Dr. Karan Singh to the Aurovilians: trust and go forward

Auroville Today: Dr Karan Singh, could you tell us about your first contact with Auroville?

Dr Karan Singh: When the conflict between the Sri Aurobindo Society and the Aurovilians started, and there was violence, I raised the matter in the Parliament of India. I have a connection with The Mother who I first met in 1956, and I had been closely following the development of Auroville. When these problems started, I visited Auroville and was welcomed by a handsome young man. That was Frederick. I was informed about the happenings, and I decided to raise the issue in Parliament. That ultimately led to the Government of India promulgating the Auroville Emergency Provisions Ordinance 1980, which was soon afterwards followed by the Auroville Emergency Provisions Act. This Act was passed to take over the management of Auroville in the public interest for a limited period of time. That period was extended to about seven years, as the validity of the Act was challenged in the Supreme Court of India. But the Court upheld the Act. It was followed by the Auroville Foundation Act we have it at present, which was largely drafted by Kireet Joshi. It came into force in 1988. I became its first Chairman and continued to be Chairman for more than 20 years, with a few breaks in which Dr M.S. Swaminathan and Kireet Joshi became chairman.

You met with some obstructions when you first interacted with the Aurovilians.

Yes. In the beginning of my first term, there was a lot of resentment against the Governing Board. I had long meetings with delegations of Aurovilians to explain the structure of the Act and what we, as Governing Board, planned to do. It was only much later that the Aurovilians began to realise that the Board provided the much-needed security, for otherwise Auroville would have been lost in the whole ocean that is India.

How did you feel about interacting with the Aurovilians?

I noticed right from the beginning that the community was never unanimous on anything – the galaxy, education, the way the Matrimandir had to be built, the idea to request the Government of Tamil Nadu to create a New Town Development Authority for the Auroville area, and so on. The Board met in Auroville twice a year and we would spend one day interacting with Auroville working groups and individuals who presented their views. This was organised by the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly. The next day we would meet with the International Advisory Council and have our own Board meeting. In the evenings, I would host a dinner for all, including Aurovilians I hadn’t yet met. Very often, before the meetings, I would be present at the foundation stone laying puja of a new public building or inaugurate a building which had just been constructed. Sometimes we had open meetings with the residents.

What do you consider were the achievements of Auroville in that period?

The Aurovilians have done three miracles. The first one was to convert that whole wasteland and desert area into an oasis of green. Thousands of trees were planted and monsoon water runoff was checked. The second miracle was the building of the Matrimandir. Here I played a small role. When I came in, I discovered to my horror that the architect, Roger Anger, and the engineer, Piero Cicionesi, were not on talking terms. But this building was to be the Soul of Auroville! I managed to get them together, and I was immensely pleased when, in February 2008, the Matrimandir building was completed. That was a big achievement, done entirely by the residents. I was delighted that day. The third miracle was sociological, the fact that so many people from so many different countries with different religions, different languages, and different cultures were able to live together in harmony. Auroville had managed to become a multi-national, multi-linguistic, multi-regional, self-governing autonomous institution.

Apart from these achievements, you also pushed Auroville to start building the city.

Yes, but this was not very successful, not even when Governing Board member Shri B.V. Doshi became head of the Auroville Town Development Council. A major issue was the lack of funds. In the years I chaired the Auroville Foundation, it would receive a small sum of some 15-18 crores a year, which was insufficient.

Your chairmanship was characterised by the fact that you granted autonomy to the residents as much as possible. But some people have argued that you were too lenient.

I have been very, very careful not to impinge upon the autonomy of the residents. Only in rare cases did we take decisions which bypassed the Residents’ Assembly, when we felt that we had no choice but to intervene or when consultation was not required. I have no regrets; I believe that mine was the right position. I did what I thought was correct.

One of those decisions was to invite the Prime Minister of India to come to Auroville.

I invited him to inaugurate Auroville’s golden jubilee because I thought that would enhance Auroville’s public image. He came, visited Savitri Bhavan, meditated in the Matrimandir and then gave a rousing speech in Bharat Nivas. I think that was the acme of my chairmanship. We all hoped that because of this visit, Auroville would become eligible for larger government grants so that the building of the township could begin. But, in fact, it went downhill when my last term was over.

Could you explain?

When I left, there was a gap, and gaps are never good for these sorts of institutions. Then, a new, highly educated, Secretary was appointed, but she took a very different view of how Auroville needed to develop. The new Governing Board was appointed a few months later, and it followed her views. What we see today is a Board and Secretary acting as if Auroville is a department of the Government of India, ignoring both the Residents’ Assembly and the International Advisory Council. This is diametrically opposite to the collaborative model I had followed during my period as Chairman. I also believe that this way of acting is against the very philosophy underlying the Auroville Foundation Act and its principle of recognising the Governing Board, International Advisory Council and Residents’ Assembly as ‘authorities’ of the Foundation.

The minutes of two recent Governing Board meetings mention that the Board has recommended to the Minister of Education to amend the Auroville Foundation Act. The proposed amendments have not been shared with the community; rumour has it that they do away with the Council and Residents’ Assembly and give all powers to the Board and its Secretary.

I am not aware of this. But it would be sad if this would be enacted.

This Board and its Secretary have managed to raise large funds for the building of the city’s infrastructure.

That indeed is an achievement. But I have a concern. Building the city is important, but not when it is only done by the Public Works Department. Trying to build Auroville without the cooperation of the Aurovilians is prima facie a contradiction which goes against the raison d’être of Auroville. Auroville can only be built in collaboration with its residents.

The newspaper The Hindu carried a small article about your visit in its issue of 22 August, titled “Karan Singh reviews progress of projects.” It mentioned that you had commended the progress made, held meetings with a range of stakeholders, gave a message to the youth of Auroville and the bioregion and presented a book to the Auroville Foundation Secretary.

I saw that newspaper report somebody had sent to me. But I was amazed to read it, for it is not true. I did visit Auroville on 14 August as I wished to make a flower offering to Sri Aurobindo at his statue at Savitri Bhavan. Lalit Verma, the man who was instrumental in making this statue and the similar ones which are now at the Parliament House of India and at UNESCO, accompanied me. I was on the point of leaving when I was told that the Secretary was on the way to greet me. I waited, she came, we had a cup of tea, and I left. That was all.

You are kept informed about the developments in Auroville and the difficulties some Aurovilians are experiencing.

Yes, and I sometimes wonder how they cope with them. Has Mother left Auroville? Or is Auroville in one of those “Hours of God” as Sri Aurobindo has so eloquently described? I have been told that they keep firm, believing that whatever happens is The Mother's will. I hope they will sustain. As Sri Aurobindo wrote, “Being pure cast aside all fear, for the hour is often terrible, a fire and a whirlwind and a tempest ... but trust and go forward.”

In conversation with Carel on 30-08-2025