Context: Recently, Government of India has announced a month-long programme named the ‘Kashi-Tamil Sangamam’ “to strengthen” and “rekindle” the cultural and civilisational bond between Tamil Nadu and Varanasi.

Key Points

• Kashi-Tamil Sangamam aims to rediscover the links between the two ancient knowledge, culture and heritage centres.

• During this Kashi-Tamil Sangamam, academic exchanges – seminars, discussions etc. will be held between experts, and scholars on various facets of the two ancient manifestations of Indian culture, with a focus on bringing out the links and shared values between the two.

• The Sangamam would be an ideal platform to understand the unity in India’s civilisational assets through two historic centres of knowledge and culture.

• The Sangamam, which will be held in the auspicious Karthigai Tamil month, has been organised under the overall framework and spirit of “Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat.”

• The idea is to create a bridge between ancient India and the current generation.

• It will also help in connecting people and languages.

Kashi-Tamil Sangamam: Key Themes

• The Sangamam will be centred on themes covering various facets of knowledge – literature, ancient texts, philosophy, spirituality, music, dance, drama, yoga, Ayurveda, handlooms, handicrafts, and as modern innovations, trade exchanges, edutech and other gen-next technology.

• It will also be a unique learning experience for students, scholars, academics, practising professionals, etc., on various facets of Indian Knowledge Systems, education and training practices, arts and culture, language, literature, etc

Kashi-Tamil Sangamam: North-South Connect

• It is proposed that practitioners of these knowledge streams from different parts of Tamil Nadu will be invited for an eight-day visit to Varanasi and its neighbouring areas.

• It is proposed that around 210 people from different parts of Tamil Nadu, including from Chennai, Rameswaram and Coimbatore, will be taken in one group for a period of eight days.

• 12 such groups, comprising around 2500 people, can visit over a month.

• These groups have been identified, including students, teachers, literary (authors, poets, publishers), cultural experts, professionals (practising arts, music, dance, drama, folk art, yoga, Ayurveda), entrepreneurs (Small Medium Enterprises, start-ups) business people, (community business groups, hoteliers,) artisans, heritage related experts (archaeologists, tour guides, bloggers) etc.

• At the end of the Sangamam, the people of Tamil Nadu will get an immersive experience of Varanasi and the people of Kashi will also get to know the cultural richness of Tamil Nadu through a healthy exchange of knowledge-sharing experiences – events, visits, and conversations.