Delhi-based Centre for Studies of International Relations (CSIR) has established the International Centre for Civilizational Studies “Manas and Mahabharata” in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan in collaboration with the Manas National Academy.
At the official inauguration of the international centre in Bishkek, a first Hindi translation of the Kyrgyz epic “Manas” was also released, the CSIR said in a statement on Wednesday.
“The International Centre for Civilizational Studies’ ‘Manas and Mahabharata’ was officially inaugurated in Bishkek during a visit of an Indian delegation to Kyrgyzstan from July 4 to July 7,” the statement said.
RSS national media and publicity department head Sunil Ambekar, who is a member of the Sangh’s national executive committee, was the chief guest at the event, it added.
The statement said the Indian delegation comprised CSIR honorary director Punit Gaur, former director of the Centre for Russian Language and Literature at Jawaharlal Nehru University Hem Chandra Pande and chairman of the India-Central Asia Foundation Ramakant Dwivedi, who is also director of the MERI Centre for International Studies. “The centre has been established by the Manas National Academy in collaboration with the CSIR, New Delhi,” it said.
“As part of the ceremony, trilateral cooperation agreements were also signed between the Manas National Academy, the CSIR and seven leading universities of Kyrgyzstan, including KNU, BSU, AUCA, Ala-Too,” it said, adding that the Kyrgyz Embassy in India and the Indian Embassy in Kyrgyzstan provided support for the event.
The CSIR said the Indian delegation also held a meeting with Oktyabr Kapalbayev, Deputy Head of the Department of Political and Economic Studies and Head of the Strategic Planning and Reform Analysis Division at the Administration of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic in Bishkek.
“Addressing the event, Ambekar emphasised the longstanding cultural relations between the peoples of Bharat and Kyrgyzstan, highlighting notable similarities in traditional cultural values, especially the focus on human values,” the statement said.
“He noted that the Mahabharata has had a profound impact on Bharatiya (Indian) culture, while the epic ‘Manas’ has been a central cultural force for the Kyrgyz people for millennia,” it added. (PTI)
