Engaging the younger generation was vital in the fight to protect India’s multi-religious culture, a Jesuit-organized seminar in Bangalore has been told.

India’s secular character is a product of “reconciliation, co-operation and co-existence” but it is under threat from the “resurgence of various forces of religious identity and religious fundamentalism,” the Jesuit-run Indian Social Institute (ISI) in Bangalore says.

Keynote speaker, historian K.N. Panikkar, said that riots in the name of religion were perpetrated by people for commercial and political interests. Only “continuous, uninterrupted social work by groups can create counter-consciousness,” he said.

Action plans recommended include promoting value-based education in schools and dialogue with like-minded people to counter religious violence.

Other participants said it was essential to promote self-help groups involving people of all religions. Peace committees of people from all castes and tribes were also recommended by the participants.

Some 100 people from across India attended the four-day seminar which ended on Sunday [Feb. 28].

They included young people, social activists, intellectuals and academics.

Some recommended the creation of peace camps in villages and training in counseling, social analysis and conflict resolution for young people.

The seminar aimed to provide a forum “to critique and deepen” people’s understanding of present India, said Jesuit Father M.K. George, the ISI director in Bangalore.

Source: Stopping violence starts with the young’(UCAN)

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