‘Triveni’
is devoted to Art, Literature and History. Its main function is to interpret
the Indian Renaissance in its manifold
aspects.
‘Triveni’
seeks to draw together cultured men and women in all lands and establish a
fellowship of the elect. All movements that make for Idealism in India as well
as elsewhere, receive particular attention in these columns. We count upon the
willing and joyous co-operation of all lovers of the Beautiful and the True.
May
this votive offering prove acceptable to Him who is the source of the
‘Triveni’–the Triple Stream of Love, Wisdom and power!
...he
that laboureth right for love of Me
Shall
finally attain! But, if in this
Thy
faint heart fails, bring Me thy failure!
–The
Song Celestial
For the first time after centuries of foreign rule,
an Indian Cabinet, empowered to administer the land, is functioning at Delhi.
We are yet too near the historic 2nd of September to realise the full
implications of this changeover from primitive to modern conditions. Nehru, the
nation’s hero, and his comrades in the fight for freedom are now installed in
high office, and even during the short span of a fortnight the old Executive
Council of the Governor-General has been transformed into “something rich and
strange”. Lord Wavell is rapidly adjusting himself to his new position as
constitutional head of the National Interim Government; he is preparing for the
day when an Assembly composed of the nation’s authorised spokesmen shall frame
a Constitution and enter into a friendly treaty with Britain. With the
appointment of a British High Commissioner at Delhi, the first step has been
taken towards the eventual representation of Britain through an Ambassador
accredited to a free independent Government of India.
In his first official broadcast to India and the
world, Nehru displayed the tone and temper of a front-rank statesman. His was a
message of hearty goodwill to all nations, of hope to peoples struggling
towards freedom, of fellowship to the Muslim League and its sullen leader. Even
references to the tragic happenings in Calcutta were couched in the language Of
sadness rather than of anger. If the League responds in a similar spirit and
joins the Nehru Cabinet, an inspiring chapter will be opened in India’s
chequered history: it will mark the dawn of a new era.
Even apart from the intransigence of the Muslim League and its threat of direct action, the new Government of India is faced with grave problems demanding skill as well as strength for their solution. Of these, the prevailing industrial unrest is an ugly portent. The movement for higher wages and more decent standards of living has played into the hands of political groups bent on creating trouble and discrediting the Congress administrations at the Centre and in the Provinces. Those who consistently allied themselves with autocratic rule during the War and sabotaged the national struggle are today unwilling to give a moment’s respite to the Congress: they must rally all the elements of discontent in quick succession so as to wreck essential services and spread chaos. India has not so far produced a greater champion of the socialist ideal than Nehru; to the exploited and the downtrodden he brings hope and comfort. With Nehru at the helm of affairs it is folly for anyone to stir up discontent in the name of Socialism or Communism. In the constructive task ahead, the workers and peasants of India are bound to receive the largest measure of attention. Only, the leadership of labour must learn to study the march of events and throw in its weight with the Congress Governments and not against them. That way lies success to the cause and strength to the forces of freedom.
Once the League is reconciled and the workers of
India realise who their true friends are, the path will be clear for the
functioning of the Constituent Assembly. And while the new Constitution is
being hammered out by the representatives of the Provinces and the States the
many problems relating to the internal administration of the country can be
attended to in a spirit of vigilance and confident strength. For, in the
performance of these tasks the Interim Government will be building up Swaraj,
not in outer form merely but in the affections of a resurgent people tasting
the fruits of freedom after ages of deprivation.
There is a consensus of opinion among Indian nationalists that the Constituent Assembly should, in the early stages, devote itself to the problem of Linguistic Provinces. The principle was accepted by the Congress more than twenty-five years ago, and the normal day-to-day work of the Congress all over India has been carried on in accordance with that principle. Now is the time to give it constitutional sanction and re-organize Provinces on the basis of linguistic and cultural homogeneity. A Boundary Committee of the Constituent. Assembly must, after a careful survey, delimit the provincial boundaries. But even then there will be hard cases in the border areas between two linguistic units. Such bi-lingual tracts should serve in the word of Dr. Pattabhi Sitaramayya, as “the hyphens that connect, not the dashes that divide” neighbouring Provinces. But unfortunately, a great deal of heat has been imported into these controversies, and bitterness has grown beyond bearable limits. After a final decision has been taken by the Constituent Assembly, on the recommendation of the Boundary Committee, further controversy should be set at rest by a declaration that, everywhere in India, such tracts shall be officially recognised as bi-lingual. Satisfactory provision should simultaneously be made for
(i)
the teaching of both
languages in schools,
(ii) the
conduct of all proceedings in Courts, registration offices, and in all public
affairs, in both languages,
iii) the posting to such
areas of officers with a knowledge of both of languages.
