Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS) celebrated the 89th birthday of His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama with a special event organized by Project K-MUSE under the Kalinga Conversations Series. The highlight was a captivating keynote speech by Professor Dr. Amareswar Galla, Pro-Chancellor, KISS-DU and Distinguished Professor of Indigeneity and Inclusive Museum & Heritage Studies, KISS/KIIT.
Professor Galla, born at Amaravathi and named after the local deity Amareswar, shared his profound connection to the region. His talk underscored the significance of Amaravathi Heritage Town as the birthplace of Mahayana Buddhism. He detailed his extensive fieldwork for his Ph.D. and his role in establishing ‘Amaravathi’ as the new capital and conserving the ancient Satavahana Capital, Dharanikota.
Professor Galla, who spent 4.5 years as the chief curator of Amaravathi Heritage Town, highlighted key insights like Amaravathi’s historical layers of significance offer rich study for landscape museums; Co-creation with primary stakeholders is essential in developing such museums and Flexible educational spaces in partnership with various agencies are crucial.
In 1997, Professor Galla was honoured to be the master of ceremonies when His Holiness the Dalai Lama addressed the Australian Parliament breakfast, an experience that deepened his commitment to Amaravathi.
Vice Chancellor, KISS-DU Professor Deepak Kumar Behera, delivered the welcome address. The event was attended by notable dignitaries including Professor Sarit Kumar Chaudhari from Rajiv Gandhi University, Arunachal Pradesh; Registrar Dr. Prashanta Kumar Routray; and Director General Dr. Kanhu Charan Mahali, along with faculty members, research scholars, and students. The event was coordinated and moderated by Dr. Sushree Sangita Mohanty, Convenor of Project K-MUSE Kalinga Conversations.