NEW DELHI— On August 24, a group of Iranian journalists went to India as part of a “Familiarization Tour” organized by the Indian embassy in Tehran in collaboration with the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). The Tehran Times correspondent was a member of the media team who jotted down his observations of the exotic country famous for its diverse culture and spicy cuisine.

What you are about to read is the Tehran Times correspondent’s observations.

On Friday, August 26, we all went down to visit Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), media center of learning and civil service training institute for Indian Information Service Cadre funded and promoted by the central government in New Delhi.

The IIMC is an autonomous society under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and it has trained over thousands of journalists who are now working in various media outlets such as Reuters.

The meeting quickly turned into a panel discussion focusing on comparing print media and digital media. According to the IIMC officials, the youth in India are still interested to pursue a career in print media despite lower payments and this industry is still very much up to date. According to them, there are over 1.5 million publications in India.

The Times of India, the largest English-language daily has a whopping 3 million circulation per day, as of August 2022. This shows that print media is still very much alive in India, and it is being rated as the most trusted news brand.

However, their prediction was that digital media will take over the Indian journalism industry in the next 10 to 15 years. What I observed during the panel discussion was that the government heavily regulates television and radio stations. For instance, community radios, which IIMC owns one, are only allowed to broadcast entertainment sections.

They are not allowed to broadcast news and in-depth analysis. According to the latest statistics they shared with us, there are now over 300 community radio stations in India, while the IIMC officials are forecasting over 2000 community radio stations in the next two to three years.

IIMC owns one of the largest libraries, if not the largest in India. We were blessed with the chance to visit the hauntingly beautiful library. After that, the IIMC director asked us to give a recorded interview on Iran, our first impressions of India, Bollywood, and diverse culture of Iran. We happily did so, and then went for lunch.

What was fascinating for me was that the IIMC officials, in particular Professor Rakesh Upadhyay, one of the high-ranking officials of the institute, was curious as to how Iranians treat Avesta and Zoroastrianism. I responded to his query by saying that Zoroastrians have an MP in the Iranian parliament, and the religion’s slogan “Do well, Think well, Say well” is deeply rooted in our culture, as it is totally in line with Islamic teachings.

We then visited the social media center of the IIMC. Upon chatting with the professor in charge of that section, I realized that Prime Minister Modi is planning to regulate the usage of social media and put it into a working “framework.” Based on this framework which is yet to be announced, discussing controversial topics such as race, gender and religion should only be through using facts. The campaign is believed to counter misinformation, and therefore reduce further social media clashes between Hindus and Muslims that could spark tensions in the streets. To me, the move seemed wise, as it could help prevent misinformation and disinformation without censorship, but we should reserve further judgments until the framework is actually put in practice.

Our next stop was the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, a place which I personally had high hopes for. I was looking forward to finally get some answers on how the Rial-Roupee mechanism between the two countries work, and why Iranian money is blocked in Yes Bank of India. My hope was diminished in a few seconds after the meeting began when the institute’s officials told us they do not know what they should tell us, and asked us to instruct them on what they should tell us.

My query in this regard finally got answered, but not quite convincingly. Professor Areej Aftab Siddiqui from the respective institute told me that Indian farmers are reluctant to wait to receive the money, as it takes them several months to get paid. She told me that as most of the Indian exports to Iran are agricultural products, these farmers prefer to get paid through barter trade rather than waiting for several months to receive cash.

However, her answer on the freezing of Iranian money in Yes Bank was not convincing to me and she promised me to elaborate on the issue in an interview later on.

Our next destination was National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP). By the time we got there, we were extremely tired, as our hopes of India’s prominent economic think tanks had already been diminished and we had no concrete data at hand. My question at the NIPFP was again on the Rial-Roupee mechanism, and it was left without an answer as they had no knowledge of the matter.

During our discussion at the NIPFP, we realized that poverty rate in India is being calculated differently from the Iranian standards. In Iran, housing, rent, minimum consumption of 2000 calories and utilities is counted in calculating the poverty rate. However, in India, if you manage to consume 2000 calories a day, you’re above the poverty line. With that in mind, poverty rate in India has been 27% in the last ten years (approximately 378.000.000 people). The discovery was startling.

We went back to the hotel, quickly ate dinner and got some rest, as we had planned to leave New Delhi at 5:30 am to visit the hauntingly beautiful Taj Mahal Palace in Agra. Agra is 3-4 hours away from New Delhi, so we planned to visit Taj Mahal in a way that we would be back in our hotel for lunch.

