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1948 - 200860 Years Jubilee of the Indo - Swiss Treaty of Friendship

Celebrating 60 Years of Friendship

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o commemorate the 60th jubilee year of the Indo - Swiss Friendship Treaty, it is with great pleasure that I present some of Tthe projects in India and Switzerland through this booklet.

I hope to greet new ideas and look forward to their realisation in the coming year.

Various milestones have been achieved during the years gone by and the valued relationship between both countries continues to gather strength and attain new heights.

will serve as a platform for strengthening the already strong relationship. I wish the celebrations all the best.

Dr. Dominique Dreyer

Ambassador of Switzerland

The state visit by the president of the Swiss Confederation, Ms. Micheline Calmy-Rey, marks the launch of the jubilee celebrations and is a new step in our bilateral relations. I hope that these festivities

Celebrating 60 Years of Friendship 1I

CONTENTS

Welcome Note 1Introduction 3

Past Events 5

Culture 6

Economy 11

Education/Science and 13Technology

Politics 13

Swiss Development 14Cooperation

List of programmes in 15Switzerland

a. Projects planned by

The Embassy of Switzerland b. Projects by Pro Helvetia -

Swiss Arts Council

Embassy of SwitzerlandNyaya Marg, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021

Phone: + 91 11 2687 8372, Fax: +91 11 2687 3093; 2611 2220www.eda.admin.ch/newdelhi

Second Edition 2008

WELCOME NOTE

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Switzerland and India are celebrating 60 years on the

signing of the Indo-Swiss Treaty of Friendship, which was signed in 1948.

These projects cover the fields of culture, economy, politics,

This historic moment was the beginning of a series of collaborations, covering a wide spectrum of areas and the achievement of many milestones. To celebrate 60 years of moving forward together, it has been decided to incorporate a variety of projects into the jubilee celebrations, starting January 2008.

science & technology, development and education, and will take place in both Switzerland and India.

The Embassy of Switzerland, New Delhi, along with various other institutions, plans to celebrate this jubilee year in India through various events, programmes and projects. Besides smaller events, a selected number of high profile events will also be presented. These events will address a kaleidoscopic audience, including young students and professionals, business communities, diplomats, intellectuals and artists in key metros in India.

INTRODUCTION

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the celebrations is to primarily provide an excellent platform for discovering new avenues of mutual cooperation, exploring new partnerships, strengthening relationships and enhancing the image of Switzerland in India, apart from commemorating 60 years of the signing of the Friendship Treaty.

ABOUT THE PROGRAMMES

This booklet will provide information on various programmes planned to be a part of the jubilee celebrations. This is, however, not an exhaustive list and is subject to changes.

Celebrating 60 Years of Friendship 3I

Bernese Oberland, traditional flag throwingFor more information on thejubilee celebrations: www.indiaswitzerland.in

Switzerland and India are celebrating 60 years on the signing of the Indo-Swiss Treaty of Friendship, which was signed in 1948.

PAST EVENTS*

Celebrating 60 Years of Friendship 5I

St. Gallen, abbey library baroque room

explores the borders between theatre, music and fine arts and creates performances, which are densely layered.

Portofino - Ballade by Peter Rinderknecht Portofino Ballade is a play with music and puppets for curious people and was staged in India in collaboration with the Ishara International Puppet Festival 2008, New Delhi; Ranga Shankara, Bangalore and Goethe - Zentrum, Hyderabad in January 2008.

was held in India in November 2007.

Symposium on Direct Democracy and Governance

*Not an exhaustive list

Swiss Solar Taxi toured India in November 2007, where the President of the Swiss Confederation Mrs. Micheline Calmy-Rey met with the initiator Mr. Louis Palmer.

Galatea String QuartetThis young quartet draws its name from Galatea, made by Pygmalion, a sculpture from Greek mythology. The quartet was on a tour through 5 cities in India in February 2008.

Delirium by PLASMA The Swiss theatre company PLASMA performed in Delhi and Mumbai in January 2008 as part of Bharat Rang Mahotsav 08, organised by the National School of Drama, New Delhi. PLASMA

A Swiss Flower Clock in the heart of Delhi!

A symbol of the Geneva watch industry, the famous Flower Clock, located at the edge of the Jardin Anglais (English Garden) since 1955, is a masterpiece of technology and floral art. Formerly only decorative with its sole dial comprising over 6,500 flowers, the new millennium provided it with decisive artistic dimensions thanks to the ingenuity of the gardeners of the Service of Green Spaces and the Environment. It is now composed of eight concentric circles, the colours of which vary with the seasons and the plants which make up the display.

