News in Brief

September, 2025

From Issue Nº434

VIP visits Lt General Dhiraj Singh, General Officer Commander-in-Chief, Southern Command of the Indian Army, visited Auroville on 17 August and interacted with the Secretary, Auroville Foundation, and other Auroville representatives.

Save Annapurna Farm petition A petition calling upon local authorities and decision-makers to save Annapurna Farm from conversion to an IIT campus in an ‘unjust transformation’ had received 13,780 signatures in support by 30 August.

A4A stepping into its 12th Year Acres for Auroville reminded purchase lands for Auroville. Its work has resulted in 187.14 missing Master Plan acres to be added to 41 Auroville communities, farms, forest areas, and nature preserves.

Request to stop land exchanges Through a 12-page letter to the Prime Minister and Minister of Education of India dated 31 July, Shri R Sarvesh Kumar, General Secretary Namo Peravai, Tamil Nadu, drew attention to large losses suffered by Auroville in recent land exchanges.

Discipline lands lost The Discipline community has lost 2.5 acres of forested land after the AVFO decided not to appeal a court order that awarded the land to private claimants.

Legal updates The Working Committee constituted by the Residents’ Assembly informed the community that the case concerning the Admission and Termination Regulations (published by the Secretary in the Gazette of India in January 2024) was heard in the Madras High Court on 31 July, in front of a Divisional (Appeal) Bench.

Matrimandir progress The August 2025 Newsletter of the Matrimandir highlights the work done in the Garden of Bliss, where the five bowl-shaped fountains are being illuminated, and the work for manifesting the Garden of Youth is underway.

Road diversion To enable the development of the Western portion of the Matrimandir Lake the road between the Matrimandir viewing point entrance and Town Hall has been closed from 4 August.

Master Plan implementation L’Avenir d’Auroville, Auroville’s Town Planning Council constituted by the Governing Board, informed the community that it is “taking decisive steps in the implementation of the Auroville Master Plan, which has been extended [by the Governing Board] to 2035 to allow for the complete realisation of the township as originally envisaged”.

Auroville Tomorrow On 20 August, the community was informed through mass bulletin that the last five issues of Auroville Tomorrow, a newsletter published under the Auroville Media Interface of the Auroville Foundation and focusing on Auroville’s life, activities, developments, and present and future projects, are now accessible.

Dalai Lama and Auroville exhibition On the occasion of the 90th Birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the Pavilion of Tibetan Culture presented an exhibition on “Dalai Lama and Auroville—Three Memorable Visits (1973, 1993 & 2009)”.

Film Premiere: Sri Aurobindo - A Call to New India The premiere of the 12-minute animation film Sri Aurobindo: A Call to New India, dedicated to sharing Sri Aurobindo’s transformative vision with young people across the world, took place at Cinema Paradiso on 15 August.

Dominique Darr Grant exhibition The Dominique Darr Grant was launched this year to enable young photographers to exhib at Centre d’Art. The first such exhibition, with the theme “The Sun, the Moon and the Truth, three things cannot be long hidden”, opened on 15 August and featured the work of five young Aurovilians—Anantini, Simran, Aadi, Balaji, Arati and Bhavyo.

Audiobook rendition of The Life Divine PRISMA announced in its August 2025 Newsletter that in collaboration with many people and with Auroville Radio, it has released an audio version of the first 15 chapters of Book One of Sri Aurobindo’s Magnum Opus The Life Divine.

Auroville Dog Shelter update The Auroville Dog Shelter has warned that rabies continues to be present in the Auroville area. Due to budget constraints, it is unable to renew the 1500 dog and cat vaccinations it did last year and is also forced to halt its successful “1000-dog-in-a-year” sterilisation programme, which, it warns, will lead to an exponential increase in the number of puppies in the entire area.

69th Governing Board meeting further updates In the last Auroville Today, we reported that the 69th Governing Board meeting had taken place and we noted some of the major decisions which had been taken.

August, 2025

From Issue Nº433

69th Governing Board meet Residents learned from an article in the Deccan Chronicle that the Governing Board met on 8 July to review major developments since June 2024 and passed several key resolutions regarding infrastructure, education, administration and governance.

Open letter about actions of GB BCC and FAMC The Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly wrote an open letter to the community expressing their deep concern about how the social fabric of the community continues to be threatened “by people positioning themselves as decision-making groups, in how they have been treating other residents, and their casual disregard for well-being and livelihood.

Emergency RA decision Residents were asked to decide if they supported the resolution that the Admissions and Terminations Scrutinizing Committee (ATSC), the Admissions and Terminations Registry (ATR), the Human Resources Service (HRS), and the Residence Criteria (RC) are not valid because they were created without consultation or approval of the RA.

Frederick receives visa 86-year-old Frederick is one of Auroville's longest-serving residents, having first come to Pondicherry and the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in 1960, and settling permanently in 1966.

Threat to Eternity land On 24 July, a group of concerned Tamil Aurovilians called a community meeting to stop the Eternity land deal. They reported that there was a plan to exchange 7.5 acres of Eternity’s beachfront land worth Rs 112.5 crores for what they termed ‘useless’ private land partly outside the Master Plan zone, with a value of only Rs 11.5 crores, a loss to Auroville of over 97 crores.

AuroOrchard house relocation completed The relocation of Jasmin and Aravinda's house in AuroOrchard has at last been completed after a series of technical challenges. The move was necessitated by the AVFO’s land exchange in November 2023 that placed their residence as well as several major and vital infrastructures of AuroOrchard on the property now claimed by a new landowner.

Aurovilians present paper on maths education in Seoul

Sea Change programme update The WasteLess team made a presentation to the community on 26 July about their Sea Change Programme. This educational initiative has reached over 13,499 Tamil Nadu government school students, transforming their understanding of marine plastic pollution and nurturing the next generation of environmental advocates.

Yuvabe Education launches new course The Yuvabe team announced a new learning opportunity for all youth in the Auroville bioregion. They are launching a 3-Month 3D Product Design Online Course using Autodesk Fusion 360, starting 7 July, 2025.

Supportive Learning Satellite (SLS) The SLS Team has now become an official unit under SAIIER. The service, which began in 2015, offers support to all children, regardless of the educational system they are part of.

The Town Hall has a new eating place The popular Auroville Bakery opened a new branch at the Town Hall on July 11. It comprises a café as well as a bakery outlet where people can purchase their favourite bakery goodies as well as pick up bread and other bakery orders.

Dog sterilisations and rescue operations may be suspended Auroville’s Dog Shelter is facing a breakdown of its services, a crisis directly triggered by a recent decision by the AVF auditors to ban crowdfunding in Auroville.

June, 2025

From Issue Nº431-432

Legal updates On 29 April four cases concerning Auroville were listed in the Madras High Court before its summer closure during the month of May. The case filed by a concerned member of the Residents’ Assembly concerning the constitution of the Admission and Termination Scrutinising Committee (ATSC) was basically accepted for debate and the lawyers of the Foundation Office were directed to submit their arguments within six weeks.

Self-nominations solicited “Wishing to move forward in collaboration towards the building of the city and the right administering of Auroville,” the AVFO on 9 May issued a call for self-nomination in key areas of the Auroville administration, eg a group, service, unit or trust.

Net neutrality Concerned residents have called on the Governing Board, International Advisory Council and Secretary of the Auroville Foundation to instruct Aurinoco, the Auroville unit which created a fibre optic network in Auroville with GOI grants, to halt forcing a single connectivity upon all subscribers.

Auroville Tomorrow Two editions of a new e-magazine named “Auroville Tomorrow” have been published by the Auroville Foundation Office. The first “revised edition No. 01”, [‘revised’ may refer to three earlier issues of Auroville Tomorrow published in 2022] dated 24 April 2025 introduces itself as “Auroville’s official future-focused newsletter” of the Auroville Foundation, Ministry of Education.

Auroville Connect Auroville Connect, a WhatsApp platform “dedicated to connecting people in and around Auroville who care deeply about the Dream, the Charter, and the future of this unique city and its experiment in human unity,” has now published an e-newsletter.

Auroville Urban Planning and Development Repository A new website: Auroville Urban Planning and Development Repository has been created. This initiative, led by a group of Auroville residents, brings together hundreds of documents related to the planning and development of Auroville.

The Spirituality Industry The News Minute, a digital subscription-based news platform which reports and writes on issues in India, with a specific focus on the five southern states, has published its third edition of a series on ‘The Spirituality Industry: A Deep Reporting Project’.

RA-WCom homeless The Working Committee selected by the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) has vacated its temporary office in Kailash, an educational youth residency under SAIIER, after the Funds and Assets Management Committee constituted by the Governing Board (GB-FAMC) instructed the Kailash caretakers and residents to hand over the building to the Housing Service by the end of May. [see article on page ….]

Economic Development Strategy The GB-FAMC informed the community that it has begun “a renewed effort to grow and strengthen Auroville’s economy, building on the groundwork laid in recent years around compliance, transparency and financial structure”.

Closure for small guest houses? The GB-FAMC informed the managers of small guest houses that the Financial Services accounts of these guest houses would be closed by 15 June 2025 and requested the managers to cancel any future bookings.

AVFO signs more MoUs The AVFO continues entering into Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and other “collaborations” with Indian institutes, which the residents learn about via newspapers.

Auroville accounting units dismantled In May last year, the Governing Board of the Auroville Foundation decided to appoint an outside company of Chartered Accountants “for accounting and allied services” with effect from the Financial Year 2025-2026.

Auroville Animal Charter Citing cases of animal neglect and abuse, the Auroville Dog Shelter team has invited Auroville residents and friends of Auroville to participate in the writing of an Auroville Animal Charter, which should become a framework for how to live in a harmonious co-existence with all sentient beings in Auroville.

Morning Star Morning Star, Auroville’s birth and wellness centre, has published its 2024-2025 Newsletter. Morning Star’s team offers professional birth and women’s wellness care in a serene, respectful environment.

May, 2025

From Issue Nº430

Organising gatherings and activities without prior approval and recognition of the GB-WCom In an unsigned circular addressed to all residents, newcomers and volunteers dated 11 April 2025 the Auroville Foundation stated that certain residents, newcomers, and others “continue to organize gatherings and conduct activities without prior approval” and that “those who are holding or participating in such unauthorized meetings, and any illegal and impersonating group claiming to be the Working Committee other than the one recognized by the Governing Board (GB-WCom), and those who participate in or support any activities organized by illegitimate groups, and the people impersonating office bearers in illegitimate groups themselves, shall be liable to face action and are in violation of the regulations of Auroville.”

Response from the RA-WCom to the AVFO circular On 18 April, the RA-WCom responded to the 11 April 2025 circular sent out by the Auroville Foundation Office. The RA-WCom noted that, once again, the Foundation Office and the groups and individuals who are recognised by them are attempting to erode the sense of community and spirit of unity by sowing confusion and fear.

Meeting with Newcomers The GB-WCom invited Aurovilians and Newcomers to an Information Sharing and Joint Interaction meeting with the Governing Board-constituted Auroville Town Development Council, Funds and Assets Management Committee, Admissions and Terminations Scrutinizing Committee, Working Committee, and Auroville Foundation Legal.

News from the ATR On 11 April, the Admissions and Terminations Registry informed the community that it had received and verified 28 applications from people aspiring to join Auroville as Newcomers together with 10 children.

High Court Ruling awaited In a message to aspiring Newcomers, the Working Committee appointed by the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) informed them that the entry process for Auroville is pending in the Madras High Court which has not yet given a final ruling.

RA decision recognising RA committees On 10 April the Residents’ Assembly Service (RAS) announced the outcome of an Emergency RA Decision-Making (ERAD) Process initiated by the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) to formally acknowledge Residents' Assembly entities as section 19 committees under the Auroville Foundation Act 1988.

Use of residential assets The GB-FAMC recently published “Procedures and Guidelines for the use and allocation of an Auroville residential asset,” aimed at transforming how housing is managed within Auroville.

Visa Extension of Frederick Shulze-Buxloh denied Frederick, an 85-year old German national who was among the first to be admitted as an Aurovilian by the Mother and who has been living in and working for Auroville for over 60 years, was denied the extension of his visa and has been requested to leave India.

April, 2025

From Issue Nº429

Electrical arrears The Auroville Electrical Service informed the community that the Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (TNPDCL) has recently changed Auroville’s high tension connection tariff from the existing IIA tariff (meant for places of worship and educational institutions) into tariff V (General Purpose) because Auroville’s service connection has a mixed load.

Income tax and GST issues On 21 March, the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation called all trustees, executives, managers and accountants of all Auroville units for an urgent meeting at the Sri Aurobindo Auditorium to hear about Income Tax (IT) and General Service Tax (GST) issues.

Chartered accountants changes Further to the meeting of 21 March, Dr. G. Seetharaman, the Officer on Special Duty of the Auroville Foundation, sent out a mass bulletin informing the community about the changes of Chartered Accountants (CAs) effective 1 April 2025.

IIT Madras Sustainability Campus An article in the newspaper Business Line of 25 March mentions that the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) is planning to develop a cutting-edge Sustainability Campus on a 100 acre site given to it by Auroville, with 20 acres dedicated to the Centre of Excellence for Zero Emission Trucking (CoEZET).

Voice of Auroville – issue 08 The Working Committee appointed by the Residents’ Assembly (RA WCom) shared with the community the eighth issue of the quarterly journal, Voice of Auroville, which aims to inform well wishers and friends of Auroville across India and the globe on the current unfolding events with factual updates and articles.

Youth Choir performs On 29 and 30 March, the Auroville Youth choir gave two well-attended end of season performances of western classical music in CRIPA. The programme featured choral classics, with pieces composed many centuries ago, as well as by contemporary composers.

Concern about bypassing laws On 19 March, three Residents’ Assembly appointed working groups, the RA-WCom, L’Avenir d’Auroville (RA-TDC) and the Auroville Council, sent a joint letter to the Matrimandir Team and the Auroville Town Development Council constituted by the Governing Board, warning about non-compliance consequences with Indian law, which requires obtaining necessary quarrying permits for ordinary earth excavation and approvals and environmental clearances for the creation of water bodies of the magnitude of the Matrimandir Lake.

Auroville Cyclothon 2025 The second year version of the Auroville Cyclothon was flagged off on March 2. A total of 294 participants from Auroville, Pondicherry, Chidambaram, Mayiladuthurai, Bangalore, and Chennai had a choice of cycling 100 km, 50 km or 25 km.

ATDC recruits The Auroville Town Development Council (ATDC) constituted by the Governing Board has advertised for talented and passionate architects and engineers to join its team.

Recruiting for the ATR The Admissions and Terminations Scrutinising Committee (ATSC) constituted by the Governing Board has called for people to maintain the Admissions and Terminations Registry (ATR).

Secretary meets with residents On 27 February 2025, at the invitation of Mr. Koshy Varghese, a group of seven residents met with the Secretary, the OSD, Dr. Seetharaman, and the consultant for visa matters, Mr.

Reporting arrival and departure dates The RA-WCom clarified its understanding of whether or not it is required for Aurovilians on a valid Auroville Entry Visa to inform internal groups and/or the RRO/FRRO when leaving or returning to India.

Financial Service operations minimised B.S. Sathyanarayan, the Accounts Officer of the Auroville Foundation, informed the community on 2 March about the commencement of a centralised common accounting system for the Auroville Foundation, its trusts, units and projects.

In case of departure 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.”

March, 2025

From Issue Nº428

Auroville Foundation (Residence Criteria) Standing Order 2024 challenged The Working Committee appointed by the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) have published a legal opinion from lawyer Suchindran Bala Baskar as to the validity of the Auroville Foundation (Residence Criteria) Standing Order 2024 (AVFRC), which lays down certain criteria to be followed by the residents of Auroville [see AVToday # 426, page 2].

Admissions & Terminations Scrutinising Committee constituted By Office Order dt. 20 February 2025, Dr. G. Seetharaman, Officer on Special Duty, Auroville Foundation, appointed the five members of the Admissions & Terminations Scrutinising Committee (ATSC) and the three members of the Admissions & Terminations Registry, in accordance with the Auroville Foundation (Admission and Termination of Persons in the Register of Residents) Regulations, 2023, issued by the Governing Board and published in the Gazette of India on 4 January 2024.

Evergreen land dispute In two events in early February, residents visited the Auroville Foundation Office to express their deep concerns about the loss of Auroville land near Evergreen community and to request the Auroville Foundation Office to appeal the judgement in which ownership of the land, which had been in Auroville's ownership for 30 years, was passed to a property developer.

More trees cut On 29 January, a member of the Auroville Town Development Council constituted by the Governing Board (GB-ATDC) verbally informed community members that it now “had permission to increase the Outer Ring Road (ORR) to 30 meters wide”.

Road construction problems The construction of the Crown Road, ORR and various radials is running into problems as a number of private, temple or Poramboke (government) lands, which are necessary to complete the envisioned urban plan, have not yet been purchased.

Deviation from the Auroville Master Plan (Perspective 2025) The RA-TDC informed the community that on 27 January it had sent a letter to high government officials addressing ongoing concerns about non-compliance by the GB-ATDC and the Central Public Works Department which executes the road building in accordance with the Auroville Master Plan (Perspective 2025).

Housing takeovers In January 2025, all of the volunteers and guests who were staying in Mitra Youth Hostel were asked to leave in order for the Auroville Foundation Office to house a group of 27 financial auditors.

Youth Center clarifies The Auroville Youth Center has sent out a mass bulletin to all residents stating that the Youth Center is a place of learning, exploration and personal growth for youth of all kinds and ages and that it has recently started to work closely with the community, creating various workshops such as welding, woodwork, kombucha making, mushroom cultivation; with more to come.

Revised mandate of Residents’ Assembly Service approved On 11 February it was announced that Auroville’s Residents' Assembly (RA) has approved the revised mandate of the Residents’ Assembly Service. 359 residents of Auroville voted online and in-person, with 355 votes in favour and 4 against.

GB-FAMC challenged The RA-WCom has challenged the authority of the GB-FAMC which it described as “a group of individuals attempting to impose control over the rest of the community when it has not been selected by the Residents’ Assembly and does not respond to calls of collaboration or transparency.”

Legal updates The RA-WCom has shared with the community an update about recent activities and hearings in the Supreme Court in New Delhi and in the Madras High Court.

15th Auroville marathon Run for the Joy of Running, the 15th Auroville Marathon, took place on Sunday, 16 February 2025. Over 3,300 runners from across the world, each carrying their own unique story, determination, and love for running, participated in the full, half and quarter marathons.

Auroville choir performs On 15 and 16 February, the Auroville Choir, conducted by Nuria, presented songs composed by Ola Gjeilo, Elaine Hagenberg, James Eakin, Eric Whitacre, Jacob Narverud, Don Macdonald, Christopher Tin and Jake Runestad.

Matrimandir Wealth Garden opens As an offering to the Mother on Her Birthday, the Wealth Garden, one of the 12 gardens of the Matrimandir, was opened on 21 February. The flower of the Wealth Garden is the Water Lily, which Mother named “Wealth”.

Humility ’25 Festival In the birthday week, the Auroville Foundation hosted the Humility ’25 Festival, an eight-day celebration that embodies the essence of humility.

Birthday week events Among other events happening during the Auroville birthday week there was a Bansuri flute recital offered by Aurovilian Chandra in the Matrimandir amphitheatre on Mother’s birthday, 21 February.

February, 2025

From Issue Nº427

AVFO enters new agreements without RA involvement The Auroville Foundation Office (AVFO) continues to enter into institutional agreements without consulting or informing the Residents' Assembly (RA).

Gross negligence in urban planning alleged On January 10, the members of L’Avenir d’Auroville, the Town Planning Council appointed by the Residents’ Assembly (RA-TDC), informed the community that it had sent a letter to high government officials addressing critical concerns about ongoing developments in the Auroville project area.

GB-WCom membership questioned The membership of the Working Committee approved by the Governing Board (GB-WCom) continues to be questioned. An email from the GB-WCom dated January 2, 2025, welcoming Newcomers and Volunteers and inviting them to weekly sessions on “Auroville the Dream”, was signed by six ‘members’, including one member who had publicly announced her resignation a few months ago.

Road construction update Road construction continues across Auroville, with at least 9 sections of road currently being built. Most of the construction work is being completed by CPWD; Michael Bonke’s team is building one section of the Crown, which starts at Savitri Bhavan and goes towards the PTDC.

Report on Darkali bridge construction A detailed evaluation report published in November 2024 by Satprem Maïni, Director of the Auroville Earth Institute, highlighted several concerns regarding the ongoing construction of a bridge at Darkali for the Crown Road project.

GB-FAMC halts allocation of some donations The GB-FAMC has recently halted the transfer of some donations received by Auroville to the beneficiaries, in some cases stating that “there are few concerns that should be clarified with you, based on proven feedback.”

Evergreen Land Situation Following a court ruling of the Tindivanam court on October 25th, the disputed land area bordering Evergreen community which had been in Auroville's peaceful possession for over 32 years has now been cleared of all vegetation.

Gratitude farm project terminated early The Auroville Farm Group reported that the Gratitude experimental Demo Farm project, launched in October 2022 by the GB-FAMC as a two-year initiative to develop natural precision farming methods in Auroville, for which half an acre was set apart and which was developed by a few non-Aurovilians with a subsidy from the Auroville Foundation of 4.75 lakhs [see AVToday # 399 of October 2022], has been abruptly terminated after 1.5 years and that its half-acre of land was handed back to the GB-FAMC.

January, 2025

From Issue Nº426

New Governing Board member The website of the Auroville Foundation mentions that retired Gujarat cadre IAS officer Shri Kuniyil Kailashnathan, the new Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, has been inducted as a member of the Governing Board of the Auroville Foundation.

Governing Board meets in Auroville According to an article in The Hindu, the establishment of an IIT Madras Research Park and a Centrally supported Innovation Hub were discussed in the 68th meeting of the Governing Board held in Auroville on 5 December.

Auroville Foundation Secretary position clarified In response to three Right to Information (RTI) requests, the Ministry of Education, Auroville’s nodal ministry, replied on 25 November 2024, that Dr Jayanti Ravi IAS had been appointed as Secretary of the Auroville Foundation for another term of one year with effect from 5 July 2024.

Handing over of Red Assets The Auroville Town Development Council constituted by the Governing Board (ATDC) informed the community through a mass bulletin on 25 December 2024 that Auroville is currently implementing its road network, which comprises the Crown, Radial Roads, and the Outer Ring Road, and that, consequently, all Red Assets connected to this project, i.e. structures located on the road or on the rights-of-way, will need to be demolished.

Auroville without boundaries In the same mass bulletin, the ATDC announced that all fences within and between neighbouring communities will be removed. “This initiative seeks to manifest an open and walkable city, without any boundary demarcations, encouraging a more open and connected environment.”

