Culture Connect

Students aged between 14 and 19 years from across the country will come together in Pune for the upcoming National Integration Camp

The bonfire crackles merrily,casting a warm orange glow on hundreds of students sitting around it. There are Gujaratis,Maharashtrians,Keralites,Rajasthanis and others from just about every state in the country. Here though,no one remembers these divisions. They all sit as one ,around the fire; just as the members of the Nehru Bal Sangh (NBS) dreamt when they began the National Integration Camp in 1968.

Since then,the camp has been hosted annually,in a different city each year Delhi,Srinagar,Chandigarh,Bangalore and Sikkim. This year,its Pune. The original motive behind organising these camps was to promote and strengthen the feeling of national integration,secularism and patriotism among children and youth of the country. Students aged between 14 and 19 come together from diverse cultures and economic backgrounds to camp together for 8 to 10 days to experience the joy of living,sharing and working together with other young delegates. It helps you to develop your confidence and personality,and to connect with the Indian cultural roots within. For me,it helped look at the country from a different perspective, says Anirodha Mishra,a student at Tilak Maharashtra Vidyapeeth Law College.

Around 450 to 500 students are expected to turn up for the Pune edition between December 25 to January 5. About 20-25 students will represent Maharashtra at the camp. Different events will be organised at the camp,such as a debate competition,Know thy Country,an event in which the students will perform dance forms of various cultures. While there will be food stalls at the venue,the students will also prepare meals in batches,according to the region they hail from.

Each student will be picked and sorted according to their talents,say organisers,and each student will be placed along with peers from a different region or a different talent so that they are exposed to new ideas and fresh thoughts. Karan Jain,a student at Ness Wadia College of Commerce says,I am learning 3D filmmaking and animation. When I hear about rape,sexual abuse and harassment,the Indian within me is disturbed. I would like to spread my mission and hopefully get appreciated by creating short documentaries.

While Mishra is a regular at the camp,there are others who have heard camp stories from their

parents and are the second generation to participate in it. I am looking forward to this camp because my father and relatives have been a part of it in their younger days. I have heard so many stories about the camp from them and by attending I would learn how it changes one’s personality and point of view, says Rashmeen Wasu,studying at Symbiosis School of Economics,Pune. Samiya Hamdule,of Dastur Junior College,says,My mom had shared her experience with me. She used to say that just as the camp shaped her personality it will shape mine too.

Looking forward to the camp,Saloni Shah of Ness Wadia of Commerce,Pune,had an experience that only strengthened her resolve. I visited a school to invite them for the talent auditions and the principal mentioned that she was a part of NBS in 1999 camp,at Kerala and she also was thrilled to see me at their school and was very happy to be invited toit. She shared her memories of the camp and it was such a wonderful experience for me. She motivated me to join NBS camp.

Neha Basudkar

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