RS to present new mementos depicting modern and evolving India

Instead of handicrafts available in local markets the Upper House will now be handing out uniform mementos depicting India as a modern nation, that is technologically as well as economically evolving.

The approved memento is a three dimensional replica of the Indian Parliament building made out of transparent acrylic with the Ashok Chakra was at the top of it, and is mounted on a wooden stand.

Designed by a team of senior faculty members--Shashank Mehta from Industrial Design discipline and Anil Sinha, Head of Communication Design discipline--it depicts openness and transparency of the democratic political practices in India.

"The Rajya Sahba had formed a Committee to get the mementos designed which was headed by the Vice president Hamid Ansari. They approached us last year with a brief that they needed a memento which depicts modern India and needed it to be contemporary, durable and strong," Mehta told PTI.

According to Mehta, the RS Committee in their brief had specified that they need mementos to give to several dignitaries of national and international stature, and also to retiring MPs of the House as a gesture to recognise their selfless and dedicated services.
Mehta said the brief stated that the objective of this project was to create a unified and consistent image through standardisation of these mementos, he added.

The senior faculty said the design team undertook extensive research to finalise design alternatives.

Mehta said the Indian Parliament building was chosen because democracy forms the underlying principle of the Indian political system, and the Indian parliament was an edifice that aptly symbolises this truth
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The RS wanted a design which could depict a modern and evolving India with a transparent democratic system hence Indian Parliament was chosen as people can easily relate to it which also stands out as an identity for India, he added.Mehta said his team worked on the project for 4 months.

"We have made a prototype of the memento and submitted it to the Rajya Sabha with all the blue prints required for production," he said, adding that the memento could also be made using crystal if budget was a little flexible.