Lok Sabha Question No. 3470 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-11
Subject: Financial Assistance for Veteran Artists Scheme
Ministry: CULTURE
Asked by: Shri M K Raghavan, Shri Imran Masood, Dr. Bachhav Shobha Dinesh

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 3470 ANSWERED ON 11.08.2025

## 'Financial Assistance for Veteran Artists Scheme'

## 3470. Dr. Bachhav Shobha Dinesh

## Shri Imran Masood and

## Shri M K Raghavan

Will the MINISTER OF CULTURE be pleased to state:

- (a)  the  details  and  the  eligibility  criteria  for  giving  pension  to  veteran/elderly  artists  in  the country who have gained recognition in fields such as art, music, dance, theatre etc.;
- (b)  the number of proposals received by the Government under the Financial Assistance for Veteran Artists scheme during the last five years, State/UT-wise;
- (c)  the number of applications received from Maharashtra and action taken thereon during the  last  five  years  along  with  the  artists  receiving  financial  assistance  under  the  said scheme State/UT-wise including Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh and Kerala;
- (d)  whether  the  Government  has  noticed  significant  delay  in  the  disbursement  of financial assistance under the said scheme and if so, the details and the reasons therefor;
- (e)  the  number of applications approved and rejected during the last five years along with the reasons of the rejection, State/UT-wise particularly in Maharashtra and Kerala;
- (f) whether the  Government  has received any  proposals from any  Member of Parliament from  Maharashtra  for  the  same,  if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  action  taken  by  the Government thereon; and
- (g)  the  details  of  special  efforts  made  by  the  Government  to  mitigate the  hardships  of  the beneficiaries in earning their livelihood under the said scheme?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF CULTURE AND TOURISM

## (SHRI GAJENDRA SINGH SHEKHAWAT)

- (a)  Ministry  of  Culture  administers  a  scheme  by  the  name  of  'Scheme  for  Financial Assistance for Veteran Artists', under which financial  assistance is provided to  the  eligible veteran artists. Assistance provided under the scheme is not any kind of pension to these artists.  Following  are  the  eligibility  criteria  for  providing  financial  assistance  under  the scheme:
- i. The  applicant  artist  should  have  contributed  significantly  in  their  specialized  fields  of arts, letters etc. in their active age or are still contributing;
- ii. The applicant artist should not be less than 60 years of age;
- iii. Annual income of the applicant must not exceed Rs. 72,000/-;
- iv. The  applicant  artist  should  be  a  recipient  of  artists  pension  of  at  least  Rs.  500/-  per month  from the concerned  State Government/UT  Administration, or the artistic credentials  of  the  applicant  is  verified  and  recommended  by  the  concerned  Zonal Cultural Centre (ZCC), Ministry of Culture.
- v. The applicant artist should not be getting financial assistance under any other scheme of the Ministry of Culture.
- (b) The State-wise number of proposals received under the 'Scheme for Financial Assistance for Veteran Artists' during the last five years is annexed at Annexure-I .
- (c)  The  number  of  proposals  received  from  the  State  of  Maharashtra  and  action  taken thereon during last five years are as follows:

| Year    | Proposals   | Proposals     | Proposals     | Numbers of Artists supported   | Amount disbursed (in Lakh)   |
|---------|-------------|---------------|---------------|--------------------------------|------------------------------|
| Year    | Received    | Approved      | Rejected      | Numbers of Artists supported   | Amount disbursed (in Lakh)   |
| 2020-21 | 238         | 187           | 51            | 206                            | 106.62                       |
| 2021-22 | 1451        | 547           | 904           | 448                            | 190.49                       |
| 2022-23 | 1158        | 268           | 890           | 740                            | 273.49                       |
| 2023-24 | 1469        | 68            | 1401          | 1239                           | 795.97                       |
| 2024-25 | 1188        | Under Process | Under Process | 1392                           | 541.19                       |

The  details  of  artists  receiving  financial  assistance  under  the  said  scheme  State/UT-wise including  the  State  of  Uttar  Pradesh  and  Kerala  during  last  five  years  is  annexed  at Annexure-II . The district-wise data of beneficiaries under the said scheme is not available in this Ministry.

