Swami Ji Maulana, Father Gomes and Professor Borua lighting the lamp
Dear Friends,
Namaste and greetings of peace from Eastern India. In the last couple of years, the regional URI team here has been supporting Cooperation Circles at a community level, helping them grow broader visibility at the local and national level with stronger partnerships, while strengthening innovative governance within the network of URI.
This year, we took the initiative to start a Center for Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding (CCRP) under the leadership of the Rural Development Society (RDS) CC. The center, located in a school in the Bankura district of West Bengal, will be directly supporting and upholding URI’s Preamble, Purpose and Principles.
On the 15th of August, Indian Independence Day, we began our first activity at the center, establishing a computer lab with an e-library among many others resources. The center was inaugurated by honorable Sri Arup Khan, a minister of the State of West Bengal (Department of Agriculture) and leaders from Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist and indigenous backgrounds, along with principals, teachers, and students from colleges and schools that attended the program.
Rev. Kalyan Kumar Kisku of RDS CC addressed the gathering, announcing future activities and plans for growth of the center. I explained the purpose and vision of URI, specifically how can we build a better interfaith community at our local level through the action of this center. I also proposed to start a special program to engage youth on a larger scale.
Other distinguished personalities that attended the program include: Md. Ali Azmat, Imam of Zama Mosque, Bankura; Fr. Probal Gomes, Director of Loyola Jayanti Vidyapith; Prof. Ms. Moitrika Barua, Representative of Mahabodhi Society; Swami P. Chaitanya Puri, Vice President of All India Parmartha Sadhak Sangh and Mr. Vishnu Bajoria, International Director of the Lions Club, Dr. Jiten Banerjee, President of Sai Seva Foundation, Bankura and Mr. Goutam Ganguly, District Information and Cultural Officer for the State Government.
The list of dignitaries could go on, as more than 100 people were in attendance. In the morning, a flag was hoisted to honor national heroes. In the evening, tribal communities played music and there Sufi Baul singing was performed, as well as a children’s karate show. A special presentation on "Stop killing the girl child" was also given by a local group, drawing a larger audience.
Our next activities include: establishing a senior citizen reading room to encourage interaction between youth and seniors in order to close the generation gap and creating a collection of books and a library to be used as a space for organizing, workshops and personal development programs.
In addition, we are planning a peacebuilding training program in association with URI South India and others institutions in the region. Already planned is a leadership training program in 2015 with Moral Imagination and the Traveling peace Academy (TPA).
With love from the URI East Zone team,
Biswadeb
