Indian Council for Cultural Relations

A national agency promoting Indian heritage and contemporary culture abroad, The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) runs 20 Cultural Centres worldwide. The Centres organise outreach programmes including panel discussions, lectures, exhibitions, essay competitions, performances, screenings, and language learning courses. Apart from this, the ICCR grants scholar and fellowships to international students wishing to study in India. The Cultural Centres can be accessed through this very resourceful site.

The ICCR was founded in 1950 by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, independent India’s first Education Minister. Its objectives are to actively participate in the formulation and implementation of policies and programmes pertaining to India’s external cultural relations, to foster and strengthen cultural relations and mutual understanding between India and other countries, and to promote cultural exchanges with other countries and people.

In addition, over the years, the Council has published books on a wide range of subjects, ranging from the arts to philosophy, diplomacy, language and literature. Works of eminent Indian people of letters, statesmen and philosophers like Mahatma Gandhi, Maulana Azad, Nehru and Tagore, among others, hold pride of place in ICCR’s Publication Programme. The Programme is focused particularly on books relating to Indian Culture, Philosophy and Mythology, Music, Dance, Theatre and includes translations of Sanskrit classics in a number of languages including French, Spanish, Arabic, Russian and English.

The Council has facilitated the translations of seminal World Literature into Hindi, English and other Indian languages.