- (d) Release of financial assistance to the selected artists under the said scheme depends on submission of certain mandatory documents such as, Digital Life Certificate (DLC) once in a year, annual income certificate once in every five years, documents showing receipt of artist pension, if any, from the concerned State Government/UT Administration. Once the requisite mandatory documents are received from the selected artists, which is a continuous process throughout the year, all efforts are made to disburse the financial assistance expeditiously.
- (e)  The  number of applications approved and rejected under the scheme received from all the  States/UTs  including  Maharashtra  and  Kerala  during  the  last  five  years  is  annexed  at Annexure-III .  Applications found incomplete due to non-submission of recommendations of Art & Culture Department of State Government/UT administration or ZCC under this Ministry and lack of artistic credentials are rejected.
- (f)    Yes  sir,  this  Ministry  has  received  35  proposals  from  the  Members  of  Parliament  of Maharashtra during last three years. The following are the details of the action taken thereon:
- (g)    To  mitigate  the  hardships  faced  by  the  beneficiaries  selected  under  the  scheme,  the following efforts have been made by this Ministry in the recent years:
- (i) The  quantum  of  financial  assistance  under  the  scheme  has  been  enhanced  from Rs. 4000/- per month to Rs. 6000/- per month w.e.f. June, 2022;
- (ii)  The requirement of submitting income certificate every year has now been done away with and instead it is now required to be submitted once in five years;
- (iii)  Earlier, the applicant artist applying under the scheme should have been mandatorily be  a  recipient  of  artists  pension  of  atleast  Rs.  500/-  per  month  from  the  concerned State Government/UT Administration. This condition has been relaxed and now also provides  for verification  and  recommendation  of  the  artistic  credentials  by  the concerned Zonal Cultural Centre (ZCC), Ministry of Culture in case the applicant is not a recipient of artists pension from the State Govt./UT Administration;
- (iv) To ensure smooth and timely disbursal of financial assistance to the selected artists, an MoU has been signed with Canara Bank on 28.06.2023.

| Sl No   | Action taken                                                                             |   Number of Proposals |
|---------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------|
| 1.      | Proposals rejected in the initial scrutiny                                               |                     5 |
| 2.      | Proposals already recommended by the Expert Committee                                    |                     5 |
| 3.      | Proposals not recommended by the Expert Committee                                        |                     3 |
| 4.      | Fresh proposals as informed through the Members of Parliament have not been received yet |                    13 |
| 5.      | Proposals to be placed before the upcoming Expert Committee Meeting                      |                     9 |
| Total   | Total                                                                                    |                    35 |

*****

## Annexure-I

## Annexure referred to in reply to part (b) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 3470 for 11.08.2025

| Sr. No.   | State            | Applications received in the year   | Applications received in the year   | Applications received in the year   | Applications received in the year   | Applications received in the year   |
|-----------|------------------|-------------------------------------|-------------------------------------|-------------------------------------|-------------------------------------|-------------------------------------|
| Sr. No.   | State            | 2020-21                             | 2021-22                             | 2022-23                             | 2023-24                             | 2024-25                             |
| 1         | Andhra Pradesh   | 52                                  | 233                                 | 218                                 | 291                                 | 160                                 |
| 2         | Assam            | 3                                   | 4                                   | 2                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   |
| 3         | Bihar            | 0                                   | 0                                   | 36                                  | 0                                   | 0                                   |
| 4         | Chhattisgarh     | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 1                                   |
| 5         | Delhi            | 0                                   | 1                                   | 0                                   | 3                                   | 0                                   |
| 6         | Goa              | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 507                                 | 74                                  |
| 7         | Gujrat           | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 1                                   |
| 8         | Jammu & Kashmir  | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 1                                   |
| 9         | Jharkhand        | 0                                   | 0                                   | 1                                   | 0                                   | 1                                   |
| 10        | Haryana          | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 2                                   | 0                                   |
| 11        | Himachal Pradesh | 4                                   | 3                                   | 1                                   | 2                                   | 2                                   |
| 12        | Karnataka        | 136                                 | 190                                 | 176                                 | 250                                 | 173                                 |
| 13        | Kerala           | 22                                  | 28                                  | 79                                  | 14                                  | 6                                   |
| 14        | Madhya Pradesh   | 3                                   | 2                                   | 2                                   | 2                                   | 10                                  |
| 15        | Maharashtra      | 238                                 | 1451                                | 1158                                | 1469                                | 1188                                |
| 16        | Manipur          | 12                                  | 0                                   | 3                                   | 1                                   | 0                                   |
| 17        | Nagaland         | 1                                   | 198                                 | 0                                   | 0                                   | 3                                   |
| 18        | Odisha           | 584                                 | 2698                                | 2127                                | 1136                                | 927                                 |
| 19        | Puducherry       | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 1                                   | 0                                   |
| 20        | Punjab           | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 1                                   | 6                                   |
| 21        | Rajasthan        | 2                                   | 5                                   | 1                                   | 1                                   | 28                                  |
| 22        | Tripura          | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   |
| 23        | Tamil Nadu       | 66                                  | 31                                  | 23                                  | 15                                  | 36                                  |
| 24        | Telangana        | 142                                 | 509                                 | 849                                 | 483                                 | 260                                 |
| 25        | Uttar Pradesh    | 68                                  | 9                                   | 15                                  | 38                                  | 87                                  |
| 26        | Uttarakhand      | 1                                   | 0                                   | 0                                   | 1                                   | 1                                   |
| 27        | West Bengal      | 1269                                | 54                                  | 26                                  | 53                                  | 25                                  |
| TOTAL     | TOTAL            | 2603                                | 5416                                | 4717                                | 4270                                | 2990                                |

