Shantiniketan

I am currently reading Indira Gandhi's biography. As a child she attended many schools in India and abroad. The book mentions that Shantiniketan is the place where a young Indira Gandhi had her most relevant education.

Location: 136 kilometers from Calcutta

Ashram founded in: 1863
Founder: Maharshi Devendranath Tagore

International University founded in: 1901
Founder: Rabindranath Tagore

Named: Visva-Bharati University
Recognized: 1951

Quoted from the Shantiniketan official website:

“It was always the objective in Shantiniketan that learning would be a part of life's natural growth. The first step towards this objective was to establish in the child a sense of oneness with nature. A child has to be aware of his surroundings - the trees, birds and animals around him. The mind is deprived if one is indifferent to the world outside. Rabindranath said we concentrate on learning from books and neglect the knowledge that is freely available on all sides.”

Description

• Open-air education, started as an experiment by Rabindranath Tagore with 5 students to foster interaction with nature

• It consists of the following schools
- Kala Bhavan (College of Fine Arts and Crafts)
- Sangit Bhavan (College of Music and Dance)
- Vidya Bhavan (College of Humanities)
- Siksha-Bhavan (College of Science)
- Vinaya Bhavan (Teacher's Training College)
- Cheena Bhavan
- Hindi Bhavan

• The university focuses on development of arts

• The university has 6500 students enrolled

• The university offers courses for international students

• The campus is adorned with sculptures, frescoes, murals and paintings of Rabindranath Tagore, Nandlal Bose, Ramkinkar, Bindobehari Mukhopadhyaya and others

• The university has 44 hostels, 4 guest houses

• Free medical treatment is provided to all students by the Pearson Memorial Hospital

Famous Students

- Indira Gandhi
- Satyajit Ray (Biography – At Shantiniketan)
- Amartya Sen

For further details, do visit the Visva-Bharati website at http://www.visva-bharati.ac.in/

References

http://www.indiatravelogue.com/dest/wben/wben1.html
http://www.wb.nic.in/westbg/shanti.html
http://www.travelmasti.com/domestic/wb/santiniketan.htm
http://www.calcuttahotel.net/shantiniketan.htm
http://www.travel-westbengal.com/shantiniketan.htm
http://www.journeymart.com/breakfree/India/shantiniketan/index.htm
http://www.ashextourism.com/Westbengal/shantiniketan.htm

http://www.visva-bharati.ac.in/