David Sassoon Library, Mumbai, India.

The David Sassoon Library, completed in 1870, is in Mumbai, India. The Iraqi Jewish philanthropist David Sassoon donated almost half of the construction costs. His gift made it possible to expand what had been, since 1847, a Mechanics’ Institution to educate European workers at the Indian Government Mint and dockyard in Mumbai. The David Sassoon Library and Reading Room has been listed as a Grade heritage structure because it is old and much-loved. The building’s architectural style is known as Venetian Gothic, referring to an appearance that combines Gothic, Byzantine, and Moorish architectural elements. Located in the center of the city’s business district , the library still attracts many readers, including workers who wish to educate themselves. In 1996, a partial restoration of the library began, which continues. Although born in Iraq, David Sassoon moved to Mumbai’s when his country’s ruler began to violently persecute the Jewish population. Among other buildings paid for by Sassoon were synagogues in Mumbai and Pune, India. He also built convalescent homes, high schools, hospitals, and a school for the deaf, all to help the quality of life of his fellow Indians.

Thailand and India

As all Thai language speakers know, many words originate in Sanskrit, the classical language of India. More words in Thai language come from Pali, sacred language of Theravada Buddhism in which much of the earliest surviving literature of Buddhism is written. As all Buddhists know, the religion itself came from India. The Ramakien (Glory of Rama), Thailand’s national epic, derives from The Ramayana, the Sanskrit epic poem. Following up on these cultural associations, in 2013 a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Indian Council for Cultural Relations and Thammasat University. This agreement established the ICCR Hindi Chair of Indian Studies (Hindi Language). The Rector of Thammasat University, Professor Dr. Somkit Lertpaithoon, signed the agreement as well as His Excellency Anil Wadhwa, then-Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Thailand. One result is the Indian Studies Program of Pridi Banomyong International College, welcoming Indian ajarns and encouraging Thai undergraduates to study in India for at least one semester. The Thammasat University Libraries offer a wide range of books and other items about Indian literature and culture. Such acclaimed authors as R. K. Narayan, Amitav Ghosh, Dom Moraes, and many others are represented.

International ties.

In 1947, diplomatic relations between India and Thailand were established, not long after India gained independence from the United Kingdom. Along the Andaman Sea, Thailand shares a border with India’s Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In 1996, Thailand launched a Look West policy that complemented the Look East policy announced by India in 1993. Thailand and India subsequently cooperated in the ASEAN Regional Forum, and the East Asia Summit, the sub-regional grouping BIMSTEC involving Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan, and trilateral transport links with Thailand, Myanmar and India. Thailand’s Asia Cooperation Dialogue, established in 2002, includes India, as does the six country group, the Mekong–Ganga Cooperation. There is a Thai embassy in New Delhi and consulates in Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai; India’s embassy in Bangkok is supplemented by a consulate in Chiang Mai. Both countries are looking forward to an Indo Thai Free Trade Agreement and pursuing Infrastructure development corridors on the lines of India-Myanmar-Thailand highway project. This extensive construction is scheduled to be finished by next year. As a 2013 editorial in The Nation observed:

India has now singled out Thailand as a top strategic asset, ahead of Singapore…India has shown keen interest to invest in the Dawei Deep Seaport and its Special Economic Zone since it was conceived in 2003. But Thailand ignored India altogether for a long time, despite repeated overtures from the Indian government and private sector. The stumbling block was removed last week when Thailand officially invited India for the first time to invest in the money-starved mega-project. Now, the country can truly be a gateway for India and West Asia. Quite a few Indian companies, according to Indian Ambassador Anil Wadhwa, including Essar Group, have the capital and technical know-how to invest and participate in the deep seaport development…Soon both countries have to sit together and identify deliverable projects linking India, Myanmar, Thailand and the rest of Asean. India has invited Thailand for a road show on its soil and urged potential Thai investors to join in the trilateral highway project to produce “seamless” connectivity between the three countries. The project is also part and parcel of a broader connectivity project.