Fair and Square Youth Centre and YouthLink’s annual end-of-year fair took place on 21 December, attracting a sizeable and enthusiastic crowd. The organisers of Fair and Square (as the event was called) focused their efforts on showcasing the Youth Centre space as a vibrant social centre – or town square – prominently located on the Crown road.

Uneven rains This was a year of uneven rains. No less than 8 months were rain-deficient, but the year was bookended by exceptional rains in January and December including, of course, an all-time record rain of 54 cm over the 24 hours of 30 November/1 December, courtesy of Cyclone Fengal.

December, 2024

From Issue Nº425

Cyclone Fengal causes havoc On November 30th and December 1st, cyclone Fengal made landfall close to the city of Puducherry and the northern part of Tamil Nadu. In Auroville, hundreds of trees were uprooted, roads were blocked, power lines came down.

Land exchanges questioned On November 11th, an article in the Times of India mentioned that the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (All India Anna Dravidian Progressive Federation - AIADMK), currently the main opposition party in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, which has great influence in the state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry, demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), India's primary domestic crime-investigating agency, into the alleged irregularities in land exchanges at Auroville.

Evergreen land dispute The appeal lodged by Mr PK Subramaniam (PKS) against the previous judgment on Evergreen land, which had found the contested Evergreen land to be rightfully Auroville land, was heard on the 25th October 2024 at the Tindivanam court, and a new judgement was issued.

Secretary’s departure leads to confusion The Government of India has still not appointed a new Secretary nor a new Acting Secretary to replace former Secretary Dr Jayanti Ravi, whose term of office ended in July 2024.

New civil works started The contractors hired by the AVFO and its Auroville Town Development Council began two new major road works immediately before the monsoon, leading again to difficult and potentially dangerous conditions for road users, in particular cyclists.

Sri Ma beach returns After months of erosion see [AVToday # 422, September 2024], Sri Ma beach sands are returning. From now until March, the sand will accumulate because the current is coming from north to south.

Plans to divert rain water to the Matrimandir lake According to meeting minutes of the Auroville Town Development Council appointed by the Governing Board, two rainwater “collection ponds” have been designed to “collect the water from the stretch of the Crown which will go from Solar Kitchen to Savitri Bhavan” and divert it to the Matrimandir Lake.

RA News & Notes restructured After a year and a half of publishing, the editors of the RA edition of the News and Notes have decided to limit the edition to content that strengthens community-building in Auroville, more specifically on working group announcements and reports, residents’ voices and personal sharings, some cultural events, and information from essential services.

Auroville dog shelter update The Auroville dog shelter has been receiving an increasing number of desperate calls to save abandoned new-born puppies. However, as the dog shelter is at maximum capacity and is regularly flooded by heavy monsoon rains, help cannot be provided.

November, 2024

From Issue Nº424

Governing Board members meet in Auroville A report in The Hindu newspaper said that on October 2nd the Board members were apprised of various projects and interacted with various community groups, including representatives from the Funds and Assets Management Committee (FAMC), the Working Committee, the Land Board and the Auroville Town Development Council, in the interest of “fostering dialogue”.

Diplomats visit Auroville On October 4th a delegation of diplomats from various nations visited Auroville. According to a press note, the delegation comprised figures in fields of diplomacy, global business and trade.

Meeting with Home Minister It was reported on Auronet that on Tuesday, September 24th a small group of Aurovilians met with the Union Home Minister in Delhi. Among other things, it was reported that in future the work with the residents will be in a collaborative way, and that if any amendment to the Foundation Act is required, this would be done only through consultation with and with the consent of the Auroville residents.

Judgement on legality of Foundation Office Working Committee The RA Working Committee’s Quo Warranto petition against seven members functioning as the Working Committee of the Residents Assembly was dismissed by a judge at the Madras High Court, citing there is no clear framework for selection of the Working Committee.

Mixed messages on entry The Admissions Committee (i.e. the Auroville Entry Board) reminded the community that there is currently a case pending in the Madras High Court about a document entitled ‘Auroville Foundation (Admission and Termination of Persons in the Register of Residents) Regulations, 2023’ published in The Gazette of India by the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation on behalf of the Governing Board.

AVI Board letter to Director-General of UNESCO The Chairman and Secretary of the Auroville International Governing Board have written to the Director-General of UNESCO regarding ‘disturbing developments’ in Auroville.

New Eco-Service landfill site RA L’Avenir reported that on the morning of Thursday, September 19th, the Nine Palms Forest Stewards discovered an area had been cleared without prior notice for a new Eco-Service landfill.

Forest clearances continue apace A 6 metre wide road has been cleared through Auroville’s Northern Forest Area (NFA), in order to gain access to the area that has been earmarked for a 30 meter tall hill to be built from the soil excavated from the Matrimandir Lake.

‘Red assets’ note A note from the RA L’Avenir and RA Working Committee, pointed out that there are feasible alternatives that would allow roads to be constructed without impacting our community’s assets.

Annapurna Farm in difficulty Annapurna, Auroville’s largest farm, is in financial difficulties. The managers say it is because the stewards’ maintenances have been cut by the FO FAMC, along with poor management decisions by Foodlink which has outstanding payments of Rs 3 lakhs to the farm, and problems with Annapurna’s dairy.

No new Foundation Secretary yet, but three new Deputy Secretaries The Auroville Foundation has announced via a recruitment notification that there will be three new Deputy Secretaries, alongside a new Under Secretary, recruited to work in the AVFO.

Earth Shastra Youth Alliance in Auroville Between September 21st – 29th, Auroville hosted the 8th edition of Earth Shastra, a 9-day immersive journey in the lap of nature, that brought together 30 young changemakers from across India.

Revising the Residents Assembly Service (RAS) mandate At a Residents’ Assembly meeting, the Council explained that this revision of the RAS mandate has been long overdue. The existing 2007 mandate framed the RAS more as a decision-making body, whereas their actual role is to facilitate processes for the Residents' Assembly and working groups.

October, 2024

From Issue Nº423

Confluence On September 17th, at the occasion of the pre-full moon, the Matrimandir executives organised a ‘confluence’ in the Peace Area of the Matrimandir Gardens, inviting Aurovilians, Newcomers and friends to a Coming Together in a consecrated atmosphere in silence, sound contemplation, walking, observing, listening, with simple offerings of flowers and candles under the Banyan Tree.

No news about new Secretary Still no news has been communicated to the Auroville community about who will replace the former Secretary to the Auroville Foundation, Dr. Jayanti Ravi, whose term of office ended on July 4th, and who was appointed Additional Chief Secretary in the Government of Gujarat on July 31st, 2024.

Social science income tax exemption The Government of India has approved the Auroville Foundation as ‘Other Institution’ for Research in Social Science or Statistical Research for the purposes of clause (iii) of sub-section (1) of section 35 of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

Petition against FAMC decisions Concerned residents have submitted a petition to the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly (RA-Wcom), signed by 540 Aurovilians, regarding recent decisions made by the FAMC appointed by the Governing Board (GB-FAMC).

Legal notice to GB-FAMC On behalf of the RA-WCom, a legal notice has been served to the GB-FAMC. Taking into account all the facts, the RA-WCom directs the GB-FAMC (1) to immediately cease dealing with and conspiring with imposters posing as the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly of Auroville in contempt of the orders of the Madras High Court; (2) to immediately cease and desist from making any changes to the executives/trustees/managers of the units and Trusts of Auroville without the written and express approval of the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly till final decisions have been given in the matters pending before the Madras High Court; and (3) to take necessary steps to restore all maintenance support that was being given from community generated funds to those working in community services and groups selected by the community.

Legal opinion re RA-WCom status The RA-WCom shared with the community a legal opinion regarding the current status of the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly. The opinion, after considering the various facts of the matter, concluded that “there is and can only be one Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly, and no body of persons without the mandate of the Residents’ Assembly can claim to be the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly”.

Legal opinion about the Entry Board The RA-WCom shared with the community a legal opinion on the functioning and validity of the “Admissions Committee” (also known as “Entry Board”) constituted by the Residents’ Assembly under the Auroville Foundation (Admission and Termination of Persons in the Register of Residents) Regulations 2020 (“2020 Regulations”) in the light of the enactment of the Auroville Foundation (Admission and Termination of Persons in the Register of Residents) Regulations 2023 and the stay granted against the same by the Madras High Court via order dated on 23.2.2024.

Road safety The RA-WCom informed the community that, after the road accident that tragically took the life of a young volunteer at the road curve near Evergreen, it has approached the relevant authorities to urge them to put in place safety measures and ensure that the speed breakers that have recently been re-installed are adequately marked.

September, 2024

From Issue Nº422

Slew of complaints referred to investigation agencies The newspaper The Hindu reported on August 7th that the Minister of State for Education, Shri Sukanta Majumdar, replying in Parliament to a set of questions about Auroville, had said that the Central Government has referred a range of complaints, including dubious land exchanges, encroachment, cybercrime and money laundering in Auroville, to the appropriate bodies / agencies.

No news about new Secretary No news has been communicated to the Auroville community about who will replace the former Secretary to the Auroville Foundation, Dr. Jayanti Ravi, whose term of office ended on July 4th, and who has been appointed Additional Chief Secretary to the Government of Gujarat on July 31st, 2024.

Governing Board minutes The minutes of the 67th meeting of the Governing Board held on May 31st have still not been published.

RA-WCOM objects to Auroville services reorganisation The Working Committee appointed by the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) informed the community that it had written to the Governing Board objecting to the reorganisation of Auroville service structure without proper consultation.

Rabies outbreak The rescue team of the Auroville Dog Shelter caught inside Transition School a black female dog that acted extremely aggressively and displayed signs of a possible rabies infection.

Accommodation for 1000 beds The RA-WCom informed the community that the 100 crore loan request to the Indian Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) for the Governing Board’s proposal to build 1,000 beds had not been approved by the Ministry of Education.

Free Service by Pour Tous Water Pour Tous Water (PTW) has become a free service, following the decision made by the Residents’ Assembly in January 2014. The BCC/FAMC and the Pour Tous Water team have reached an agreement that all PTW expenses will be covered by the BCC.

RA News & Notes calls for support The Residents’ Assembly News & Notes editors reached out to the community as the community edition of the News & Notes (aka RA News & Notes) is in financial difficulties and needs help.

August, 2024

From Issue Nº421

Emergency RA decision against land sales and exchanges The Working Committee selected by the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) called for an emergency decision of the Residents’ Assembly (RAD) regarding the sales and exchanges of Auroville owned lands.

Felicity and Happiness land exchanges Residents of Felicity and Happiness, two outlying communities having a population of about 20 to 30 residents, have informed the RA-WCom that they are facing challenges since they learned in March of this year that a prime parcel of land of approximately an acre and a half which faces the old Auroville Road had been exchanged for land in the Master Plan area.

Auro Orchard land exchange The RA-WCom informed the community that a critical situation has been unfolding at Auro Orchard. On 18th July, employees of the buyer closed fences, cutting off access to the home of two residents and members of the farm.

@auroville.org.in The RA-WCom has issued a warning that the email address @auroville.org.in is no longer safe as it is currently under unknown administration.

Auroville Urban Planning & Development Repository - AUPDR A group of resource persons, helped by research assistants and web developers have developed an on-line repository of documents pertaining to Auroville’s Urban Planning and Development.

Community gathering On July 6th, a community gathering and potluck dinner took place at the Certitude sportsground. The event was organized by the RA-WCom and the Auroville Council.

Summary of CPWD Tenders regarding Auroville The Central Public Works Department (CPWD), in its E-Tender Portal, stated that in the period from June 2022 to June 2024 an amount of almost Rs 60 crores (approximately US$ 7.3 million) has been allocated for 50 different civil works in Auroville.

WasteLess needs support WasteLess, the Auroville unit that for the last 12 years has specialized in developing education on waste management, in its first Newsletter writes that it is in financial difficulty and is struggling to stay afloat, even though many community members have pledged their generous support.

SAIIER budget cuts In a note to the community, the Auroville School Board shared that schools’ financial situation has become more difficult since July of 2024.

Sri Ma beach erosion On July 15th, residents of the Sri Ma community received an “Emergency Evacuation Notice” signed by the Deputy Secretary of the AVFO, mentioning that “the sea erosion has reached a critical situation today and the buildings may collapse at any moment”.

Maintenance cuts continue The Budget Coordination Committee of the AVFO (BCC) is continuing its programme of stringent maintenance cuts with an estimated 170 Aurovilians now affected.

Changes in AVFO appointees Secretary: The Secretary of the AVFO, Dr Jayanti Ravi, ended her three-year term on 4th July 2024. On July 31st, the Government of Gujarat notified her appointment as Additional Chief Secretary to the Government Revenue Department, Sachivalaya, Gandhinagar.

June, 2024

From Issue Nº419-420

Report on Land Exchanges The Working Committee constituted by the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) has shared with the community extensive information regarding land exchanges and transactions that have taken place in the last two years.

Letter from IAC to the community On June 9th, the Auroville International Advisory Council (IAC) shared with the community that during a joint meeting with the GB on May 31st, it had called for a more transparent and inclusive land exchange process.

RA-WCom on Supreme Court’s interim stay on the TDC verdict The RA-WCom informed the community that the hearings in the Supreme Court of India on the verdict from the Madras High Court of 15th March 2024, which had invalidated the GB’s Auroville Town Development Council (ATDC) and had called for more collaboration between the GB and the Residents’ Assembly (RA), will probably take place in the second week of July.

Statement from the Forest Group On May 6th, the Auroville Forest Group, which was constituted by the RA in 1982 and which is endorsed in the Auroville Universal Township Master Plan – Perspective 2025, circulated an email reiterating its commitment to nurture and protect the green spaces and provide an integrated ecological basis for Auroville, physically and spiritually.

Auroville Farm Group questions fruit tendering process In the beginning of May, the Auroville farmers published a report in the community edition of the Auroville News and Notes questioning the results of the imposition of the fruit harvest auction by the Auroville Foundation Office (AVFO).

New donation guidelines take effect In April 2022, units and projects that had been receiving donations from abroad were informed that the Funds and Assets Management Committee constituted by the Governing Board of the Auroville Foundation had come up with a process to ensure compatibility with the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA).

Auroville dog shelter needs immediate funding The Auroville Dog Shelter, home to nearly 300 rescued dogs, urgently needs financial support. Despite being a municipal service, it receives only Rs. 50,000 per month from the Budget Coordination Committee, far short of the Rs. 3 lakh needed for basic expenses like food, wages, vital medicines and vaccinations.

Corrections In the News in Brief section of the May issue of Auroville Today it was mentioned under “Awards for Auroville architects” that Suhasini Laxman Iyer had won the Indian Institute of Architects IIA National Award 2022 in the category Residential Projects for the Humanscapes Habitat buildings.

May, 2024

From Issue Nº418

Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu states his support for Auroville Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Mr. M. K. Stalin has promised in the Puducherry election campaign that “Auroville, an international city caught in the grip of RSS, will be implemented according to the dream of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother.”

Local politician alleges mismanagement by Auroville Foundation On April 3rd, 2024, Shri M. Chakrapani, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Tamil Nadu representing the Vanur constituency of the Villupuram district, sent a widely circulated letter to the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation alleging Auroville mismanagement over the last two years.

Request to restore community budgets and maintenances On April 9th the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) sent an email to the Budget Coordination Committee (BCC) demanding that the BCC restore access to the budgets and Financial Service accounts of the working groups and services that have been selected or appointed by the Residents’ Assembly (RA), and to ensure that the maintenances of the RA members and Services are restored through the Auroville City Services Budget.

Request to hand over auroville.org.in domain By letter dated April 9, 2024, the RA-WCom requested the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation to hand over the management and credentials of the domain auroville.org.in and its associated Google workspace to the RA-WCom, which both were set up by members of the Residents' Assembly to enable the Residents' Assembly to fulfil its duties of day-to-day management of Auroville.

Decisions of GB-FAMC not recognized The RA-Working Committee and the RA-Town Development Committee sent a joint note to the community advising to disregard notices sent by the GB-FAMC with the request to vacate at the earliest the Auroville assets they are stewarding to make way for roads or ‘lines of force’.

Censorship of News & Notes The Auroville Council reminded the community that in December 2022, following instructions from the Auroville Foundation Office (AVFO), the Auroville News & Notes (N&N) began censoring the content received from a portion of the Residents’ Assembly.

General meeting on TDC regulations The RA-WCom has invited residents for a General Meeting in Kalabhumi on April 30th, regarding formulating draft regulations about the constitution and function of the Town Development Council (TDC).

TLC closed On April 17th, the SAIIER board informed TLC (The Learning Community) that SAIIER has decided to withdraw all financial support for TLC (facilitators’ maintenances and running budget), to reclaim all assets accumulated over the years, and that the TLC Base Camp has to be vacated by July 2024.

Auroville Fellowships The Auroville Foundation has advertised for 30 fellowships positions: Social-Media (4), General Management (2), IT (6), Medicine and Health Management (2), Agriculture / Forestry / Environmental Engineers (2), Economists (2), Educational Researchers (2), Civil Engineers / Structural engineers (2), Marketing (2), performing artist for music / dance / drama / other art forms (4), and Security Officers (2).

Positive news from Auroville farmers Auroville farmers reported that despite the recent setbacks, they sent 3,128 kilos of 46 different vegetables, 3,301 kilos of 24 sorts of fruit, 19,764 eggs, 6,327 litres of milk, 846 kilos of various sorts of rice and 327 kg of polished and unpolished varagu (the latter procured from the bioregion and processed in Auroville) to FoodLink in March to be distributed to the Auroville community.

Award for Bernard Declercq On the occasion of the 86th birth anniversary of the late Dr G Nammalvar, who was an Indian green crusader, agricultural scientist, environmental activist and organic farming expert, Aurovilian Bernard Declercq was presented with the Vanagam Award for Lifetime Achievement in honour of his consistent efforts, along with those of his wife Deepika, to reforest the barren land of Auroville’s Pebble Garden.

ELLE Sustainability Award 2024 Elle, the Indian edition of the worldwide lifestyle magazine of French origin called Elle, has awarded the ELLE Sustainability Award 2024 to Aurovilian Uma Prajapati for her work in the field of sustainability in the last 20 years.

Awards for Auroville architects In March 2024 it was announced that Suhasini Laxman Iyer had won the Indian Institute of Architects IIA National Awards 2022 in the category Residential Projects for the Humanscapes Habitat buildings.

Auroville Choir 30 years film Auroras Eye Films (an Auroville unit) recently produced a documentary celebrating 30 years of the Auroville Choir. The film can be seen at

YouthLink’s vision: A Vocational Training Centre YouthLink informed the community that it would like to create a Vocational Training Centre to provide for a safe environment where Auroville youth and youth coming to Auroville can explore and develop various skills, and contribute to positive change without the need to leave the community.

April, 2024

From Issue Nº417

Remembering The Mother’s first arrival in Pondicherry On Friday, 29.3.2024, the date of The Mother’s first arrival in Pondicherry, there was a morning meditation and a silent evening gathering under the Banyan tree at Matrimandir.

High Court Madras judgement On March 15, a bench of the Madras High Court consisting of its Hon’ble Chief Justice Mr. Sanjay V. Gangapurwala and the Hon'ble Mr. Justice D.

Status of pending court cases The cases challenging the Admission and Termination of Residents in the Register of Residents Regulations 2023 and the Selection of the Working Committee Regulations 2024 have been posted for another hearing on April 22nd.

Update on the entry process Further to the High Court ordered interim stay on the AVFO’s Auroville Foundation (Admission and Termination of Persons in the Register of Residents) Regulations 2023, [see AVToday 415, March 2024], the Auroville Entry Board selected by the Residents’ Assembly informed the community that it will not process new applications, but will continue to take care of existing Newcomer processes.

Exit Review Committee (ERC) update The ERC, which has been meeting on a weekly basis since its formation in January 2024, reported that a positive and harmonious group dynamic has been established and that the group has focused on studying the Exit Review Policy which was drafted a few years ago but which was never approved by the RA.

RA-WCom response to 66th GB meeting minutes The Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly (RA-Wcom) has sent an extensive response to the Governing Board and its Secretary regarding the content of the minutes of the 66th meeting of the Governing Board [see Avtoday # 415 page 3, February 2024, eds.]

Tenders From the website it became known that the Auroville Foundation Office has invited many tenders for carrying out various works. Amongst them are: doing a digital topographical survey for the area beyond the Outer Ring Road up to the Green Belt region and a complete layout for Auroville from the centre to the Green Belt; a tender for the execution of the balance portion of the Crown Road, including the provision of led street lighting; a tender for the construction of the Darkali bridge at the Crown Road; a tender for the construction of the Outer Ring Road from the secondary service node to the Visitor’s Centre Parking, including led street lighting; and the demarcation of service nodes and proposed building location as per layout.

Fruit trees auctioned On March 9th the Auroville Foundation Office (AVFO) tendered and on March 27th auctioned the fruits of the fruits trees of the Auroville Farms, without any consultation with the RA.

S.O.S from AuroOrchard In a letter to the Secretary requesting her help, a member of the AuroOrchard team protested that a new land marking will give away, in a land exchange, half of the community’s vegetable fields, which provide Auroville with at least ten tones of vegetables a year.

Outcome of the emergency RAD The Residents’ Assembly Service (RAS) informed the community of the results of an Emergency Residents' Assembly Decision-making process, initiated through a petition signed by more than 300 members of the Residents’ Assembly (RA), (1) to approve or disapprove that the Working Committee selected by the RA will coordinate the functions of the Funds and Assets Management Committee of the Residents’ Assembly (RA-FAMC) until such time as the circumstances allow for the selection and functioning of a new FAMC of the RA; and (2) to extend the emergency functions granted to the Working Committee on 14.08.2023, for a period of six months.

Auroville Council meeting room The (RA-WCom) informed the community that on March 11th, a number of current and former members of the Auroville Council received an email notice from the Funds and Assets Management Committee constituted by the Governing Board (GB-FAMC) that the unauthorised users of the Auroville Council meeting room on the first floor of the Town Hall have to vacate by March 15th and that strict action will taken against violators and unauthorised users.

Further cuts to maintenances At the end of February 2024, a number of Aurovilians were notified by the AVFO BCC that their maintenance would be cut, starting 1st March. This follows earlier suggestions to some residents that their work would be “realigned”. 175 residents have already had their maintenances removed, and it is expected that the further maintenance cuts will affect hundreds of Aurovilians who depend on a City Services maintenance for their livelihood in Auroville.

Cuts to community centres’ budgets In February, Auroville’s Centre for Research in Performing Arts (CRIPA) – a constantly-in-use and free-to-use performance and rehearsal venue – and the Pitanga Cultural Centre, were informed by the GB-FAMC that their funding would be reduced to partial or zero support from April 1st, 2024.

Talam stops support of key software Talam, an Auroville unit that has been providing key software support for many of Auroville’s online services, announced that it will cease to support certain software from 1st April 2024.

