Lok Sabha Question No. 246 (STARRED), answered on 2023-08-07
Subject: Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat
Ministry: Education
Asked by: Gajanan Chandrakant Kirtikar, Kalaben Mohanbhai Delkar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 246 ANSWERED ON 07.08.2023

## Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat

## †*246. SHRI GAJANAN KIRTIKAR:

## SHRIMATI DELKAR KALABEN MOHANBHAI:

Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has taken any initiative to increase cultural connectivity between different States under 'Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat' campaign;
- (b) if so, the details thereof, State-wise;
- (c) the steps being taken by the Government under the said campaign along with the future plans for Maharashtra, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu; and
- (d) the areas in which the Government plans to lay emphasis under the said campaign?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF EDUCATION (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

- (a) to (d): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

*****

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) TO (d) OF THE LOK SABHA STARRED  QUESTION  NO.  246  FOR  07.08.2023  ASKED  BY  SHRI  GAJANAN KIRTIKAR AND SHRIMATI DELKAR KALABEN MOHANBHAI, HON'BLE MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT REGARDING EK BHARAT SHRESHTHA BHARAT

(a) to (d) Yes, Sir. The Government has taken a number of initiatives under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat (EBSB) programme to foster cultural connectivity between people belonging to different States. Under the programme, various activities are carried out in the areas of language learning, culture, traditions and music, tourism and cuisine, sports and sharing of best practices, student exchange etc. to promote sustained engagement amongst the people throughout the country thus  enhancing  mutual  understanding,  appreciation  and  bonding  between  people  of  diverse cultures.

The programme employs the unique concept of pairing culturally diverse States/Union Territories (UTs)  to  promote  national  integration.  The  programme  embodies  'Whole  of  Government' approach  with  more  than  10  Ministries  of  the  Government  of  India  including  Ministry  of Education, Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Ministry of Railways, Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Ministry of AYUSH, Ministry of Women & Child Development, Ministry of Agriculture,  Ministry of Textiles, and Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises participating in its activities.

A special ongoing initiative, focusing on experiential learning and first- hand exposure, called Yuva Sangam (YS) has recently been taken up under the programme with the primary objective of building empathy and strengthening people to people connect between youth of different States/ UTs of India. Under Yuva Sangam, emphasis is laid on providing the youth a multi- dimensional exposure under five broad areas -Paryatan (Tourism), Parampara  (Traditions), Pragati (Development), Paraspar Sampark (People-to-people connect) and Prodyogiki (Technology).

As of  now,  multiple  phases  of  Yuva  Sangam  (YS)  have  been  completed  with  73  tours  being conducted between paired States/UTs, with the pairing changing in each phase. Details of the tours under YS is placed at  Annexure-I.    More  than  3,200  people  across  India  have  participated  in various phases of Yuva Sangam with Maharashtra being covered under all phases, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu being covered in the most recent phase.

Besides the above, a one-month long festival called Kashi Tamil Sangamam (KTS) was celebrated under  the  aegis  of  EBSB  at  Varanasi  from  17 th November,  2022  to  16 th December,  2022to rediscover and strengthen the ancient intellectual, cultural, spiritual and artisanal connect between these two cultures. The focus of KTS was to rediscover ancient knowledge and integrate it with modern thoughts in the field of philosophy,  technology entrepreneurship, craftsmanship etc, which can help us create a valuable body of knowledge culminating in new innovations. 2,550 delegates arrived in Varanasi from Tamil Nadu to attend the KTS.

Similarly, Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam (STS) was conducted during 17th-26th April, 2023. The 10-day confluence saw more than 3000 Saurashtrian Tamils come to Gujarat to rediscover the glorious heritage shared by the two states Tamil Nadu and Gujarat.

The key focus area of the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat programme is celebrating cultural diversity through  mutual  interaction  and  reciprocity  between  people  of  different  States/UTs  so  that  a common spirit of understanding resonates throughout the country. Going forth, exposure tours under Yuva Sangam will be instrumental in realizing the spirit of EBSB.

