Affinities: India and Korea Past and Present

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This volume is comprised of the proceedings of an international conference on "India-Korea Relations: Past and Present", dealing with India's relationship with Korea since CE 48. While Buddhism was the amblical cord of Indian relationship with Korea in the first millennium, the end of Cold War has helped to scale up their relations to a new league. Complimenting their bilateral relationship are the "Look East Policy of India" and the" New Asia Initiative" of Korea.

These economic giants of Asia have many things in common to share, give and take in the post- colonial era. The "rag to richess" story of the "miracle on the Han River" gives impetus to India's surge in the economic front. From a hermit-kingdom image, Korea now stands tall among the Asian countries with its rapid socio- economic progress and a per capita income of US $ 22,000. Its advancements in education, science and technology, and defence deserve kudos.

The book thus delves deep into all aspects of bilateral relationship - commercial, cultural, economic, educational, historic, language and literature, political, science and technology, and trade. Both the countries have experienced drastic economic progress, increase in trade volumes, Korean corporates investing in India vis-a-vis Indian companies in Korea. A target-trading volume of US $ 40 billion by the year 2015 tells a vibrant story. Also, both are committed in making Asia the most happening region.

The book provides a graphic account of all these developments, shedding light on India's low per capita income of US $ 1,219 and suggesting to put her acts together, to lead Asia from the front.

Dr (Mrs) Pankaj Mittal, M.Sc., Ph.D., is Vice- Chancellor, BPS Mahila Vishwavidyalaya, Haryana. Having a wide-ranging experience of over two decades, Dr Mittal is a well-known persona in the realm of Higher Education. An awardee of Fulbright Nehru Seminar Grant for educational administrators, Dr Mittal is a member in many high-powered educational committees and professional bodies. She has presented numerous papers and published a number of articles on higher education and women empowerment in journals of international repute.

Dr Daisy, MA, M. Phil. (ELT), Ph.D. in English, is Associate Professor at BPSM Girls' College under BPS Mahila Vishwavidyalaya, Sonepat, Haryana. She is a bilingual poetess (in English and Hindi). Dr Daisy has published her poems in various anthologies and journals, and has published her own anthology of Hindi poems Aas. She has presented papers in many national and international forums and published twenty articles. She also has five books to her credit including a reference book on Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. She is on the Editorial Board of the peer reviewed international research periodical: Journal of ELT & Poetry.

Dr Ravi Bhushan, MA, Ph.D., teaches English at BPS Mahila Vishwavidyalaya, Sonepat, Haryana. He has presented thirty-five papers in national and international conferences (most of them published) and written four books, including a reference book on William Golding. He is on the Editorial Board of International Journal of English Linguistics, Canada. His areas of interest are ELT, Communication Skills and Orality.

THE "Look East Policy" of India has accelerated her relationship with all Asian countries. As part of this initiative, University Grants Commission (UGC) established the Centre for Indic-Asian Studies at Bhagat Phool Singh Mahila Vishwavidyalaya, Haryana, in 2011. Korea, which had a historic relationship with India, is continuing strong relationship with India in the arenas of culture, education, trade and commerce. These two strong democracies share a special bond.

Having sustained a strong association between both the countries from early first millennium, much through Buddhism, both the countries are vying to strengthen the mutual relationships in all walks of modern life - culture, defence, economics, education, social development and rural reconstruction. To cement the existing relationship between both India and Korea, the Centre for Indic- Asian Studies organized a bilateral International Conference at Bhagat Phool Singh Mahila Vishwavidyalaya (BPSWV), Khanpur Kalan, Haryana, on 18-19 July 2012.

This book is a collection of lectures delivered in the conference on "India-Korea Relations: Past and Present", where scholars from India and Korea have presented their views on the history of relationship and the multifaceted issues confronting both the countries. This International Conference, the first of its kind in the Area Studies Programme, examined historical, cultural, economic, commercial, educational, and social and rural reconstruction experiences in India and Korea.

We hope the academic community - national and international - will find this a useful contribution towards mutual understanding and co-operation in a world, which is increasingly becoming interdependent.