Community meetings A community meeting took place in the Kalabhumi amphitheatre on March 16th. The participants were informed, both in Tamil and in English, about the events of the last two years.

Selection process 2024 opens Nominations are being invited for the 2024 selection process for the Auroville Council, Admission Committee and Working Committee. Nominations will close on 1st April, and the entire process should be finished by late April.

Awards for Auroville architects Three Auroville architects received awards in the Indian Institute of Architects awards for excellence in architecture 2022. Mona Doctor-Pingel won in the categories ‘Mercantile Retail category for Cottage Showroom’ and ‘Women Architects to the forefront’; Ganesh Bala won in the ‘Adaptive reuse and conservation category’ for an Auromodѐle House; and Suhasini Ayer received a commendation in the ‘Residential’ category for Humanscapes.

Performances and exhibitions The women’s choir Auroville Harmonies performed a “Singing the World” concert at CRIPA on 2nd and 3rd March, conducted by Antoine. Ceramic artist Supriya Menon Meneghetti presented an exhibition titled “From Darkness to Light” at Centre d’Art, Citadines 8-23 March.

Correction In the February 2024 issue of Auroville Today, in the opening article titled A New World Is Born, it is mentioned that The Mother had the experience that the supramental world already existed in a permanent way on 3rd February, 1959.

March, 2024

From Issue Nº416

Madras High Court's Interim stay on regulations On January 23rd, the Madras High Court ordered an interim stay of the two new regulations approved by the Governing Board and published by the Secretary, Auroville Foundation, in the Gazette of India, e.g. the Auroville Foundation (Admission and Termination of Persons in the Register of Residents) Regulations 2023, and the Auroville Foundation (Framework for Selection of Working Committee) Regulations 2024.

Emergency RAD on WCom selection In early February, before the High Court passed its interim order, an Emergency Residents' Assembly Decision (RAD) had been initiated through a petition signed by more than 300 members of the Residents’ Assembly (RA) to approve or disapprove the following resolution:

Students’ exposure tours Nearly a hundred students from across India participated in week long exposure tours to Auroville in early February organised by the Ministry of Education under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat (EBSB) programme.

MOU with IGNCA On 27th February, in a ceremony in Delhi, The Auroville Foundation and Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to foster cross-cultural understanding and promote artistic exchanges and to advance the teachings and vision of Sri Aurobindo.

Call for another Emergency RAD Concerned residents have initiated a call for an Emergency Residents’ Assembly decision on (1) extending the emergency functions of the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) and (2) authorising the RA-WCom to do the work of the Funds and Assets Management Committee (RA-FAMC) of the Residents’ Assembly.

Safety and Security Team stopped On 19th January, 5 out of 6 Aurovilian members of the Auroville Safety & Security Team (AVSST) received an email from the BCC informing them that the Foundation appointed BCC & FAMC “are unable to support maintenance on your current positions”.

auroville.org.in email addresses unsafe A group of concerned residents have warned all Aurovilians that the Auroville email addresses ending with the suffix "@auroville.org.in" are not secure and can be read, and that certain email addresses are blocked since the email administration was taken over under the office of the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation and is managed by unknown persons.

Request to inform of visa issues The RA-Wcom has requested all those who have had or are having issues getting a letter of recommendation for new visas or for extensions of existing visas to contact them.

Auroville’s birthday and the Golden Day Auroville’s birthday was celebrated, as usual, with the Dawn fire at the Amphitheatre. On 29th February, the Golden Day, there was a morning meditation at the Amphitheatre, and an evening programme of a musical offering from Kim Cunio and Heather Lee, accompanied by musician friends from Svaram and beyond.

The Auroville Marathon Sports and fitness enthusiasts from far and near participated in the 14th edition of the Auroville Marathon that was held in various distance categories on Sunday 18th February.

A month crammed full of events As usual, February has experienced a plethora of cultural and other events. These included performances by the Auroville Choir, an international conference on the revival and promotion of Sanskrit, a four day gathering in Unity Pavilion entitled Toward a Collective Awakening: Experiments in Evolution conceived as a follow-up to the Summit held in Auroville in February 2023 to facilitate consciousness change at a collective, The Auroville Festival – a weeklong festival including discussions on diverse topics and daily cultural performances – the Shakti Kumbh event in Unity Pavilion entitled Regenerative Renaissance of Mother India: Revitalising Bharata Shakti, three conferences on the relationship between spiritual and social life organised by the Pavillon de France, yoga activities, chanting and sound meditation in the Matrimandir Amphitheatre, a chanting and bhajan performance at SAWCHU, and a week of events in Mother’s Flower Garden.

February, 2024

From Issue Nº415

New Entry and Exit regulations The Governing Board (GB) has approved new ‘Admission and Termination of Persons in the Register of Residents Regulations’, and published them in part III of the Gazette of India on January 4th, 2024.

New Entry and Exit regulations: responses In response to the publication of the new Regulations, the RA-WCom initiated an Emergency Residents' Assembly Decision-making process. The residents were asked to pass a resolution that the new Regulations are an overreach by the GB and usurp the powers given to the Residents’ Assembly as per the Foundation Act, and that the Residents’ Assembly asserts its right to carry out its functions as detailed in the Auroville Foundation Act.

Auroville Foundation (Framework for Selection of Working Committee) Regulations, 2024. On January 12th, 2024, the GB published the Auroville Foundation (Framework for Selection of Working Committee) Regulations, 2024, in part III of the Gazette of India.

Responses to the Framework for Selection of Working Committee Regulations As the Framework for Selection of Working Committee Regulations appear to be in contravention of the Auroville Foundation Act which states in section 19.2 that “The manner of choosing the members of the Working Committee and their term of office shall be such as may be decided by the Residents Assembly”, concerned residents have collected signatures on a petition requesting the Residents’ Assembly Service (RAS) to open an Emergency Residents' Assembly Decision (E-RAD) “regarding the Governing Board’s questionable attempt to interfere with the selection process of WCom members.”

Minutes Governing Board meetings 2023 published More than two months after the Central Information Commissioner, an appeal authority under the Right to Information Act, reprimanded the Public Information Officer of the Auroville Foundation for not responding to Right for Information requests and not publishing the minutes of meetings of the Governing Board, the AVFO has published on its website the minutes of the GB’s 63rd, 64th and 65th meetings, held on February 16th, August 9th and December 12th 2023 respectively.

63rd GB meeting. Excerpts. In its 63rd meeting the GB approved the project proposal submitted by the EdCIL (India) Limited for the construction of 1,000-bed student hostel in two phases at Auroville.

64th GB meeting. Excerpts In its 64th meeting the Board asked the Secretary, Auroville Foundation to take necessary steps to streamline the housing allotment and regulate the housing according to The Mother's perception.

65th GB meeting. Excerpts. The Board in-principle approved the construction of a boundary wall around the inner circle of the outer ring road. As the costs of erecting a barbed wire fencing are cheaper to the tune of about 50% to the cost for prefabricated cement structure, the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) submitted a revised quotation for Rs.18.69 crores.

City Services Contribution waivers cancelled The GB appointed Funds and Assets Management Committee (GB-FAMC) has cancelled all city services contribution waivers approved of by former BCCs or FAMCs for individuals, services and units before March 2023.

New housing policy The FAMC and Housing Service have announced a new housing policy, which has been endorsed by the Governing Board. Some of the key points include: An Auroville House User cannot be the user of more than one housing asset at a time; residential buildings shall be used only for residential use and cannot be converted into guest houses, homestays, offices or any other use; residential buildings cannot be used for any activities involving personal gain (e.g. renting or leasing of the residential building or parts thereof, use as an office for non-Auroville activities); an Auroville house user who wishes to leave Auroville for a period longer than one month, due to which the house or apartment in which the house will be unoccupied, must intimate the Housing Service so that a temporary house sitter can be accommodated during the absence of the Auroville resident; in case an Auroville house user leaves Auroville permanently, the house or apartment will be re-allocated by the Housing Service in accordance with the provisions of this policy; inheritance rights do not apply to Auroville properties since all properties are legally owned by Auroville Foundation, and not by persons who are using these properties.

New donation channeling process The establishment of the Donation Channeling Group (DCG) was approved by the Governing Board in their 65th meeting held on 12th Dec 2023. The DCG team will roll out the donation channeling process from 1st April 2024, the start of the new financial year.

Closures at Visitors Centre The Kiosk Cafe (as well as the Dosa Corner space (Cafeteria upstairs) have been ordered to close by the Visitors Centre executives, in consultation with the Assistant Secretary.

Auroville Safety and Security On 19 January 2024, five of the six Aurovilian members of the Auroville Safety & Security Team (AVSST) received an email from the Budget Coordination Group (BCC) informing them that "BCC & FAMC are unable to support maintenance on your current positions.

Earthbound pottery festival The inaugural edition of the Earthbound Pottery Festival – a convergence of artistic expression and cultural celebration – took place over three days at the Alliance Francaise in mid January.

Pongal celebrations The three-day Pongal festivities began with a colourful celebration at Alankuppam on Monday, January 15, 2024. This was organised by the Mohanam Village Heritage Centre, who put on this festival every year to introduce the traditional practices of the Tamil population living in the villages surrounding Auroville to those unfamiliar with these customs.

Shaktikumbh 2024 The Unity Pavilion and Shaktikumbh 2024 organising team are inviting the community to participate in what they describe as “a unique nine day spiritual and experiential immersion based on the philosophical significance of numbers in an integrated Indian context” between 21—29 February in the Unity Pavilion.

January, 2024

From Issue Nº414

Subscription rate increase Due to an increase of prices, the subscription rates of Auroville Today have been amended. The new subscription rates for 12 issues are for India print + digital edition Rs 850, other countries print + digital edition Rs 4,000 equivalent, and other countries digital edition only Rs 3,000 equivalent.

AVI USA donation portal Auroville International USA has included Auroville Today in the list of projects to which one can donate, some of which qualify for an additional donation by AVI USA.

Auro-Orchard land exchange The Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) has sent its concerns and a rebuttal of the recent land exchange involving Auro Orchard land to the Governing Board and the International Advisory Council.

Supreme Court order On December 14, 2023, the Supreme Court of India, in an interim order on the appeal of the Auroville Foundation against the judgement of the National Green Tribunal Southern Bench (NGT) of April 2022 in which, except for the Crown Road, the NGT stayed all constructions in Auroville and directed the Auroville Foundation to prepare a proper township plan and obtain Environmental Clearance for it [see AVToday #394 of May 2022] ruled that it was of the prima facie opinion that this direction was outside the jurisdiction of the NGT, and stayed it till further orders.

Ground clearing Both before and since the Supreme Court stayed the NGT verdict, land clearance, including tree-cutting and transplantation, has taken place across Auroville.

Pebble Garden The AVFO ATDC approval for Auroyali to take a piece of Pebble Garden land for its workshop has been rescinded by the AVFO ATDC after the feedback period.

Update from the Forest Group The Auroville Forest Group circulated a public message to the Auroville community and friends of Auroville about what the group has gone through and its plans for the future.

Maintenance cuts The RA-WCom informed the community that the Funds and Assets Management Committee (GB-FAMC) and the Budget Coordination Committee (GB-BCC) appointed by the Office of the Secretary have recently sent a mail to several residents that their maintenance would be stopped the same day, as the maintenance had not been allocated under an approved City Service budget.

SAIIER and Arts Service cuts At the request of the GB-FAMC and GB-BCC, SAIIER have prioritised the maintenance and budget 2024-2025 of all of SAIIER’s sub-units, which has led to a number of artistic and cultural units and activities having their budgets and maintenances cut.

Petition to the Governing Board (GB) and International Advisory Council (IAC) So far, over 350 concerned Auroville residents have signed a petition to te GB and IAC expressing their profound discontent with the recent actions and policies implemented by the GB-FAMC and their loss of confidence in the GB-FAMC’s ability to effectively manage the community’s finances and assets.

Constitution of the Termination Committee The RA-WCom informed the community that, as the Hon'ble Madras High Court has recently re-affirmed that the Residents' Assembly (RA) is a statutory body and cannot be restricted in carrying out its functions as per the Auroville Foundation Act, the RA has to constitute the “Termination Committee” (aka the Exit Review Group) as specified in the Auroville Foundation (Admission and Termination of Persons in the Register of Residents) Regulations, 2020.

MM lake task force The RA WCom has endorsed the creation of a task force to review the design of the Matrimandir lake. In their announcement on 12th December 2023, they stated that “the review of the present design of the lake is being undertaken to prepare a revised concept as an offering to the community of Auroville”.

Annapurna Duck Project Annapurna Farm, Auroville’s largest rice farm, has started integrating ducks into its paddy fields. The ducks reduce the labour of paddy weeding, fertilize the field, control pests by eating insects and snails, and stimulate rice plant growth by moving around the plants throughout the day, and so increase the rice yields.

Auroville’s first Tamil Literature Festival On 16th-17th December, this festival brought together some of the best Tamil writers, educators, thinkers and philosophers, in the categories of poetry, literature, art, culture and the works of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.

Better birthing conference award Morning Star is a unit of the Health and Healing Trust, made up of midwives and doulas who support pregnancy, childbirth breastfeeding and provide women’s wellness gynecological care in Auroville.

Rainfall news According to Charlie’s (Aurogreen) rainfall figures, by late December Auroville had received 147 cms, which is 5% above the average for the past 34 years.

Death announcements After many years of devotedly writing much appreciated obituaries of Aurovilians and associates, Mauna announced that she was handing over responsibility for death announcements, obituaries and other such notifications to the Farewell team.

PRISMA around the World PRISMA, one of the Auroville units that specialises in publishing and distributing books, has increased its international presence. More than twenty PRISMA books are now accessible in about thirty countries, offering readers a choice between digital and print formats on platforms like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, IndieBound, Indigo and more.

December, 2023

From Issue Nº413

Study on Auroville’s organization The study on Auroville’s organization, made by Professor Raag Yadava and his team, can be downloaded from

Correction The report on Auroville’s Singing Festival, published in our previous issue, mentioned that “the festival was a diverse offering, not only in terms of performers and musical genres, but also in languages, including four Indian dialects, major European languages, Mandarin and Hebrew.”

5th Tamil Nadu Young Thinkers Meet The 5th Tamil Nadu Young Thinkers Meet was organised between 3rd and 5th November in Auroville’s Savitri Bhavan. The community was not informed of this closed event.

Auroville redefined by AVFO in Letters of Recommendation The AVFO recently changed the wording on visa Letters of Recommendation (LoR). The previous wording stated that “Auroville was founded by ‘The Mother’ of Sri Aurobindo Ashram on 28th February 1968”.

Voice of Auroville issue #4 The November 2023 issue of the bimonthly journal Voice of Auroville is now available from voiceofauroville@auroville.services. The journal, endorsed by the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly of the Auroville Foundation, aims at informing well-wishers and friends of Auroville in India and abroad on the current unfolding events with factual updates and articles.

Auroville Timeless Some months ago, a new magazine was announced by AWARE Auroville called Auroville Timeless, which aims to bring the reader “closer to the vibrant and ever-evolving world of Auroville”, while “exploring the profound journey of fostering harmony and understanding among individuals from diverse backgrounds”.

A new website for Stand For Auroville Unity Stand For Auroville Unity, the community-aligned campaign that was launched in December 2021 after the events at the Youth Center, Bliss Forest and Darkali, had faced technical issues with its website over the last few months.

AVFO Working Committee information meeting On 2nd November 2023, the AVFO Working Committee held a closed meeting at Unity Pavilion. The invitation, sent only to selected “friends”, explained “in the recent months, people have become confused by some of the stories and fears that have been spread … we want to take the opportunity to hear your views and questions and try to answer them as best we can.”

Foundation groups open meeting On 18th November, a meeting was organised by Community Connect for the four working groups that work with the AVF – the WC, the FAMC, the ATDC and an alternative RAS – to make presentations and answer questions from community members.

Entry Service clarification The Entry Service clarified that certain statements made by the AVFO Working Committee at the open meeting (see above) were incorrect. It was said that the Entry Board is maintaining a ‘blacklist’, of Applicants / Newcomers, and that emails asking for clarification were not being answered.

CPIO of AVFO reprimanded by IC Several Right To Information (RTI) requests addressed to the Auroville Foundation have gone to appeal due to incomplete or no answers from the Auroville Foundation’s Central Public Information Officer (CPIO).

Visa issues Many foreign residents of Auroville experience often long delays in obtaining the mandatory Letter of Recommendation (LoR) for their visa. Awaiting the letter, Aurovilians and Newcomers abroad have to find employment and housing; those in Auroville are facing penalties imposed by the registration authorities if their application for visa extension is received after the date of expiry of their current visa.

Pour Tous Purchasing Service (PTPS) update The Pour Tous Purchasing Service team announced they are “happy and proud to announce that we have now completed ONE full year in ‘full control’ as far as that is possible or even desirable...”

Legal update about the RA On September 4th, 2023, the appeal bench of the Madras High Court noted in an interim order that the Residents’ Assembly, as a statutory body, cannot be restricted from performing its duties as per the Auroville Foundation Act.

Legal update about the NGT On November 21st, India’s Supreme Court heard an appeal filed by the Auroville Foundation office against the ruling of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) of April 2022. which emphasized the need for comprehensive town plans and environmental clearance before embarking on any development, while giving conditional clearance for creating the Crown Road.

Other court issues Other legal proceedings are ongoing. One of these is with the National Green Tribunal Southern Bench, against actions by the AVFO which are believed to be in contempt of the National Green Tribunal’s ruling of April 2022, according to the lawyer for the Auroville petitioners

Land exchanges On November 29th, the AVFO Working Committee shared a letter received from the Special Officer of the Auroville Foundation which stated that the Foundation has exchanged 10 acres of unutilised land in the Auro Orchard and Hope communities for 15 acres of land owned by a private developer in the city and greenbelt area.

Pebble Garden under threat Many objections have been raised to the proposal that a major part of the land of Pebble Garden, a pioneering project in wasteland regeneration and research that is well known throughout India, are proposed to be allocated to Auroroyali, a contractor, as storage space for building materials.

62nd Governing Board meeting The RA-WCom has published extensive comments on the minutes of the 62nd meeting of the Governing Board, held in December 2022, which were only made public in October this year.

November, 2023

From Issue Nº412

Study on Auroville’s organisation Contrary to our announcement in the previous issue, the 650-page study on Auroville’s organization made by Professor Raag Yadava and his team, has not yet been published.

Heart weaving expansion Heart Weaving was started in December last year in an effort to deepen our capacity for dialogue in Auroville and to be able to truly listen to each other across differing perspectives and opinions.

Dreamcatching Since August 2023 Dreamcatching sessions have begun again after a gap of almost 15 years on different roof tops, every Monday from 6-8 am. It is one of the multi-pronged approaches that were proposed by the Dreamweaving Core Team to unite people around common processes and values.

Self-education programme From the presentation of the Dreamweavers, a new initiative called the ‘Self Education Programme’ was launched on 12th September. 20 participants split into 5 groups are learning and sharing for 7 weeks about 5 major and often ignored topics of urban design; namely spatial justice, values and urban forms, art and culture, connectivity and access, and density and diversity.

Integration of Auroville borewells The FO L’avenir d’Auroville / ATDC announced that the preparation of the development of Auroville-City, planning and development of roads, sectors and facilities has implications for the borewells also.

AVFO asks for ‘No Dues Certificate’ in order to receive visa Now residents applying for a visa letter of recommendation (LOR) will not have their request sent to the Foundation Office until they receive a ‘no dues certificate’ from the AVFO ‘BCC’.

Satprem update On 19th June Satprem Maini was notified by the FRRO Chennai that he had to leave the country on or before 1st July, although he holds a valid visa until December 2025, since the Secretary had apparently withdrawn his recommendation to work and live in Auroville.

Earth Institute update Satprem set up and is deeply involved with the Auroville Earth Institute (AVEI), which has become one of the world’s foremost centres for excellence in earthen architecture, and a leader in the research, development, promotion and transfer of earth-based building technologies.

ROR final call On 18th October, K.Swarnambika, Deputy Secretary / DIR, issued a final call to those Aurovilians who had not updated their entry in the ROR, warning them that if they did not come to the office within ten days to do so, “any application after that shall not be entertained”.

Farm issues In July 2023, an email was received by Ayarpadi farm demanding that they hand over “the land parcel that you are farming in situated next to Windarra, as well as the service farm” so that the land could be reallocated to “Aurovillians [sic] who have undergone 6 months of training at Unity Farm”.

RA TDC reports on tree-cutting The RA TDC is continuing to document and report on instances of tree cutting across Auroville. Their report of 7th September 2023 shows that at least 378 trees have been cut on the proposed Crown and Outer Ring Road trajectories since the NGT judgment of April 2022.

David Nagel scholarship AVI USA has created a special scholarship fund in collaboration with Auroville’s Botanical Gardens and with sponsorship from HiDesign. The scholarship is created in the memory of David Nagel, originally from Brooklyn, who joined Auroville in 1978.

Botanical Gardens networking workshop In the middle of October a 3-day Botanical Gardens of India Networking Workshop was held at the Auroville Botanical Gardens. This event was supported by Botanical Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) with most of their partnered botanical gardens attending the workshop, and over 30 participants from 19 organisations across India attended.

Request to all electric cycle users The Auroville Vehicles Service, on the request of many Aurovilians, asks all electric cycle users to pedal while using the cycle paths instead of using the motor.

New Whatsapp channel for Auroville An Auroville Community Updates Whatsapp channel has been launched which is open to all members of the Auroville community (including residents, Newcomers and volunteers).

CHATGPT/ LLM/ generative AI user group Residents are invited to join a new ChatGPT group. As the invitation put it, “Perhaps you’re a student of Mother and Sri Aurobindo intrigued by the possibility that AI is an essential milestone on the road to the supramental being.

New book release A new book, “Prefiguring Utopia: The Auroville Experiment”, by Aurovilian Suryamayi Aswini Clarence-Smith and published by Bristol University Press has just been released.

Peace Tree planting On 18th of August, a small group who had been present at the planting of a Peace Tree in Campinas, Brazil on 25th June 2004, gathered at the Botanical Gardens to plant another Peace Tree in Auroville.

Neem Tree and Dropsy An interesting headline appeared on Auronet recently: “Neem Tree Eatery has joined Dropsy”. Dropsy is the old fashioned term for oedema, which is a build-up of fluid in the body.

October, 2023

From Issue Nº411

Demise of Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, ex-Chairman of the Auroville Foundation Dr. M.S Swaminathan, distinguished agricultural scientist and the leader of India’s Green Revolution, passed away on Thursday 28 September, at the age of 98.

Legal updates On 12th August last year, the case regarding the legitimacy of the Residents Assembly working groups was judged in favour of the RA. Soon after, on 26th August, the AVFO appealed the case, and obtained a temporary stay on the judgement, pending the outcome of the appeal.

