Issue Nº410 – News in brief

On July 31st, Mr. Srinivasmurty, the former Under Secretary and a few times Acting Secretary of the Auroville Foundation, retired as an officer of Auroville Foundation. In an open letter to the community he expressed that his time in Auroville has been the most valuable phase of his life, “having met many a great sadhak from the Ashram and quite a few silent, unassuming beings though very much evolved, in Auroville”. He requested forgiveness from those he might have hurt, in thought, word or action and announced that as his and his family’s lives “are anchored in and interwoven with Auroville”, he will remain around. His service to the community over so many years is deeply appreciated.  

The Ministry of Home Affairs has appointed Ms. K. Swarnambika, IPS, as Deputy Secretary / Director of the Auroville Foundation. No information has been shared by the AVFO as to the nature of Ms Swarnambika’s new role. On 11th August 2023, just prior to the 15th August birth anniversary of Sri Aurobindo and the Indian Independence day, a circular from Mrs Swarnambika was sent to the community via the AVFO mass bulletin service. The notice gave Aurovilians an ‘action plan’ to celebrate Independence Day – by hoisting the national flag, sharing selfies with the flag and changing their profile pictures on social media to include it.

On August 11, Justice N. Seshasayee of the Madras High Court pronounced judgment in a case started by an Aurovilian challenging the decision of the Officer on Special Duty of the Auroville Foundation to reconstitute as many as 14 Committees or Units of the Foundation by a unilateral Office-Order, dated 12.04.2023. The hon’ble judge disagreed with the petitioner's contention that the Governing Board does not have any independent power to make changes without taking the Resident Assembly into confidence. He stated that the constitution of various committees for efficient discharge of duties and functions of Act is left exclusively to the Governing Board and therefore judged that the contention of the petitioner that the Governing Board ought to have consulted the Residents' Assembly before reconstituting the various committees is untenable. 

The Entry Service reported that in the period April 2022 to May 2023, 49 new Aurovilians joined, 10 Auroville youth turned 18, 113 Newcomers were admitted, as well as 3 Friends of Auroville and 2 relatives/spouses of Aurovilians.

Throughout the year, the Entry Board interacted with applicants from all categories interested in joining the Auroville experiment. The Board conducted more than 250 sharings/interviews in collaboration with respective mentors. Several people in Savitri Bhavan and in Brahmanaspati Kshetram extended their assistance in helping local applicants understand the aims and objectives of Auroville and gain knowledge about the founders, the Mother and Sri Aurobindo. Non-Indian applicants were met individually to assist them in obtaining a Letter of Recommendation for their visa from the Auroville Foundation office.

Despite the challenges posed by the post Covid-19 restrictions, the Aspiration Team provided valuable support to potential applicants, offering up-to-date information and resources to aid their integration into Auroville. The Welcome Talk and Yucca programme resumed monthly sessions from April 2022 onwards. In May 2023 the Youth Link prepared a programme for the Auroville youth who want to join Auroville as adults and conscious individuals. The programme was a successful venture for the participants as well as for the facilitators. 

The Entry Board listed as one of its major challenges that in August 2022 it was removed from the 'auroville.org.in' domain without being given any explanation and had to create two new email addresses, e.g. auroville.entryservice@gmail.com and entryservice@auroville.services. The Board also observed that there are delays in obtaining Recommendation Letters for visa from the office of the Auroville Foundation for aspiring Newcomers of foreign origin; that there is a lack of passionate and qualified mentors from diverse backgrounds to support applicants and aid the Board's decision-making process; and that housing remains a major issue for applicants, as they must secure a long-term contract in Auroville to complete their newcomer process and become Aurovilians. 

The Residents’ Assembly Service (RAS) announced that the Residents’ Assembly of Auroville had approved two proposals with majority vote. The proposal that the RA can make an emergency Residents’ Assembly Decision (RAD) at a petition signed by at least 300 residents was approved by 402 participants (98% of all votes cast). The proposal that for a period of six months the Working Committee selected by the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) can appoint, replace, or add members or constitute groups as needed to fulfil Auroville’s organizational needs and/or statutory functions as required by the Auroville Foundation Act (1988) in a speedy manner, was approved by 93% of the votes cast. This applies to the Funds and Assets Management Committee of the Residents’ Assembly, the Town Development Council of the Residents’ Assembly, the Land Board, the Entry Board (aka Admissions Committee), the Housing Board, the Budget Coordination Committee, Entry and Exit committee and any other group that is performing functions for the collective organization of Auroville. The RA-WCom will also have the power to constitute new groups as needed (e.g. an Exit Committee). The time frame of these interim appointments could be anywhere from 2 or 3 months (till the next selection process tentatively planned for end of Sept.) to 18 months, as specified in the RAD proposal.

The RA-WCom later clarified that it equates the term 'Emergency Functions' at this time to be 'Crisis Management Functions' and that its first aim is to have a fully functional RA-FAMC  for which it is reaching out to people about being appointed as interim members. It also clarified that these interim appointments are not intended to replace or reduce the importance of the Selection Process and the role of the Residents' Assembly as a whole in selecting members for its working groups.

After interactions with the farmers and directives from the Governing Board, The FO Farm Service and FO FAMC announced they have come up with a work plan for farming and food security in Auroville. They write that to enhance food production to meet the needs of Auroville we need a different approach to farming since a lot of the crops are not consumed in the community, which, meanwhile, purchases much food from outside. While education and awareness will play a role in prioritizing local food, there are also challenges of pricing, consistency and production planning which need to be looked at.