The editorialist also suggested that in future:

New Delhi can quickly free its stringent visa regime for Thai passport holders to increase tourism. Last year, more than 1.2 million Indians visited Thailand while only 120,000 Thais visited there. Indians can get visas on arrival at the point of entry in the country but Thais could not while Filipinos, Laotians, Vietnamese and Cambodians enjoy the privilege. The combined tourists from these countries visiting India were only one-fifth of the Thai visitors. Apart from tourists, many Thai students continue to choose India for overseas education with nearly 10,000 students studying there, including in elementary schools. With Thammasat University offering a BA course in Indian Studies this year, the first of its kind, interest in India among Thai students will certainly increase.

The informative website of the Indian Embassy in Thailand estimates that

around 200,000 people of Indian origin in Thailand. Many of them have lived here for several generations over the past century. Majority of them hold Thai nationality. The Indian community mainly comprises Sikhs, Punjabis, Gorakhpuris, Tamils and Sindhis.

His Excellency Mr. Harsh Vardhan Shringla is Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Thailand. Last year, in a speech while on an official visit to Phuket, Ambassador Shringla said:

At a personal level, this is my first visit to this part of Thailand. I can now safely pronounce that Phuket has more than fully lived up to its global reputation for extraordinary natural beauty and the warm hospitality of its people…India and Thailand are maritime neighbors with historical, cultural and spiritual ties which date back to thousands of years. As the birth place of Lord Buddha, India has a special place in the hearts of the people of Thailand. Thailand, the land of smiles, also has a special place in the hearts of the Indian people. This is evident from the one million Indian tourists who visit Thailand every year, many of whom come to your beautiful city. In recent years, we have seen relations between India and Thailand grow from strength to strength. Connectivity, capacity building, cooperation in space technology, agriculture, energy, environment and biodiversity are some of the areas in which we are working together. Our bilateral trade, currently at US $ 9 billion, is set to get a further boost with the signing of a Free Trade Agreement under negotiation between our two countries… As I had mentioned earlier, trade between our two countries is set to cross the US$10 billion mark. Most of this trade takes place through the maritime route. The free flow of goods is facilitated by the professionalism and vigilance of the Indian Navy and the Royal Thai Navy and the team work between them. The Coordinated Patrolling carried out by two of the most advanced and modern navies of the region have not only enhanced mutual confidence levels but have also led to effective implementation of the Law of the Seas to prevent illegal activities. With both India and Thailand sitting astride one of the most important international maritime shipping lanes, the responsibility to safeguard these sea lines of communication is only likely to increase in the future. I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the achievements of the Indian community in Thailand, which has served as a bridge between our two countries. Their success is the result of hard work, diligence and enterprise. Indian communities, wherever they are, have always contributed to the societies they live in, and the community in Phuket is no exception. I encourage them to continue to play a role in strengthening links between the country of their origin and the country of their residence.

Also last year, at the commemoration of the 8th International Day of Nonviolence in Bangkok, Ambassador Shringla stated:

No matter how fast paced and technologically advanced our lives have become since Mahatma Gandhi’s times, I do believe that the essence of Mahatma Gandhi’s truth has not changed, because human nature itself has not changed. The ideals of truth, non-violence, peace, amity, brotherhood and cooperation remain as valid today as they did a century ago in 1914 when Gandhiji returned to India after 21 formative years in South Africa.  A philosophy that could mobilize the complete commitment of millions of people to pursue a just cause without any recourse to violence or conflict.  At the heart of Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy of nonviolence, was his belief that strength comes from righteousness, not force; power comes from truth, not might; and that victory comes from moral courage not imposed submission. He held that means and ends are inseparable, and that in fact the means themselves shape the ends. He believed unworthy means can never produce worthy ends.

(all images courtesy of the David Sassoon Library)