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What is Project Mausam?
India’s recent maritime initiatives Project ‘Mausam’ and ‘Sagarmala’ - have generated some discussion about a supposed Indian counter-strategy to China’s Maritime Silk Road in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). While the inherent logic of such claims is based on reasonable assumptions, the truth apparently is more complex.
India’s recent maritime initiatives Project ‘Mausam’ and ‘Sagarmala’ - have generated some discussion about a supposed Indian counter-strategy to China’s Maritime Silk Road in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). While the inherent logic of such claims is based on reasonable assumptions, the truth apparently is more complex.
Project Mausam is essentially a Ministry of Culture project concerning the creation of cultural links with India’s maritime neighbours. Pursued in concert with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), the project’s objective is two-fold: at the macro level to re-connect with the countries of the IOR with the aim of enhancing the understanding of cultural values and concerns; and, at a more localised level, to enable an understanding of national cultures in a regional maritime milieu, according to IDSA.
Project ‘Mausam’ is the initiative of Ministry of Culture which is to be implemented by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) as the nodal agency with research support of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) and National Museum as associate bodies.
This project aims to explore the multi-faceted Indian Ocean ‘world’ collating archaeological and historical research in order to document the diversity of cultural, commercial and religious interactions in the Indian Ocean extending from East Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, the Indian Subcontinent and Sri Lanka to the Southeast Asian archipelago.
It also aims to promote research on themes related to the study of Maritime Routes through international scientific seminars and meeting and by adopting a multidisciplinary approach. It aims to encourage the production of specialized works, as well as publications for the general public with an attempt at promoting a broader understanding of the concept of a common heritage and multiple identities.
Project ‘Mausam’ is not aimed to counter China’s Silk Route strategy. Instead it focuses on monsoon patterns, cultural context, maritime trade routes and coastal landscapes and examines key processes and phenomena that link different countries along the Indian Ocean littoral as well as those that connect the coastal centers to their hinterlands. Project ‘Mausam’ was launched in the 38th Session of World Heritage Committee meeting which was held at Doha in June, 2014.