## Annexure referred to in reply to part (c) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 3470 for 11.08.2025

(Amount in Lakh)

| Sl. No.   | State                 | FY - 2020-21     | FY - 2020-21        | FY - 2021-22     | FY - 2021-22        | FY - 2022-23     | FY - 2022-23        | FY - 2023-24     | FY - 2023-24        | FY - 2024-25     | FY - 2024-25        |
|-----------|-----------------------|------------------|---------------------|------------------|---------------------|------------------|---------------------|------------------|---------------------|------------------|---------------------|
| Sl. No.   | State                 | Amount Disbursed | No of Beneficiaries | Amount Disbursed | No of Beneficiaries | Amount Disbursed | No of Beneficiaries | Amount Disbursed | No of Beneficiaries | Amount Disbursed | No of Beneficiaries |
| 1         | Andhra Pradesh        | 5.1              | 29                  | 72.29            | 89                  | 84.66            | 148                 | 153.3            | 191                 | 115.90           | 177                 |
| 2         | Assam                 | 0.96             | 2                   | 0.48             | 1                   | 1.57             | 1                   | 2.41             | 3                   | 0.90             | 2                   |
| 3         | Bihar                 | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | 15.47            | 14                  | 4.62             | 7                   |
| 4         | NCT of Delhi          | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | 5.87             | 8                   | 4.92             | 10                  |
| 5         | Haryana               | -                | -                   | 0.93             | 1                   | 0.56             | 2                   | 3.69             | 4                   | 1.94             | 4                   |
| 6         | Goa                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | 7.12             | 41                  |
| 7         | Himachal Pradesh      | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | 0.30             | 1                   |
| 8         | Jharkhand             | 2.28             | 8                   | 3                | 5                   | 3.59             | 7                   | 3.88             | 4                   | 2.76             | 3                   |
| 9         | Karnataka             | 29.97            | 144                 | 59.55            | 146                 | 64.32            | 130                 | 341.98           | 344                 | 354.67           | 397                 |
| 10        | Kerala                | 8.18             | 24                  | 24.49            | 57                  | 25.3             | 51                  | 64.21            | 67                  | 85.82            | 80                  |
| 11        | Madhya Pradesh        | 2.44             | 6                   | 5.04             | 12                  | 3.86             | 6                   | 6.95             | 7                   | 14.95            | 13                  |
| 12        | Maharashtra           | 106.62           | 206                 | 190.49           | 448                 | 273.49           | 740                 | 795.97           | 1239                | 541.19           | 1392                |
| 13        | Manipur               | 3.36             | 9                   | 7.84             | 16                  | 0.6              | 5                   | 14.7             | 13                  | 14.94            | 14                  |
| 14        | Nagaland              | 0.48             | 1                   | 0.92             | 2                   | 0.12             | 1                   | 3.28             | 2                   | 1.08             | 2                   |
| 15        | Odisha                | 119.47           | 355                 | 276.95           | 828                 | 306.77           | 966                 | 1063.4           | 1460                | 1,106.51         | 1995                |
| 16        | Punjab                | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | 0.30             | 1                   |
| 17        | Rajasthan             | 0.07             | 2                   | 1.23             | 2                   | 0.71             | 2                   | 1.36             | 2                   | 2.52             | 2                   |
| 18        | Tamil Nadu            | 0.87             | 6                   | 15.49            | 22                  | 14.6             | 21                  | 46.96            | 41                  | 36.61            | 34                  |
| 19        | Telangana             | 53.2             | 86                  | 217.29           | 342                 | 268.16           | 489                 | 274.94           | 293                 | 207.07           | 309                 |
| 20        | Tripura               | 0.24             | 1                   | 0.92             | 2                   | 0.12             | 1                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   |
| 21        | Uttar Pradesh         | 5.13             | 9                   | 13.08            | 46                  | 15.46            | 58                  | 67.24            | 82                  | 80.46            | 109                 |
| 22        | Uttarakhand           | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | -                | -                   | 2.43             | 2                   | 4.83             | 4                   |
| 23        | West Bengal           | 5.09             | 37                  | 12.31            | 32                  | 11.71            | 27                  | 28.53            | 35                  | 20.37            | 39                  |
|           | Total                 | 343.46           | 925                 | 902.3            | 2051                | 1075.6           | 2655                | 2896.57          | 3811                | 2,609.77         | 4636                |
|           | disbursed through LIC | 527.85           | 1075                | 639.87           | 978                 | 783.58           | 996                 | 0                | 0                   | 0.00             | 0                   |
|           | Grand Total           | 871.31           | 2000                | 1542.17          | 3029                | 1859.18          | 3651                | 2896.57          | 3811                | 2,609.77         | 4636                |

