INDIA-RUSSIA LAUNCH GANGA-VOLGA CIVILISATIONAL DIALOGUE TO PROMOTE 1.5 TRACK DIPLOMACY

‘-By Vinay Shukla

New Delhi (DishaMoscow)- A dialogue of eminent Indian experts on Russia and Russian experts on India, launched the Ganga-Volga Dialogue of Civilisations here, which could become an annual affair to held in both countries on alternative basis. The idea of the Dialogue had emanated from discussions between Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and President of the Russian Federation H.E. Mr. Vladimir Putin. The first session of Ganga – Volga Dialogue of Civilisations was organised here by Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation in association with Ministry of External Affairs at Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra, in the Indian capital’s posh diplomatic enclave of Chanakyapuri, ahead of 71^st Republic Day.

 

The Dialogue seen as the part of track 1.5 diplomacy touched upon four broad themes in the context of India-Russia bilateral cooperation; viz. education, culture and civilization; entrepreneurship and innovation; trade routes including inland navigation; and, India, Russia and Greater Eurasia.

 

Minister of State for External Affairs Shri V. Muraleedharan underscored the importance of special and privileged startegic partnership with Russian Federationin his inaugural address. Mr. Nikolay Kudashev, Ambassador of the Russian Federation and Shri Mahesh Poddar, Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) also spoke at the inaugural session. Evaluating the current state of India-Russia cooperation in various spheres and in emerging and new areas which provide significant possibilities of cooperation such as the Russian Far East and Eurasia, the scholars agreed that efforts should be made to encourage the younger generation of scholars in both countries to engage with each other through the platforms of academic and scientific research, language studies, exchange of youth delegations etc.

 

It was agreed that to promote people-to-people contacts the informationa gap needs to be filled. Often the Indian and Russian media depend on the narratives of the Western mainstream media resulting in the distorted image of each-other.

 

The scholars who spoke at the Dialogue from the Russian side included Dr. Tatiana Shaumyan-Head, Centre for Indian Studies under the RAS Institute of Oriental Studies, Dr Evgeniy Kozhokin- Vice-rector for scientific affairs, Moscow State Institute for International Relations, Dr. Valeriy Kashin, Ms. Olga Solodkova, Mr. Alexey Kupriyanov, and Ms. Svetlana Ryzhakova.

 

From the Indian side, Dr. Anirban Ganguly, Director – Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation, Ambassador Asoke Mukerji- India’s former Deputy Chief of Mission in Moscow who retired as India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Shri Mahesh Poddar, Member of Parliament, RajyaSabha, Dr Vijay Chauthaiwale, Member, Mission High Level Committee – Atal Innovation Mission, Prof Neelakshi Suryanarayan of Delhi University and Prof Gulshan Sachdeva of JNU, Dr Uttam Sinha, Fellow, Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, Shri Sanjay Pulipaka, and Dr Ashwin Johar spoke at the Dialogue.

 

The Russian participents of Ganga-Volga Dialogue of Civilisations also visited India’s ancient cultural and civilisational heritage cities of Bodh Gaya and Varanasi before their return to home. — 0 —