Matrimandir lake presentation On 19th September, Michael Bonke presented to the community future plans for the Matrimandir lake. This includes an underwater reservoir for drinking water, the first in the world, sufficient to support 50,000 Aurovilians for 100 days; and the development of hydro-power storage directly linked to a solar plant towards making Auroville independent of the TNEB grid.

Revelation tree cutting In June 2023, for 2 days, workers employed by the AVFO Land Board, cut a total of 1,863 trees aged between 3-15 years old in Revelation Forest Sanctuary.

Possible land exchange in Forecomers and Ravena The Foundation Office is reportedly considering exchanging 22 acres in the heart of Forecomers and Ravena communities for poramboke land in the City Centre area.

Solitude land dispute Embroiled in a land issue, as seven members of the neighbouring panchayats claimed that part of Solitude Farm was partially built on temple land.

Forest workers gratuity payments On 11th September, the Forest Group wrote to the FO FAMC and FO BCC requesting that they fulfil financial obligations to fifty forest workers, some of whom have worked in Auroville forests for over forty years.

Auroville Green Services Auroville Green (Belt) Services is a new group formed by the FO FAMC. A few of the existing Forest Group members decided to join the newly formed group, but the Forest Group clarified that these members joined this group in their personal capacity and in no way are a voice of the Forest Group.

RA WC letter to the community On 18th September, the RA Working Committee shared an open letter in which they state that they “are aware that many of us struggle to stay positive and not give in to exhaustion and fear and a feeling of helplessness at the destruction and lack of humanity that seems to go on with no consequence”.

Safety concerns on the Crown The ongoing works on the Crown Road, which have slowed or halted on some stretches, combined with summer monsoon rains, have caused difficult travelling conditions.

Visitors Center books On 19th August 2023, the team working at the Visitors’ Center (VC) Information Service was instructed by email to remove all written material by 1st September 2023.

Asset survey The FO FAMC, in association with the Housing Service Team, is initiating a survey of the income generating and service units to gather asset-related information from these units to update the database.

Auroville Literature Festival videos Videos of the presentations made at the Auroville Literature Festival on 25th-27th August have now been released online. For more information visit aurovillelitfest.org or write to aurovillelitfest@auroville.org.in

Blind Babble Event Youthlink, which is a diverse group of youth from Auroville who work towards creating a positive impact in Auroville, invited all residents to a ‘Blind Babble Event’ on 14th Sept.

September, 2023

From Issue Nº410

Mr. Srinivasmurty retires On July 31st, Mr. Srinivasmurty, the former Under Secretary and a few times Acting Secretary of the Auroville Foundation, retired as an officer of Auroville Foundation.

New Deputy Secretary appointed The Ministry of Home Affairs has appointed Ms. K. Swarnambika, IPS, as Deputy Secretary / Director of the Auroville Foundation. No information has been shared by the AVFO as to the nature of Ms Swarnambika’s new role.

Legal update On August 11, Justice N. Seshasayee of the Madras High Court pronounced judgment in a case started by an Aurovilian challenging the decision of the Officer on Special Duty of the Auroville Foundation to reconstitute as many as 14 Committees or Units of the Foundation by a unilateral Office-Order, dated 12.04.2023.

Entry Service annual report The Entry Service reported that in the period April 2022 to May 2023, 49 new Aurovilians joined, 10 Auroville youth turned 18, 113 Newcomers were admitted, as well as 3 Friends of Auroville and 2 relatives/spouses of Aurovilians.

Residents’ Assembly decisions The Residents’ Assembly Service (RAS) announced that the Residents’ Assembly of Auroville had approved two proposals with majority vote. The proposal that the RA can make an emergency Residents’ Assembly Decision (RAD) at a petition signed by at least 300 residents was approved by 402 participants (98% of all votes cast).

Food security work plan After interactions with the farmers and directives from the Governing Board, The FO Farm Service and FO FAMC announced they have come up with a work plan for farming and food security in Auroville.

VIP Road: removal of farms In an open letter to the Farm Service, the FO FAMC and the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation, Auroville farmers raised their concern as to the announcement that three farm areas (Buddha Garden, Siddhartha and Shambala) are to be removed to make place for a road, parking lots and convenience facilities for a planned VIP road, a road which is not mentioned in the gazetted Master Plan.

VIP road: removal of dog shelter The planned VIP road will also pass through the existing Auroville dog shelter. The dog shelter team were happy to inform the community that after productive discussions, a compromise could be worked out in which the new access road will be built without destroying any dog enclosures or important infrastructure of the shelter.

Matrimandir Lake tree removal The RA TDC shared a report on the second phase of the Matrimandir Lake excavation and tree cutting. The excavation is taking place over approximately 4 acres of land and endangers around 125 trees including “a large number of very old Neem trees”.

Thirukkural study group Sri Aurobindo wrote that the Thirukkural, the most revered Tamizh text of the last 2000 years, “is gnomic poetry, the greatest in planned conception and force of execution ever written in this kind”.

New planning programmes Residents are invited to participate in a self-education programme designed to improve the community’s understanding of planning issues. This is part of a new initiative launched by the Dreamweaving core team (see page 6).

Art for Land 2023 On August 13, the Art for Land exhibition cum sale 2023 was inaugurated at the Unity Pavilion. Art for Land is a collaborative action of Aurovilians and friends of Auroville to raise funds for the purchase of the still-missing lands to consolidate Auroville’s Master Plan area.

Auroville News podcasts On August 5, 2023, Auroville Media Liaison, an activity approved by the Working Committee selected by the Residents' Assembly, launched the first episode of the new "Auroville News Podcast".

Dog shelter limitations The Auroville dog shelter team issued a warning that it is only dedicated to rescuing dogs that can no longer survive on the streets due to illness, age, or accidents and that the shelter’s current capacity does not allow it to accommodate healthy puppies which people find on the streets.

August, 2023

From Issue Nº409

Upholding the Auroville we love The Working Committee of the Residents' Assembly (RA-WCom) has stated in an open letter that it is exhausted and pained by the state of affairs in Auroville, with multiple cases in Indian courts and takeovers continuing.

Clearing Outer Ring Road Since the first week of June 2023, the Land Board appointed by the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation has been clearing areas of Revelation Forest, one of Auroville’s largest forests, to prepare for the Outer Ring Road under direction of the Auroville Foundation appointed Town Development Council (FO–ATDC).

Budget cuts The Funds and Assets Management Committee appointed by the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation (FO-FAMC) and its subgroup the Budget Coordination Committee (FO-BCC) have cut all Aurovilian maintenances and all workers’ salaries of the Forest Group, and over 75% of the maintenances of Aurovilians working for farms.

Foodlink and Farm Group dissolution Food Link serves as an intermediary service between farms and consumers. On June 20th, two long-standing executives of Food Link who have been working there for 25 and 7 years respectively were dismissed without prior notice or explanation or following due process.

Objection to Ayarpadi Farm decision The Auroville Farm Group has sent an open letter to the FO-FAMC and the newly created Farm Service questioning their decision to request Ayarpadi Farm to give up five acres of their cultivated land to be used by volunteers to explore a farming future.

Restrictions on new borewells The FO-ATDC announced that it will no longer approve new and replacement borewells in the Auroville City area. Exceptions will be made only if no other water supply possibilities are available.

New donation guidelines The Donation Channeling Group set up by the Foundation Office clarified a new procedure regarding donations for Auroville projects. For the registration of projects for which donations are already being received or for which donations are proposed to be raised, an on-line Project Registration Form (PRF) has been designed which needs to be uploaded on a designated portal.

More Aurovilians in visa trouble An increasing number of Aurovilians are receiving recommendation letters for visa extensions from the AVFO that state that they are obstructing development or engaged in anti-government activities.

Auroville Timeless A new service unit “Aware Auroville”, with members appointed by the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation, is bringing out a monthly online newsletter called Auroville Timeless.

Voice of Auroville Two issues of the online newsletter Voice of Auroville, a publication endorsed by the RA-WCOM, which present an overview of what has been happening in Auroville over the past two years, have been posted.

Guest houses ordered to stop taking reservations Two of the team members newly appointed by the AVFO to manage Auroville’s guest houses have demanded that all guest house managers hand over their reservations list and immediately cease to take bookings.

June, 2023

From Issue Nº407-408

Scorching summer In May and June, the Indian Meteorological Department recorded temperatures in parts of Tamil Nadu of 2 to 3°C above normal. Temperatures were in the range 35°C to 41.5°C in the plains of north Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal areas.

Unexpected rains The early weeks of May brought unexpected rains that broke all records. Normally, at this time of the year, Auroville is lucky to get a 5- or 10-minute thunder shower, which will cool off the evening and water the surface of the ground.

Leave India On June 19th, an Aurovilian who has been residing and actively contributing to the community for more than 34 years, was informed by the Foreigners Regional Registration Officer in Chennai that the Secretary, Auroville Foundation, had revoked his visa recommendation.

Monitoring plantation programmes The Auroville Botanical Garden reported that it is now involved in the scientific monitoring of their plantation programmes. Supported by the Ramco group, Ecosia, and the Franklin Foundation through a Botanical Gardens Conservation International project, they have completed the first of this year’s surveys to check the health and growth of its plantations planted in and around the bio region in colleges, schools and government compounds, as well as within the green belt areas of Auroville.

Planting a coastal forest The Auroville Botanical Garden has completed the coastal zone plantation programme of a 50 acre site, recreating a coastal forest with local plants adapted to the sandy and salt conditions.

Land purchase Two plots of lands of in total 2.2 acres, north of Certitude and bordering Prarthna community, have been bought at a cost of more than 1.77 crore per acre, resulting in a steep increase in land purchase price

New email system: @auroville.community As the security and accessibility of the @auroville.org.in email system has been compromised for a year, the Working Committee of the Residents’ Assembly (RA-WCom) has invited all Aurovilians, Newcomers and Friends of Auroville to join a new workspace and email system @auroville.community.

Residents’ Assembly Service (RAS) takeover The GB appointed Working Committee (GB-WCom) informed the community that a new Residents’ Assembly Service (RAS) has been appointed through an Office Order issued by the Office of the Secretary.

Prosperity experiment launched The GB FAMC and Prosperity Services have jointly launched a Prosperity experiment for a three month period. A group of around 100 Aurovilians and Newcomers of various nationalities, backgrounds and family situations will do a practical experiment to follow Mother’s guidelines as expressed in Her Dream.

Entry Board calls for mentors The Entry Board has called on Aurovilians to serve as mentors for Newcomers. Mentors are responsible for supporting the Newcomers by helping them integrate into the life of the Auroville community and its ideals and are the bridge between Newcomers and the Entry Secretariat and the Entry Board.

The English of Savitri XII The twelfth and concluding volume of the series The English of Savitri was released by Dr. Alok Pandey on June 4th, Shraddhavan’s birthday. The transcription of this last volume had been corrected and edited by Shraddhavan herself during her lifetime.

New Prosperity Model (Housing) The GB appointed Funds & Assets Management Committee (GB-FAMC) announced that it is proposing a new housing facility ‘Prosperity model’ “so that every working Aurovilian will be able to have a house in Auroville ''.

Auroville Safety and Security Team (AVSST) concerns The AVSST informed the community that as it did not receive any information or notice regarding the recently circulated Office Order issued by the Office of the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation, which seems to include a change of executives and team members for this service, the AVSST team will continue its work.

Alleged non-compliance with NGT judgment The Town Development Council appointed by the Residents’ Assembly (RA-TDC) informed the community that over the past months it has sent out letters to the Auroville Foundation Secretary, the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) and the GB appointed Town Development Council (GB-ATDC) regarding non-compliance with the National Green Tribunal judgment as it considers that works being done along the Crown Road and in other places in Auroville disregard the NGT judgment.

Before passing away The RA-WCom has advised all Aurovilians to plan ahead and make a living will in the event that one is unable to communicate one’s wishes when medical care is needed.

Register of Residents The accounts officer of the Auroville Foundation informed the community that the Register of Residents “will become the official central database repository that will provide linkage to all information pertaining to Auroville residents, place of work and other working groups”, and that “all persons to be entered into the Register of Residents will provide a @auroville.org.in official contact email only.

@auroville.org.in The accounts officer of the Auroville Foundation informed the community that “all residents when contacting any working groups for work related queries will use their @auroville.org.in email address in order to have a proper response and have it archived for future reference” and that “all trustees, units, services managers are to only use @auroville.org.in to correspond with other Auroville entities within Auroville or other outside entities” and that “all communication with regard to their work should be using the email address domain auroville.org.in as “this allows for proper communication and archival needs.”

Kalabhumi borewell The GB-TDC has been served a legal notice in response to its email to users of the Kalabhumi borewell, which includes the residents, the Music Studio, CRIPA hall and Aurofilm.

Alleged low quality Crown Road work In a two-page report, the RA-TDC informed the community that the Crown Road work undertaken by the CPWD as per the designs of GB-ATDC has been substandard.

Sensory garden in Deepanam school Deepanam School now has a new Sensory garden for the children to engage with nature. This initiative of Patrizia and Natascha was brought to life with help from the Auroville Botanical Gardens.

May, 2023

From Issue Nº406

Y20 summit in Auroville From the 4th-6th April, Auroville hosted a three day Y20 (youth) summit as part of India’s G20 presidency. The theme was ‘One Earth, One Family, One Future’ and participants were addressed by Dr.

Tamil New Year YouthLink invited everybody to celebrate Tamil New Year, also known as “Tamil Puthandu” together at the Youth Centre on 14 April, for an evening filled with cultural performances, delicious food, and a traditional pooja.

General meeting on town planning On Saturday 1st April, the RA TDC held a general meeting where they informed the community that an anonymous donor has offered to fund the next steps in town planning in collaboration with the Dream-weaving process and Vastushilpa.

Concerns about maintenances The FO FAMC and FO BCC reported that it has been a challenging time for both groups over the last six months as they have been confronted with a number of problems and issues.

Crown road works update An Aurovilian specialised in construction released another update report on the current status of the Crown Road work. Noting that a member of the FO ATDC had stated that the entire 2.1km stretch of road between PTDC and Youth Centre would be completed by 31st March 2023, he pointed out that “only 47.05 m of precast RCC slabs have been badly laid”.

New executives of Auroville Services Executives of a number of key Services, including SAIIER, Visitors Centre, Security, Eco Service, Auroville Arts Service, ACUR and the Guest House Trust, have been fully or partially replaced with no or minimal notice.

Removal from ROR The FO WC announced that they had received a communication from the Auroville Foundation that since Maёl had received a Leave India Notice, he would be removed from the Register of Residents (ROR).

Voice of Auroville A new journal, called Voice of Auroville has been released under the supervision of the RA Working Committee. It aims to provide well wishers and friends of Auroville across India and the globe with factual updates and crisp articles on what is unfolding in Auroville.

RA WC files court case against FO WC members The RA WC has filed a case at the Madras High Court against the 7 members of the FO WC for posing as the “Working Committee”. The case is called a Quo Warranto wherein these 7 persons have to prove in the Court that they are representing the RA and have valid grounds to call themselves the “Working Committee”.

Auroville International (AVI) Board clarification The Chairman of the AVI Board made a statement clarifying that the Board is not against the development of the City, nor even against the construction of the Crown Road.

Shortage of mentors The Entry Service has issued a call for Aurovilians to offer themselves as mentors of Newcomers. At present, an applicant needs two mentors to start his/her Newcomer process.

Land acquired The Land for Auroville Unified (LFAU) group reports that last year 14 new plots were added to Auroville’s Master Plan area, and 2023 kicked off with the purchase of two new plots.

Auroville youth work survey YouthLink has conducted a work survey youth between 18-30 in Auroville. They received 116 responses from Aurovilian youth, which accounts for 24% of all youth in this age group.

Jane Bonda Just two weeks prior to the planned performance, Bharat Nivas (BN) Trustees sent a letter to Miraculous Productions (MP) to inform them that they will not allow the play ‘Jane Bonda’ to go ahead at the Sri Aurobindo Auditorium as previously agreed.

CRP3C The ‘CRP3C’ (Conflict Resolution Policy, section 3 Coordination) group reminded Aurovilians to report cases of conflict such as violence or threats of violence, substance abuse (alcohol or drugs), psychological health issues, etc.

Coffee Learning Community takes off On April 22nd, Earth Day, Marc’s Coffee Learning Community opened, established on the newly-built first floor of Marc’s Café on the Kuilaypalayam road.

News & Notes Community Edition As the editors of the Auroville News and Notes had received a message from the AVFO working group instructing them to stop publishing articles from the RA-selected working groups, threatening legal action against the editors if they did not comply, a News & Notes Community Edition has been launched.

April, 2023

From Issue Nº405

Tree cutting resumes The FO ATDC announced it would begin assisting the CPWD team in clearing the Crown path, including the cutting of trees, on 9th March in accordance with the authorization given by the Joint Commission as per the National Green tribunal directive.

Legal update On 14th March a ‘miscellaneous petition’ was heard at the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in Chennai. The court order, posted on the following weekend, noted the concern of the applicants that the AVFO “is cutting trees even outside the stretch of crown road work/beyond the recommendation of the Joint Committee.”

Crown Road update Following on from his previous report, an Aurovilian has shared a further technical report detailing the progress of the road work. He points out that the concrete slabs delivered to the site so far do not fit together properly, meaning that the contractor has been forced to take remedial action.

Damaging tree roots An Aurovilian arborist is concerned by tree roots being severed during work on the Crown Right of Way. He points out that trees with roots severed one metre from the stem are much easier to push over, and advises that is usually better to dig under tree roots instead of severing them to install cables and pipes.

Minutes of the 60th and 61st meetings of the Governing Board These minutes were only released recently. In the minutes of the 60th meeting, held on 12th July 2022, it was noted that the Board approved a proposal in principle for the construction of studio flats for 1,000 individuals to attract people from various countries to enhance the spiritual activities of the community.

AVI board members meet Secretary On February 18th, the Chairman and International Secretary of Auroville International met with the Secretary. They appreciated the opportunity to discuss and exchange on several important issues.

Peace Table meeting At the Secretary’s invitation, a group of diverse Aurovilians met with Jay Naidoo around the Peace Table. The atmosphere was peaceful. Among the points mentioned were that Aurovilians needed to be assured of safety and security, verbal violence in speech is not acceptable, that everything possible should be done to solve the situation of the young Aurovilian who received a Leave India notice, and that rebuilding harmony between the GB, IAC and RA is vital for Auroville’s progress.

Consul Generals visit to Auroville Recently, Consul Generals from France, Russia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Bangladesh and Thailand visited Auroville. At the Unity Pavilion, they were given an overview of Auroville, its founding vision based on Sri Aurobindo and the Mother and its aims and activities, in a presentation and talk by the Secretary, Auroville Foundation.

News and Notes update The RA Auroville Council and Working Committee announced they were relieving the editors of the News and Notes of their responsibility and looking for replacements as the editors were not “giving a fair representation to the voice of the community”.

Changed land stewardship The FO ATDC announced that “In order to move forward with the development of Auroville City as per the Master Plan and considering that non-ownership is a core value of life in Auroville, going forward all rights for development of the Auroville lands will follow land use as defined in the Master Plan and by the ATDC, and endorsed by FAMC.

General meeting On 16th March there was a General Meeting in Unity Pavilion. Around 300 residents attended. The RA FAMC made a call for resource persons to assist them as they are having difficulties managing their work as they have only a three person team.

Roger Anger centenary On 23th March, on the occasion of Roger Anger’s centenary, L’avenir d’Auroville / ATDC and the 150th Sri Aurobindo year programme group welcomed people to India Space, Bharat Nivas, for a commemorative event in honour of Roger’s work and legacy for Auroville.

Going digital The FO FAMC announced that the Auroville Foundation is keen to follow up the Digital India initiatives within Auroville also. To facilitate the move from cash to digital transactions quickly and effectively, all executives and managers who have yet to adopt digital payments are required now to register with the TalamPay (including point-of-sale UPI QRcodes) developed internally in Auroville by Talam.

Accounts not approved The FO FAMC also reports that the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has not certified the accounts for the year 2021-2022 for Auroville units/ trusts and consolidated accounts of Auroville Foundation because they are not in the Ministry of Education approved format.

Dream Diving series Savitri Bhavan has launched a project called ‘The Dream Divine Series’. The goal of the project is to make Newcomers understand the Aims and Ideals of Auroville, learn about the life and works of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother, and the Integral Yoga.

Introductory Volunteer Programme (IVP) The IVP, a programme that will take volunteers on a journey of discovery through Auroville, is being resumed. This five day programme is a unique opportunity for volunteers to experience the diverse realities of Auroville and to meet fellow volunteers & Aurovilians.

March, 2023

From Issue Nº404

Leave India Notice The community was deeply shocked to learn that a young Aurovilian and member of the Residents Assembly Working Committee, had been served with a Leave India Notice on 15th February.

Appeals to the Prime Minister Two long-time Aurovilians have written letters to the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, in response to the Leave India Notice, appealing to the P.M. to intervene in the ever-escalating situation, for “Auroville is in great danger” as the “core values” of the experiment are being threatened.

Organisation research Organisation research Responding to a call from the Auroville Council, a group gathered every week from mid November onwards to try to answer a “call for organisation”.

News and Notes letter For some weeks, the News and Notes editors have not been publishing reports from the main Residents Assembly working groups. A group of concerned Aurovilians drafted a letter to the editors saying, “We request you to publish announcements and reports from the working groups selected and endorsed by the Residents’ Assembly.

YouthLink work survey YouthLink has initiated a survey to understand Auroville youths’ relationship to work. They write, “Throughout the years we have heard many allegations, statements, and comments, ranging from ‘Auroville youth are lazy’ to ‘youth want to work but there is nothing to do in Auroville’.

Tree marking As part of a survey of the Galaxy Master Plan, the Central Public Works Department (CPWD), Government of India, has been marking and numbering trees.

Tree puja The Secretary, together with Dena Merriam and some participants in the Science and Spirit conference, held a tree puja in Darkali to pray for the spirits of the many trees which may be cut to make the Crown Road.

New road study Work is now going on apace to finish the Crown road, using RCC slabs rather than the paver blocks which were first experimented with. However, a study by the Auroville Earth Institute concludes that “The new road surfacing design approved by the Auroville Town Development Council appointed by the secretary for the surfacing of this road does not follow any Indian standard.

Home care expenses The FO BCC reports that the overall costs for home care, including the care of Aurovilians (above the age of 60 years) at care homes and their residences, as well as the transport costs for hospital treatments, have increased by 44% at the end of the year.

Gaia work The FO ATDC points out that most of the residences in the Gaia community are in the designated Mahalakshmi Park, even though one of these residences received building permission in the recent past.

Integrated Information System The FO FAMC is setting up an Integrated Information System as a digital memory for the collective. The AIIS office will be responsible for securing a fully integrated, updated data system with all the core data of the Auroville administration, and making it available to working groups as well as Foundation office.

