At a time when geopolitics is all around conflicts and war, particularly due to the Russia-Unkraine and Insrale-Palestine conflict, and the world peace seems to be unstable, students in India and Pakistan joined each other and created a peace calendar (April 2024 to March 2025) to send message for world peace. This calendar is released in New Delhi by eminent social workers including Dr. Shankar Sanyal (President- Harijan Sevak Sangh), Umashankar Pandey (Padamshree recipient), Kanwal Singh Chahuhan (Padamshree recipient), Indra Udyana from Bali (Padamshree recipient), Ramesh Bhayya (Vinoba Ashram), Sanjay Rai (Gandhian society), Jayalakshmi (Academic from Scotland) in presence of school students on the remembrance day of Didi Nirmala Deshpande.
India and Pakistan, being two nuclear powered nations and with a history of war and skirmishes, are always being considered vulnerable in terms of any escalation of rivalry, but the peace calendar created jointly by students of both countries narrate how the young generation of both sides think and imagine for a future filled with peace and harmony.
This was 12th Peace calendar by Aaghaz-e-Dosti, an Initiative for peace that mostly works with school students on both sides, and bring every year a unique calendar wherein twelve best paintings (six from India and Pakistan each) get a chance to be featured to reflect message of world peace.
Ravi Nitesh, founder of the initiative says about the importance of this calendar that “The calendar with the paintings of an innocent and apolitical mind will remind us that mindsets have been constructed. Together with the beautiful dreams of the young and innocent, the Calendar also carries messages from people who have been actively working to nurture these dreams. This calendar is a collection of shared dreams of peace and friendship. It serves as a hope shared by people who are just like us, in habit and struggle. With the turn of the pages to start a new month, the hope shall be renewed.”
“Working since 2012, Aaghaz-e-Dosti has already released eleven such calendars. Our aim is to work with school students because they are responsible citizens of the future and their future should be hatred free- violence free and war free. When students create an art, it brings their emotions, their thoughts and their dreams. When we see these arts in the calendar, we see that we probably need to learn a lot from these students.” Said Nazir Ahmad, Coordinator of Aaghaz-e-Dosti in Pakistan.
While speaking during the launch event, Dr Shankar Sanyal said that we need more and more people across the globe who can bridge the gaps, who can heal the wounds and who can motivate for peace.
Padamshree Umashankar Pandey who is known as water warrior emphasized upon sustainable development that is the actual need of world. He said that we need to set aside our conflicts and every society, community and country should work together to focus upon sustainability.
Indra Udyana who is a padamshree recipient and known for his work on spreading gandhian values in Bali, said that we all are with all such efforts that connects people and hearts.
Nitin Mittoo, coordinator of Aaghaz-e-Dosti informed that when we talk about peace, it is not just about India-Pakistan, but for the world peace that students sending their message.
This year peace calendar included messages of Dr Shankar Sanyal (President- Harijan Sevak Sangh), Dr Rajendra Singh (Magsaysay awardee, known as Waterman of India), Rekha Surya (renowned classical singer), Vikas Sharma (Film producer who brought many Indian and Pakistan directors together in Zee Special Projects), Prof. Subhendu Ghosh (renowned classical singer and activist), Dharmpal Saini (Padamshree recipient, known as Bastar ke Gandhi) from India and Moneeza Hashmi (Activist and daughter of Faiz Ahmad Faiz), Rukhe Neelofer (renowned fine artist), Faiz Jamili (Poet and journalist), Raja Ashraf (Vice chair- Human rights commission of Pakistan), Farhat Abbas (Social activist) and Asad Iqbal Butt (Chairperson of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan) from Pakistan.
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Nitin Mittoo- India Nazir Ahmad- Pakistan
Aaghaz-e-Dosti is working since 2012 as a voluntary network and it is a non-political, non-religious, not-for-profit initiative. For its consistent efforts to foster peace, Aaghaz-e-Dosti has been featured by many national and international media and received several awards and recognitions
