
On
11 and 12 November 1996, an international conference on Europe and India
up to the year 2000 was held in Udine, Gorizia and Pordenone. The conference
was organized by the Società Indologica "Luigi Pio Tessitori"
in collaboration with the International Centre for Mechanical Sciences, the
University of Udine, the University of Trieste and the Chamber of Commerce of
Pordenone, with the support of the Provincial Authority of Udine and the patronage
of the Regional Authority of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Contributors to the two-day
programme included prominent figures from Indian culture, the topics discussed
ranging from scientific and technological development, to cultural exchanges
and the creation of projects aimed at encouraging trade between Italy and India.
On 11 November at Palazzo del Torso in Udine, a meeting was held on the theme
of The role of the Indian scientists in the International Co-operation
in the Regione Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Contributors included Giovanni Bianchi
(International Centre for Mechanical Sciences), M.S. Narasimhan (International
Centre for Theoretical Physics), Giuseppe Furlan (University of Trieste) and
B.G. Sidharth (B.M. Birla Science Centre, Hyderabad). Later that same day at
Palazzo Belgrado, Gianfranco Fiaccadori (University of Udine) presented the
volume L.P. Tessitori, Opere Giovanili and the series of CD-ROMs entitled
Archivio Fotografico Tessitori. On 12 November in the great hall of the
Gorizia University Centre, Enrico Fasana (University of Trieste) presented a
paper on India: domestic and international relations which was accompanied
by a showing of the documentary Luigi Pio Tessitori. Pagine di Diario
directed by Benedetto Parisi. Finally, again on 12 November, a seminar was held
in the hall of the Chamber of Commerce of Pordenone on the topic Italian
small and medium-sized enterprises in India: problems and prospects with contributions
by Francesca Serafini (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Rome) and Marina Rebora
(Unido, Milan). The initiative took place in the broader context of the Europe
and India: Past, Presentand
Future project organized by the Società Indologica "Luigi Pio
Tessitori" to promote scientific, economic and cultural co-operation with
the Indian sub-continent.