evidence: Visva-Bharati combined education of children in a free and natureloving environment, the use of music and arts as instruments for emotional development, social work to help neighbouring villages, the promotion of rural development and higher research in philosophy, cultures and so on. The key elements in the structure were the school Patha Bhavana, the centre for fine arts Kala Bhavana and the centre for music Sangeet Bhavana. Besides these, he also established a department of Chinese language and culture called Cheena Bhavana in April 1937. In 1951, the Government of India declared Visva-Bharati a centre of national importance and passed the Visva-Bharati Act of 1951, thereby declaring it as a central university. As warned by several eminent parliamentarians who took part in the debate that followed the introduction of the Bill in Parliament, this governmental move has changed the original character of the institution because the question of equivalence of degrees across India came up, and the Academic Council of the new university decided to conform to the standards prevailing in the country. The very character of the institution that Rabindranath compared to ‘a vessel that carries the best cargo of my life’ was eventually sacrificed. [...] Thus, the word Visva-Bharati has come to acquire the connotation of a centre of alternative education to promote peace, conservation of nature and propagating universal humanism based on ancient Eastern wisdom informed by Western values, with music, dance and seasonal festivals playing a central role. [...] See also Vishwa Bharati (viśva-bhāratī)