Taj Mahal left us all speechless. The magnificent mausoleum, which took 23 years to be completed, resembled a man’s love and affection for his wife, who passed tragically. The Darwaza (main gateway), Bageecha (garden), Masjid (mosque), Naqqar Khana (rest house), and Rauza (mausoleum), where the tomb is located, are the five prominent monuments on the south-west bank of the River Yamuna just beyond Agra. Taj Mahal's greatest attraction is its architectural style. It is a one-of-a-kind synthesis of Persian, Central Asian, and Islamic architecture. The black-and-white marble checkered floor, the four outstanding minarets at the corners of the mausoleum's plinth are 40 meters high, and the dreamlike center dome are all highlights.

We went back to New Delhi, got some rest and prepared ourselves to go sightseeing (and shopping) in New Delhi. We went to Connaught Place (CP), famous for its local bazaars as well as multinational brands.

My colleagues were stunned when they found out they have to haggle with Indian sellers on the streets. Strangely, Indians tell you that something is priced at 8500 INRs (Indian Roupees), while it is actually worth less than 1000 INRs. Being familiar with the culture and knowing a few Hindi words, I told my colleagues that if they wanted to buy something, they should just call me and I’d bargain their way out of the first price. The formula worked fantastically, as everyone left CP jubilantly. We then went back to the hotel to prepare ourselves for an early check out and head to Bangalore, the technological capital of India.

An early breakfast on Sunday following a checkout from our hotel in New Delhi got us all tired, but we were exciting to see what was waiting for us in Bangalore, especially since we were told the weather there was less hot than New Delhi.

Upon our arrival, we were greeted by a member of the Karnataka state police force, a Bangalore Airport official, and a member of the Karnataka state administration. We were escorted to our hotel with two police cars riding in front and behind our minibus. We got a late check-in and missed our lunch at the hotel, so we decided to try the Western fast food cuisine in Bangalore, located in a shopping mall right opposite our hotel.

Some of our colleagues were eager to explore the shopping mall, so we had to stay for them to finish shopping (or just looking in some cases). We then returned to the hotel and got some sleep to prepare ourselves for two important meetings the next day.

On Monday, we visited the Indian Institute of Science, a hi-tech institute which was deemed as a university. Surrounded by green trees, the campus was extraordinarily fascinating. Homi Bhabha, father of India’s nuclear energy program, and Vikram Sarabhai, father of India’s space program, were among the notable alumni of the highly regarded university. The university focuses on a variety of research and development (R&D) projects, such as Digital Health, Genome India, and Clean Coal Technology.

It also has various collaborations with universities all around the world, as well as multinational companies such as Toyota, Siemens, Boeing, and Microsoft.

We then went to visit the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), a think tank that once played host to former Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif. NIAS plays a major role in setting out foreign policy objectives for the MEA through research papers. They have an entire program dedicated to policy research. However, I was fascinated by their Conflict and Security Studies program, particularly now, when they are focusing on China and North Korea’s nuclear missile programs.

It once again portrayed the classic India-China rivalry for me. NIAS also conducts research projects for various ministries of the Indian administration, and is clearly the key to enhance Iran-India relations. I sincerely believe that exchanging ideas and research with NIAS can further lead Tehran and New Delhi to a glamorous future. It also helps solve unanswered questions such as India’s close collaboration with the Israeli regime and how it may affect Iran-India ties, India-China rivalry and its impact on Iran-India relations, and so many other issues.

The next day, we went to visit the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). ISRO is India’s national space agency. We sat down and held a cordial, frank and of course off-the-record meeting with the ISRO director of international affairs. The details of the meeting cannot be discussed here for obvious reasons, but it is evident that India has invested a lot on its space economy and has set ambitious goals. ISRO is determined to make these ambitious goals happen as quickly as possible. Ground is prepared for Iran to have collaborations in this regard with India, but there might be one or two reservations in this regard due to the close cooperation of India and the Israeli regime in this field. If such cooperation between Tehran and New Delhi is going to happen, India must assure Iran in this regard.

Personally, I saw India as a country with several untapped potentials. I sincerely believe that the current trade level between the two countries is nowhere near where it should be, and obstacles must be removed to enhance ties between the two ancient civilizations with deep-rooted affinities.

One of these obstacles is resolving the issues surrounding the Rial-Roupee trade mechanism, in case the JCPOA is not restored. This inactive mechanism can help facilitate trade relations between the two countries. On the other hand, the influential economic think tanks of India are completely in the dark when it comes to Iran. It is important that Indian think tanks cooperate with Iranian media to get firsthand information on Iran and help boost relations between the two countries by providing fact-based, accurate research.