India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Thursday pitched for the revival of Shanti Niketan, the abode of Rabindranath Tagore, and asked the committee for commemoration of the Nobel Laureate's 150th anniversary to see how the historic institution can be restored to its original glory.
Singh also said the Indian government should use the occasion to create cultural institutions and structures that honour the memory of the great poet, and which have lasting value.
Noting that Tagore travelled to the farthest corners of the globe and is remembered with reverence and affection in many countries, Singh said embassies in different countries should be involved to rekindle interest in Tagore and to build on these historic cultural links.
Singh made the remarks at the first meeting of the National Committee for Commemoration of the 150th birth anniversary of Tagore.
"We need to pay special attention to the university of his dreams, the Visva Bharati. The High Level Committee under the leadership of Gopalkrishna Gandhi had made several suggestions. Government of India has released funds for the
implementation of the recommendations.
"But we should go further and I would like the
Committee to use its knowledge and experience to see how we can revive this historic institution and restore it to its former glory," he said.
Singh said the tribute to Tagore on his 150th birth anniversary should reflect his complex and multi-layered personality and the different strands of his cultural genius.
"We should use the occasion to create cultural
institutions and structures that honour the memory of the great poet, and which have lasting value," Singh said at the meeting attended by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and several academicians, intellectuals and ministers.
Jawaharlal Nehru and Education Minister Humayun Kabir had started a programme of building auditoria and cultural complexes that were named as Rabindra Rangashala, Rabindra Bhavan, Rabindra Manch, Tagore Centre and so on. In the 1960s
and later in the 1970s, these were among the first visible cultural spaces of independent India, he said.
Singh said he is of the view that the Implementation Committee under Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is considering the upgrading of some of the older auditoria that were set up as part of the Tagore Centenary Celebrations.
"The Committee would also look into the possibility of establishing new auditoria in cities where there is a genuine need for such complexes," Singh said.
"We should ensure that these auditoriums and bhavans are aesthetically designed spaces and are worthy of being named after the great cultural icon that Tagore is. So, it would perhaps be a good idea to invite designs for these buildings through open national level competitions," he said.
Singh also said more efforts should be taken to translate Tagore's works into other languages.
"We should encourage translation of his works not only into Hindi and other Indian languages but also foreign languages. His message is very relevant today and can attract people of all persuasions and creeds," he said.
Singh also said the committee will have to consider how India can fulfil the commitment given to Bangladesh that the celebrations will be conducted jointly and how to associate Tagore's many followers in Bangladesh.
"Gurudev's experiments with alternate education, especially through his Patha Bhawan in open sylvan surroundings were remarkable. I would be happy if this commemoration highlights the relevance of his views on education," Singh said.
At the meeting, a number of suggestions were made on how to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Tagore.
The committee said steps should be taken to popularise Tagore's art. The meeting sought proposals from states to translate the proposal of the eastern Indian state of west Bengal to renovate Tagore's ancestral house at Jorasanko in
Kolkata city.
The committee is also understood to have proposed setting up of zonal Tagore Commemoration Committees in at least seven major cities to examine and support local proposals for celebrations.
Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Sitaram Yechury also raised the issue of renovating the ancestral house of Tagore in West Bengal, for which the Prime Minister responded that the government will take steps.
The CPI-M leader said a cultural complex under
Tagore's name should be set up in every state capital. He also demanded that the government celebrate the centenary birth anniversary of renowned Urdu poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz.
Chief Minister of the western Indian state of
Maharashtra Ashok Chavan said the state would organise Rabindra Sangeet festivals in major cities.