## Annexure-II

## Annexure referred to in reply to part (e) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 3470 for 11.08.2025

| Sr No   | Name of State    | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   | Applications Approved and Rejected in the year   |
|---------|------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|
|         |                  | 2019-20                                          | 2019-20                                          | 2020-21                                          | 2020-21                                          | 2021-22                                          | 2021-22                                          | 2022-23                                          | 2022-23                                          | 2023-24                                          | 2023-24                                          |
|         |                  | Approved                                         | Rejected                                         | Approved                                         | Rejected                                         | Approved                                         | Rejected                                         | Approved                                         | Rejected                                         | Approved                                         | Rejected                                         |
| 1       | Andhra Pradesh   | 35                                               | 142                                              | 34                                               | 18                                               | 91                                               | 142                                              | 33                                               | 185                                              | 38                                               | 253                                              |
| 2       | Assam            | 0                                                | 12                                               | 1                                                | 2                                                | 2                                                | 2                                                | 0                                                | 2                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                |
| 3       | Bihar            | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 36                                               | 0                                                | 0                                                |
| 4       | Delhi            | 0                                                | 1                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 3                                                | 0                                                |
| 5       | Goa              | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 133                                              | 374                                              |
| 6       | Gujrat           | 0                                                | 1                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                |
| 7       | Jammu & Kashmir  | 0                                                | 1                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                |
| 8       | Jharkhand        | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                |
| 9       | Haryana          | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 2                                                | 0                                                |
| 10      | Himachal Pradesh | 0                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                | 3                                                | 0                                                | 3                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                | 2                                                | 0                                                |
| 11      | Karnataka        | 49                                               | 296                                              | 114                                              | 22                                               | 3                                                | 187                                              | 23                                               | 153                                              | 21                                               | 229                                              |
| 12      | Kerala           | 12                                               | 33                                               | 21                                               | 1                                                | 8                                                | 20                                               | 9                                                | 70                                               | 1                                                | 13                                               |
| 13      | Madhya Pradesh   | 0                                                | 8                                                | 1                                                | 2                                                | 0                                                | 2                                                | 0                                                | 2                                                | 0                                                | 2                                                |
| 14      | Maharashtra      | 128                                              | 759                                              | 187                                              | 51                                               | 547                                              | 904                                              | 268                                              | 890                                              | 68                                               | 1401                                             |
| 15      | Manipur          | 0                                                | 28                                               | 12                                               | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 3                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                |
| 16      | Nagaland         | 0                                                | 859                                              | 1                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 198                                              | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                |
| 17      | Odisha           | 130                                              | 437                                              | 340                                              | 244                                              | 1260                                             | 1438                                             | 622                                              | 1505                                             | 32                                               | 1104                                             |
| 18      | Puducherry       | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                |
| 19      | Punjab           | 1                                                | 6                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                | 0                                                |
| 20      | Rajasthan        | 0                                                | 2                                                | 0                                                | 2                                                | 0                                                | 5                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                |
| 21      | Tripura          | 1                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                |
| 22      | Tamil Nadu       | 2                                                | 77                                               | 14                                               | 52                                               | 1                                                | 30                                               | 1                                                | 22                                               | 1                                                | 14                                               |
| 23      | Telangana        | 53                                               | 475                                              | 116                                              | 26                                               | 306                                              | 203                                              | 193                                              | 656                                              | 15                                               | 468                                              |
| 24      | Uttar Pradesh    | 0                                                | 16                                               | 65                                               | 3                                                | 1                                                | 8                                                | 0                                                | 15                                               | 22                                               | 16                                               |
| 25      | Uttarakhand      | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 0                                                | 1                                                | 0                                                |
| 26      | West Bengal      | 0                                                | 2243                                             | 914                                              | 355                                              | 32                                               | 22                                               | 0                                                | 26                                               | 15                                               | 38                                               |
|         | TOTAL            | 411                                              | 5396                                             | 1821                                             | 782                                              | 2251                                             | 3165                                             | 1150                                             | 3567                                             | 355                                              | 3915                                             |

## Annexure-III