Harward historian seeks reconciliation between identities

Bangalore, Jan 4 (UNI) Professor Sugata Bose, a Harvard University historian and grand nephew of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, today said ''there is a need for reconciliation between regional identity and national for making India a strong federal nation.'' Speaking at an international seminar on 'Identity, Emotion and Culture' here Prof Bose said the regional identity, if faced with threat, would go on defensive and inward, particularly in the globalised scenario.

Stating that there was a threat to religions and regional languages due to the 'onslaught' of globalisation, he said their survival would depend on what they convey through their faith and works in promoting universalism.

Researchers would present papers 'On the rise and growth of vernacular languages and their contribution to the regional identities over several centuries to anti-colonial period in India.' The seminar would also explore the shaping of identities, emotion and culture, through languages and literature of Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Pakistan, and the overarching identities of Sanskrit, Persian and English.

UNI SIV RS SV DS1557