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Memory is crucial for Survival of Humanity: Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi
20th June, New Delhi:
Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts Kala Nidhi Division held a Brainstorming session on the UNESCO Memory of the World Programme in India. UNESCO launched the Memory of World Programme in 1992. It is an international initiative and cooperation strategy launched to safeguard the documentary heritage of humanity against; collective amnesia, neglect, decay over time, disasters, climatic conditions, conflict and war and deliberate destruction. The MoW Programme calls for the preservation of the valuable archival holding and it also recognizes documentary heritage of international, regional and national significance, maintains registers of it, and awards a logo to identified collections. At the inaugural session of the Brainstorming on Memory of the World Programme the chief guest was Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi, Hon’ble Minister for State for Culture and External Affairs, Govt. of India. The special guest on the occasion was Mr. Hezekiel Dlamini, Officer-in-Charge, UNESCO New Delhi Multisectoral, Regional Office and Ms. Lily Pandeya, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India. The session was chaired by Dr. Sachichidanand Joshi, Member Secretary, IGNCA. On this occasion Programme Director Prof.(Dr.) Ramesh C. Gaur, HoD, Kala Nidhi Division and Member- IAC, UNESCO MoW Programme was also present. The book ‘Mapping of Archives in India’ by Prof. Ramesh C. Gaur and Mr. Vismay Basu was launched on this occasion.
Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi while speaking on the occasion said in context to MoW that at times the enormity of the task is such that it never gets done however she expressed happiness over the fact that these things are being carried over by IGNCA. She further said that memory at national, international, regional and individual, at every level there is a mechanism of memory at play. At the individual level, each cell of the body has memory and we are alive because there is an exchange of memory between the cells. Therefore that’s how memory is crucial for the individual, society and civilization symbolically and that’s how the memory of the world needs to be kept alive. She further remarked that natural disasters can cause havoc however from it we can also learn through memory how to survive. She pertinently added that because of the imperialistic past disruption of knowledge and usurpation of knowledge happened and she emphasized that such knowledge should be accessible to the people and this should be part of the agenda of UNESCO. She concluded by saying that the world is looking for cooperation and that world bodies need to start looking at the system deeply and begin with making a national register. The record of this country is huge and they are equally sustainable and have a sustenance team India has to work together to archive the record.
Earlier during the event Ms. Lily Pandya said that MoW has preserved, protected and made accessible to the entire documentary heritage. She also added that documentary heritage is representative of our collective memory in tangible form and shares with humanity a pool of collective thought and experience. We need to maintain an International, National and Regional Register and without its preservation, the heritage of humanity would be impoverished. It would be noteworthy here that Register in this case draws the attention of policy makers. She further mentioned a factual figure and said 432 documentary heritage articles have been inscribed by December 2018 and later 64 new pieces of documentation have been added which raises the total to 494. Mr. Hezekiel Dlamini while speaking at the inaugural session said MoW is a living programme to disseminate documentary heritage and beyond and work in this context is not shrinking but getting larger. He further added that MoW is as relevant today. He continued and said that UNESCO advocates strongly for having a national register for India. It is a long outstanding goal in the country and the region. Mr. Dlamini also praised IGNCA’s effort and said the publication of the book ‘Mapping of Archives in India’ is instrumental in shedding light on the institutional support from the partners. He further added in this context that India’s sustenance is possible of the intellectual support it has from the stakeholders.
Prof. R. C. Gaur while giving the opening remarks introduced the audience to the programme of MoW. He said that programs like this are important in preserving, disseminating and conserving the heritage. He also added that it aids the policy makers in developing and implementing policy. It would be noteworthy in this context that after being designated as the Nodal Centre Memory of the World Programme by the Ministry of Culture, GoI in 2014, IGNCA has submitted 5 nominations to the International Register. They are Gilgit Manuscript, Maitreyivyakarana, Abhinavagupta, Natya Shashtra and First Summit Meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement Archives in 2022 (Joint Nomination). Later Dr. Sachichidanand Joshi in his closing remarks said that it is a matter of great pride that IGNCA is holding 1st ever brainstorming session UNESCO Memory of World Programme in India. Later, he said, “History of mankind is full of examples, from the destruction of the Alexandrian library to the library at Nalanda.” He further elaborated and said libraries were destroyed on feelings of vengeance and therefore in this age of consumerism we need to preserve and protect our heritage. He also added that culture has the power to remain and in that context, it is important that we preserve heritage and memory. He concluded by saying that there are living heritage and documented heritage of our memories and this is a cause for generations to come and we are dedicated to this cause and it should be carried forward with intent and effort. Dr. Joshi thanked everyone and the concerned agencies for trusting IGNCA with such projects.
