Indian Embassy in Turkey celebrates 57 years of capacity building program

ANKARA

The Indian Embassy in Turkey's capital Ankara on Thursday celebrated 57 years of the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC), and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) Alumni Day.

Speaking at the event, Indian Ambassador to Turkey Sanjay Panda said ITEC was launched as a bilateral program of assistance for India’s partner countries in September 1964.


“What then started as an idea, a vision for our friends in the developing countries, has since grown into a strong brand name in our development partnership,” Panda said.


Describing ITEC as the “flagship capacity building program” of the Indian government, he said thousands of foreign officials in India receive training every year as part of the program.


“It has been the most important vehicle for sharing our knowledge, skill and expertise with the rest of the world,” he noted.


The ambassador underlined that more than 10,000 scholarships are offered to 161 partner countries every year.


Extending his congratulations to all the ITEC and ICCR alumni, Panda said they have developed a powerful cultural bridge between India and their home countries.


“Today, the ITEC program proudly claims to have reached out to more than 200,000 beneficiaries of partner countries and highlights the importance of development cooperation in India’s foreign policy,” he stressed.


As for the ICCR, he said it was founded in 1950 by India’s first Education Minister Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.


“Over the years, ICCR has become the most prominent arm of India’s cultural engagement with the world,” Panda said.


The ambassador expressed his pleasure that several Turkish nationals have visited India to attend capacity building programs in diverse spheres under ITEC and many others have also earned scholarships offered by the ICCR over the years.


However, Panda stressed that ITEC and ICCR scholarship slots allocated for Turkish people remain underutilized and called on the Turkish Foreign Ministry to encourage Turkish officials, academicians, professionals and scholars to take advantage of the ITEC capacity building programs and ICCR academic and cultural scholarships.


'Very useful program'

Ambassador Riza Hakan Tekin, director general for South Asia at the Turkish Foreign Ministry, and ITEC and ICCR Alumni were also present at the event at India House.

Speaking at the event, Tekin said he believes ITEC is a "very useful program" as it is bringing together the cultures of the two countries of the region with a rich history and rich culture.


“As the Foreign Ministry, we will do everything possible to make sure that all scholarship slots allocated to us will be used in the coming period,” Tekin noted.


Tekin underlined that Turkey and India have a very deep-rooted relations which date back to centuries ago and there is a very strong cultural bond between the peoples of the two countries.


“We have to further strengthen these goals, and these programs are a big asset in that regard,” he added.


Cemil Kutluturk from Ankara University shared his experience with the attendees as an ITEC trainee in India.


Kutluturk said that through the program, trainees had an opportunity to create a healthy and productive communication with the other group members who had different languages, beliefs and customs.


In addition to weekday trainings, cultural trips were also very instructive as they got an opportunity to visit significant areas in India, Kutluturk added.