Vadnagar International Conference

Vadnagar International Conference for

Promoting Archaeological Heritage & Culture

18th to 20th May, 2022 Gandhinagar, Gujarat

Agenda

About Vadnagar

Conference Overview

Session and Speakers

Conference Highlights

Avenues for Collaboration

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About Vadnagar

Vadnagar is an ancient town located in Mehsana district with history of

continuous human settlement starting from 4th – 3rd Century BCE.

Vadnagar was a major trade point, land port of Gujarat and an important

Buddhist learning centre in western India, was visited by Xuanzang in 641 CE.

The town is known for it pluralistic culture and heritage along with significant

architectural and historical monuments such as Kirti Toran, Hatkeshwar

Mahadev Temple etc.

Vadnagar has been an active site for archaeological excavations for last 70

years, with findings of historical importance.

Through archaeological excavations and historical sources, we have found

evidence of sustainable water conservation practices

Conference Overview

Proposed Date

18th to 20th May 2022

Venue

Mahatma Mandir, Gandhinagar

Accommodation for Speakers

The Leela, Gandhinagar

Knowledge Partners

IIT Gandhinagar

Anant National University CEPT University

In partnership with

University Partners

Knowledge Partners

Session and Speakers

Speakers & Participants

Speakers From

25Total Speakers

17Indian Speakers

08Foreign Speakers

AUSTRALIA | ENGLAND | FRANCE | GREECE | INDIA | JAPAN | SRI LANKA

2500+ Participants

The conference will attract more than 2500 participants across the conference

including academicians, scholars, international delegates, subject experts and

students.

6 SessionsThere are six different sessions organized during the conference covering History,

Culture and Archaeological Heritage of Vadnagar along with Global Perspectives.

Delegates & Keynotes Speakers

Inaugural Session

• Hon’ble Prime Minister of India (Subject to Approval)

• Hon’ble Minister of Culture, Govt. of India

• Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat

• Hon’ble Minister, Sports Youth & Cultural Activities, Govt. of Gujarat

Other Prominent Speakers

UNESCO Representative to Bhutan, India, Maldives and

Sri LankaMr. Eric Falt Opening Remarks

UNESCO Chair on Inclusive Museums and Sustainable

Heritage DevelopmentDr. Amareswar Galla Welcome Address

Visiting Professor, Humanities and Social Sciences- IIT

GandhinagarProf. Michel Danino Session Moderator

Dr. Nick Merriman Prof. Robin Coningham Dr. Ken Ishikawa

Prof. Sara Ahmed Dr. Krishan Pal Singh + 17 more

Former Professor and Vice-Chancellor at the Deccan College,

Post Graduate and Research InstituteProf. Vasant Shinde Conference Rapporteur

Timeline

Day 1: 18th May 2022

Wednesday


Thursday


Friday

10:00 AM 12:00 PM 3:00 PM 6:00 PM 9:00 PM

Session 3 Session 4 Session 5 BreakNetworking

Dinner

Cultural Programme Other Activities / Lunch / Tea / Student Presentation / Felicitation

Inaugural

SessionSession 1 Session 2

Day ends at 5:30 PM

Session 6 Site visit to Vadnagar(Starts at 3:30 PM)

Dinner &

Cultural night

Concl.

SessionBreak

Session 1

Archaeological Discoveries and Interpretation

Session 1

Archaeological Discoveries and Interpretation1

Conference Sessions

The conference structure has been worked with more emphasis on the research work that has been carried out on

Vadnagar. The following below themes has been proposed for the International Conference

Conference Sessions

Session 3

Traditional Water Management Practices at Vadnagar and Gujarat3

Session 2

History, Heritage and Cultural Landscape of Vadnagar2

Session 6

Global perspectives on Archaeological Museums and Heritage Conservation6

Session 5

Gujarat and the World (Maritime and Cultural Exchange)5Session 4

Buddhist Heritage of Gujarat4

Session 1

SESSION

1 Archaeological Discoveries and Interpretation

Wednesday, 18th May 2022Day 1

2 hrs 30 mins | 12:00 to 15:20 hrsmSession Time

06No. of Speakers

Shri Y. S. Rawat Vadnagar: A Saga of 2500 years of uninterrupted Civilization

Dr. Arati D. MukherjeeTracing the origins, growth and development of the shell Bangle industry at

Vadnagar

Dr. Pankaj Goyal Observations on the Faunal Remains excavated from the site of Vadnagar, Gujarat