Closing small scale activities At the beginning of November 2022, the AVFO’s ‘FAMC’ sent an email to several Activity managers whose annual turnover does not exceed 2 lakhs.

Considering multiple perspectives The RA TDC is moving forward with setting up a participatory planning process which is open for all to contribute to; the only rule of the game is for each to bring their goodwill, expertise and diversity into a shared approach and be ready to meet respectfully on middle ground.

White paper on the future The Wednesdays for Auroville meeting is planning to issue a ‘White Paper’ on Auroville’s way forward. A couple of papers have already been prepared outlining what has been realised in Auroville since its inception, and what is being planned on the foundation of these achievements.

Legal update The Ami/Evergreen land dispute case was heard in Tindivanam on 15th February, but the lawyers for the Land Board and the Auroville Foundation did not appear.

WaterFest ‘23 Between 2nd February – 22nd March a festival focussed on stewardship for water and biodiversity is taking place as a call to action in the bioregion.

Endangered Craft Mela This is a yearly event organised by the Fertile community that aims to bring together local crafts people with the children of the Auroville bioregion and Tamil Nadu.

Overcoming Apartheid On 26th February, there was an informal community gathering with the South African activist and former minister, Jay Naidoo, in the Unity Pavilion.

Auroville’s birthday As usual, there was a collective meditation with dawn fire in the Amphitheatre on Auroville’s birthday. Later, people enjoyed listening to Savitri music as the sun set on the same afternoon.

A cultural bonanza Late February is the busiest time of the year in Auroville’s cultural calendar. This year there was an ‘Auroville Festival’ which took as its theme the first quality of the Mother’s symbol – Sincerity.

February, 2023

From Issue Nº403

G20 meeting in Auroville After India assumed the presidency of the G20 during 2023, the Union Government planned to organise around 200 events across India. One of these was an environment-related conference in Puducherry at the end of January, attended by about 50 delegates from India and other G20 countries.

Governing Board Meeting The 62nd meeting of the Governing Board took place on 27th December in Raj Bhavan, Chennai. It is reported that the agenda and minutes of the meeting have not yet been communicated with the RA Working Committee or the Residents Assembly, as requested.

Visa Matters In her New Year address to the community, the Secretary clarified that out of the 1065 recommendation letters that had been issued, 993 had been issued for the period requested by the applicant.

Krishna Das in Auroville There are plans for Krishna Das, the well-known mantra musician, to offer a live chanting event in the Amphitheatre on 12th February to launch the ‘Science and spirituality’ summit.

FO BCC report In the current financial year, the FO BCC reported we have a deficit of around 50 lakhs per month and our reserves are low. Nevertheless, they had revised all maintenances by 10% from December 2022, while increasing the City Services contribution from Rs 3,470 to Rs 3,800 to partly cover the expenses of the increased monthly budget.

Concerns about disbursement The RA selected Working Groups expressed concerns that certain individuals associated with the Office of the Secretary are ‘usurping the role and functions’ of the Budget Coordination Committee (BCC) constituted under the Funds and Assets Management Committee selected by the Residents’ Assembly (RA).

Project leaders wanted The FO FAMC announced that they have identified ten key areas that need dedicated full time project leaders to take them forward under its direct guidance.

New housing policy Regarding housing, the FO FAMC stated that from now on all Aurovilians must work only with the Housing Service for the allocation and use of the residential asset/premises for their own use.

Muyerchi youth housing Most of the residents of Surrender have written an open letter expressing their concern that youth residents of Muyerchi house in Surrender have been informed by the FO Housing Service to vacate the building by 8th January, due to the claim that renovations are needed.

Checking housing parameters The FO L’avenir d’Auroville / ATDC reports it is now fully focused on implementing and realising the Galaxy Master Plan. Therefore, “All existing and planned buildings will be checked against the parameters given in the Master Plan.

News and Notes threatened The News and Notes editors have been publishing reports from both the Foundation Office (FO) supported groups and those selected by the Residents Assembly.

Legal matters The RA Working Committee stated, “It has come to our knowledge that an unknown group of people referring to themselves as ‘AVF Legal’ has been sending threatening communications to residents over the past few weeks”.

Survey on restorative process In October the RA selected groups sought to get a sense of the community’s feelings and thoughts on the topic of starting a restorative process between the Residents’ Assembly (RA), Governing Board (GB), and International Advisory Council (IAC).

Aurovilians to Aurovilians Some participants in the Wednesday meeting in the Tibetan Pavilion have been meeting with members of FO-appointed groups as ‘Aurovilians to Aurovilians’ in an attempt to touch something deeper, beyond the barrier of defensive arguments.

Kalabhumi meeting and community get together On Friday 20th January, around 500 residents participated in a meeting which had the intention, as the organizers put it, to co-create a space to review the past year, reflect on the present and revive our collective strength and action, and find practical steps and actions that can be taken now to “walk a few steps in the direction we want to see, while addressing today’s priorities”.

FO Working groups open meeting The FO Working Committee, ATDC and FAMC invited residents to an open meeting on 24th January at Unity Pavilion where they shared a report of their work as well as updates on a number of topics and forthcoming events.

Multi-disciplinary forum The Multi-disciplinary forum has begun meeting again. This forum, which evolved out of the Dreamweaving experiment, brings together Auroville experts from different fields to examine topics of collective importance.

Selection process 2023 The 2023 selection process concluded on 29th January. Two new members were selected for the Auroville Council and four for the Entry Board. Several candidates for FAMC selection dropped out at the last minute, and no new members were selected.

Disappointing monsoon The North East monsoon, which normally brings our heaviest rainfall, fell short this year. According to Charlie’s (Aurogreen) figures, the rainfall in December was almost 40% less than the 33 year average, in November 23% less and in October 4% less.

Potters’ market The sixth edition of the Auroville International Potters’ Market was held from January 26th-28th at the Visitors Center. This year, about 40 national and international ceramic artists participated, including a number of Aurovilian potters.

January, 2023

From Issue Nº402

Human unity gathering On 4th December, one year after the demolition of Youth Centre buildings, concerned residents invited Aurovilians, Newcomers and Volunteers to come together at the Town Hall to make offerings of flowers and enjoy peace dances, live music and food.

Survey on restorative processes between RA, GB and IAC A short survey for residents to fill out was launched in October 2022 and received about 230 submissions. The aim of this survey is not to make any decision, and its results are not binding.

Selection process 2023 The Residents’ Assembly Service has invited all confirmed Aurovilians to take part in the next selection process. 3 members are to be selected for the Entry Board, 2 for the Auroville Council and 6 for the FAMC.

61st meeting of the Governing Board The 61st meeting of the Governing Board took place on 8th November 2022. The RA Working Committee, and the other RA working groups, were not given time to present, despite requests.

Secretary meets Lt. Governor According to The Hindu, Auroville Foundation Secretary, Jayanti Ravi, called on Lt. Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, who is a member of the Auroville Governing Board, at the Raj Nivas on Saturday 25th December.

IAC and AVI meeting The International Advisory Council (IAC) and the AVI Board met for their second exchange via Zoom on 15th November 2022. Dena Merriam, Gabi Gillessen and HP Rama participated from the IAC’s side and 13 members from the AVI Board.

Visas Over the past weeks, the RA Working Committee reported that there has been once again an alarming rise of visa issues for a number of Aurovilians.

Entering of new Aurovilians into the RoR It is estimated that approximately 130 Aurovilians who have completed their Entry Process are still waiting to be added to the Register of Residents (RoR).

Tree plantation The Foundation appointed L’Avenir/ATDC has written to the community explaining that no tree plantation can take place without explicit permission from them, adding “Any resident found to be planting without permission shall face consequences.”

Crown road works The FO ATDC announced that the Crown Road work will restart with a stretch of the Crown inaccessible until the end of December 2022. Since 29th November, teams of road workers have restarted dismantling the existing road.

Cease land exchange In a letter sent to Dr. Jayanti Ravi and members of the Land Board sent by the four Working Groups selected by the Residents’ Assembly, they point out that they have come to know that land exchanges are in process and at least two have been finalised over the last months.

Housing survey The Housing Service is responsible for maintaining the database of all the housing assets of Auroville. In the past attempts were made by many Housing Service teams to compile this data through a communitywide survey but were not successful.

Foundation FAMC resport The FO appointed FAMC reports that it is taking forward a centralized platform for all Auroville trusts. Also that a total revamp of BCC operations has been done and methods put in place for bringing efficiency in collection of contributions at unit and individual level and streamlining expenditures to municipal services.

Legal matters On 7th December, the FAMC case filed by Namrita Gautier came up in the Madras High Court. The court had a choice to admit the case or to dismiss it outright.

Massacre In what one resident described as a ‘massacre’, an elegant bronze statue located behind the Media Centre at the Town Hall was unaccountably painted blue recently.

December, 2022

From Issue Nº401

Legal updates On 13th October, the Madras High Court dismissed a Writ Petition challenging the validity of an Office Order issued by the Governing Board reconstituting the Auroville Town Development Council (ATDC).

AV Community Gathering Team meets Chairman On 31st October, some members of the AV Community Gathering Team attended a meeting in Chennai with the Chairman of the Governing Board, Shri RN Ravi.

Deep Dialogue for Harmony On 21st November residents were invited to the Unity Pavilion to see a video presentation by Raghu Ananthanarayanan, who had been invited by the GB and IAC to “foster a dialogue that will hopefully help address some of the core issues dividing the community, a dialogue that an outside, neutral voice can best foster”.

Survey on possible restorative process The RA Working Groups have launched a survey via mass bulletin to know the community’s thoughts on the possibility of starting a restorative process between the RA, GB, and IAC.

Event to bring the community together For a few years, YouthLink have organized events to bring the community together. Last month they hosted a vegan potluck and a Blind Babble game session to help people connect.

Company for elderly residents An Aurovilian has issued an appeal for people to come forward to form a team to support elderly Aurovilians who have been particularly impacted by the current turmoil.

PRISMA publishes Braille To commemorate Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birth year, PRISMA has published large-format Braille versions of A Dream and Aims and Ideals of Auroville and these have been sent to fifty centres for the visually-impaired across India.

Seized statues The RA Working Committee clarified that reports in the press that there were deliberate attempts by Auroville residents to engage in illegal activities relating to possession of statues were false.

Coastal restoration On 3rd November, Dr Ravichandran, Secretary of Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Govt of India, visited Auroville along with Dr Ramanamurthy, Director of National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR), to discuss the restoration of the eroded coast.

Wasteless launches Sea Change In a first-of-its-kind initiative, WasteLess, in collaboration with the Tamil Nadu government, on 4th November rolled out an educational programme for government school students to raise awareness about microplastics and marine pollution.

Revelation forest tree planting programme This monsoon, Revelation Forest is offering a tree planting programme, including practical tree planting skills and the theoretical aspects of tree planting.

Botanical Gardens in Australia Paul from Botanical Gardens was recently at the 7th Global Conference of Botanical Gardens organized by Botanical Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) in Melbourne.

Annapurna’s elevated pond Annapurna Farm has created an elevated pond on top of a hill. The hill was made from soil dug up in 2018 to double the size of the farm’s existing irrigation ponds, and so expand its rainwater harvesting capacity and depend less on groundwater.

Sustainable land use planning Since a couple of years, Auroville Consulting has been looking for scalable solutions for climate action. One of the ones they have developed is a carbon converter which anybody can use to calculate their transport emissions, with an added option to plant trees and offset the same.

Electromagnetic radiation The Centre for Building Biology is conducting a survey to map the current levels of electromagnetic radiation in Auroville. The data will be inserted into the CSR Geomatics’ database and visualized on a related web GIS portal reachable at gis.avcsr.org.

Arulvazhi yoga prizes The students of Arulvazhi (school of Yoga and learning activities) won 14 prizes, out of which 8 stood for excellence in yoga, among 300 participants at the State level yoga competition in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, on 15 October 2022.

Tara Jauhar award On 21st October, Tara Jauhar, who for many years has been the chairman of the Delhi Ashram, which is often frequented by Aurovilians, was conferred with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Confederation of Indian Universities (CIU) in recognition of her work in the field of education.

New procurement service The Foundation ATDC / L’avenir d’Auroville is creating an Auroville Procurement Service to provide all the construction materials and home appliances for building projects in Auroville.

Foundation BCC update Among other things, the Foundation BCC is currently reviewing maintenance, Temporary Out of Station and Silver Fund policies. From mid December they expect to reach out to the services that generally are supported by the BCC for their 2023-2024 budgetary needs.

New zones In Auroville Tomorrow no. 5, Anupama Kundoo, the head of Urban Design at the ATDC, introduced a proposal for independent transport networks in the city tied to the Crown.

‘Red assets’ to be demolished A number of assets have been built over the years in areas that are deemed reserved for other purposes according to the Master Plan. These areas include the Crown and the Outer Ring Road.

Housing matters The FA Housing Service recently announced that a dedicated team will be visiting communities to speak with residents. Community members can discuss any ongoing activities/plans that they are carrying out and if there are any challenges.

Possible land exchange in AuroOrchard A concerned resident of AuroOrchard recently reported having heard “that up to 7 acres of prime roadside land of AuroOrchard were going to be exchanged with 9 acres in the city, to consolidate lands in the Master Plan area”.

RA TDC on proper planning The RA TDC reports that they are meeting with technical persons and people with planning experience to bring together an informed road map for Auroville’s planning and development.

Road map for development Two members of the International Advisory Council wrote to the Working Committee of the Residents Assembly stressing the need for a road map for development to be presented “as a comprehensive vision, which integrates not only urban development, but the economic, environmental, educational and social development of the bioregion, for which Auroville has already made so much commendable work…

Matching donation for services and outreach projects Auroville International USA has helped many Auroville projects set up unique donor portals that allow them to collect donations in any currency through GooglePay, PayPal, Apple Pay, and credit card.

November, 2022

From Issue Nº400

The Chairman visits Auroville The Hon’ble Governor of Tamil Nadu and Chairman of the Governing Board, Shri R N Ravi, visited Auroville on 18th and 19th of October, 2022. He was welcomed by the Collector, Mr.

Visit of Union Minister of Education On 2nd October, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan visited Auroville. The Minister met only with the Secretary of the Auroville Foundation and Foundation endorsed working groups.

General Meeting of RA working groups The four main working groups of the Residents’ Assembly (Working Committee, Auroville Council, Town Development Council, and the Funds and Assets Management Committee selected by the Residents' Assembly) met with residents at a well attended meeting on 17th October to update them on the current situation and their work, and to answer questions.

Register of Residents survey On September 28th, the Foundation appointed Working Committee announced that a house-to-house survey of Auroville would take place over the following two weeks.

Letters of recommendation / visa update A small group of people have been given letters or recommendation for very short time periods (for example, 3 months instead of 5 years) seemingly for holding opposing views to the Foundation Office.

BCC loses control of Auroville’s finances On 14th October, the RA Budget Coordination Committee (BCC) announced that they “no longer have any control or oversight over Auroville’s City Services budget” as their access to the Financial Services has been removed.

Stop cash payments The Foundation FAMC has announced that all units, services, activities have to stop receiving cash payment. Blue book or digital payments are the two modalities that have to be adopted now.

Beyond mandate? The RA approved Housing Board has also been removed from their positions, and have been locked out of the Housing Google accounts as well as the Housing Service office.

House-sitting changes The Foundation appointed Housing Service announced that from now on house sitting arrangements will be made exclusively between Aurovilians-Aurovilians and Aurovilians-newcomers.

New development plans The Foundation appointed TDC/L’Avenir announced they are in the process of designing the new Sunshine Housing Project, a low-density project in the Gaia/Grace area, and invited people to apply to join the project.

Imbalance? In their September report the Foundation appointed FAMC stated that they wished to address a perceived “systemic fault and … imbalance towards the building of the City the Earth Needs” which, they claim, exists because forests and farms receive a higher number of maintenances than the ATDC.

Crown Road work restarted The Foundation appointed FAMC explained that the Crown work continues under the supervision of CPWD and L’avenir d’Auroville, and is planned to be finished as per schedule.

Clearing of cycle paths On 30th September and 1st October, a JCB accompanied by an engineer from the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) and a survey team started clearing a 2.5m wide path between the trees through Existence forest towards Bliss forest.

Varuna to adjust electricity scheme The Tamil Nadu Electricity Board has increased rates for almost all services provided to its various subscribers. The increase ranges from a few percent to over 50% for certain categories.

PTPS transition completed On 7th October Pour Tous Purchasing Service completed a year of transitioning to becoming an Auroville service. This was the consequence of an RAD decision taken in 2019 by a majority vote to make PTPS a service managed by a management board and new executives.

Dreamweaving movie and discussion On 1st October the Dreamweaving team invited the community for a documentary screening and panel discussion on the recent ‘Dreamweaving the Crown’.

New degree course offered The Auroville Institute of Applied Technology at Aurobrindavan campus is now taking admission of students who have passed 10+2 or equivalent for its Bachelor degree courses (B.Voc.) in Software Development & Machine learning, Production technology, Green Energy and Electric Systems.

YouthLink offers tech help YouthLink are aware of how difficult it can be to keep up with the ever growing world of technology. Consequently, they are offering house visits to the elderly to help solve their tech issues.

Auroville at the Lisbon Triennale The Auroville project, the city designed by Roger Anger, occupies the first room of the “Visionaries” exhibition at the Lisbon Triennale. It includes a rich corpus of drawings, photos, and films of different stages of its conception and manifestation, and highlights the experiential dimension of this adventure.

Ami/Evergreen contested land The case around the Ami/Abri/Evergreen contested was listed in Court on Thursday, 20th of October. The judgment is expected to be given on the 2nd of November.

October, 2022

From Issue Nº399

Essay and film competition The Auroville Foundation has invited schools and college students to submit essays and short films in connection with Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birth anniversary celebrations.

UNESCO conference In commemoration of Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birth anniversary, an event was planned on 30th September at UNESCO headquarters in Paris. Titled ‘Sri Aurobindo’s Dream of Human Unity: manifesting at Auroville’, the central theme was to be Sri Aurobindo’s five dreams, its message of a progressive unity and the next evolutionary step, along with a presentation of Auroville.

Abri/Ami corner land update Land on the Abri/Ami corner and Evergreen which has been in the possession of Auroville and Mr. Michael Bonke for many years has been claimed by a local businessman.

Land exchange Several communities have been visited recently by unidentified people who claimed their visits were due to ongoing land-exchange negotiations.

Housing Service receives Office Order The Housing Board and Housing Service appointed by the Residents Assembly received information from the Foundation office that they had been replaced by an Office Order and a new group appointed.

Council Meeting Room Presence On 1st July the Auroville Council were sent an email by a member of the Foundation-appointed Town Hall management teams telling them to vacate the Auroville Council room.

Eviction threat Elodie and Txuma, whose bathroom is on the proposed Crown Road, received a letter signed by Dr G. Seetharaman, AVFO’s ‘Officer on Special Duty’, informing them that they are illegal occupants of ‘public premises’, and threatening them with eviction if they do not move.

Infrastructure message The ATDC appointed by the Foundation office issued a message recently reminding all residents/ groups and services of Auroville, that any work in Auroville, be it digging, fencing, demolition, building, or planting, needs the explicit approval of the Auroville Town Development Council.

Legal update Upcoming dates: 20.10.2022 – Supreme Court appeal regarding National Green Tribunal Ruling 10.11.2022 – National Green Tribunal hearing with regard to the Joint Committee report

Standing true to our values and ideals The Council issued a statement that “During this painful and deeply saddening time for us all and Auroville, our best recourse is that of standing true to our values and ideals while also aspiring for a truer and more spiritualised way of being.

Deep dialogue for harmony At the recommendation of Dena Meriam, Chairperson of International Advisory Council, the Governing Board and Secretary, Auroville Foundation, Mr.

Moving forward together The moving forward together team has announced a programme of events for October. They include walks for unity, body in light – energy healing and coaching, Tibetan mantra singing, and a silent receptivity gathering of members of the Residents Assembly.

Walk for Unity every Tuesday Community members are showing solidarity by coming together on a weekly basis. Every Tuesday evening, a ‘Walk For Unity’ takes place, starting at the Solar Kitchen at 5.20 pm.

First Aid campaign by YouthLink A First Aid Awareness Campaign by YouthLink, in collaboration with Auroville Safety and Security Team, was carried out on the 5th of August in the Solar Kitchen corridor.

Mystic beings On a lighter note, Aurovilians were surprised to learn, in a recent article on Auroville education in the Financial Express newspaper, that the aim of ‘the transition schools in Auroville’ is ‘to convert students into mystic beings’.

September, 2022

From Issue Nº398

Cultural activities There have been numerous cultural events, the majority of which have been occasioned by the 150th anniversary of Sri Aurobindo’s birth. One organizing group took as its theme for the month, Invocation-the Gnostic Festival, in a wish to invoke the various aspects of Sri Aurobindo: the revolutionary, the poet, the guide, the guru and most importantly the modern seer and greater luminary for the future.

Talks There were many talks, on topics like Sri Aurobindo and the cosmic yagna and the Foundations of Indian Culture. A series of morning conversations, featuring scholars of Sri Aurobindo, sadhaks and long-term Aurovilians were held at Savitri Bhavan, which also hosted a talk by Sri M, the spiritual guide and social reformer, on 14th July.

Exhibitions Meanwhile, in addition to the ongoing Art for Land exhibition, there was a Savitri art exhibition at Savitri Bhavan, ‘Echo’, an installation by Bhavyo at Citadines, and ‘Unexpected’, a stone sculpture exhibition by Charles Zanon at Botanical Gardens.

Performances Musically, we were privileged to host flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia and his students on 14th August, and there have been many other music performances, as well as Odissi and Bharatnatyam dance performances.

Films Film wise, in addition to the premiere of the ‘Spiritual History of India’, the fourth in the series ‘Evolution: Fast forward” (see front page), Manohar presented videos he had made in previous years dedicated to events connected with Sri Aurobindo in Auroville, as well as his video of the ‘Dawn’ performance in the small amphitheatre, and there was the premiere on a TV channel of “Sri Aurobindo: the beginning of spiritual journey” based on Sri Aurobindo’s inner and external life in the prison between 1908-1909, related in his own words.

Community matters There have been a number of community meetings, in addition to the big event on the evening of 15th August. On July 30th there was an invitation to the community to ‘Meet and greet’ the recently RA selected working groups in Unity Pavilion.

Youth Day Fest International Youth Day is celebrated annually on the 12th August globally, and marks YouthLink’s largest annual event in Auroville. This year it was celebrated around the world, focusing on the theme of “Intergenerational Solidarity”, which it remains ever so important to be reminded of, even within the Auroville context.

Auroville International The General Assembly of Auroville International (AVI) also took place on 12th August. This year, due to the 150th anniversary programmes and events, there were no special AVI programmes.

