Naad Pargaas Organized a Three-Day International Symposium
Srinagar, November 24, 2025, Naad Pargaas, Sri Amritsar, successfully concluded its three-day international symposium titled “Reading Plato Anew: The Formation of Philosophical Consciousness from Aporia to Aletheia” at the Extension Hall of SKUAST-Kashmir, Shalimar Campus, held from 22 to 24 November 2025. The symposium was dedicated to Mata Bhagbhari Ji. The three-day event brought together an impressive array of scholars, researchers, teachers, and poets from across India and abroad, reaffirming the organization’s commitment to reviving philosophical inquiry in contemporary academia.
The event opened with an inaugural session presided over by Prof. Nazir Ahmad Ganai, Hon’ble Vice Chancellor of SKUAST-Kashmir. Distinguished dignitaries such as Prof. Raihana Habib Kanth, Dean of the Faculty of Horticulture at SKUAST-Kashmir, and Prof. Haroon Rashid Naik, Director of Research at the same institution, addressed the gathering. The keynote speaker, Prof. Sandhya Tiwari, Dean of Social Sciences and International Affairs at the Central University of Kashmir, set the tone for the symposium by highlighting the continuing relevance of Platonic thought for modern intellectual life. Prof. Nazir Ahmad Ganai, in his presiding remarks, emphasized the essential role of social sciences and particularly philosophy in institutions traditionally oriented toward the sciences. He highlighted that scientific training is incomplete without cultivating critical thinking, ethical reflection, and the broader civilizational understanding that philosophy offers. Emphasizing the need for interdisciplinary engagement, Prof. Ganai proposed the establishment of a Naad Pargaas Chapter at SKUAST-Kashmir in the near future, calling it a necessary step toward integrating philosophical inquiry into scientific education and research. The session was moderated by Dr. Chetna Trivedi, Assistant Professor at Amity Law School, Amity University, Noida.
Over the next three days, eight intellectual sessions unfolded, each exploring a central Platonic theme such as aporia, metaphysics, ethics, rhetoric, cosmology, and political philosophy. On the first day, the session on “Aporia: Socratic Method and Philosophy as Awakening” was chaired by Dr. Deepinderjit Randhawa, former head of Khalsa College Patiala, and moderated by Heera Singh, research scholar at Punjabi University Patiala. Scholars such as Imratpal Singh, University of Delhi; Komalpreet Singh, Panjab University, Chandigarh; and Surinder Singh from Govt. Senior Secondary School Harpura-Dhandoi examined Socratic questioning and the aporetic mode of philosophizing.
The subsequent session on “Eidos: Metaphysics and Ontology” and “Aletheia: Epistemology and Rhetoric,” chaired by Tanvir Alam of the University of Delhi, New Delhi, and moderated by Lakhvir Singh of Jawaharlal Nehru University, featured nuanced readings of Platonic metaphysics by Mohammad Asad Khan (University of Delhi), Ashish Kumar Pandya (Islamic University of Science and Technology, Awantipora), and Kulwinder Singh (Punjabi University, Patiala). Bupinder Singh Bali from Jammu and Kashmir, Gurdeep Singh from the Central University of Kashmir, and Harkamalpreet Singh from the University of Delhi, with Arunjit Singh (President, Naad Pargaas Australia) as discussant, revisited questions of truth, rhetoric, and epistemology in Plato.
The second day opened with a rigorous session on “Eudaimonia: Ethical Teleology and Philosophical Theology” chaired by Lakhvir Singh and moderated by Gurdeep Singh, featuring presentations by Prabjot Singh and Loveleen Kaur from Amar Singh College Srinagar, Dr. Ankita Sethi from GTBIT New Delhi, Ekam Singh, Research Scholar at Naad Pargaas Sri Amritsar, and Heera Singh, Research Scholar, Punjabi University, Patiala.
The afternoon session on “Arete: Ethics and Moral Psychology,” chaired by Dr. Kulbeer Singh Badal from Punjabi University, Patiala, and moderated by Harkamalpreet Singh, included presentations by Harpreet Singh (GNDU Amritsar), Jaideep Singh (Rayat Bahra University Mohali), and Dr. Chintanjit Kaur, a child rights practitioner from Srinagar.
The final session of the day, “Dikaiosyne: Political Philosophy and Civic Ethics,” was chaired by Dr. Muhammad Maroof Shah (author and columnist) and moderated by Dr. Bikramjit Singh of BBSBEC Fatehgarh Sahib and featured presentations by scholars including Kanwarpal Singh, Marie-Curie Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge (UK), Novdeep Singh from Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University; and Dr. Chetna Trivedi from Amity University Noida, with Amandeep Singh, President of Naad Pargaas USA, serving as discussant.
The final day began with the session on “Eros: Aesthetics and Philosophy of Love,” chaired by Dr. Khusdeep Kaur Malhotra from Ahmedabad University and moderated by Kulwinder Singh. Sandeep Sharma of the University of Delhi, Akwinder Kaur from Panjab University Chandigarh, Dr. Jasmine Anand from MCM DAV College, Chandigarh, and Jaswinder Singh from Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, explored desire, creativity, love, and the question of speech and writing in Plato’s dialogues. This was followed by the Kosmos session chaired by Mr. Dinesh Kumar K of the Central University of Kashmir and moderated by Komalpreet Singh, and Dr. Bikramjit Singh of BBSBEC, Gurpreet Singh from Naad Pargaas Sri Amritsar, and Jaypreet Kaur from Punjabi University Patiala presented engaging interpretations of Plato’s natural philosophy and cosmology.
The symposium concluded with a Kavi Darbar dedicated to the celebrated Kashmiri poet Gyani Kartar Singh Komal (1913–1992). The event was organized at the Seminar Hall of the Vice-Chancellor’s Secretariat Building, SKUAST-Kashmir. The Hon’ble Vice Chancellor, Prof. Nazir Ahmad Ganai, and Registrar of SKUAST-Kashmir graciously inaugurated the Kavi Darbar with their presence, lending further significance and warmth to the literary gathering. The event was chaired by Prof. Shad Ramzan, Distinguished Professor at the Central University of Kashmir, and was graced by Dr. Kirat Singh Inqlabi and Ratan Singh Kanwal as the Chief and Special Guests, respectively. The poetic gathering brought together poets of Urdu, Kashmiri, and Punjabi dialects, featuring recitations by Dr. Rashid Azeez, Dr. Azmat Alam Khan, Dr. Maninder Singh Sufi, Dr. Harpal Singh, Kanwalnain Singh, Harpal Singh Pali, Sehaj Kaur, Principal Ichhpal Singh, Paramjit Singh Premi, Paramvir Singh (Canada), Ranbir Singh Bir, Khushdeep Kaur, Prabjot Singh Sangha, Kawalpreet Singh, Jaswinder Singh, Mangat Singh, Karnail Singh, Sumeet Kaur, Ekam Singh, Sandeep Sharma, Komalpreet Singh, Novdeep Singh, and Kulbeer Singh Badal. The Kavi Darbar was hosted by Surinder Singh and Harkamalpreet Singh.
The symposium was coordinated by Dr. Harpal Singh, Central University of Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir, and Lakhvir Singh, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and co-coordinated by Gurdeep Singh, Central University of Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir, and Jaswinder Singh, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. With over thirty presentations, cross-disciplinary engagements, and a culturally rich poetic segment, the symposium not only brought Plato into contemporary focus but also established Naad Pargaas as an intellectual community committed to philosophical discourse and research-oriented scholarship.