Dr. Rajesh Agnihotri Botanical studies and Agricultural practices at Vadnagar

Dr. Siddharth PrizomwalaFirst archaeoseismic evidence of a palaeo-earthquake from Vadnagar, Mainland

Gujarat

Dr. Abhijeet Ambekar Archaeological Excavations at Vadnagar – recent findings

SESSION

2 History, Heritage and Cultural Landscape of Vadnagar

Wednesday, 18th May 2022Day 1

1hr 30 mins | 15:20 to 16:50 hrsSession Time

03No. of Speakers

Session 2

Dr. Susan Verma Mishra Vadnagar: A Strategically Located Buddhist site and its Multiple Facets

Dr. Ramesh Atmaram OzaVadnagar in Ancient texts and literature

Dr. Margi Hathi Nagar community of Vadnagar and their contribution

SESSION

3 Traditional Water Management Practices at Vadnagar and Gujarat

Thursday, 19th May 2022Day 2


03No. of Speakers

Session 3

Dr. Navin Juyal Hydrological characteristics of the northern alluvial plain rivers in Gujarat

Dr. Krishan Pal SinghAncient Water Structures and Lakes at Vadnagar

Prof. Sara Ahmed Visualising Water Heritage – Living Water Museum

SESSION

4 Buddhist Heritage of GujaratThursday, 19th May 2022Day 2


06No. of Speakers

Session 4

Shri Y. S. RawatBuddhist remains at Vadnagar, Taranga Hill and Interpretation of travel records of

Xuanzang

Prof. Shrikant GanvirThe Emergence and Development of Buddhism in Gujarat: Textual and

Archaeological Sources

Dr. Ken IshikawaSignificance of Hindu, Buddhist and Jain archaeological remains in North Gujarat

and special focus on Vadnagar findings

Prof. V.H. SonawaneArchaeology of Rock Paintings Depicting Stupas in Gujarat in the backdrop of

Buddhist remains at Devnimori and Vadnagar

Prof. Robin Coningham

Prof. K Krishnan

Archaeology, Geophysics and Cultural Heritage Management of Sites of Buddhist

Pilgrimage within South Asia

Session 5

SESSION

5Gujarat and the World

(Maritime and Cultural Exchange)

Thursday, 19th May 2022Day 2

1hr 30 mins | 15:30 to 17:00 hrsTime

03No. of Speakers

Prof. Himanshu Prabha Ray Vadnagar and its Sailing Networks: Maritime links and Communities

Prof. Alok Kumar Kanungo Early Historic to Ethnography Beads from Gujarat: A case study at Vadnagar

SESSION

6 Global Perspectives on Development of Archaeological Museums

Friday, 20th May 2022Day 3

2hrs 10 Mins | 10:00 to 12:00 hrsTime

05No. of Speakers

Session 6

Dr. Nick Merriman An International Overview of Archaeological Site and Museum Interpretation

Mr. Ratish Nanda Recreating & Promoting Heritage Conservations and Archaeological Interpretation

Shri Tapan BhattacharyaConservation Approaches to excavated brick Structures and Architecture in

Archaeological Contexts

Ms. Anusha Kasthuri Arachchilage Role of Technology in the investigation, interpretation, presentation of artifacts

Prof. Ioannis PouliosLiving heritage, Tourism and Sustainable Development, Business strategies for

heritage organizations, Designing visitor experiences


Poster Presentation by Students/ Scholars

Display of Students works/Research on the subject related field

MoU with Universities

For historical research and condition assessment of monuments

Coffee Table Book

To publish a Coffee Table book on Vadnagar Archaeological Heritage and Culture

Archaeological Exhibition

To display the artifacts discovered from the excavation of the Vadnagar site. State and ASI to be involved

Vadnagar Charter on Heritage Tourism

The "Charter” will be a standard setting instrument and framework for the identification of tangible heritage

Conference Compendium

Abstract received from the speakers will

be reviewed and published in the form of

Compendium


During the Conference

Post Conference

Active Participation of Universities

We seek the active participation of various universities in presenting their work on Vadnagar and other relevant aspects pertaining to Gujarat through its students and researchers. A separate session has been planned for the student/researcher poster presentations

Knowledge Sharing

We also invite relevant faculty members working on the themes of the conference to grace the event and be apart of this unique platform of knowledge sharing and dissemination

Multi Disciplinary Research

We invite various universities for collaborating in carrying out multi disciplinary research on Vadnagar and other historically significant archaeological sites though its students, faculty and academicians.