These and other matters affecting the linguistic
minorities in every Province are dealt with by a rising publicist, Sri D. V.
Rama Rao, in the present number of Triveni. An important point he makes
is that, once it is known that the accident of birth, or residence on a
particular side of a provincial boundary will not make such a huge change in
one’s cultural and citizenship rights, the work of the proposed Boundary
Committee will not be complicated by interminable wrangles about the linguistic
complexion of every part of a taluk and even of every village in the border
areas. Uniform rules about the status of linguistic minorities, whether in a
border area or within the heart of a Province, will ease the present tension.
Anyone born in any part of India–Province or
State–and resident therein must automatically acquire federal citizenship and
be entitled to the nomal rights attaching to such citizenship, domicile, trade,
education and franchise–in all parts of the federation. Unless this view is
recognised and acted upon, linguistic fanaticism may lead to grave injustice,
making Indians foreigners in certain areas of their own Motherland. Andhra,
Karnataka, Utkal, Gujarat and Maharashtra are among the Provinces affected this
re-grouping and it is right that they should all feel satisfied that the
establishment of Swaraj is not made the occasion for the perpetuation of
injustice between neighbouring linguistic units. Further, to avoid the
heartburning arising out of claims to bi-lingual cities like Madras and Bombay,
they should be raised to the status of autonomous Provinces, where both
languages should enjoy equal importance, like the English and French languages
in Canada. In an India re-organized according to language, these cities are
hardly the proper Capitals for Tamil Nad or Andhra or for Gujarat or
Maharashtra. That honour should go to cities situated in the heart of the
linguistic area where the language, culture and traditions of the people are
maintained at the highest level–Poona for Maharashtra, for instance, or
Ahmedabad for Gujarat or Trichinopoly for Tamil Nad.
A Rural Art-Centre
The Aryan Path (Bombay) for September commends the scheme of a rural art-centre at
Macherla near Nagarjunakonda:
“What appears to be a most promising venture has
been started at Macherla, on the road to Narasaraopet in the Guntur District.
This is an art school for painting and sculpture known as “Sri Nagarjuna Silpa
Kala Peetam” and is under the capable direction of Sri Promode Kumar
Chatterjee. Five-year courses for beginners and three-year courses for advanced
students are available. No tuition fees are charged. Free lodging is provided
but students must bear their own boarding expenses (about Rs. 20 per month) and
pay for their brushes, paper, colours, etc. The courses provided will be in
Drawing, Painting, and Design in Indian Technique, Clay-Modeling and Plaster
casting. The school is already in operation but funds are required to develop
it and particularly to build an adequate studio and further accommodation for
teachers and students. The site chosen is an admirable one as it provides easy
access to the historic site, Nagarjunakonda. In fact, a most important item of
the education provided for the advanced student will be the spending of some
months each year in actual work and study there. Such an altruistic work as
this demands active support and financial aid from all those who see the real
need of restoring the knowledge of Ancient Indian Culture along these lines.”
From small beginnings, the new institution is
likely to grow into an important art-centre, and play its part in art-revival
in south India. The construction of a central Archaeological and Art Museum for
Andhra in the beautiful valley of Nagarjunakonda on the banks of the Krishna
and the laying of a first class road covering the thirteen miles from Macherla
to Nagarjunakonda are among the plans of the Government of Madras, as revealed
in a recent interview with the Premier, Sri T. Prakasam. These measures of
public beneficence will incidentally augment the importance of the Kala Peetam
at Macherla and render its task much easier of fulfillment.
1 September 20.