Book by BestCurrentAffairs.com for IAS Prelims 2020
CULTURE AND TOURISM
Be stC
[For IAS Prelims 2020] © BestCurrentAffairs.com. All Rights Reserved.
irs .co
ffa
The Ministry has two attached, six subordinate offices and thirty five autonomous organisations, which are fully funded by the Government. There are seven zonal cultural centres working mainly on folk and traditional arts of different zones. There are also four missions namely National Mission for Manuscripts, National Mission for Monument and Antiquities, National Mission on Libraries, and Gandhi Heritage Sites Mission. In knowledge heritage, the Ministry is the custodian of all the major libraries in the country. The Ministry is also involved in protection and promotion of Buddhist and Tibetian Culture and is doing this through various institutions located at Sarnath, Varanasi and Leh. Institutions like the School of Archaeology, School of Archives, National Institute of History and Art, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies are mentionable in this regard. Various courses offered by National School of Drama and Kalakshetra Foundation are also some of the examples of capacity building programmes of the Ministry. The Ministry is also responsible for the implementation of various UNESCO conventions. India has Cultural Agreements with 107 countries and agreements relating to Cultural Exchange Programmes have been signed with 69 countries. In a landmark achievement, India’s nomination of the ‘Victorian and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai’ has been inscribed on the World Heritage list of the UNESCO. With this, Mumbai becomes the second city in the country after Ahmedabad to figure in the list. India now has in all 37 World Heritage inscriptions with 29 cultural, 7 natural and 1 mixed sites. The first ever international Kala Mela was held in New Delhi in February 2018. The Ministry of Culture launched a new scheme, namely, Seva Bhoj Yojana in 2018. The scheme envisages to reimburse the central government share of GST on langar (community kitchen) / bhandara. Government of India commemorated the 550th Birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak at national as well as international level in befitting manner. The 500th death anniversary of 15th century poet-saint Kabir was held in June 2018 in Maghar, Sant Kabir Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh. Lalit Kala Akademi, the National Academy of Art, was set up in 1954. Lalit Kala Akademi is the government’s apex cultural body in the field of visual arts in India. It is an autonomous body, which is fully funded by the Ministry of Culture. programmes organized by the headquarters in New Delhi and by the Centres situated at Bhubaneshwar, Chennai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Garhi (New Delhi) and sub centres at Shimla and Patna. In Delhi, the Akademi administers the Garhi Artists’ Studios where approximately 200 artists work regularly. In 1945, the Asiatic Society of Bengal submitted a proposal for the creation of a National Cultural Trust consisting of three academies-an academy of dance, drama and music; an academy of letters and an academy of art and architecture. It led to the creation of three national academies after Independence. The national Academy named Sangeet Natak Akademi, was the first of these entities to be established by a resolution of the Ministry of Education. In 1961, the Sangeet Natak Akademi was reconstituted by the Government as a society and registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (as amended in 1957). The Jawaharlal Nehru Manipur Dance Academy (JNMDA) in Imphal, the premier institution in the teaching of Manipuri dance and music, established in 1954, is the first of these institutions. In 1959, the Akademi established the National School of Drama and the Asian Theatre Institute; and in 1964, the Kathak Kendra, both being based in Delhi. The Akademi’s other projects of national importance are in Kutiyattam theatre of Kerala, commenced in 1991. Kutiyattam was recognized by UNESCO as a masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage of humanity in 2001. The project on Chhau dance of Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal began in 1994. The project support to Sattriya music, dance, theatre and allied arts of Assam was started in 2002. The National School of Drama (NSD)-one of the foremost theatre institutions in the world and the only one of its kind in India was set up by Sangeet Natak Akademi in 1959. Later in 1975, it became an autonomous organization, totally financed by Department of Culture. The School has a performing wing, a Repertory Company to establish professional theatre and regular experimental work. The NSD has promoted children’s theatre. It (renamed as Sanskar Rang Toli) was founded in 1989. Since 1998, the School has organized National Theatre Festival for Children christened ‘Jashne Bachpan’ every year. The first ever National Theatre Festival christened was held from March 18 to April 14, 1999. A short-term teaching and training programme titled ‘Extension Programme’ was started in 1978. The School has a Regional Research Centre at Bengaluru to cater to the theatrical needs of the four southern states and Puducherry. Sahitya Akademi, India’s National Academy of Letters promotes literature in 24 languages of India recognized by it. Sahitya Akademi publishes three journals, Indian Literature (bi-monthly in English), Samkaleena Bhartiya Sahitya (bi-monthly in Hindi) and Sanskrit Pratibha (quarterly in Sanskrit). The Akademi’s head office is situated in New Delhi with offices in Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai.
ur re nt A
m
The mandate of the Ministry of Culture revolves around the functions like preservation and conservation of ancient cultural heritage and promotion of art and culture both tangible and intangible in the country.
India Year Book 2020 Synopsis
[BestCurrentAffairs.com]
Page No.18
