CALENDAR OF EVENTS

The Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi has drawn up a tentative Calendar of Events for 2008-09. This is what it looks like:

August 9: Creative Workshop for School children

August 14: Tri-lingual Kavi Sammelan

August 30: Play Reading by Narendra Mohan

Sept 14 : Hindi Divas Samaroh

Oct 2: Panel Discussion on the centenary of Gandhi's Hind Swaraj

Nov 14: Seminar on Children's Literature

December 8: Prof Paul Giles, Oxford University, to speak on "Contemporary Trends in Literature -- a British Perspective"

December: Competitive Events at the Chandigarh Carnival

Jan 2009: Poetry Festival on Republic Day

Feb: Events at the Rose Festival

March : Women's Day Celebration

The CSA proposes to continue with its regular activities like Workshops, invited Lectures, Book releases, discussions, etc. Publications like a Newsletter, Journal, Blog, are on the anvil.We also propose to collaborate with other similar organizations. In this direction some exchange has taken place with organzers of the national Sahitya Akademi.

CHANDIGARH SAHITYA AKADEMI - 2008

Chandigarh, July 5

The Chandigarh administration has re-constituted the Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi for a period of two years. Prof Manju Jaidka has taken over as chairperson of the Akademi and Dr D.S. Gupt as vice-chairman. Madhav Kaushik will be the secretary. Here is a picture of the three in the office of the Akademi: ---

Non-ex-officio members are Hindustan editor Aku Shirvastav, book promoter Ajay Arora, senior lecturer at GCM-11 Dr Aruna Abrol, former principal of Government College of Commerce and Business Administration Bhupinder Singh, senior lecturer at GCM-11 Geetanjali Kalra, principal of Dev Samaj College of Education Dr Jyoti Khanna, Punjabi poetess Ratniv, senior lecturer at GCG-11 Neelkamal Puri, former editor of Jagriti Prem Vijh, Urdu poet Rajinder Chand, freelance journalist S.D. Sharma, secretary of Writers’ Forum Shyam Singh, Prof Sudhir Kumar of PU, and principal of DAV Senior Secondary School- Sector 8 - Dr Vibha Ray. The term of the members is two years.

THE AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE
CHANDIGARH SAHITYA AKADEMI

* To encourage and promote study and research in the field of literature.
* To promote co-operation among men of literature and literary association, and to encourage establishment and development of such associations
* To publish and to promote publication of literature including monograph, journals etc.
* To establish and maintain a library to cater to the needs of various organizations.
* To give recognition and to otherwise assist approved literary associations.
* To award scholarships and prizes to deserving men of literatures.
* To accord recognition to poets, writers, dramatists etc. for outstanding achievements.
* To encourage and foster the revival and development of literature.
* To promote the study of literature in the regional languages and to organize surveys of and to encourage surviving indigenous men or literature.
* To foster cultural contiaty within the country and also with other countries through exchange of personnel.
* To encourage or to arrange translation of outstanding literary works from English into local language and vice-versa.
* To publish or to assist organizations and individuals in publishing outstanding literary works including biographies, dictionaries, encyclopedias etc. in the local languages.
* To provide a from for the integration of the state by arranging seminars and Symposia on topics of language and literature.
* To maintain liaison with Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi and other literary organization in the neighboring states.