EVENTS

CALL FOR PAPERS

INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM:

100 YEARS AFTER THE SIMLA CONFERENCE- 1913-14

ORGANISED BY

THE INSTITUTE OF CHINESE STUDIES, DELHI

IN COLLABORATION WITH

THE INDIAN INSTITUTE OF ADVANCED STUDY, SHIMLA

TO BE HELD ON 06-07 JUNE 2014 AT SHIMLA 

CONCEPT NOTE 

During the last hundred years the “Simla Conference” (06 Oct 1913-03 July 1914) has had and continues to have a major impact on the geo-strategic, history and sociology of the region. The Conference amongst the British, Chinese and Tibetan plenipotentiaries was convened to consider the status and boundaries of Tibet vis-à-vis China and India. On 14 April 1914, a map delineating the McMahon line as the border between India and Tibet and the Irrawaddy-Salween line between Outer and Inner Tibet was signed by the British and Tibetan representatives and was initialed, but not signed by Ivan Chen, the Chinese plenipotentiary. Subsequent efforts by the British failed to resolve this issue.

However, over the decades, many more layers have been added over the rigid and frozen positions of the parties involved. The rugged Himalayas only broken by broad valleys have tended to inhibit communications in the past. As a result the Himalayan region is complex, with several traditions prospering in isolation by themselves. The closure of border in 1959 had a significant effect on the political, economic, religious and social life of the Himalayan people.

An objective reflection on these and related issues would hopefully yield new insights and perspectives. We also now have the benefit of the experiences of negotiations among the respective parties over the years. The people in the Himalayas have lived in different political systems during these decades. The aim of the Symposium is to encourage scholarly discussions to evolve fresh approaches on the complex boundary and other related issues, which have evaded resolution. This will be done in a holistic way to include examination of the social, cultural and economic life of people living in the affected border regions. The two-day Symposium at the same historic locale would focus on the following broad themes:-

(a) Spaces and Boundaries.

(b) People and Communities.

(c) State and Geopolitics.

Deadlines:-

Abstract submissions: 28 February  2014

Full Paper submissions: 1 May 2014

Dates of Symposium: Fri 06 June-Sat 07, June 2014 at IIAS Shimla

Submissions

Abstracts of no more than 300 words including key words should be submitted to info@icsin.orgclearly marked - ICS-IIAS, Shimla Conference. The following particulars should also be provided

1. Title of paper;

2. Name(s) of the author(s);

3. Affiliation of the author(s);

4. Postal Address and e-mail of the author(s);

Abstracts will be reviewed by an academic team selected by the faculty of ICS by 10 March and decision will be notified to all by 15 March 2014. The decisions of this committee will be final.

Notifications with regard to the conference will be put up on the website of the ICS -  http://icsin.org and the IIAS - http://www.iias.org. 

Full papers (above 5000 words) must be original and must not have been submitted, presented or published in any other academic meetings and publications. All papers will be subjected to a blind review and would be circulated during the conference. The selected papers will also be published jointly by ICS-IIAS after the conference. Authors are requested to submit the full papers to info@icsin.org