Armenia Day in New Delhi
By IAR DeskArmenia and India have had centuries long relations and contacts, which have to be maintained
On the 26th of April 2019, the Lancers International School in Gurugram, India, in collaboration with the “Indo-Armenian friendship” (IAF) NGO organized an event dedicated to Armenia.
The pupils of Lancers International School beautifully presented about every aspect of Armenia, ranging from Armenian history to Armenian literature, music, dance, religion, sports and cultural and national symbols. Pictures of famous Armenian personalities, many of them from the diaspora, adorned the stage. One of the pupils even recited famous works of Armenian writer and poet Hovhannes Toumanyan in the Armenian language, while also giving his friends and teachers biographic details from the poet’s life. Information and some unknown details of the lives of famous Armenian musicians Komitas and Aram Khachaturyan were also shared by the pupils.
Armenians in India
Presentations were made about the historical presence of the Armenian community in India. The program included a beautiful rendition of Armenian traditional dance “Uzundara” by IAF member Meline Melikyan, giving the pupils the opportunity to witness first-hand the beauty of Armenian traditional dance. Every year, the pupils of Lancers International school are expected to undertake a joint project, which provides an important opportunity for pupils aged 13-14 to collaborate and pursue a common topic. The aims of this project are to encourage and enable pupils to participate in a sustained, self-directed inquiry within a global context, develop deeper understandings through in-depth investigation and demonstrate responsible action through, or as a result of, joint learning. Such projects also help young pupils to appreciate the process of learning and take pride in their accomplishments.
This year, with the suggestion of IAF member Lilit Harutyunyan, who is also the Head of the Department of English Language and Literature, one of the groups had selected Armenia as their topic of research and advocacy.
Special guests at the event included His Excellency Mr Armen Martirosyan, Honourable Ambassador of Armenia to India and His Excellency Mr Achal Kumar Malhotra, former Ambassador of India to Armenia and Georgia. In his address to the teachers and pupils of the school, His Excellency Ambassador Martirosyan thanked the management of the school, as well as the teaching staff and the pupils for doing a wonderful job in presenting Armenia in detail as well as for touching upon the long-standing Indo-Armenian ties. Ambassador Martirosyan also offered the management of the school the opportunity to partner with a school in Armenia to undertake joint projects, organise visits and have a constructive exchange of expertise and knowledge.
His Excellency Ambassador Malhotra, in his turn, fondly remembered the years he spent in Armenia as the Ambassador of India and encouraged the pupils to carry forward their research on Armenia and continue exploring and learning about the beautiful country. He introduced his recently published book titled “ India-Armenia: So Far Yet So Close” which describes the history and culture of the countries, touches upon centuries-long relations and historical contacts up to the modern times. Ambassador Malhotra also very generously donated two copies of his book to the school library so that the pupils can use it as a point of reference to form a further understanding of the topic they had selected.
Mrs Ruzanna Ashughyan, Vice-President of “Indo-Armenian friendship” NGO, in her address conveyed her appreciations to the management of the institution for hosting the event at the school and thanked Mrs Lilit Harutyunyan and her pupils for doing an excellent job in beautifully presenting Armenia in detail. She also gave a brief introduction of “Indo-Armenian friendship” NGO and emphasized on the importance of building a people-to-people connection, in which young pupils and pupils can play a defining role.
As a sign of appreciation for their partnership and collaboration, “Indo-Armenian Friendship” NGO also presented the school with an Armenian flag as a token of friendship between the two institutions, expressing the hope that the Armenian tricolour will find a place among the flags of other countries proudly on display in the school.
At the end of the event, Their Excellencies, IAF president Mr Rananjay Anand and Vice -President Ms Ruzanna Ashughyan also discussed various points for future cooperation between different schools in India and Armenia, during which Mr Anand highlighted the importance of such events, aimed at promoting the cultures of both countries and re-assured the commitment of “Indo-Armenian friendship” NGO in finding new avenues of cooperation and partnership.