Annexure-I

ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) TO (d) OF THE LOK SABHA STARRED  QUESTION  NO.  246  FOR  07.08.2023  ASKED  BY  SHRI  GAJANAN KIRTIKAR AND SHRIMATI DELKAR KALABEN MOHANBHAI, HON'BLE MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT REGARDING EK BHARAT SHRESHTHA BHARAT

## I) Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav-EBSB Students Exchange (Pilot phase of Yuva Sangam)

|   S.No. | Participants from State   | Start Date   | End Date   | Visit to State    |
|---------|---------------------------|--------------|------------|-------------------|
|       1 | Jammu &Kashmir            | 23-Jan       | 27-Jan     | Tamil Nadu        |
|       2 | Goa                       | 5-Dec        | 9-Dec      | Jharkhand         |
|       3 | Bihar                     | 25-Nov       | 30-Nov     | Tripura/ Mizoram  |
|       4 | Delhi                     | 15-Nov       | 19-Nov     | Sikkim            |
|       5 | Rajasthan                 | 14-Nov       | 18-Nov     | Assam             |
|       6 | Tamil Nadu                | 14-Oct       | 20-Oct     | Jammu &Kashmir    |
|       7 | Uttarakhand               | 12-Oct       | 16-Oct     | Karnataka         |
|       8 | Maharashtra               | 19-Sept      | 23-Sept    | Odisha            |
|       9 | Mizoram                   | 12-Sept      | 16-Sept    | Bihar             |
|      10 | Assam                     | 03-Sept      | 07-Sept    | Rajasthan         |
|      11 | Uttar Pradesh             | 16- Aug      | 20- Aug    | Arunachal Pradesh |
|      12 | Gujarat                   | 14- Aug      | 18- Aug    | Chhattisgarh      |
|      13 | Karnataka                 | 06-Aug       | 10-Aug     | Uttarakhand       |
|      14 | Andhra Pradesh            | 04-Aug       | 08-Aug     | Punjab            |
|      15 | Chhattisgarh              | 25-Jul       | 29-Jul     | Gujarat           |
|      16 | Kerala                    | 25-Jul       | 29-Jul     | Himachal Pradesh  |
|      17 | Arunachal Pradesh         | 18-Jul       | 22-Jul     | Uttar Pradesh     |
|      18 | Telangana                 | 18-Jul       | 22-Jul     | Haryana           |
|      19 | Madhya Pradesh            | 16-Jul       | 20-Jul     | Nagaland          |
|      20 | Punjab                    | 05-Jul       | 09-Jul     | Andhra Pradesh    |
|      21 | Haryana                   | 28-Jun       | 02-Jul     | Telangana         |
|      22 | Odisha                    | 29-Jun       | 03-Jul     | Maharashtra       |
|      23 | Himachal Pradesh          | 28-Jun       | 02-Jul     | Kerala            |
|      24 | Manipur                   | 27-Jun       | 01-Jul     | Madhya Pradesh    |

## II) Yuva Sangam- Phase I (20 th  Feb 2023-7 th  April 2023)

|   S.No. | Participants from State/UT   | Nodal Higher Education Institution   | Paired State      | Nodal Higher Education Institution   |
|---------|------------------------------|--------------------------------------|-------------------|--------------------------------------|
|       1 | Manipur                      | IIIT Manipur                         | Maharashtra       | IIIT Nagpur                          |
|       2 | Assam                        | IIT Guwahati                         | Gujarat           | IIT Gandhinagar                      |
|       3 | Chandigarh                   | NITTTR Chandigarh                    | Assam             | NIT Silchar                          |
|       4 | Arunachal Pradesh            | NERIST Arunachal Pradesh             | Rajasthan         | CU Rajasthan                         |
|       5 | Rajasthan                    | CU Rajasthan                         | Arunachal Pradesh | NERIST Arunachal Pradesh             |
|       6 | Arunachal Pradesh            | NIT Arunachal Pradesh                | Andhra Pradesh    | IIT Tirupati                         |
|       7 | Sikkim                       | NIT Sikkim                           | Odisha            | NIT Rourkela                         |
|       8 | Karnataka                    | IIM Bangalore                        | Assam             | IIT Guwahati                         |
|       9 | Jammu &Kashmir               | IIT Jammu                            | Assam             | IIT Guwahati                         |
|      10 | Gujarat                      | IIT Gandhinagar                      | Assam             | IIT Guwahati                         |
|      11 | Assam                        | NIT Silchar                          | Chandigarh        | NITTTR Chandigarh                    |
|      12 | Maharashtra                  | IIIT Nagpur                          | Manipur           | IIIT Manipur                         |
|      13 | Mizoram                      | NIT Mizoram                          | Haryana           | IIM Rohtak                           |
|      14 | Andhra Pradesh               | IIT Tirupati                         | Arunachal Pradesh | NIT Arunachal Pradesh                |
|      15 | Uttar Pradesh                | BBAU Lucknow                         | Meghalaya         | NEHU Shillong                        |
|      16 | Assam                        | NIT Silchar                          | Delhi             | JNU Delhi                            |
|      17 | Assam                        | IIT Guwahati                         | Karnataka         | IIM Bangalore                        |
|      18 | Assam                        | IIT Guwahati                         | Jammu &Kashmir    | IIT Jammu                            |
|      19 | Odisha                       | NIT Rourkela                         | Sikkim            | NIT Sikkim                           |
|      20 | Tripura                      | NIT Agartala                         | Tamil Nadu        | IIT Madras                           |
|      21 | Haryana                      | IIM Rohtak                           | Mizoram           | NIT Mizoram                          |
|      22 | Manipur                      | CU Manipur                           | Punjab            | CU Panjab                            |
|      23 | Mehgalaya                    | NEHU Shillong                        | Uttar Pradesh     | BBAU Lucknow                         |
|      24 | Tamil Nadu                   | IIT Madras                           | Tripura           | NIT Agartala                         |
|      25 | Manipur                      | NIT Manipur                          | Madhya Pradesh    | IIT Indore                           |
|      26 | Punjab                       | CU Punjab                            | Manipur           | CU Manipur                           |
|      27 | Madhya Pradesh               | IIT Indore                           | Manipur           | NIT Manipur                          |

