Book on 'secret broadcasts' during Quit India movement launched

Minister of State for Culture Mahesh Sharma released three books, including one on "secret broadcasts" during the Quit India movement, at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) here on Thursday.

The books are titled "Jewellery: A Scientific Study of Social Tradition", "Ghats of Banaras" and "Untold Story of Broadcasting".

"Untold Story of Broadcasting" has been authored by historian Gautam Chatterjee.

This book, the organisers said in a statement, is about hidden developments during the 1942 Quit India movement -- the "secret broadcasts" of the time -- and the contribution of political leader Ram Manohar Lohia in the movement.

"Chatterjee dug out archival material to rewrite the history of Quit India in a new light, and with new information.

"It's about day-to-day broadcasts and reporting from various parts of then-India", IGNCA Member Secretary Sachidanand Joshi said at the launch.

The second book, "Jewellery", written by author-journalist Gulab Kothari, examines a ritualistic use of jewellery worn on occasions, and the meaning of possessing jewellery in an Indian context.

Calling jewellery-making a traditional occupation, Sharma said that now it is also being studied as a specialised stream of knowledge.

Another book, "Ghats of Banaras" has been co-authored by IGNCA Cultural Informatics Director Pratapanand Jha and Sachidanand Joshi.

It is a monograph highlighting the importance of ghats, and is derived out of a documentation conducted at Varanasi, the organisers said.

--IANS

sj/nir