. We are committed towards continuing to deliver passports & it’s related services to the citizens with greater dedication, consideration , in transparent & professional manner.

INDIA IN T&T NEWSLETTER PAGE 8 High Commission in the Headlines

INDIA IN T&T NEWSLETTER PAGE 9 Upcoming Events & Programmes

INDIA IN T&T NEWSLETTER PAGE 10 Contact Information

#6, Victoria Avenue, Port of Spain Trinidad andTobago

(868)225-4340

https://www.hcipos.gov.in/ India in T&T Newsletters: https://www.hcipos.gov.in/page/cultural_news/

Consular/Visa: [email protected] Scholarships: [email protected] Commerce: [email protected] Hindi: [email protected] Feedback on Newsletter: Ms. Sasha Maharaj, Editor([email protected])

Connect with us on Social Media:

IndiaInTnT @IndiaInTnT india_in_tnt India in Trinidad & @AmbArunSahu Tobago

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