|   28. | Assam   | IIT Guwahati   | Gujarat   | IIT Gandhinagar   |
|-------|---------|----------------|-----------|-------------------|
|    29 | Delhi   | JNU Delhi      | Assam     | NIT Silchar       |

## III) Yuva Sangam- Phase II (15 th  April 2023- 25 th  June 2023)

|   S.No. | Participants from State/UT                       | Nodal Higher Education Institution     | Paired State                                     | Nodal Higher Education Institution     |
|---------|--------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------|
|       1 | Andaman Nicobar                                  | Dr B.R. Ambedkar Institute, Port Blair | Jharkhand                                        | NIT Jamshedpur                         |
|       2 | Telangana                                        | NIT Warangal                           | Uttarakhand                                      | IIT Roorkee                            |
|       3 | Puducherry                                       | NIT Puducherry                         | West Bengal                                      | NIT Durgapur                           |
|       4 | Bihar                                            | IIT Patna                              | Tamil Nadu                                       | NIT Tiruchirappalli                    |
|       5 | Punjab                                           | NIT Jalandhar                          | Maharashtra &UTof Dadra &Nagar Haveli, Daman-Diu | IIT Bombay                             |
|       6 | Tamil Nadu                                       | NIT Tiruchirappalli                    | Bihar                                            | IIT Patna                              |
|       7 | Madhya Pradesh                                   | NIT Bhopal                             | Karnataka                                        | NIT Surathkal                          |
|       8 | Odisha                                           | IIT Bhubaneswar                        | Rajasthan                                        | MNIT Jaipur                            |
|       9 | Maharashtra &UTof Dadra &Nagar Haveli, Daman-Diu | IIT Bombay                             | Punjab                                           | NIT Jalandhar                          |
|      10 | Karnataka                                        | NIT Surathkal                          | Madhya Pradesh                                   | NIT Bhopal                             |
|      11 | Himachal Pradesh & Ladakh                        | IIT Mandi                              | Goa                                              | IIT Goa                                |
|      12 | Goa                                              | IIT Goa                                | Himachal Pradesh & Ladakh                        | IIT Mandi                              |
|      13 | Rajasthan                                        | MNIT Jaipur                            | Odisha                                           | IIT Bhubaneswar                        |
|      14 | Uttarakhand                                      | IIT Roorkee                            | Telangana                                        | NIT Warangal                           |
|      15 | West Bengal                                      | NIT Durgapur                           | Puducherry                                       | NIT Puducherry                         |
|      16 | Jharkhand                                        | NIT Jamshedpur                         | Andaman Nicobar                                  | Dr B.R. Ambedkar Institute, Port Blair |
|      17 | Kerala & Lakshadweep                             | IIT Palakkad                           | Uttar Pradesh                                    | MNNIT Allahabad                        |
|      18 | Uttar Pradesh                                    | MNNIT Allahabad                        | Kerala & Lakshadweep                             | IIT Palakkad                           |
|      19 | Nagaland                                         | NIT Nagaland                           | Chhattisgarh                                     | NIT Raipur                             |
|      20 | Chhattisgarh                                     | NIT Raipur                             | Nagaland                                         | NIT Nagaland                           |