Jakarta, July 12, 2013: The governor of the special region of Yogyakarta in the Indonesian province of Java has asked India to open an Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) in the region's capital city Yogyakarta.

Governor Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono made this suggestion during the course of a meeting with India's Ambassador to Indonesia Gurjit Singh. 

Stating that he looked forward to closer cultural ties between India and Yogyakarta, he said that Yogyakarta had a rich cultural history which was why India should open a new ICC there, according to a statement issued by the Indian embassy in Jakarta. Two ICCs already exist in Jakarta and Bali.

Ambassador Singh, on his part, while referring to the long history of India-Yogyakarta relations, pointed out the iconic Borobudur Buddhist temple and the Prambanan Hindu temple in the region as examples.

He talked about the initiatives taken by the Indian embassy in expanding India's cultural footprint in Indonesia.

These included the Ramayana Festival in September in Yogyakarta, sharing of developmental experiences, focusing on women, by putting up exhibits on women of India, a film week commemorating the 100 years of Indian cinema, establishment of an India Corner by gifting books on India to different university libraries, scholarships for students in Yogyakarta and regular cultural shows titled 'Slice of India' produced by the Jawaharlal Nehru Culture Centre in Jakarta.

The envoy also called for expanding economic engagement between Yogyakarta and India.

Source: Indiatimes, DT. July 12, 2013.