Bangalore: Indo-German Urban Mela opens

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Bangalore, June 22, 2012: The 10-day-long Indo-German Urban Mela in the City opened on Friday, reviving memories of Hermann Mogling who founded the first Kannada newspaper in Mangalore in 1843, and Ferdinand Kittel who compiled first English-Kannada dictionary.

Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda and Guido Westerwelle, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany, at the Indo-German Urban Mela at the Palace Grounds, on Friday. KPNChief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda, who inaugurated the Mela at the Palace Grounds, said Germans have contributed extensively to Kannada language.

“The partnership will help both Germany and Karnataka build a better future,” he added.

“It is important to further consolidate the relationship between Germany and Karnataka as Germany is the land of ideas and we are one State with many opportunities. Together, we can achieve common goals in urban development, scientific research, and technology development and so on,” Gowda said.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the problems of urbanisation are not unique to India, and that Germany, although not as populous as India, is more densely populated than China.

“In the next 20 years, an additional 250 million people will be part of Indian cities and more than 68 Indian cities will have a population of over one million.

Such a situation will throw up challenges in planning, architecture, mobility and infrastructure, which Germany has expertise in some of these fields. Having partnership with India, we can both achieve the goals,” he said.

The event, a cultural extravaganza has series of youth-centric events.

The ‘Youth University’, a programme organised by the Goethe Institute, Bangalore, is expected to be one of the highlights of the event with several lectures and seminars planned. As many as 20 CEOs, researchers and educators from top German companies and universities will interact with participants at the ‘Youth University’. Besides, competitions such as poetry, quiz, science lab and brake-dance battles are also scheduled. ‘

Several business meetings, conferences and lectures are scheduled over the 10 days.

 

Courtesy: Deccan Herald