Mela Auroville Bharat Nivas held a mela, celebrating food, crafts workshops and performances by bioregion centres and schools of Auroville, including a chanting of the full Bhagavad Gita

City the earth needs exhibition On 14th August, there was an open invitation to the exhibition ‘The city the earth needs: Auroville – the vision takes shape’ in India Space at Bharat Nivas.

Community fun dance On August 25th, the community was invited to the Unity Pavilion to enjoy a ‘community fun dance’ – a way of learning Orissa folk dance.

Forest Moot On 26th/27th August, the Botanical Gardens team invited the community to a ‘Forest Moot’ celebrating, as they put it, “our journey with nature”.

Community meeting at Kalabhumi and Emergency RAD After the High Court judgment, The Working Committee selected by the Residents’ Assembly called a community meeting to discuss the outcome of the High Court case.

More Residents’ Assembly (RA) appointed groups abolished or replaced Meanwhile, more RA-appointed groups have either been abolished or replaced by nominees by the Foundation Office. The Archives team has been replaced, with the exception of one executive, the Budget Coordination Group has been replaced by the Budget Coordination Service, and Auroville Media Liaison Services has been shut down.

Both RA and GB selected working groups continue Meanwhile other groups selected by the RA – the Working Committee, the FAMC and TDC – are continuing their work and have laid out the issues they intend to focus upon.

Governing Board and International Advisory Council meet From an article in The Hindu newspaper of August 15, 2022, the community learned that on August 13th, a day after the Madras High Court stipulated consultative decision-making among the mandated bodies of the Auroville Foundation, the Auroville Governing Board and International Advisory Council met to deliberate on the steps to be taken to realize The Mother’s vision in a collaborative and harmonious manner.

Appeals against judgements On August 23rd, the Auroville Foundation filed an appeal at the Supreme Court of India against the April 28th judgement of the National Green Tribunal Southern Zone Bench [see AV Today # 394 of May 2022 ]

Other Legal Matters On August 18th, the Joint Committee appointed by the Green Tribunal in its judgement of April this year published its report. Among its findings were that:

Register of Residents The Auroville Foundation Office urged everybody who has not done so yet to fill out the Register of Residents (ROR) form as soon as possible.

Infrastructure work From the end of July, sections of the paver blocks on the Crown road have been taken up and work has begun on replacing them with new blocks by a contractor appointed by the Public Works Department of the Government of India.

July, 2022

From Issue Nº395-396

Government grant for Sri Aurobindo 150th anniversary celebrations To commemorate the 150th anniversary of Sri Aurobindo, the Ministry of Culture has allocated a grant to the Auroville Foundation of Rs 6 lakhs for the making of two films; Rs 15 lakhs for two exhibitions; Rs 435 lakhs for four conferences including one at UNESCO in Paris; 20 lakhs for five cultural activities; and 28 lakhs for an Aurobindo Yatra.

Working Committee decision to remove members On April 27th, four members of the Working Committee decided to remove the three other members from office. This decision was contested as being invalid.

Residents’ Assembly de-selection decision The Auroville Council confirmed the outcome of the decision-making process of the Residents' Assembly concluded on May 8th regarding de-selecting members of the Working Committee. 92% of the 864 residents who participated voted in favour of removing four members of the Working Committee, 8% rejected it.

(Not) accepting the RAD The four members who were voted out of office refused to accept the RAD decision. On May 10th they informed the community that they had appointed three interim members.

Working Committee office On May 18th, the Inspector of the Auroville Police Station along with an officer of the Crime Branch Crime Investigation Department entered Auroville's Town Hall building at the request of the AVFO demanding the keys to the Working Committee office, to be given to Working Committee recognized by the AVFO.

Auronet and Auroville.org in takeover Citing that a complaint had been received that the Auronet and Auroville.org.in were being used for anti-national and anti-governmental activities, the AVFO has taken over the Auronet and Auroville.org.in administration.

Working groups reconstitution and selection process On June 3rd, the residents of Auroville were informed through Auronet that both the Funds and Assets Management Committee (FAMC) and the Auroville Town Development Council (ATDC) were reconstituted by the AVFO.

May, 2022

From Issue Nº394

Governing Board meets On April 22nd, the Governing Board of the Auroville Foundation held its 59th meeting. The meeting was attended in person by Dr. Nirima Oza, Shri.

MoU signed Through a Facebook post from the Central Public Works Department of the Government of India the community learned that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Auroville Foundation on March 15, 2022 for the execution of projects related to the making of the Auroville City.

Centenary of The Mother’s Return to Sri Aurobindo (1920-2020) A documentary slideshow recounting the Mother's journey in Her own words from childhood till Her final arrival in Pondicherry has been made by the Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education and can be seen at the

SAIEN courses The Sri Aurobindo Integral Education Network (SAIEN) is offering 11 courses. To celebrate Sri Aurobindo's 150th Birth Anniversary, various centres and institutions dedicated to Sri Aurobindo have come together to collaborate and offer courses.

Visit of Solanki’s solar bus Prof. Chetan S. Solanki, IIT Bombay and Brand Ambassador of Solar Energy Government of MP, also referred to as Solar Man of India or Solar Gandhi by the press, who has undertaken a world tour of 11 years in a solar bus to create a publics awareness movement called Energy Swaraj Yatra (2020-2030) to spread the message of solar energy as it relates to climate change, visited Auroville on April 14 and 15 and interacted with many Aurovilians.

Auroville Tomorrow The 3rd issue of Auroville Tomorrow, the newsletter of Auroville Outreach Media now managed by the Auroville Foundation, is available from mediainterface-avf@auroville.org.in.

AV Council meets with the community The Auroville Council held its first meeting with the community on its work over the past 14 months on Monday 18th April at the Unity Pavilion.

April, 2022

From Issue Nº393

Padma Sri for Tara Jauhar The President of India awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian award, to Ms. Tara Jauhar at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on March, 21st, 2022, for her work in literature and education, in particular in propagating the teachings of Sri Aurobindo.

Governning Board meeting The minutes of the 58th meeting of the Governing Board held on January 18th were shared with the community. Amongst other things, the Board decided to establish an Organisation and Governance Committee to look into the organisation, governance and related matters of Auroville.

Address of Shri R.N. Ravi, Chairmand of the Governing Board In one of the zoom seminars organised during the ‘Auroville festival’, the Chairman of the Auroville Foundation and Honourable Governor of Tamil Nadu, R.

Prioritization of topics for RAD’s Confronted with many requests for various decisions of the Residents’ Assembly, the Auroville Council organized a poll to help it and the Residents’ Assembly Service determine which topics for Residents’ Assembly Decisions (RADs) the community felt to be the most important at this moment in time.

Delay in selecting new working group members The Auroville Council has informed the community that although an RAD on a new process to select members of the Working Committee, the Auroville Council, the Auroville Town Development Council, the Funds and Assets Management Committee and the Entry Board will be concluded before the above mentioned RADs on the Working Committee and the ATDC membership, the selection process itself will be held afterwards.

New research publications on Auroville “Flexible Institutionalisation in Auroville: A Prefigurative Alternative to Development” by Suryamayi Clarence-Smith and Lara Monticelli was published in a special issue of the magazine Sustainability Science.

March, 2022

From Issue Nº392

Auroville Festival 2022 As part of the Auroville Festival to celebrate The Mother’s birthday and the foundation day of Auroville held from February 21-28, various events have been organized, amongst them were a number of zoom conferences on the themes of Mother’s Birth Anniversary and Charter of Auroville and Auroville as a Future Model for the World; Savitri, Cradle of the Overman; research on the Soul of Nations and National Pavilions; the practical manifestation of the city and the role of UNESCO and GOI; the spiritual significance of Auroville; the Five Dreams of Sri Aurobindo; and Towards Spiritual Education.

Sri Aurobindo’s Gayatri mantra live streamed The Auroville choir and instrumental ensemble live streamed a performance of “Om Tat Savitur”, a composition by Holger on Sri Aurobindo’s Gayatri mantra, on Thursday 17th of February.

Visa recommendations retricted The Secretary Auroville Foundation, who has been authorized to issue letters of recommendation up to periods of five years required for obtaining a visa or stay visa extension, has started to issue recommendations for one year only, including for long-term foreign residents who have received 5-year recommendations earlier without problem.

AV Council report In the latest Auroville Council report, the Council wrote that it is exploring new ways of organising itself. As a first step, it intends to create two specialised subgroups comprised of Council members and resource persons, one to manage all conflicts, the other to oversee the creation, harmonisation and observance of Auroville mandates, policies and guidelines.

February, 2022

From Issue Nº391

Governing Board meets The Governing Board of the Auroville Foundation held a meeting at Auroville on January 18th. Members of the International Advisory Council submitted their views on-line.

Working Committee presentation to GB Three members of the Working Committee discovered that the other four members had submitted a presentation to the Board bypassing them, which, they say, had “errors of judgement and facts and was undermining the role of the Residents' Assembly”.

Senior Aurovilians presentation to the Governing Board Six senior Aurovilians presented to the Board their account of the last two months, challenging some of the narratives of failure and stagnation, and how differences within Auroville have deepened since the current Secretary arrived.

Residents’ Assembly decides In a well-attended meeting of the Residents' Assembly (RA) held on January 2nd, a proposed decision to be made by the RA (RAD) was formulated:

Visa declaration On January 7th, a form was circulated to be signed by foreigners needing a visa recommendation from the Secretary, Auroville Foundation, which stated amongst others that the signatory agreed to 'Abide by the Master Plan of Auroville, based on the Galaxy Plan conceived by the Mother and gazetted by the Government of India, based on which the Auroville City will be developed and built", and 'I hereby state that I will in no way or form, obstruct of hinder its manifestation.

Award for B.V. Doshi Shri Balkrishna Doshi, the eminent architect and ex-member of the Governing Board of the Auroville Foundation, received the RIBA Royal Gold Medal 2022, one of the world’s highest honours for architecture.

Visits from Regional Registration officers About 30 non-Indian Aurovilians who had joined efforts to stop bulldozers destroying the Crown Road stretch through the Bliss and Darkali forests, have received visits from officers of the Regional Registration Office, requesting to see their passport and Residential Permit, asking if they had been joining the ‘agitation’

Resignations from 150th anniversary core group The Working Committee announced that Hemant, Jürgen and Christine have resigned from the Core Group of Sri Aurobindo’s 150th Birth Anniversary team.

Outreach Media On January 21st, the Auroville Foundation instructed Outreach Media to vacate its office and surrender all its material and immaterial assets to the Auroville Foundation.

AV Council questions ATDC legitimacy On January 13, the Auroville Council published its note to the Auroville Town Development Committee (ATDC) stating “As you have misinterpreted the minutes of the Governing Board and at the same time intend to ignore the Residents Assembly’s processes, although you are constituted by the RA, we must on these grounds alone place your office appointments and legitimacy in question.”

AuroSur Auroville International Argentina has started AuroSur, News from Auroville which will appear every two months. For info contact www.escuchaintegral.com

Art exhibition at Kala Kendra In December last year, the Pondicherry Art Akademy showed 180 paintings by 90 artists from 19 states of India at Kala Kendra. The Akademy aims to help budding artists by showcasing their work along with those of eminent artists, and also to encourage women artists.

Retrospective 2021 Savitri Bhavan hosted an Auroville art retrospective 2021 from 17 December till 14 January. Works by Sathya, Shinso, Audrey, Hufreesh, Xinpeng, Abhijit, Sangara and Birgitta were displayed.

Wildlife in Auroville Aurosylle and Tim gave an informative introduction to wildlife in Auroville during a live and online event on 21st January in Bharat Nivas. Of special interest is that prior to 1972, Auroville had a count of 25 bird species.

November, 2021

From Issue Nº388

Phone tower concern On the instruction of the Auroville Foundation, a Vodafone antenna tower was installed on the roof of Mitra Hostel, in the densely residential area nearby the Town Hall.

Emergency RAD A total of 343 registered residents participated in an Emergency Residents Assembly Decision (RAD) called by the Working Committee to decide if a so-called Provisional RAD process is to be used until a new RAD process is in place, which, it is hoped, will manifest within 9 months.

Aadhar camp At the end of October, an Aadhar Card Camp was organised in Auroville for two days for holders of Entry Visa, Indian Aurovilians and Overseas Citizens of India.

ATDC’s responses to Crown questions The Auroville Town Development Council (ATDC) has responded to a number of questions posed by residents during the ATDC’s presentation concerning the Crown on September 10th in short video clips posted on Youtube. see:

Monsoon rainfall Rainfall in the months of July and August (the south-west monsoon) was significantly higher than average (163 & 198 mm compared to the average of 73 & 129 mm).

COVID cases in Auroville After some time with no positive COVID cases in Auroville, five Aurovilians contracted COVID 19 in October (as recorded by the Santé Coordination team).

India allows foreign tourism Lockdown restrictions in India are being lifting in increments. The Indian government has announced that certain categories of tourist visas will become available soon.

October, 2021

From Issue Nº387

Economic relief The Budget Coordination Group (BCC) has announced that self-supporting units, services and guesthouses can apply for economic relief grants to cover their fixed costs such as salaries, rent, electricity, internet and accounting charges.

Aadhar card required  The Working Committee informed all residents of Auroville that everyone, irrespective of nationality, is required to have an Aadhar Card and that henceforth, the Office of the Secretary will not process any requests from residents, newcomers, friends of Auroville and spouses of residents for validation of residence or visa recommendations without the reference of an Aadhar Card.

Auroville Art Library Kirtan and AV Art Service have started a website with an inventory of the artworks of Auroville artists that fellow Aurovilians can temporarily borrow, to enjoy their beauty, and decorate their homes, offices, and activities.

Ecological restoration of worked out mines Auroville Botanical Gardens has released a video on the ecological restoration of the depleted limestone mines of Ramco Cements in Pandalgudi, India.

Auronet postings – keep it civil The Auroville Council has informed the community that it is removing postings on Auronet – Auroville’s internal internet site – that contain disrespectful or insulting language to defame individuals or groups.

Inform about absence The Working Committee has stated that all residents and volunteers who will be out of Auroville for more than 2 months, even if traveling to other parts of India, need to inform the Residents’ Service so that current information about who is in and out of Auroville is always available.

July, 2021

From Issue Nº383-384

Temporary Emergency Maintenance A year ago, in May 2020, the Budget Coordination Committee (BCC) and the Funds and Assets Management Committee (FAMC) jointly created “Temporary Emergency Maintenances” for those Aurovilians working in activities, units or services who were no longer able to receive a maintenance from their unit or service due to the Covid-19 emergency, and were in need.

Dismissing an Aurovilian In the last three years, the Auroville Council has had to deal with many situations where a unit, a service, an Auroville activity or a school had to ask an Aurovilian to discontinue his or her work.

Improving relationships with neighbouring villages Though Auroville has done a lot of welfare work for the villages, more attention is needed in building healthy and collaborative relationships with the village leaders and elders.

The Matrimandir Gardens Work on the Garden of the Unexpected, on the western edge of the Matrimandir gardens oval, has picked up speed again with a tree platform having been built.

Celebrating Sri Aurobindo’s 150th anniversary The Working Committee has appointed a core team of five Aurovilians to prepare the celebrations of Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birth anniversary 15-08-2022.

Residents’ Assembly decision making policy In February this year, the Residents’ Assembly Service (RAS) announced its wish to pause all Residents’ Assembly Decision-making (RAD) processes until a review is made of the existing decision-making policy and the RAS mandate.

Entry issues The Entry Service reported that during the entire lockdown period it was fully engaged in discharging its duties. Since June 2020, 111 Newcomers have been confirmed as Aurovilians and 49 new applicants were processed to start their Newcomer process.

February, 2021

From Issue Nº379

Branch office of Auroville Foundation Secretariat A branch office of the Auroville Foundation Secretariat in Pondicherry was inaugurated on January 1st, 2021. The space at 46, Marwadi Street, Kurchikuppam, Pondicherrry - 605012 (Ph: 0413-2222007), made available by the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, will serve as a liaison office.

Auroville Foundation matters The Working Committee reported that the minutes of the last meeting of the former Governing Board, held on line on November 7th, 2020, have still not been received for information to the community.

Art for Land The 6th annual edition of Art for Land opens on 31st January at the Unity Pavilion. We invite you to join us as we celebrate a month of ‘art with heart’ by very talented artists, musicians and performers from all over.

Rains continue The month of January 2021 has seen an unprecedented rainfall of 208.3 millimetres, against a monthly average (calculated over the last 44 years) of 12 millimetres.

Nursing for elderly parents of Aurovilians The Auroville Health Services (AVHS), which provides social and medical homecare for senior Aurovilians, is often asked to extend this service to the elderly parents of long term Aurovilians who, for health reasons, need to be with their children in Auroville.

Patient conduct at Sante After an incident with a verbally aggressive visitor, Santé has issued a public statement that Santé is an essential service to the Auroville community and it is intended as a place of healing and care, and not a space for conflict resolution.

Auroville Board of Services As agreed earlier, the ABS monthly meetings now take place on the second Monday of every month. The aim of the regular monthly ABS meetings is to hear and address the concerns and needs of our services, and to build together a flourishing Services and Prosperity economy for Auroville, as envisioned by The Mother.

Citizen’s Assembly film showing on water The Citizens’ Assembly and Auroville Water Group invited people to watch some video's of Aurovilian water players reflecting on our water situation.

Auroville International Potters Market Hundreds of visitors and Aurovilians visited the 3-day Auroville International Potters Market held at the Visitors’ Centre from January 24-26.

Land purchase Auroville has purchased 13.72 new acres of fertile agricultural land near Irumbai Lake across from the Irumbai Temple. This vital addition to Auroville’s land area was funded by private donations to Acres for Auroville.

Blind dinner On 27th January Solitude farm invited people to participate in a food performance with live music. They were blindfolded at Solitude Cafe’s entrance and guided through a localicious, vegan, seven-course meal of locally-grown food and fusion cuisine.

Centre Guest House ‘hangouts’ The ‘hangout’ is a space where people of all ages can come together socially, have some refreshments, chat with friends, read the newspaper, play games, learn Tai Chi or Quigong, enjoy regular dance nights and other such activities.

Selection of working group members The selection of new members of four main working groups (the Working Committee, the Auroville Council, the Entry Board and the Funds and Assets Management Committee) took place on January 21st and 22nd in accordance with a selection process that had been approved by the Residents’ Assembly in December 2020.

Housing matters The Housing Board decided on the principle that assets that have been left after the passing of an Aurovilian ought to, where possible, be presented to the community as houses against recognised work (formerly pro-bono houses).

December, 2020

From Issue Nº377

Annapurna Farm struggles The dry summer has delayed the start of the paddy season at Annapurna, Auroville’s largest farm. Annapurna’s traditional paddy varieties need a growing season of 140-150 days to mature and are season bound.

Auroville Foundation issues The term of office of the present members of the Governing Board ended on November 23rd. When this issue went to the press, there was no news about the appointment of new members.

Cyclone Nivar The first cyclone of the season, named ‘Nivar’, made landfall near Marakkanam, north of Auroville, in the early hours of November 26th. Throughout the night Auroville was subjected to storms and heavy rains, with occasional thunder and lighting and some eerie silences in between.

Pitchandikulam Forest Newsletter Pitchandikulam Forest has issued its 2019-2020 newsletter which includes: reflective musings on the 47-year old history of Pitchandikulam Forest; the story of a monograph on the Owls of South Asia; a report on Pitchandikulam Forest’s nursery which is responsible for the growing of around 20,000 seedlings a year to help re-establish the Tropical Dry Evergreen Forest (TDEF) in Tamil Nadu; a report on the Environmental Leadership and Skill Development Programme for 350 Rural Women; the work of Pitchandikulam Forest in building water retention landscapes and the restoration of the twin lakes of Siruseri Chennai; environmental artwork for Toyota Kirloskar Motors, Bangalore, on a 25-acres ECOZONE; and creating a master plan for an Ecopark/Nature lab and teaching space for practitioners of Restoration Ecology on a piece of land near Ousteri lake.

The impact of COVID on internal transactions in Auroville A study made by Lyle on transfers made within the Financial Service between services/units and between services/units and individuals shows the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: there were 38% less transfers in the COVID-19 months in 2019-20 than in 2018-19.

Gold award for EYER SLOW GREEN in China The Handle Climate Change Film Festival 2020 in Shenzhen, China, awarded Aurovilian Christoph Pohl the Gold Award for his film Ever Slow Green, about Auroville’s forests.

The Auroville Entry Policy 2020 / Entry & Exit Regulations / Exit Policy A decision of the Residents’ Assembly called by the Working Committee on the proposed new Entry Policy failed due to a lack of quorum (10% of adult residents).

Aurovilians abroad can return The Government of India has agreed to cancel the suspension of all visas other than tourist visas, which means that all Aurovilians abroad who hold an Entry Visa for Auroville can now return.

Right of Way disputed Members of the Forest Group and many others Aurovilians are objecting to the partial clearing of the existing forests to allow for so-called Rights of Ways (RoWs) – three-metres wide stretches of open land to lay High Tension and other cables – along the proposed Crown road, the proposed Outer Ring Road and the proposed Radials, as has recently been advised by the Acting Secretary of the Auroville Foundation to the Town Development Council (TDC).

New land purchases Since the start of the seventh year of Acres for Auroville, thanks to donors to Acres for Auroville and Lands For Auroville United, six new Greenbelt plots have been purchased, adding 6.47 acres of rich agricultural land and helping consolidate other land.

Matrimandir works Work at the Matrimandir is focused on three projects: the continuing development of the Garden of the Unexpected; the building of the foundation for a group of large quartz crystals in the Garden of Existence; and the construction of a new section of the cobblestone road encircling the Matrimandir gardens.

The Spirit of Auroville in Chinese Auro e-Books has published a bilingual English-Chinese version of the book “The Spirit of Auroville”. The Chinese translation was done by Anandi Zhang and proofread by Ni Hui, while Olivier Barot took care of the English text and picture selection.

Auronet Guidelines The Auroville Council has published draft guidelines for the publication of documents and views on the Auronet, the Intranet portal of Auroville.

September, 2020

From Issue Nº374

Prime Minister Narendra Modi remembers Auroville On the occasion of India's Independence Day and Sri Aurobindo’s birthday on August 15th, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Sri Aurobindo.

First centenarian On July 1st, S. Mahalingam, an Indian Independence fighter, spiritual seeker, teacher, translator, Ashramite, and Aurovilian, celebrated his 100th birthday.

Acres for Auroville celebrates its 7th birthday The fundraising campaign A4A (Acres for Auroville) was inaugurated seven years ago on 15th of August. The A4A team has taken this auspicious day as a moment for renewing its efforts and pledge to secure and consolidate the City of Dawn’s designated but still-missing lands.

Community transmission? The Working Committee’s call for random COVID-19 testing to see if any “community transmission” is happening in Auroville has been answered by 66 residents, who were tested on August 18th at Santé by a team organised by the Block Medical Officer.

