Legalities

The Working Committee approved by the Governing Board has issued “Procedures and guidelines for the use and allocation of an Auroville residential asset in the case of departure of an Auroville resident from Auroville or the death of an Auroville resident.”

After nearly three decades of engaging with Auroville (along with over 100 other ‘sustainable communities’ around the world), a twice-aborted Newcomer process (first due to Covid and then to pursue my ‘dream job’ as Director of Education at the Findhorn Foundation in Scotland), and having just spent of 2.5 months there, I would like to share a few radical questions about the future of Auroville for your consideration.

Under the Auroville Foundation Act, there are three statutory authorities who jointly administer and manage the Foundation and they are a) Governing Body, b) International Advisory Council and c) Residents Assembly and all the three are having well defined powers and one cannot override the power of the other. – Excerpt from the discussion section of the judgment

The last two months have continued to witness dramatic and, for some residents, distressing events in the community. Here is a brief update, drawn from reports in the public domain.

Sriram Panchu is a senior advocate at the High Court, Madras, and an internationally recognised mediator. Over the past 20 years, he has been instrumental in bringing mediation into India’s dispute resolution system.

After months of speculation and incertitude, the Auroville Foundation Bill was passed in both Houses of Parliament in early September. There is no doubt of the historic importance of this bill in terms of Auroville’s growth.