At the same time, we must open our Auroville produce availability to nearby markets like in Pondicherry and Chennai, so that any excess can be distributed and the farms can start planning for higher production without the limitation of Auroville consumption or distribution. They are also working on a food processing service which can create more value for the farm produce and help support the farms to grow. Everybody with goodwill and interest is invited to join.

In an open letter to the Farm Service, the FO FAMC and the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation, Auroville farmers raised their concern as to the announcement that three farm areas (Buddha Garden, Siddhartha and Shambala) are to be removed to make place for a road, parking lots and convenience facilities for a planned VIP road, a road which is not mentioned in the gazetted Master Plan. The farmers, while acknowledging that a bypass road around the village of Edayanchavadi may be needed, observed that the removal of the farms will be a loss for Auroville's agricultural sustainability and productivity and so be in direct contradiction to statements made about wanting to increase agricultural production in Auroville. While not objecting to the road in principle, the farmers said that the proposal should have been discussed with the farm group, and that a proper plan for relocating these farms should be made so that their activities are not lost for the community. 

The planned VIP road will also pass through the existing Auroville dog shelter. The dog shelter team were happy to inform the community that after productive discussions, a compromise could be worked out in which the new access road will be built without destroying any dog enclosures or important infrastructure of the shelter. By working together with the Auroville Foundation, Animal Husbandry, and Animal Welfare Board of India, they will start construction of a new Auroville dog shelter in a different location very soon. They also want to restart their 24-hour rabies rescue again, but in order to do so need to build a quarantine facility, as the Animal Welfare Board mandates that every shelter must be equipped with one. At present they are fundraising for this. 

The RA TDC shared a report on the second phase of the Matrimandir Lake excavation and tree cutting. The excavation is taking place over approximately 4 acres of land and endangers around 125 trees including “a large number of very old Neem trees”. These actions, the report states, go against the National Green Tribunal (Southern Zone) judgement as well as stray from the recent practice whereby “the [Matrimandir] gardens have been designed through collaborative community participation”. A number of the old trees have been cut, and Aurovilians gathered to protect an old neem which had been standing by the Visitors viewing point. Its fate is not known but discussions concerning preserving some of the old trees are continuing. Jan, the engineer who designed the MM test lake, gave Aurovilians a tour of the site and stressed that for something as important as the Matrimandir Lake proper planning approval is necessary which studies all the factors. A document is being prepared that presents the concerns regarding the planned Matrimandir lake as discussed during the recent visits to the site, and proposes steps towards working out technically sound and harmonious solutions. Meanwhile Narad, who was entrusted by the Mother with the task of building the Matrimandir Gardens, has resigned from his work in the gardens, partly in protest against the planned removal of the Neem trees.

Sri Aurobindo wrote that the Thirukkural, the most revered Tamizh text of the last 2000 years, “is gnomic poetry, the greatest in planned conception and force of execution ever written in this kind”. A study group will engage with the text as it is felt that such study can be very beneficial to Auroville.  The sessions will be bilingual, a combination of Tamizh and English to make them more inclusive.

Residents are invited to participate in a self-education programme designed to improve the community’s understanding of planning issues. This is part of a new initiative launched by the Dreamweaving core team (see page 6). Meanwhile, another of their initiatives, Dreamcatching, has begun on rooftops on Monday mornings, “to explore a more unifying action-oriented planning process for the development of Auroville.” 

On August 13, the Art for Land exhibition cum sale 2023 was inaugurated at the Unity Pavilion. Art for Land is a collaborative action of Aurovilians and friends of Auroville to raise funds for the purchase of the still-missing lands to consolidate Auroville’s Master Plan area. More than 120 Artists from Auroville, the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, the worldwide centers of Auroville International, and from all over India, generously donate their works in a wide range of media- painting, sculpture, ceramic, glassware, jewelry, prints and photographs . Pieces for sale can be seen at www.artforland.in

On August 5, 2023, Auroville Media Liaison, an activity approved by the Working Committee selected by the Residents' Assembly, launched the first episode of the new "Auroville News Podcast". Its purpose is to present the community and well wishers with regular updates about the unfolding of events in Auroville, and other important news related to Auroville's current reality. It can be found on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube. For more information visit https://auroville.media/podcasts or follow Auroville podcasts on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. 

The Auroville dog shelter team issued a warning that it is only dedicated to rescuing dogs that can no longer survive on the streets due to illness, age, or accidents and that the shelter’s current capacity does not allow it to accommodate healthy puppies which people find on the streets. The team warns moreover that most healthy puppies found on the streets have nurturing mothers, even if they look like being on their own, and that the mother's milk is essential for their development.

The dog shelter team has initiated a street treatment program despite the many challenging circumstances at the moment. When informed about healthy puppies living on the streets, it establishes schedules for visits to provide food and water on the spot, conduct health checks, and administer vaccinations to those of appropriate age. To ensure their survival, the team encourages Auroville residents and dog lovers capable of caring for these little ones to foster them for periods ranging from a few days to three months, offering them a brighter future. Once the new Auroville Dog Shelter has been built, the team will be able to house and care for puppies, providing a safe and nurturing space. An adoption program will also be developed to find them permanent homes.

The dog shelter team is also actively pursuing a sterilization program for street dogs, which is the only long-term solution to controlling the canine population in the whole area. While awaiting approval from the Animal Welfare Board of India, a legal requirement for sterilizations of street dogs, it is fundraising to sterilize 1,000 street dogs in Auroville and the bioregion within a year. This requires an estimated Rs. 25 lakhs, or € 28,000.