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The Indian Trust for Rural Heritage and Development (ITRHD) inaugurated a three-day international conference in New Delhi on November 28, which focused on the preservation of India's rural Buddhist heritage, much of which remains undocumented and vulnerable despite its historical significance.
Held at the Dr Ambedkar International Centre, the gathering brings together scholars, conservation specialists, policymakers, monastic representatives and global institutions to discuss the challenges of protecting dispersed Buddhist sites across India's countryside. The conference opened with chanting, the lighting of the ceremonial lamp and an address by ITRHD Chairman SK Misra. The morning session included remarks by Padma Vibhushan Karan Singh, Dharma teacher Shantum Seth and other invited speakers and also saw the release of the latest ITRHD Journal on Buddhist Studies. In his keynote remarks, Misra welcomed participants and spoke of ITRHD's ongoing efforts to restore rural heritage sites. He announced that the Andhra Pradesh government has allotted five acres of land for a forthcoming academy dedicated to Buddhist heritage studies and training. Calling the initiative ambitious but essential, he stressed the need for collaborative documentation and preservation, noting that local communities remain the "primary custodians" of these sites. Karan Singh, reflecting on India's multicultural identity, observed that Buddhism--though followed by a small population today--has shaped the country's spiritual and cultural character. He urged communities to reclaim and protect rural Buddhist sites, emphasising that India "will always be the land of the Buddha" and must resist divisive impulses in favour of shared heritage. Shantum Seth drew attention to the living traditions sustained by rural artisans, from stone carving to textile work, arguing that these skills form an integral part of Buddhist cultural landscapes. He urged Indians to "reclaim the Buddha as an Indian ancestor," pointing out that countries such as China are moving faster in developing Buddhist pilgrimage circuits. Reviving India's Buddhist heritage, he said, must be seen as collective "sangha work." International Buddhist Confederation Director General Abhijit Halder underscored that conservation is inseparable from community well-being, noting that monuments "breathe" only when the people and ecosystems around them thrive. The session concluded with a vote of thanks by conservation expert Professor AGK Menon, who stressed the urgency of safeguarding India's Buddhist legacy and acknowledged the collaborative efforts behind the envisioned rural heritage academy. Supported by a wide network of cultural and academic institutions, including the International Buddhist Confederation, the Union Ministry of Culture, Gautam Buddha University, the School of Planning and Architecture in Delhi, the Archaeological Survey of India, Dharma College in the United States and the Dr Ambedkar International Centre; the conference sets the stage for a more coordinated effort to safeguard Buddhist heritage across India and the wider Southeast Asian region. Rather than a standalone event, it signals the beginning of a long-term, shared framework aimed at documenting, studying and protecting the interconnected Buddhist traditions that span these geographies. (ANI)
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