Re-discovering tradition…The Swiss Alphorn is a massive instrument carved from solid softwood -with only 16 available notes spread over 5 octaves.The young and stylish Swiss Alphorn

player Eliana Burki and her 3 meter alphorn break all barriers and limitations of the Alphorn to reinterpret its traditional melodies into Jazz. The project being organised by the Embassy of Switzerland in partnership with private sponsors aims to present this Swiss tradition in an innovative way in five cities: Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai & Delhi in October 2008.

CULTURE

Play with Swiss Lights - the Swiss way

Welcome to the space of light and projections in real and virtual dimensions. In her studio the stage and light designer Daniela Zehnder creates visual and transparent spaces of light for stage and outdoor environments. Her artistic use of light, combined with dance and new media, transforms stages, factory halls, discos and historical ruins into spaces of light and colour.

Daniela Zehnder works as a professional scenographer, light designer and as an initiator of intermedia and intercultural projects in Zurich, Banglore and Bangkok. Atelier lightsite has developed a unique approach using light and projections, digital images, abstract structures and coloured projections.

This project is planned for Delhi in October 2008.

Ballet Béjart LausanneDirected by Maurice Béjart, one of the most renowned and leading choreographers of Europe, Ballet Béjart Lausanne is by far one of the most prestigious ballets in the world.

In its Lausanne studios and on the most renowned stages of the world, from the Paris Opéra to the Teatro Colon by way of the Bolshoi, this dance company of 36 dancers affirms each day that classical technique expresses the hopes and questionings of the era.

This famous ballet is planned to perform in Delhi & Mumbai in December 2008.

Gala Event on August 14, 2008A Gala Event is planned at the Embassy of Switzerland, New Delhi. This event will commemorate the signing of the Friendship Treaty between India and Switzerland and will see important dignitaries attend.

www.bejart.ch

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www.geneve-tourisme.ch www.elianeburki.ch

www.lightsite.ch

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www.geneve-tourisme.ch www.elianeburki.ch

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Photo source: Courtesy Mr. Daniel Daeniker, Zurich

Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru, Prime Minister of India and Mr. , Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Switzerland to India in

the year 1948, at the occasion of the signing of the treaty.

Armin Daeniker

PRO HELVETIA - SWISS ARTS COUNCIL

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For more information on the projects: www.prohelvetia.in

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Da Motus!Swiss dance performance company DA MOTUS! will perform 'en vie … en ville' in Chandigarh, Delhi and Jaipur in March 2008. DA MOTUS! was founded in 1987 in Fribourg/ Switzerland by Antonio Bühler and Brigitte Meuwly and has performed at various cultural events in more than 30 countries. + Chandigarh - 23 March, 2008 at

the Sukhna Lake Promenade+ New Delhi - 26 March, 2008 at

Gallery Espace as part of Khoj Live 08+ Jaipur - 29 & 30 March, 2008 at

Amber Village & Gaurav Towers as part of Rajasthan Day Celebrations Jaipur Festival March, 2008

Criss+Cross “ C r i s s + C r o s s : d e s i g n f r o m Switzerland" is a touring exhibition, which highlights the inventiveness

and diversity of Swiss design over the past 150 years.

Varun Narain - Collaborative PerformanceVarun Narain is Pro Helvetia New Delhi's first Artist in Residence to travel to Switzerland in August

2007. Varun's residency enabled him to make contacts with other Swiss puppeteers. Some of them are now keen to travel to India to work with him in another environment.

The exhibition is organised along six themes and has an eclectic selection, from furniture to Freitag bags and helps to show that there is more to Swiss design than watches and army knives.

ECONOMY

+ Participation at "Frames", a Bollywood Event, which will be held in Mumbai from 25 - 29 March, 2008

+ Visit of Federal Councillor, Ms. Doris Leuthard, Head of the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, accompanied by a high level business delegation, from 29 April - 3 May, 2008.

+ Inauguration of the Swiss-Indian Chamber of Commerce in India is on 29 April, 2008.

+ Swiss-India Gala Fashion Show on the occasion of the International Textile Machinery Exhibition in Bangalore in November 2008.

www.sicc.ch

+ Swiss pavilion at the International FoodTech in November 2008.

+ Events organised by the Swiss Business Hub India

+ Release of the book on Swiss-Indian trade and investment relations by the Embassy.

+ Cooperation project in the field of vocational training. The project is an intiative of OPET and the SICC.

www.osec.ch/sbhindia

www.MySwitzerland.com

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EDUCATION/SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

+ Increase in the number of Federal Grants for graduate students to study in Swiss universities.

+ Launch of a school-level student exchange programme. Sanskriti School from New Delhi and Collège of St-Michel, Fribourg in Switzerland are participating in this exchange.

+ In view of the increased scientific co-operation, addition of two Scientific Counsellors:

Hostettler and Mr. Mattia Celio at The Embassy of Switzerland, New Delhi.

+ of a Swiss House for Science, Education, Innovation and Culture in India.