Documentation and Creating Database

Along with research we also would wish to collaborate to support in the documentation and creation of suitable database of Archaeological heritage sites including their condition assessment

Minute to Minute

Detailed Schedule | Day 1: 18th May 2022

Inaugural Session

9:50 AM 10:00 AM 0:10 Arrival of Dignitaries at Mahatma Mandir ,Gandhinagar

10:00 AM 10:02 AM 0:02 Lighting of the Lamp

10:02 AM 10:04 AM 0:02 Felicitation of dignitaries on the dais

10:04 AM 10:14 AM 0:10Introductory remarks by UNESCO Representative to Bhutan,

India, Maldives and Sri Lanka

Mr. Eric Falt

(UNESCO)

10:14 AM 10:17 AM 0:03Welcome Address by Shri Govind Mohan, IAS, Hon’ble

Secretary (Culture), Govt. of India

10:17 AM 10:22 AM 0:05 Speech by Hon’ble Minister (Culture), Govt. of India

10:22 AM 10:32 AM 0:10 Inaugural Speech by Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat

10:32 AM 10:42 AM 0:10 Keynote address by VIP/VVIP Guest 1

10:42 AM 10:57 AM 0:15 Keynote address by VIP/VVIP Guest 2

10:57 AM 11:00 AM 0:10 Buffer Time

11:00 AM 11:30 AM 0:30 Tea Break

Time Duration Activities / Session Speaker


11:30 AM 11:50 AM 0:20Keynote Speech by UNESCO Chair on Inclusive Museums &

Sustainable Heritage DevelopmentProf. Amareswar Galla

12:00 PM to 3:10 PM 3:10Session 1: Archaeological Discoveries and

Interpretation at Vadnagar6 Speakers

12:00 PM 12:20 PM 0:20Archaeological excavations at Vadnagar: A Saga of 2500

years of uninterrupted CivilizationShri Y. S. Rawat

12:20 PM 12:40 PM 0:20 Archaeological Excavations at Vadnagar – recent findings Dr. Abhijeet Ambekar

12:40 PM 1:00 PM 0:20Tracing the origins, growth and development of the shell

Bangle industry at Vadnagar

Dr. Arati Deshpande

Mukherjee

1:00 PM 1:20 PM 0:20Observations on the Faunal Remains excavated from the site

of Vadnagar, GujaratDr. Pankaj Goyal

1:20 PM 1:40 PM 0:20Botanical studies and Agricultural practices at Vadnagar

through usage of Radiocarbon datingDr. Rajesh Agnihotri

1:40 PM 2:30 PM 50 Lunch

2:30 PM 2:50 PM 0:20First archaeoseismic evidence of a palaeo-earthquake from

Vadnagar, Mainland Gujarat

Dr.Siddharth

Prizomwala

2:50 PM 3:20 PM 0:30 Panel discussion and Q&A on Session 1 Panel Discussion



3:20 PM to 4:30 PM 1:30Session 2: History, Heritage and Cultural Landscape of

Vadnagar3 Speakers

3:20 PM 3:40 PM 0:20Vadnagar: A Strategically Located Buddhist site and its Multiple

Facets

Dr. Susan Verma

Mishra

3:40 PM 4:00 PM 0:20 Nagar community of Vadnagar and their contribution Prof. Margi Hathi

4:00 PM 4:20 PM 0:20 Vadnagar in Ancient texts and literatureDr. Ramesh Atmaram

Ojha


4:50 PM 5:10 PM 0:20 Tea Break

5:10 PM 5:30 PM 0:35 Poster Exhibition by Students Students





9:45 AM 10:00 AM 0:15 brief about the day's schedule & activities

10:00 AM to 12:10

PM2:10

Session 3: Traditional Water Management practices at

Vadnagar and Gujarat4 Speakers

10:00 AM 10:20 AM 0:20Hydrological characteristics of the northern alluvial plain rivers in

GujaratDr. Navin Juyal

10:20 AM 10:40 AM 0:20 Ancient Water Structures and Lakes at Vadnagar Dr. Krishan Pal Singh

10:40 AM 11:00 AM 0:20 Visualising Water Heritage – Living Water Museum Prof. Sara Ahmed

