The Government of India on October 20 announced a month-long programme to “strengthen” and “rekindle” the cultural and civilisational bond between Tamil Nadu and Varanasi.
- Named the ‘Kashi-Tamil Sangamam’, the programme would be held from November 16 to December 16.
- The period will cover the Tamil month of Karthikeya during which all Tamil households go pray to Lord Shiva.
- This programme, which would be a part of the ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ initiative, is aimed at rekindling the civilisational link between the new Kashi and Tamil Nadu — both deep centres of knowledge.
- As part of the programme, 2,500 people divided into 12 groups would be travelling to Varanasi by train during the period.
- The journey points in Tamil Nadu would be Chennai, Rameswaram and Coimbatore. The groups would include students, teachers, artisans and people from various walks of life.
- The knowledge partners for the programme would be IIT-Madras and the Banaras Hindu University, while the Uttar Pradesh government would be the host State.
