For the first time in the history of Russian language scholarship in India a unique step was undertaken in the form of a single Association of Russian Language Teachers of India. Connecting all the teachers of Russian language and literature into one professional body was indeed a mammoth task. The need for this was all the more felt in the face of the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the global changes thereafter. The Association was formed with the aim of synergizing the academic endeavor of the teachr5s spread over India. After the formation of the Association, the teachers elected their office-bearers through a transparent and democratic election profession 2004. Once the term was completed, fresh elections were held once again in 2007. The election was conducted both the times by an Election Officer.
INDAPRYAL would like to put on record its gratitude to Prof. C.N. Chakravorty (Election Officer -2004) and Dr. Rajender Malhotra (Election Officer-2007) for the smooth conduct of Elections.
The new duly elected office-bearers felt the urgent need to register this body in order to pave the way for smooth democratic function. INDAPRYAL was then registered under the Societies Act of India 1860.
The Association has been committed towards pursuit of knowledge of the enhancing academic standards in the filed of Russian language teaching. Knowledge and enhancing academic standards in the field of Russian language teaching.
- With this aim INDAPRYAL along with Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi University and Jamia Milia Islamia and the Russian Centre for Science and Culture organized a seminar, – “Contemporary Trends in Russian Language and Literature Teaching” in December 2004. This seminar was attended by academicians, experts from India and abroad. This was an event that provided great professional satisfaction to the members of INDAPRYAL, as for a long time such activities had not take place. INDAPRYAL, as a body of teachers, was able to provide for and fill up this vacuum.
- In March 2005 INDAPRYAL organized a talk: “Gorky and Lenin, Gorky and Stalin” by the famous Russian critic Pavel Basinskiy along with the Russian Centre for science and Culture. In his talk, the critic gave a reassessment of the existing relationship that the iconic writer of the early 20th century Maxim Gorky had with the leaders of the October Revolution, Lenin and Stalin. The talk opened up new dimensions of research into the area of the role of art in the society. Gorky’s persona and his creative writings have had a towering image in the erstwhile Soviet Union. The illustrated talk was attended by many eminent Indian scholars and critics.
- Later in March 2005, INDAPRYAL organized another talk by Mr. Pavel Bassinskiy in Bombay University on the topic – “Gorky and his Times”.
- Along with the Russian Centre for Science and Culture, INDAPRYAL organized a meeting to mark the Day of the Slavonic Script and Culture in May 2005. The title was: “An Outlook on the Slavonic Cultural Integration in the XXI Century.”
- INDAPRYAL organized an International Seminar in October 2005 on the topic “Russia at the Crossroads: Literature, Culture and Society in the XXI Century. This seminar was presided over by the Vice-Chancellors of the Central Universities of Delhi. The Honorable Minister HRD, Shri Arjun Singh was the Chief Guest. Shri Arjun Singh spoke about the importance of the Indo-Russian relationship in the emerging new global scenario.
- Eminent writers and critics from India and Russia attended this seminar. Among them was the outspoken feminist writer, Maria Arbatova, the emigre poet, Alexander Radashkevich, the much awarded young writer, Aleksei Varlamov, the editor of the most important literary paper in Russia – Literaturnaya Gazeta – Yuri Polyakov, eminent literary critic from Moscow State University, Elena Trofimova, and many others.
- The seminar was organized on a scale not seen before in the field of Russian studies in India. The office-bearers of INDAPRYAL worked for nearly 10 months to organize this seminar. Since this was the first time that such a high level delegation was being invited, efforts had to be made to prove our credentials to the delegates from Russia that we wished to invite. Moreover, since IDAPRYAL was a voluntary organization with no institutional backing, it was difficult to raise funds for an event of this scale. It is due to the sincere efforts of the office-bearers and many members that the international seminar was organized and went off successfully. A brochure with all the abstracts of presentations was published. Its success can be gauged by the fact that the Vice-Chancellors of all the three Central Universities in Delhi, where Russian is taught, participated in the inauguration of the seminar and stressed the importance of Indo-Soviet ties, particularly educational ties, in today’s geopolitical context.