COVID-19 quarantine space The Collector Villupuram District has granted special permission to use Sharanam guesthouse in the Bharat Nivas compound as a primary site, and the Tibetan Pavilion as a secondary site if needed, for quarantining residents of Auroville (including registered guests and volunteers) who have tested Covid-19 positive.

EVER SLOW GREEN nominated The Auroville film EVER SLOW GREEN has been officially selected by six international film festivals and is nominated for two awards. The Green Screen Wildlife Film Festival, Eckernförde, Germany, the largest wildlife film festival in Europe, has nominated it for Best Newcomer FIlm.

May, 2020

From Issue Nº369-370

Women’s Day Celebration at AVAG Auroville Village Action Group held its annual International Women’s Day celebration on March 11th this year. Along with Aurovilians and invited guests and judges of various competitions, 350 representatives of the Udhayam Women’s Federation came for the event.

The RE-CENTRE opens On the 28th February, the RE-CENTRE welcomed the community to the inauguration of a multi-discipline centre dedicated to tackling humanity's most dirty problem – waste.

Citizen’s Assembly pilot launched Sunday, 8th March, was the first day of the Citizens’ Assembly pilot project. 24 randomly selected participants of very different ages (the youngest is 18, the oldest 83) and from very different backgrounds and cultures met to get to know each other and listen to various presentations on water.

Equestrian competition Red Earth Riding School held its annual equestrian competition from 28 February to 1 March. The Auroville Horse Tournament drew horses and riders from riding schools all around South India for a mix of dressage and show jumping events, with Auroville riders particularly excelling in the higher-level dressage and the fast-paced jumping relay.

Water events Water is very much in the news at present. The Water Group launched a series of weekly Water Talks throughout March and the theme for this year is ‘Celebrating those in the field’.

Holi Tango Dance Festival From March 9th-11th, Auroville celebrated its ninth edition of this annual festival. Professional dancers from Argentina and Europe were invited to teach the dancing technique to the enthusiastic Tangueros in the community.

February, 2020

From Issue Nº367

AVI meeting in Auroville The Auroville International annual meeting will take place in Auroville between 13th – 20th February. Working groups and individuals are invited to present their work and projects.

News and Notes resumes After an absence of over five months, the News and Notes has resumed with a new team. It was sorely missed. In the interim, the Auronet team had been putting out a weekly news summary based on what has been published on Auronet.

Silver Fund There is a proposal to establish a ‘Silver Fund’. Anybody who is 70 + years old and has been on the Auroville Master list for a minimum of 25 years can request financial support from the Silver Fund.

Income tax issues The FAMC reported that the Auroville Foundation received an Income Tax order for the assessment year 2017-18 (financial year 2016-17) of Rs 14.5 crores, computed on the consolidated balance sheet, and another notice has been issued for the financial year 2017-2018.

Tribal art and craft exhibition In collaboration with the Pavilion of India, a small collection of tribal and folk handcrafted artisanal work was showcased in January in the New Art & Craft building in Bharat Nivas.

2019 rainfall Exceptionally, this year’s north east monsoon began on time and extended into early January, 2020. Nevertheless, Charlie’s measurements in Aurogreen showed a 5.88% deficit in comparison with the average north east monsoon rainfall.

New approach to land protection Until now the approach proposed by the Tamil Nadu Govt to Auroville has been to constitute first of all an authority (NTDA), make a development plan, and then carry out a public consultation.

13th Auroville Marathon The annual marathon will take place on Sunday, 9th February. A marathon market will be held on the previous day and on the morning of the run.

Governing Board meets Members of the Governing Board visited Auroville on 23rd – 25th January to attend their 55th meeting. In an open session with the residents on Thursday, 23rd, the Chairman, Dr Karan Singh, admitted that the Board could have acted differently in relationship to accusations they had received concerning certain Aurovilians [see Auroville Today # 366, January, 2020].

L’Avenir d’Auroville/Town Development Council crisis L’Avenir d’Auroville/TDC reported that due to a drastic cut in Government funding they may have to suspend all work and activities unless additional funding is secured.

Orchid exhibition at Botanical Gardens The annual orchid exhibition was held over two days in Botanical Gardens in mid January. It was a great success as almost all the orchids on display, including some rare ones, were purchased.

Sunday walks The popular Sunday walks in Auroville farms and forests have resumed. A series of 15 walks will be led by Auroville stewards of farms and forests on successive Sundays until mid April.

The Forest Moot On Saturday the 15th of February a gathering will be held at the Botanical Gardens to show the new movie “Ever Slow Green”. Prior to the screening there will be a chance to connect with other people involved in planting trees around the region through an interactive poster session of afforestation projects in South India.

Green Architecture Award Suhasini has won the Green Architecture Award organised by J. K. Cement Limited for architects from eleven countries. It was awarded for the Humanscapes Habitat youth housing project. [see AVToday # 340 of November 2017].

The Contemplative Art of Jyoti Naoki Eri The Centre d’Art, Citadines, put on an exhibition by Jyoti of a series of works entitled ‘Anima’ in which he explored the material and immaterial dimensions of a simple water pot, culminating in images of lotuses.

Republic Day celebrations in Bharat Nivas Various events were held to celebrate Republic Day, 26th January. In addition to the traditional flag hoisting ceremony, there was an interactive session with Governing Board member Dr.

Kala Kendra exhibitions In December, the 2nd National Painting exhibition took place in Kala Kendra Art Gallery, Bharat Nivas. Organized by the Pondicherry Art Akademy, 70 artists from all over India exhibited their work which represented a wide palette of styles.

Architecture exhibition Between 20th January and 1st March, Paulette put on a photographic exhibition at the Town Hall on the theme of ‘Milano’s futuristic architecture: regeneration of the Porta Nuova district’.

Ultimate Frisbee Ultimate Frisbee will be hosting its annual Auroville Hat tournament on the 1st and 2nd of February. It will be the 10th year they are organising and hosting this tournament and they expect approximately 250 players to come from all over India.

Sufi dance Last year, a ‘Sufi Way’ meditation retreat took place in Bharat Nivas. Led by Nirupam Gyan, it involved Gurdjeff movements, active meditations, breath work and Sufi whirling, which is a state of inner stillness and outer movement.

Presentation by Dr. Amit Goswami On 20th January, the eminent quantum physicist, Dr. Goswami, made a presentation of his work at a packed Unity Pavilion. Dr. Goswami is a pioneer of the new paradigm of science called “science within consciousness,” which demonstrates how science and spirituality can be integrated.

September, 2019

From Issue Nº362

Universal Basic Income There was a presentation on Universal Basic Income and the Sustainable Development Goals by Hilde Latour, a Basic Income activist from the Netherlands.

Film Appreciation course An eight day course in Film Appreciation: History & Aesthetics Course given by noted film academician Prof. Sudipto Acharyya, will take place in early October at MMC/Cinema Paradiso.

Silver Fund Although there is no “retirement” in Auroville in the sense it is used in the outside world it is felt that after a certain age a maintenance paid to an Aurovilian should not be tied anymore to a particular workplace or a particular work s/he is doing for the community.

Auroville Safety and Security Team (AVSST) Report AVSST is working hard to redirect visitors’ vehicles to the Visitor Center parking and make sure people who might disrupt the community are not let in.

Savitri Nursery Savitri Bhavan has set up a flower nursery. They explain that it is “dedicated to the spiritual atmosphere that flowers create. Here we grow environmentally adapted plants with joyful loving care, whose flowers are given spiritual significance by the Mother.

A Youth Human Library Event on international Youth Day The human library concept brings together people who might not normally meet to hear each other’s stories to challenge stereotypes and prejudices through dialogue.

A very special 15th August bonfire The organizing group has received overwhelming support from the community for the decision to ban photography at the 15th August bonfire. It was felt that this resulted in a much quieter, more concentrated and dedicated atmosphere.

News and Notes suspended For some time the weekly community news bulletin, News and Notes, has not been published as the editors are busy trying to create a sustainable basis for the work.

Regarding garbage dumping in and around Auroville The Working Committee said that garbage dumping is taking place in and around Auroville by some Aurovilians/Auroville units and restaurants.

The Saints of Pondicherry On 10th August, in Cinema Paradiso there was the premiere of a documentary, The Saints of Pondicherry, on an old people’s home for the destitute and homeless in Pondicherry, which was founded by Aurovilian Albert Zwaan who passed away some years ago.

Invitation for feedback on new Matrimandir garden design brief The Matrimandir executives are starting a new international open design call for the next four gardens around the Matrimandir, namely Light, Life, Power and Wealth.

Residents’ Assembly creates study groups on organization Some time ago the Residents Assembly Service received a petition signed by 93 residents calling for a Residents Assembly to discuss and decide on the next steps for choosing the manner in which members for Auroville working groups are selected.

Rainfall Charlie reports that the Aurogreen community has received 260.90 mm this year so far. This represents a deficit of 29.23% over the average for this period for the past 42 years.

Opening of CRIPA’s new extension The new extension of the CRIPA building for performing arts was opened on Sunday, 25th August. Live music was provided by Matt, Holger, Suryan and Dhani.

NDTA update In a presentation to the Residents Assembly on 23rd August, the Working Committee reported that while there is agreement that private development within the Master Plan is one of the most serious challenges facing Auroville, there is no consensus on the possible solution.

New project in the International Zone UTSAV (meaning Celebration) – a mixed use commercial and residential development – along the Verite Radial in the Industrial Zone, is ready for the last phase of Building Application.

Report of the Working Committee on draft Entry and Exit regulations Shortly after a General Meeting held on the topic of these Regulations on 12th April, 2019, the Working Committee updated the Governing Board about this meeting and informed the Board about a section in the Form I of the 2019 Regulations stating that “[...]

The Part-Time Parenting Initiative YouthLink has launched a Part-Time Parent Initiative based upon the experience of two Newcomers who have developed a Part-Time Parenting process in their lives.

Peace Table On the 24th of August 2019, simultaneous concentrations for peace in the world happened around Auroville’s Peace Table in the Unity Pavilion and simultaneously around Peace Tables in Moscow and New York.

European House Vision Meeting On Saturday, 17th August, there was a meeting of all European pavilion groups to discuss the future of the European House.

Auroville Architectural Travel Guide A guidebook has been published on Auroville’s architecture written by Aurovilian architect, Anupama Kundoo, and Y. Joshi. The guidebook includes four Auroville itineraries structured around the experimental township’s Master Plan and a fifth itinerary located in Auromodèle, which is outside the main part of the city.

New Budget announcement from Budget Coordination Committee (BCC) The BCC announced that the budget for 2019-20 is ready and has been endorsed by the FAMC. 35 new full-time maintenance have been provided. The Auroville City Service contribution to be paid individually has been increased by 5% to Rs. 3,475 but this contribution is automatically waived for Aurovilians receiving a full-time City Service maintenance.

December, 2018

From Issue Nº352-353

Highway update An important meeting was held at the Auroville Foundation Office on 21 November with a delegation from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, New Delhi, and officers of the National Highway Authority of India and their consultants attending.

President of India receives Auroville memento On November 14, 2018, Governing Board member Dr. Anirban Ganguly offered an Auroville memento to the Hon’ble President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, who in February 2018 honoured Auroville with a message on the occasion of Auroville’s 50th anniversary, in which he speaks of Auroville as reflecting “our quest for achieving oneness in diversity.”

Dr. Aster Patel receives Auro Ratna Award Dr. Aster Patel was awarded the Auro Ratna Award of the Overman Foundation on November 25, 2018, in a ceremony in the Hall of Harmony, Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education, Pondicherry.

October, 2018

From Issue Nº351

Glass or natural globe? The Matrimandir executives have replaced the glass globe in the Lotus Pond below the Matrimandir with a natural crystal quartz globe for a 3-month’s trial period, and invite feedback.

Fundraising for the lands The “Acres for Auroville” land campaign, inaugurated on 15th August 2014, is keeping up its fundraising momentum. In its 4th year, A4A donations financed the addition of 9 plots (13.42 acres) of land located in the City, the International Zone, and the Greenbelt.

World Cleanup Day On Saturday the 15th September Auroville volunteers participated in World Cleanup Day. More than 600 individuals participated and collected in a few hours 1,983 kilos of litter from Auroville’s roadsides and forests: 37 kg of PET bottles, 1,247 kg of mixed waste and 699 kg of glass.

Entry into India refusals Three Auroville residents have been barred from re-entering India and were sent back to their home country when they arrived at the airport.

Governing Board meeting The Governing Board of the Auroville Foundation met in Auroville on September 7th and 8th. The interactive meetings with Auroville residents were attended by Dr.

Inform about blacklisting In a decision which may be important for Auroville residents, the High Court in New Delhi has decided that foreigners/OCI card holders have to be informed by the relevant officers if they have been blacklisted and their entry into the country will be denied.

July, 2018

From Issue Nº347-348

Sir Mark Tully receives Lifetime Achievement Award On May 18, 2018, Sir William Mark Tully, who has served 12 years as Chairman of the Auroville International Advisory Council, received the RedInk Lifetime Achievement Award from the Mumbai Press Club.

Four-Lane bypass threatens Auroville’s Forests Markings left by a consultant working for the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) revealed that plans are afoot to design a 4-lane National Highway from Ayyur near Vilianur to the north of Kalapet before the toll gate.

Land purchase problems The ownership of a recently bought eight-acre plot of land on the tar road between Certitude and Edayanachavady, for which negotiations have been going on for almost three years, is in dispute and Auroville has been denied possession of the land.

Tibetan students help with land purchase Since 2010, the Pavilion of Tibetan Culture in Auroville’s International Zone has been inviting teenage students from the Tibetan Children’s Village school in Dharamshala to come to Auroville for a cultural exchange program during their winter vacation.

Careless driving brings speed breakers back The Auroville Council and the Auroville Safety and Security Team issued a public warning against careless driving which is on the rise since the speed breakers on Auroville roads were removed for the visit of the Prime Minister.

Smart Street Lights Auroville Consulting has designed and is in charge of implementing the installation of 87 smart street lights along the Crown road from the Farewell Centre to the Mahalakshmi Home, from the Visitors Centre to Savitri Bhavan and from the Matrimandir Visitors’ Gate to Solar Kitchen Roundabout.

Djaima community without electricity The residents of Djaima community have complained about their recurring problem with poor and inconsistent electric power supply. The residents often live with no current for two or three consecutive days and this results in a water problem, and the impossibility to use essential appliances such as washing machines and fridges.

Library expands With the opening of the new wing at the Auroville Library more space has become available in the main reading hall. Following a proposal from some readers the Dutch and Spanish sections have been made more attractive by expanding their shelf space.

Design invitation for the Matrimandir Garden of the Unexpected The Matrimandir is calling for design proposals for the Garden of the Unexpected. This garden was described by Roger Anger, the chief architect of Auroville, as a place where a child could have an initiatory experience, a place of wonder, a garden for discovering the unexpected.

Matrimandir Garden of Progress almost complete The Garden of Progress has been brought very close to completion. The 7 m x 7 m pool in its outer portion has been completed, as well as several details in the large central area which features an ascending line of granite stepping stones moving through the three level terraced areas of the garden.

AuroOrchard goes fully organic In October 2012 AuroOrchard converted to organic farming all of its central area of about 20 acres, where food for the community is cultivated: vegetables as well as the fruits like papayas, limes, avocados, coconuts, guavas, lemons, ramphal and some mangos.

Bamboo tower Mohanam and the Auroville Bamboo Centre are collaborating to create a unique helical designed 50 feet high bamboo tower as a tribute to 50 years of completion of Auroville.

May, 2018

From Issue Nº346

Crowd funding for the lands The Land For Auroville United team has launched a crowdfunding campaign to acquire the lands for Auroville. An estimated 200 million dollars will be needed to purchase all the land in Auroville’s Master Plan area – but right now, it says, “we could do a lot to safeguard Auroville with 20 million dollars!”

Auroville’s 50th stamps On the occasion of Auroville’s 50th anniversary, the postal authorities of France and The Netherlands have also issued a special postal stamp.

From discrimination to unity in diversity In order to address the issues and feelings related to discrimination in Auroville, the Auroville Council decided to form a subgroup. Together with members from the community, it plans a year-long focus on this theme through events, courses and multicultural happenings “that celebrate our unity in diversity and enable us to hear and understand each other on a deeper level.”

Stray dogs menance Stray dogs constitute a public health hazard, sometimes acting aggressively towards people and other pets and disturbing the peace at night by barking.

All USA Meeting 2018 Between 2nd – 5th August, the All USA Meeting 2018 will celebrate Auroville, Matagiri and the California Institute of Integral Studies in their 50th year.

Return of the speed breaker Since the removal of all speed breakers on Auroville roads for the visit of the Prime Minister, an increase in the speed of both 2 and 4 wheeler traffic has been observed, highlighting road safety concerns.

Road concerns In response to complaints about poor road quality, the Auroville Earth Institute has clarified that the poured earth concrete road stretch between Certitude and the Solar Kitchen roundabout was made hastily as it had to be opened before the visit of the Prime Minister.

Conoid chairs for Hall of Peace The Hall of Peace, with its magnificent Peace Table for Asia, envisioned by late George Nakashima and crafted by Nakashima Woodworkers, New Hope, USA, has finally been completed with the installation of seven Conoid Lounge Chairs.

February, 2018

From Issue Nº343

Walk of Hope On the initiative of the Auroville units Restorative Auroville, Prisma, Auroville Village Action and Aikyam School, Auroville hosted a Walk of Hope for Peace and Human Unity to spread the message of oneness, inclusion and respect among Aurovilians and the village communities around Auroville on January 28th and 29th.

Savitri around the World The continuous reading of Sri Aurobindo’s epic poem Savitri will start in the Savitri Bhavan, Sangam Hall on Monday 19.02.2018 at 3a.m. (‘The hour before the Gods awake’).

January, 2018

From Issue Nº342

Grant for 50th anniversary celebrations The Government of India has made a special grant to the amount of Rs 10 crores for fixed assets expenditure for Auroville’s 50th anniversary celebrations.

50th anniversary update On 29th of December, the 50th anniversary planning team gave an update to the community on planned events. Among other events, there will be a water ceremony after the early morning meditation on 28th February 2018, in the Amphitheatre.

Fundraising Website A new website showcasing “What Auroville does for the world” – what progressive regenerative practices and culture are developed, demonstrated and taught in Auroville – has been created.

New Entry Board The Auroville Council and the Working Committee have completed the selection of an Entry Board. Under the new entry policy, the Board will oversee the Newcomer process and participate in deciding whether or not a Newcomer becomes an Aurovilian.

L’avenir d’Auroville The new L’Avenir team has announced they will be holding regular interactions with the community. On the first Monday of every month at 3 pm, people are invited to visit their office for exchanges and dialogue on everything to do with city planning.

Road works For many years, Auroviians and guests have suffered from Auroville’s dusty roads. This will now change. The Neyveli Lignite Corporation has made a donation to the value of Rs 1.1 crore from its Corporate Social Responsibility funds for making the access road in front of the Visitors’ Centre.

Exploring Prosperity The exploring prosperity team is investigating how the community can move closer to the system of prosperity as envisaged by The Mother and which operated in the early years of Auroville.

Line of Goodwill In late December, the team which is planning the Line of Goodwill, a megastructure that will stretch from Matrimandir to close by the Visitors’ Center, made their second presentation to the community.

Art for Land The third edition of ‘Art for Land’, in which artists donate work to raise money to acquire land for Auroville, was inaugurated on 1st January at the Unity Pavilion.

Golden Sunbeams A mixed-media outdoor exhibition of works by Auroville artists was held in the boulder garden of the Matrimandir in January.

November, 2017

From Issue Nº340

UNESCO draft resolution The Government of India has submitted a draft resolution for the upcoming General Conference of UNESCO. Appreciating that the Government of India passed, in 1988, the Auroville Foundation Act for the purpose of protecting and encouraging the development of Auroville; that Auroville International Centres have been established in many countries of the world; recognizing that Auroville has developed into a centre of expertise in a wide range of fields, benefiting India and noting its success in sharing its experience and helping the development of its neighboring rural population; acknowledging that Auroville is inviting all nations of the world to participate in its development, especially of its International Zone, which is designated as an educational campus hosting cultural pavilions of all nations or groups of nations, expressing the genius of each culture; noting that 28 February 2018 will mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of Auroville; and recognizing that Auroville is a successful and unique model project, proving the capacity of an international community, after almost 50 years of existence, to continue to live up to its initial founding ideas of peace and international harmony and which are also UNESCO’s own values and principles, as well as some of its major priorities, the resolution invites the Director-General of UNESCO to reinforce the association of UNESCO with Auroville and organize commemorative activities for its 50th anniversary and to re-invite the Member States on the special occasion of Auroville’s 50th anniversary, to participate in Auroville’s further development.

Road improvements The Town Development Council has informed that in view of the visit of the Prime Minister in February 2018 new roadworks will be on the way soon.

Women’s Solidarity Festival Auroville Village Action celebrated the 21st edition of the Annual Women’s Solidarity Festival. The event was attended by over 5000 women from the bioregion, over 500 children, guests from Auroville and volunteers from the Paalam youth group in the bioregion and other village youths.

Garbology Integrated The Education Secretary for Tamil Nadu has agreed to integrate a Garbology chapter into the Social Studies textbooks for two grades and the Garbology information boxes for grades 1-10.

Auroville Library of Things (ALoT) The Auroville Library of Things (ALoT), which has been operating for six months, is gradually developing into a useful community service. Located in a container near the Solar Kitchen, the ALoT intends to collect and lend out items that are unused by its owner.

Evolution Fast-Forward The three Evolution Fast-Forward videos are now all freely available for streaming in their entirety online. You find them on www.sopanam.org, along with some other treasures.

Correction Walk of Hope The list of 50th anniversary projects mentioned in our previous issue contains a mistake. The Walk of Hope through Auroville and the surrounding villages will take place in Auroville and the bioregion on January 28, 2018.

September, 2017

From Issue Nº338

Water Ceremony for Auroville’s 50th Anniversary On the morning of 28 February 2018, on the occasion of Auroville’s 50th anniversary, a water ceremony will take place in the Matrimandir Amphitheatre.

Large Matrimandir test pond to be started The Matrimandir Lake team has decided to start work on a large test pond of 100 x 100 metres wide and 10 metres at its deepest point. The new test pond will be located at the site of the present test ponds, and be lined with HDPE foil.

Seed Festival in Auroville On July 26th, the Sustainable Livelihood Institute, a joint venture of the Tamil Nadu Government and the Auroville Foundation, celebrated the Tamil month of Aadi by a Seed Festival in Auroville.

Eco-Femme certified Eco-femme continues to lead in sustainable menstrual hygiene by being the first certified organic sanitary napkin company in India. Eco-femme meets the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), a worldwide leading textile processing standard for organic fibres which includes ecological and social criteria and involves independent certification of the entire textile supply chain.