11:00 AM 11:30 AM 0:30 Panel discussion and Q&A on Session 3 Panel Discussion

11:30 AM 12:00 PM 0:30 Tea Break



12:10 PM to 3:30 PM 3:20 Session 4: Buddhist heritage of Gujarat 6 Speakers

12:10 PM 12:30 PM 0:20Buddhist remains at Vadnagar, Taranga Hill and Interpretation

of travel records of XuanzangShri Y. S. Rawat

12:30 PM 12:50 PM 0:20The Emergence and Development of Buddhism in Gujarat:

Textual and Archaeological Sources Prof. Shrikant Ganvir

12:50 PM 1:10 PM 0:20Significance of Hindu, Buddhist and Jain Archaeological

remains in North Gujarat and special focus on Vadnagar Dr. Ken Ishikawa

1:10 PM 1:30 PM 0:20Archaeology of Rock Paintings Depicting Stupas in Gujarat in

the backdrop of Buddhist remains at Devnimori and VadnagarProf. V.H. Sonawane

1:30 PM 2:30 PM 1:00 Lunch

2:30 PM 3:00 PM 0:30Archaeology, Geophysics and Cultural Heritage Management of

Sites of Buddhist Pilgrimage within South Asia

Prof. Robin Coningham

Prof. K Krishnan


3:30 PM 3:40 PM 0:10 Break



3:40 PM to 5:00 PM 1:20Session 5: Gujarat and the World (Maritime and Cultural

Exchange)4 Speakers

3:40 PM 4:00 PM 3:40 PMVadnagar and its Sailing Networks: Maritime links and

Communities

Prof. Himanshu Prabha

Ray

4:00 PM 4:20 PM 4:00 PMEarly Historic to Ethnography Beads from Gujarat: A case

study at VadnagarProf. Alok Kumar Kanungo

4:20 PM 4:40 PM 4:20 PM

4:40 PM 5:00 PM 4:40 PM Panel discussion and Q&A on Session 5 Panel Discussion


5:15 PM 5:45 PM 0:30 Poster Exhibition by Students

5:45 PM 7:30 PM 1:45 Break

7:30 PM 9:30 PM 2:00 Cultural Programme and Dinner




9:35 AM 9:45 AM 0:10 brief about the day's schedule & activities

9:45 AM to 11:40 PM 1:55Session 6: Global perspectives on development of

Archaeological Museums7 Speakers

9:45 AM 10:05 AM 0:20 An International Overview of Archaeological Site and Museum

InterpretationDr. Nick Merriman

10:05 AM 10:25 AM 0:20 Conservation Approaches to excavated brick Structures and

Architecture in Archaeological Contexts

Shri Tapan

Bhattacharya

10:25 AM 10:45 AM 0:20Recreating & Promoting Heritage Conservations and

Archaeological InterpretationMr. Ratish Nanda

10:45 AM 11:00 AM 0:15 Tea Break

11:00 AM 11:20 AM 0:20

Living heritage, Tourism and Sustainable Development,

Business strategies for heritage organizations, Designing

visitor experiences

Prof. Ioannis Poulios

11:40 AM 12:00 PM 0:20 Summary session by Prof. Vasant Shinde Prof. Vasant Shinde

12:00 PM 12:45 PM 0:45Plenary Session on Key Strategies for development of

Vadnagar as International destination



12:45 PM 1:15 PM 0:30 MoU signing with University/Institutes

1:15 PM 1:30 PM 0:15Felicitation of Speakers, Dignitaries and Student participants and

Concluding Ceremony

1:30 PM 2:30 PM 1:15 Lunch

2:30 PM 3:30 PM 1:00 Break

3:30 PM 3:40 PM 0:10 Prepare towards heading to Vadnagar

3:40 PM 5:00 PM 1:20 Travel from Gandhinagar to Vadnagar


5:30 PM 7:00 PM 1:30Visit to Vadnagar excavation site (also Kirti Toran, Hatkeshwar

Temple, Buddhist Stupas and other attractions)

7:00 PM 7:15 PM 0:15 Travel from site to Tana Riri/Toran Hotel

7:15 PM 8:45 PM 1:30 Cultural Performance and Dinner arrangements at Vadnagar

8:45 PM 10:15 PM 1:30 Travel from Vadnagar to Gandhinagar

Directorate of Archaeology and Museums

Sports, Youth and Culture Activities Department, Government of Gujarat

THANK YOU

Vadnagar International Conference

Documents

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