- INDAPRYAL organized a lecture by the eminent translator Prof. M. Lal Madhu in Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi in February 2006. Prof. M. L. Madhu is translator of repute, who has been into translation (From Russia into Hindi, English and vice-a-versa) for many decades. His experience of translation activity proved to be of immense significance for the students and budding translators.
- The President, General Secretary and Treasurer of INDAPRYAL attended a programme of school children learning Russian at the Delhi Public School, Ghaziabad and adjudged a poetry recitation competition. The presence of INDAPRYAL office-bearers provided for lot of moral support to the Russian language section there.
- New Delhi, May 29, 2007: Speakers at a Seminar “India and Slavonic Culture: Retrospect and Prospects”, dedicated to the “Day of Slavonic Script and Culture”, jointly organized by the Russian Centre of Science & Culture (RCSC) and Indian Association of Teachers of Russian Language and Literature (INDAPRYAL), at the RCSC, 24, Ferozshah Road, New Delhi, on May 28, 2007, described the creation of Slavonic script as a landmark event In the history of Russia and other Slavic nations, and focused on the significant aspects of ancient links between the Slavonic culture and India, duly recognized by scholars.
- New Delhi, April 2, 2007: Modalities on holding the Russian Language Essay Competition, dedicated to the “Year of Russian Language the World Over”, “Russian Language-Language of Indo-Russian Friendship & Strategic Cooperation” were discussed with the participation of representatives from the Institute of Russian Language (RCSC), Indian Association of Teachers of Russian Language and Literature (INDAPRYAL) and Indian Universities at RCSC, 24, Ferozeshah Road, New Delhi, on March 30, 2007. It was stressed that efforts to involve students at all levels In October 2007 Bombay University along with Bombay Russian Centre for Science and Culture organized a workshop on the topic “Workshop on Russian Language”. INDAPRYAL coordinated with organizers to make this workshop a success. The workshop was also organized in Delhi with the active participation and collaboration of INDAPRYAL office-bearers and the Russian Centre for Science and Culture from 5 -7 November 2007. At both these events, new trends in Russian language communication in post-Soviet, globalised Russia were discussed and exhibitions and sale/exhibition of new language teaching books and audio-visual material were organized.
- February, 2008: INDAPRYAL had coordinated with the Filatov Foundation, Moscow to organize the Russian Book Exhibition in February 2008 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. Russia was the Guest of Honour of this year’s Book Fair. The book exhibition was put up by the Russian Agency Foundation of Social-Economic and Intellectual Programmes. Many round-table discussions were organized during the course of the exhibition, which were attended by distinguished Russian and Indian writers.
- INDAPRYAL along with the Russian Centre for Science and Culture organized a felicitation programme for Mr. Kunwar Kant who won the Essay Competition “Russian Language -Language of Indo-Russian Friendship & Strategic Cooperation”.
- INDAPRYAL has published a book “Russia at the Crossroads” with the essays from the seminar proceedings held in October 2005. The office-bearers have spent several months getting revised articles from members and editing the volume. The book contained articles in Russian as well as English.
- The beginning of the year 2008 saw the commencement of preparations towards the 2nd International Conference on the topic, “Window into Russia Art and Society in the XXI Century”. The conference was organized in the INDIA HABITAT CENTRE and the RCSC on 10-12 December, 2008.
- The conference was also supported by the ICCR.
- The conference was addressed by the then minister Shri Mani Shanker Aiyar.
- Many experts came from Russia including L. UIitskaya, Natalya Ivanova, Igor Shaitanov, Sergei Serebriannyi, Svetlana Alexievich and others.
- The proceedings of the previous seminar of INDAPRYAL were released in book form in the present conference.
- INDAPRYAL prepared the accounts of the conference to be presented to all the related organizers of the Conference. Accounts were prepared for RUSSKI MIR, ICCR, etc.
- INDAPRYAL prepared these documents for publication.
- INDAPRYAL discussed the proposal of the International Association of Teachers of Russian Language and literature to organize yet another International Conference in 2010.
- In March 2010 INDAPRYAL held a meeting with the representatives of RUSSKI MIR in to further the idea of setting up Centers of Russian culture in Indian universities teaching the Russian courses.