|
Introduction
Objectives
Themes
Presentation
Abstracts/Papers
Program
Registration
Financial
Assistance
Venue
Accommodation
Important
Information
Organizers
Contact
Accepted
Abstracts
Home
|
Namaste
and welcome to the wonderful land of India !!!.
History
India, the land of
diverse cultures and religions, a multitude of languages, traditions
and festivals, flora and fauna, is a country that every Indian is
proud of. The original inhabitants of India were Dravidians, a dark-skinned
people whose descendents live in southern India. Fair-skinned Aryans
invaded from the north about 1500 BC, which marked the beginning of
the Indic Civilization. It was between 2500-1500 BC that the Indus
Civilization flourished in India. The culture then, was known as the
Vedic culture. The ancient and varied literature, 'The Vedas', is
not to be found in any other part of the world.
A
series of independent states grew up in India. From time to time they
were united in empires, notably the Maurya empire [321-184 BC]; the
Gupta dynasty [AD 320-535]; and the Mogul empire [1526-1857], established
by Moslem invaders. Europeans began trading in India in 1498. From
1757 to 1858 the British East India Company was the main power in
India. From then until 1947 the British government ruled most of India
as an empire. Until then, British India included the lands that are
now Pakistan and Bangladesh. Indian Independence was as a result of
collective efforts of great freedom fighters and political leaders.
Geography
India, the land of diverse
cultures and religions, a multitude of languages, traditions and festivals,
flora and fauna, is a country that every Indian is proud of.
India, also
called Bharat, is the largest democracy in the world. India is the
world's second biggest country in terms of population, and the seventh
largest in area. India is a peninsular country, located in South East
Asia. It has vast geographical diversity ranging from mountains to
lakes and from forests to rivers.
The Location
India is located
in the northern hemisphere. The Himalayan ranges crown the northern
boundary of India. The Bay of Bengal lies to the east, the Arabian
sea is to the west and the Indian Ocean is to the south of the country.
To the north west of India is Pakistan, while Afganistan, China, Nepal,
Bhutan are in the north, and Myanmar is in the east. Bangla- desh,
Nepal and Bhutan are surrounded on three sides by the Indian territory
and Sri Lanka is separated by the Palk strait in the south.
The Land
In the north are the
Himalayas and their foothills. Parallel with the Himalayas are the
northern plains, which extend from east to west. These plains were
originally a marine gulf between India and the mainland of Asia. This
gulf has been filled by deposits brought down by rivers, especially
the Ganges and the Bhramaputra. Most of southern India is formed by
the Deccan, a vast plateau sloping toward the east. At its western
edge lie the Western Ghats with a narrow coastal plain while to the
east lie the Eastern Ghats, a lower range of hills with a broader
coastal plain. The Vindhyas and Ajanta hills form the northern boundary
of the Deccan. India's tallest mountain is the K2 in the Karakoram
range, 8611m. The Ganges is not only India's most important waterway,
but is also sacred to the Hindus. At present the Republic of India
comprises 25 states and 7 Union Territories.
The
Climate
The climate of India
is of monsoon type. The northeast monsoon brings dry weather from
March to September; the southwest monsoon brings the wet season from
October to December in Chennai.
Wildlife
The wildlife,
landscape and flora of India ranges from the frozen peaks of the remote
Karakoram range in Ladakh to the luxuriant 'shola' rain forests of
the south-western ghats; from the scorched deserts in the west to
the great jungles and swamps of Assam and Manipur. India is also the
last bastion of the Asiatic Lion in Gujarat's Gir forests, the decidous
forests and jungles of central India and the north- east - wild kingdom
of the majestic Tiger, Swamp Deer, Golden Langur and Hoolock Gibbon,
the One-horned Rhinoceros and herds of Elephant and Buffalo. The wildlife
of India, like its vegetation, emphasizes by its diversity of species
the widely differing habitats and climatic zones which are available.
There are about 500 different mammals, more than 2000 species of birds
and several hundred reptiles and amphibians.
The magnificent Tiger
is the national animal of India. In 1940 there were perhaps 40000
tigers in India. Excessive hunting and loss of forest habitat had
caused this catastrophic decline, and it was clear that unless an
enormous effort could be made to save them, tigers would be extinct
within 20 years. The launch of 'Project Tiger' by the Indian Government
resulted in a complete ban on hunting and the creation of 15 fully
protected Tiger reserves. Since then, the Tiger population has more
than doubled and the species is saved for posterity
Indian
Culture
There
are way too many Indian dances including Kathak, Bharatnatyam, Kathakali,
Mohini Attam, Yaksha Gana, Odissi, Manipuri, to name a few. These
are old and traditional dances however, modern dances, folk dances
are also very famous. The oldest formal dance of the world, Bharatnatyam
is basically Indian classical dance. It is mostly prevalent in South
India. Bharatnatyam is a spiritual dance, as all the dances will have
some inner meaning as well as some spiritual or religious story. It
is absolutely gorgeous, and the costume too is extremely vibrant and
beautiful.
|