Inaugurations On August 14th, the new building of the Auroville Electrical Service and the Auroville Solar Service in the Service Area was inaugurated by Dr.

Monkey menace More monkeys are visiting Auroville than before. While this is a welcome sign for the environment, people are warned of the consequences of an increasing monkey population in the area.

August, 2017

From Issue Nº337

New members needed Nominations have been invited from the community for three new members of the Working Committee, three for the Council and two for the Funds and Assets Management Committee.

FAMC annual work plan The Funds and Assets Management Committee (FAMC) has issued its annual work plan. Its objectives include a) increasing financial transparency and accountability by simplifying and strengthening basic regulations and policies b) growing Auroville’s income-generating activities to increase work opportunities for Aurovilians to provide more community wealth c) exploring the restructuring of the maintenance system to ensure that it provides sufficiently for all in need (e.g. food, child maintenance, ‘life-long maintenance’, etc.) d) exploring innovative solutions to provide affordable housing opportunities for Newcomers and Aurovilians and e) facilitating the development of a food strategy towards greater food security.

March, 2017

From Issue Nº332

Dominique Darr photo exhibition From 4 to 14 February there was a photo exhibition at Citadines “And the adventure begins ...”in homage to Dominique Darr. Dominique was selecting the photos for her exhibition in December when she passed away on the 25th.

Create Auroville Together (CAT) Members of the Residents Assembly Service and Auroville Council have been hosting Create Auroville Together (CAT) meetings. The stated intention is to offer “a space to unleash our creative energies, to respond with discernment, respect and a spirit of collaboration instead of reacting through likes, dislikes and distrust."

Entry Policy on Hold The new Entry Policy approved in 2016 has been put on hold. An Entry Task Force has been created to work towards the resolution of the concerns that have been expressed within the community about the way it was being implemented.

Auroville Marathon Auroville hosted its tenth annual marathon on 12 February. Approximately 3,000 running enthusiasts came from all over India and ran either a full marathon (42km or 26 miles), half marathon or 10 kilometres.

Shared transport A Shared Transport Service ‘abundance through sharing was launched recently. In an effort to bring down the cost of travel while reducing the environmental impact and traffic in the city, individuals are encouraged to share a ride.

Ultimate Frisbee The Auroville Ultimate Frisbee club held its 7th annual Auroville HAT Tournament recently. Players from Auroville and across India came together to play, and to share their skills, ranging from beginner to world-class.

February, 2017

From Issue Nº331

Failed monsoon Auroville’s last monsoon season (Oct-Dec 2016) witnessed the lowest rainfall for over 100 years. Over the previous 12 months, less than half the average amount of rain has fallen in and around Auroville.

Land protection workshops A series of workshops were held to explore possibilities in regards to protecting Auroville land. The first two mornings focused on ground realities and provided the outlines of four proposals.

Auroville and Puducherry PV collaboration A 45kW rooftop solar PV system was designed and installed by Auroville’s unit Sunlit Future on the French Consulate in Pondicherry. Auroville has collaborated with Pondicherry previously providing rooftop grid-connected solar PV systems for two residences, as well as some buildings of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram.

Auroville Farm Festival Aurovilians, guests, volunteers and children of all ages enjoyed three days of the Auroville Farm Festival held 21-22 January. The first day was a celebration on the plot of the upcoming Foodlink site near the Certitude corner and included games and activities for children.

Auroville Appeal Process By a majority vote of 214 ‘yes’ against 23 ‘no’, the Residents Assembly has approved an appeal process. Individuals can now ask an Appeal Body to review and possibly change a working group’s decision.

December, 2016

From Issue Nº329

Dr. Karan Singh re-appointed Dr. Karan Singh has been reappointed as Chairman of the Auroville Foundation for a period of 4 years by the Minister of HRD by notification dt.

Thamarai 10 years’ old The Thamarai learning and community centre celebrated 10 years of working towards impacting better health, education and leadership in Edayanachavady village and other villages around Auroville.

Energy guidebook Energy Conservation & Efficiency – A Guidebook for Responsible Energy Management has been published by Auroville Consulting. The publication is devised to help residents understand various technologies available in the market and make pre-meditated choices in choosing the most energy efficient appliances.

Entry Policy problems In response to a petition signed by 60 Aurovilians, the Auroville Council has temporarily paused new entry applications and has decided to slow down the process until clarity is provided.

Award for Auroville Earth Institute The Auroville Earth Institute was awarded the international “Low Carbon” award for the Kaza Eco-Community Centre it had built in the remote valley of Spiti with raw rammed earth, integrating solar lighting and a solar passive “trombe wall”.

September, 2016

From Issue Nº326

Rotation of WC and AVC members and new FAMC The process of finding replacements for some outgoing members of the Working Committee and the Auroville Council, and for finding new members of the Funds and Assets Management Committee, has started with community members nominating 680 candidates.

Commercial units defaulting on mandatory contribution The Budget Coordination Committee has informed that it no longer has enough resources to cover the present level of expenses and still maintain a buffer in case of emergencies.

Homes for those in need of assisted living The FAMC and the community of Samasti have agreed that the house and garden of a recently deceased community member is transformed into a house for Aurovilians who require assisted living.

Fair feedback on Newcomers The Auroville Council and Working Committee, concerned that feedback on those who wish to join the community cannot be based on personal feelings of likes and dislikes, and only on truth and accuracy of experience, have decided to henceforth use a “feedback form”.

Change of deadline for the N&N Though most Aurovilians have an internet connection at home, the News&Notes are still being printed and brought to the doorsteps of all those who require hard copies.

Circulating reports by email The Working Committee has successfully initiated the circulation of its monthly report by email, in addition to publishing it in the News&Notes and on Auronet.

Building Bridges Building Bridges is a project that aims at building cross-cultural friendships. In September, 19 children from four Auroville schools accompanied by 6 adults will travel to Dharamsala to meet with children of the Tibetan Children’s Village school.

Auroville Triathlon 2016 The Auroville Triathlon 2016 is open for registration for Newcomers and Aurovilians. The Olympic style event includes 1,500 meter swim, 40 kilometres bicycle and 10 kilometres run, the Sprint event 750 meter swim, 20 kilometres bicycle, and 5 kilometres run.

Use of name of Auroville The Funds and Assets Management Committee (FAMC) has decided that the word “Auroville” should not be used at the beginning of the name of a unit, activity, project, or course unless it is a unique activity supposed to represent Auroville officially.

Abandoned pets The Working Committee has warned of a growing culture of people from outside abandoning their pets at the doorstep of Integrated Animal Care Centre (IACC) and also within other Auroville premises, such as the Town Hall.

Vocational Training at AIAT The Auroville Institute of Applied Technology (AIAT) is now taking admissions for one and two year vocational training courses affiliated to the Central Government National Council of Vocational Training (NCVT).

July, 2016

From Issue Nº323-324

Growing food, growing children The deeper vision behind Food Link, an activity of the Auroville Farm Group is to create community by linking the residents of Auroville to the farmers through educational initiatives.

March, 2016

From Issue Nº320

Auroville’s 28th birthday Auroville’s birthday, on February 28, was celebrated with the traditional dawn bonfire. For the first time in the history of Auroville, the attendance of over 5,000 people exceeded the Amphitheatre’s capacity with many people standing on the rim, listening to Mother’s reading of the Charter of Auroville and its translations in English, Sanskrit and Tamil.

Auroville Marathon The ninth Auroville Marathon, held on February 14th, drew over 3,000 participants from across the country. The community opened stalls at the Visitor’s Center for people to interact and know more about life at Auroville.

Bamboo Centre intensive course The Bamboo Center organised a three-week intensive hands-on training course for bamboo crafters. Areas of training in this residential programme included jewelry, furniture making and construction.

Upcycling exhibition at Udavi Artists Ok and Orly and Mark from the Upcycling Studio exhibited ‘upcycled products’, or products made from waste, at Udavi School. The exhibition showed what can be done with tetrapaks (used in making stools and in building construction), with waste plastics (used in cushions) and discarded audio tape (used for making bags and hats).

Expressive arts therapy A symposium on expressive arts thereapy took place at the Pavilion of Tibetan Culture and the Sankalpa Art Center on February 19-21. The gathering drew almost 40 art therapists, counselors, psychologists, and teachers from across India and abroad, as well as interested villagers from Kottakarai and Edaiyanchavadi.

February, 2016

From Issue Nº319

AVC appointed knowledge partner Auroville Consulting has been actively working with the Ministry of Urban Development (Government of India) in relation to the Government’s Smart City initiative and has been appointed a knowledge partner for the city of Bhubaneswar.

Architectural awards In the third edition of the NDTV Design & Architecture Awards 2015, Auroville architects received two awards and one nomination. In the section ‘House Award: Climatic Zone (Warm & Humid)’, architect Fabian Ostner of White Ant Studio won an award for his “A House in Auroville”, while architect Ganesh Bala from Studio One won a nomination for his ‘Petite Ferme House’.

New film on Auroville At the request of Outreach Media, a new 15 minute introductory video has been made on Auroville by a visiting film maker, Serena Aurora. The video, based on Mother’s Dream, can be watched on-line at Serena’s site , click on ‘A Dream Down to Earth’.

Juanita’s ashes Some of the ashes of late Juanita Cole, who passed away in July last year in the USA, have been interred at the Adventure Burial and Cremation ground at the request of her family, as for Juanita Auroville was “her place in the Universe”.

January, 2016

From Issue Nº318

Monsoon work in surrounding villages The heavy rains took many areas in South India by surprise. Chennai and Cuddalore were flooded and many small villages in our bioregion were also severely affected, some almost washed away.

Aquifer recharged including rainfall chart For Auroville’s aquifer recharge, the monsoon rains were a blessing, as all water bodies filled up and even spilled over, thus guaranteeing sufficient water for the dry months.

Irumbai solar village The Government of Tamil Nadu has approved a Solar Village Project for Irumbai village which has been promoted by Auroville Consulting. The pilot project will demonstrate that a village can (on an annual basis) produce all the energy it consumes from grid-connected solar PV systems and should / can therefore be exempted from load shedding.

Youth in the Town Hall On December 12th 2015, about 20 youth gathered in the Town Hall in answer to an invitation that said, “Ever wondered what’s happening in the Town Hall?

Interview Piero part 2 The second part of the interview with Piero Cicionesi has been released. Both parts have been posted online and can be seen at YouTube. The interviews record for future generations the true history of the construction of the Inner Chamber, from Udar’s first drawing under the direct instructions of the Mother, to the installation of the Crystal.

Crematorium structure collapsed Due to the heavy monsoon rains, the keet structure of Auroville’s open-air crematorium collapsed. A temporary but slightly lop-sided structure has been erected.

Road blocked After failed land purchase negotiations, and to prevent a landowner to parcel his land in the city area and sell it as housing plots, which is illegal, the road between Surrender and Kalabhumi has been blocked.

December, 2015

From Issue Nº317

Saturday market reopens On Saturday November 28th, the weekly Saturday Market at the Auroville Youth Centre re-opened. Despite the threat of heavy downpours, eight stalls were set up in an effort to instill new energy into the ‘Localicious’ movement initiated by Krishna from Solitude Farm two years ago.

September, 2015

From Issue Nº313-314

Newcomer housing The Housing Board is struggling to find accommodation for those without funds, as it can on average only allocate five pro bono houses each year.

India Land of Light The Mother once described Sri Aurobindo as having “a face from eternity”. That same quality of deep spiritual timelessness pervades many of the photographs in Aurovilian Olivier Barot’s photo exhibition that premiered on 4th August in the new Kalinka Gallery in Pondicherry.

International Youth Day International Youth Day was celebrated for the first time in Auroville on August 12th. Originally, the United Nations designated this day to draw attention to youth issues worldwide.

Housing issues The Housing Board has published a note on the way its deals with house pricings and transfers. The stewardship of newly-built houses is being allocated at cost price, while the transfer price of existing houses is assessed on the basis of a valuation made by a certified valuator.

Big buses not welcome The Working Committee and Auroville Council are taking action against the presence of big buses in Auroville. Pointing out that the volume of large buses is increasing day by day and that the Auroville roads are not suitable for large vehicles which are, moreover, are putting other road users in danger, all tour organizers have been asked to inform their groups to come by mini-bus.

The Matrimandir: honouring Piero The first part of a film The Matrimandir: Honouring Piero Cicionesi was shown at Cinema Paradiso on August 28th. The film, says its maker François Gautier, shows the true story of the Matrimandir, from the beginning till its completion, which, he writes, “would never have been built without Piero’s quiet and unceasing efforts, day after day, for twenty five years.

Budokan house warming On August 30th, a house-warming of the “Auroville Budokan” (House of Martial Arts), the new Aikido Dojo, at Dehashakti/Dana took place. The formal inauguration will take place during the forthcoming meetings of the Governing Board and International Advisory Council in the beginning of October.

A critique of high rise buidlings As part of a two-day meeting held in Auroville on the topic of affordable housing by the Gubbi Alliance for Sustainable Habitat, an association of habitat professionals and researchers which seeks to mainstream sustainability as a core concern in design, policy and habitat management, Professor Ashok Lall, former Dean of the TVB School of Habitat Studies, New Delhi, presented “A critique of the current belief and accelerating trend toward high-rise high-density as the panacea” on August 22nd at the Multimedia Centre.

The underground rooms of the Amphitheatre The two large underground rooms at the Matrimandir amphitheatre have been cleaned out. The electrical department vacated the room beneath the eastern side of the amphitheatre, which will now be turned into green rooms for all those who will come to perform in the Amphitheatre.

French Pavilion’s third foundation stone The third foundation stone of the Pavilion of France was laid on August 15th, 22 years after the laying of the first Foundation Stone by J.R.D.

Bell of Peace The Peace Bell [see AVToday # 305 of December 2014] has arrived in Auroville during the dawn bonfire on Sri Aurobindo’s birthday, August 15th.

Auroville in a crossword ‘Chance discovery of final archaeologist at Auroville ruins (10)’ is the cryptic crossword puzzle that appeared in The Hindu newspaper on July 11th.

March, 2015

From Issue Nº308

RERS hosts second PEC From February 2nd to 8th 2015, the second Pondicherry Equestrian Challenge (PEC) was hosted at Red Earth Riding School, Brihaspati, Auroville.

European pavilion tree planted In the afternoon of February 21, a festive ceremony of the European pavilion groups took place attended by 160 people. In a beautiful atmosphere – concentrated and charged with the aspiration for freedom, peace and unity on the European continent and for the world at large, but also light and cheerful with impromptu musical performances – a tree was planted to mark the beginning of further development in the European area of Auroville’s International Zone.

January, 2015

From Issue Nº306

The odd couple In mid December Aurovilians enjoyed a production of The Odd Couple by Neil Simon. Oscar, (played by Otto), a sloppy sportswriter, and the neurotically-fastidious Felix, (Krishna) strain their friendship to the limit when they become room-mates.

December, 2014

From Issue Nº305

New location for Sri Aurobindo statue at UNESCO Auroville International France, which has had a close relationship with the UNESCO headquarters in Paris through the years, has been collaborating to change the venue of the Sri Aurobindo statue at UNESCO.

First Matrimandir test pond completed In a group work that for some people was reminiscent of the Matrimandir concretings of the past, the lining of the first of the six tests ponds of the Matrimandir [see AVToday September 2014] was completed early November, just before the monsoon rains.

Code of conduct The Auroville Council announced that attempts to create a ‘Code of conduct and eligibility criteria’ for members of working groups has failed due to limited community participation and widely diverging opinions on the topic.

Land Board The Governing Board, in its meeting of August 2014, decided on the merger of all land related working groups, such as the Land and Estate Management group, the Land Resource Management Group, the Land Consolidation Committee and the Land Development Group, into one overarching Land Board of seven persons.

Housing issues The Housing Service and the Housing Board have concluded that as at present there are no funds available for housing for Aurovilians without financial means, it is not possible to accept any more new Aurovilians without them having the minimum funds for housing.

House steward’s absence The Auroville Housing Policy stipulates that if a house steward has left Auroville for longer than 5 years, the stewardship lapses and the asset returns to the community, to be re-allocated by the Housing Service.

Firewood shortage Due to the weather and the fact that the wood stocks from Cyclone Thane are slowly decreasing, there is not enough dry firewood available for various Auroville units like the Bakery, Tanto Pizzeria and the Visitors Centre.

International Zone developments In a meeting between members of the International Zone Coordination Team and L’Avenir / Town Development Council, it has been agreed that the Coordination Team prepare a number of applications for approval such as the loop road, the fencing, an urban design plan and a preliminary study for a Detailed Development Plan.

Auroville International The Netherlands Auroville International The Netherlands reported that its Facebook page is frequently visited, particularly its Trend Watching posting, which contains a report by two Dutch students of the Fontys Academy for Creative Industries (‘International Lifestyle Studies’) who are doing a research project in Auroville.

Mosquito control There are two types of mosquitoes in Auroville. There is the large slow Armigeres, which breeds in septic tanks and grey water. Then there is the zippy little striped one, Aedes, which transmits dengue, chikungunya, and filaria.

Korean evening On November 27, the Korean Pavilion team organized a Korean evening. It included a Korean new wave music performance by the group Noreum Machi, which visited India to celebrate the opening of the Consulate General of the Republic of South Korea in Chennai.

Deficient monsoon so far This year’s rainfall stands at around 1180 mm as against the yearly average of 1299 mm.

Enforcement of Food Safety Regulations Auroville Food Units have been warned that the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has stepped up enforcement measures. All Auroville food processing units have been advised to maintain the highest level of conformity to food safety regulations.

September, 2014

From Issue Nº302

Auroville Council start work The Auroville Council, in its first interactive meeting with the community, reported a huge workload consisting of 17 personal issues, 6 policy mandate issues and 4 immediate community issues.

www.auroville.org renewed A brand new public website for Auroville has now replaced the old one which has been in existence for 14 years. It’s a fresh start with around 350 pages covering basic information on Auroville taken out of 3,000 pages from the old site.

Board of Services annual meeting The Auroville Board of Services (ABS), in its annual gathering on August 13th, observed that service managers who rely on a community maintenance find this is too low to cover their basic needs, even with the provided in-kind component, which still does not cover expenses such as transport or housing.

Developing Sri Ma The Housing Board has informed the community that it believes that the development of Sri Ma as a beach resort, a large-scale income generating unit with a 50-rooms guest facility, is not developing as planned.

Sri Aurobindo in Arabic A 30 minutes video titled “Sri Aurobindo in Arabic” made by Zackaria Moursi, Jim Page, Lynda Lester and Nihal Rashinkar is now available on YouTube.

Standards for Auroville eggs Auroville has a few farms and communities that keep chickens ‘the natural way’. The largest is AuroOrchard, which is supplying approximately 5,000 eggs a week.

ONE ASIA 2014 Taipei ONE ASIA 2014 in Taipei will take place from October 25th to November 5th with the participation of 28 artists from all over Asia. This is the third event of the ONE ASIA cultural programmes.

August, 2014

From Issue Nº301

Extreme weather In the fourth week of June, 2014, the thermometer reached 41 degree Celsius for three consecutive days. The UV Index, adopted and standardized by the UN’s World Health Organization and World Meteorological Organization in 1994, was at its highest at 11 (extreme risk).

Last school moves After a period of 30 years, Last School has finally moved from the Last School compound near Aspiration into new premises between Kalabhumi and Future School.

Recommended fees for Auroville building projects The Funds and Assets Management Committee, which is mandated to review the financial viability of proposed public buildings and housing projects, has stated that henceforth all projects in excess of Rs. 1 crore will need to submit a bill-of-quantities (BoQ).

Land donations Kalya, a Tamil Aurovilian and executive of Progress Landscape and also working for the Town Development Council, has offered 3.5 acres of land situated in the Greenbelt to Auroville.

Pyramids for NESS science teaching The New Era Secondary School (NESS) has been granted approval from the Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE) for the introduction of Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics and Computer Science to the curriculum with effect from April 1st, 2014.

Graphic novel about Sri Aurobindo Chandigarh filmmaker Gaurav Chhabra is currently undertaking a 6 months artist’s residency at Kala Kendra. He is developing an illustrated storybook about Sri Aurobindo, and will be joined in this task by Egyptian artist Tarek Kamal.

Auroville Festival in Chennai Following the successful Auroville Festival in Delhi in 2012, the Governing Board, in their meeting of November 2013, has approved a similar event to be held in Chennai as many state government officials are unaware that Auroville is in Tamil Nadu and what it actually does.

Auromode Atelier closed Auromodè Atelier has close due to the high competition for ready-made garments for export, as a result of which the unit has been badly performing for the last three years.

Extension of the electricity-in-kind scheme The Budget Coordination Committee (BCC) has agreed that Varuna, Auroville, an Auroville unit that operates two wind generators owned by the Auroville Foundation, will cover the electricity bills of all grid-connected residents receiving a City-Services maintenance and those who pay the full monthly contribution of Rs. 2,850 to the Central Fund.

Land issues The Land Resource Management team reported that in the period of March to May 2014 it had been doing 25 land surveys and dealt with a number of boundary disputes and plot fencing issues, land disputes, a land encroachment including the manhandling of the steward, land access issues and a number of court cases dealing with land issues.

Police patroling The BCC has asked community feedback on the police patrolling in Auroville in view of the high costs of security. For the financial year 2013-14, the Auroville Security Budget was Rs.

July, 2014

From Issue Nº299-300

Auroville Today goes digital After 300 issues and 25 ½ years of existence, Auroville Today will add a digital edition to its print edition. Auroville’s web designers are working hard to make Auroville Today available on tablets and mobile phones.

March, 2014

From Issue Nº296

Vision Centre opens at AVHC

January, 1989

From Issue Nº3

Ferrocement News Tency and Gilles of CSR Biogas have recently attended the Third International Symposium on Ferrocement, held from 8 to 10 December in Delhi.

AME Programme The 2nd training course in Ecological Agriculture for Developing Countries will be held in Auroville between 15th January and 11th February.

December, 1988

From Issue Nº2

Auroville International meeting News arrived from France: The next Auroville International meeting, a meeting of the Auroville International Centres and Aurovilians, will be held on the 23rd, 24th and 25th of June 1989 at Annecy (on the bank of a beautiful lake), in France.

Mother’s Agenda Volume 5 Auroville Today wishes to congratulate all those who work on the publication of Mother’s Agenda with the publication of the 5th volume in English, and the 2nd volume in Hindi.

Fair, Fun, Food & Theatre!! At Last School, on 24th December, there will be a fair (in which artists, craftsmen etc. are invited to participate) and a musical drama called “Sleeping Dogs Don’t Lie”.

The Good Teacher and the Good Pupil A new publication entitled The Good Teacher and the Good Pupil has recently been released by the Sri Aurobindo International Institute of Educational Research, Auroville.