IGNCA opens an international conference on India's cultural links abroad as the Greater India Society turns a hundred
15 October 2026
The Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts has opened a three-day international conference, 'Bharat's Cultural Connections across the Globe', at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
It runs from 14 to 16 October 2026 and was inaugurated by Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.
The Prime Minister's message, read out by Secretary Vivek Aggarwal, described India's long history of cultural exchange, citing Nalanda and travelling monks, scholars and traders.
The conference marks the centenary of the Greater India Society, which was established in Calcutta on 14 October 1926.
The associated Brihattar Bharat Project involves scholars from about 51 countries and includes a five-year agenda for academic exchange under the Brihattar Bharat Scheme, 2026-2031, along with proposals for multinational nominations of shared intangible heritage to UNESCO's Representative List.
In plain words
IGNCA Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts — An autonomous body under the Ministry of Culture that researches and documents the arts.
Representative List Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity — The UNESCO list on which living traditions such as music, ritual and craft are inscribed.