+ Visit of Swiss astronaut Professor Claude Nicollier to India in August 2008.

Ms Silvia

Planning

POLITICS

+ Political symposium in August 2008.

+ Launch of a book on the friendship between India & Switzerland in August 2008.

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ECONOMY (contd.)

Indo-Swiss business and cultural relations

The Swiss-Indian Chamber of Commerce (SICC) is organizing a flagship event on Indo-Swiss business and cultural relations, which will be held at the Rietberg Museum, Zurich in autumn 2008. H.E. Kamal Nath, Minister of Commerce and Trade of India and H.E. Doris Leuthard, FederalCouncillor of Switzerland, will be invited as guests of honor.

Friendship Cookbook

The Swiss-Indian Chamber of Commerce (SICC) is creating a friendship recipe book, Chapatis and Cheese, that combines Swiss and Indian cuisine in recipes embodying the harmonious interplay of two

For more information, contact dorit.sallis@sicc.ch or visit www.sicc.ch

cultures. The book will appear in 2008.

For more information contactdorit.sallis@sicc.ch

SWITZERLAND TOURISM

+ Cooperation with partners in India.

www.MySwitzerland.com

of the Guptara Twin’s best seller novel. (23 April 2008 / Literaturhaus, Zurich)

The Sitar Queen of India: Concert by Anoushka Shankar on 6 June 2008 at the KKL in Lucerne.

+ Gruezi India: Indian Summer Festival 2008 in Zurich. (22 - 24 Aug 2008 / Zurich)

+ Indo-Swiss Joint Research Programme (ISJRP): initiate new partnerships and continue successful collaborative activities. (1 Jan - 31 Dec 2011)

+

+ 'Rama and Sita': An Exhibition of Indian paintings on Ramayana. (29 June - 28 Sept 2008 / Museum Rietberg, Zurich)

+ 'Picturesque Views': An Exhibition on early photography in India. (29 June 2008 - 26 Oct 2008 / Museum Rietberg, Zurich)

*Not an exhaustive list

+ Postgraduate course in Technology & Sustainable Development: A regular programme of EPFL and IIT, Chennai. (2 Jan - 22 April 2008)

+ Walk the line: Exhibition of 7

+

+ Indian Ball 2008 : Annual ball of the Indian Association Zurich (IAZ). (5 April 2008 / Kongresshaus, Zurich)

+

+

Indian artists defining the architectural creations around them. (28 Feb - 20 Mar 2008 / Gallery Avanthay Contemporary, Zurich)

Public event with FC Micheline Calmy-Rey and the book author Richard Gerster. (31 March 2008 / Kaufleuten, Zurich)

Bollywood – The Show: The world’s most successful bollywood stage production. (22 April - 5 May 2008 / Maag Music Hall, Zurich)

Conspiracy of Calaspia: Launch of the German-language edition

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SWISS DEVELOPMENT COOPERATION

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TERI Delhi Sustainable Development Summit

Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) was one of the main sponsors of the conference that took place from 7-9 February, 2008. The major theme of the event was “climate change”.

To complement the year's theme, SDC organised a special event on “Energy, Adaptation and Climate Change” (EACC).

Publication on 50 Years of Development Cooperation Switzerland - India

activities and achievements of Swiss and Indian development organisations working in various fields such as rural finance and employment, energy efficiency, and sustainable governance.

The development economist Richard Gerster authored a book on 50 Years of Development Cooperation Switzerland – India. This book focuses on the

Being published in German, French and English, it is released in March 2008.

www.sdcindia.in

PROGRAMMES IN SWITZERLAND*

For more information about Switzerland, visit the official portal of Switzerland:www.swissworld.org

Discover: The Sitar Queen of India

Anoushka Shankar, the internationally acclaimed Queen of the Sitar, is coming to Switzerland again! “Entrancingly virtuosic” and “congenially humble” were some of the comments on her first concert in Zurich in May 2007. Anoushka Shankar, half-sister of Norah Jones and daughter of Indian Sitar maestro Ravi Shankar, incorporates talent, respect for traditions and curiosity for new possibilities. Her music experiments with classical Indian music, Raga, Flamenco and electronic music - an extraordinary mix presented in a fresh way. Anoushka Shankar and her band play at the Culture and Convention Centre in Lucerne (KKL Luzern) on 6 June 2008.

PROGRAMMES IN SWITZERLAND (contd.)

Rama and Sita: The Ramayana in Indian Painting (29 June - 28 Sept 2008)

The Ramayana represents one of the masterpieces of Sanskrit literature which exercised decisive influence on Indian and Southeast Asian cultures. The 80 paintings on the story of Rama and his wife Sita, offer insights into the various styles at the Mughal court, in Rajasthan and the Pahari region. The epic is brought to life and made tangible for the visitors.

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