MACIC Celebrates ICCR Foundation Day

The Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture (MACIC) celebrated at its premises the anniversary of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) Foundation Day.

At the event, attendees were guided on the MACIC's activities and on how to obtain scholarships in India. Nader Mostafa, Sayed Mekkawy and Manal Mostafa spoke about their enjoyable study experience in India.

Afterward, guests relished the Indian traditional dances performed by Chehak Dass, Jigyasa Dass, Sakshi Malhan, and Rashmi Sheoran.

[caption id="attachment_45120" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Chehak Dass, Jigyasa Dass, Sakshi Malhan, Rashmi Sheoran[/caption]

Also, Ibrahim Mahmoud, Mennat Allah Hesham, Yosra Ibrahim, Sarah Aziz, and Aya Aziz presented a yoga show.

[caption id="attachment_45122" align="aligncenter" width="500"] The event included a yoga show [/caption]

The gathering was concluded with the visitors enjoying traditional Indian food.

ICCR's and MACIC's establishment and their activities

ICCR was founded on the 9th of April 1950 by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, independent India's first Education Minister. Later,  the MACIC was established in Cairo on the 14th of January 1992, under the aegis of the ICCR.

[caption id="attachment_45121" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Maulana Abul Kalam Azad[/caption]

Various are the entertaining programmes offered by the MACIC in Cairo, including courses in the two major Indian languages Hindi and Urdu, yoga and wellness, Indian dance forms, India by the Nile Festival, Glimpses of India competition, outreach programs and roundtables, academic seminars, and screening of Indian films.

The Hindi and Urdu courses present four level courses for both languages, each course is of a six-month period.

[caption id="attachment_45119" align="aligncenter" width="500"] MACIC offers courses in the two major Indian languages [/caption]

About 500 students join every year the yoga courses, that are pided into three levels (for beginners, intermediate, and advanced).

India by the Nile, also called Festival of Indian Visual and Performing Arts in Egypt, is known as the biggest foreign cultural festival.

Glimpses of India is an annual painting competition for Egyptian school children. Last year, 13,000 students from 1800 schools participated.

Worth noting is that ICCR makes available scholarships at several universities and institutes in India. Many Egyptian students have availed these scholarships.