Lok Sabha Question No. 1219 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-12-11
Subject: Heritage Crafts and Art Traditions of Tamil Nadu
Ministry: CULTURE
Asked by: P. Velusamy, S.R. Parthiban

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1219 ANSWERED ON 11.12.2023

## HERITAGE CRAFTS AND ART TRADITIONS OF TAMIL NADU

## 1219.  SHRI VELUSAMY P.: SHRI PARTHIBAN S.R.:

Will the Minister of CULTURE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has identified heritage crafts and art traditions of the State of Tamil Nadu;
- (b) if so, the details thereof and the steps taken to promote them;
- (c) the  details  of  programmes  undertaken  in  the  last  three  years,  including  the amount sanctioned, disbursed and utilized for the same;
- (d) whether any steps were taken for protecting the livelihoods of artisans/craftsmen during the pandemic; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND DEVELOPMENT OF NORTH EASTERN REGION (SHRI G. KISHAN REDDY)

(a) to (c) To  promote,  protect  and  preserve  various  forms  of  folk  art,  culture traditions    and  heritage  crafts  including  the  art  traditions  and  crafts  of  the  State  of Tamil  Nadu,  the  Government  of  India  has  set  up  seven  Zonal  Cultural  Centres (ZCCs)  in  the  country  with  headquarters  at  Patiala,  Nagpur,  Udaipur,  Prayagraj, Kolkata,  Dimapur  and  Thanjavur.  The  State  of  Tamil  Nadu  is  a  member  State  of South  Zone  Cultural  Centre  (SZCC),  Thanjavur.  These  ZCCs  organize  various cultural activities and programmes on regular basis in the country for which annual grant-in-aid is provided to them. However, no State/UT-wise funds are released by this Ministry for the purpose. The grant-in-aid provided to these ZCCs during the last three years is given as under:

| Sl. No.   | Year    |   Amount (Rs. in lakh) |
|-----------|---------|------------------------|
| i.        | 2020-21 |                4009.38 |
| ii.       | 2021-22 |                5881.48 |
| iii.      | 2022-23 |                5810    |

To  create  more  awareness  about  Indian  culture,  art  traditions  and  heritage crafts,  Ministry  of  Culture  also  organizes  Rashtriya  Sanskriti  Mahotsavs  (RSMs) through these ZCCs where a large number of artists/ artisans/ craftsmen from all over India  are  engaged  to  showcase  their  talents.  From  November,  2015  onwards, fourteen (14) RSMs have been organized by Ministry of Culture in various States of the country including three Zonal Level RSMs at Kota, Pune and Delhi during 2023. ZCCs also conduct various outreach programmes in far flung areas in the country to make the masses aware about the various art traditions of India including its heritage crafts.

For research and documentation of the authentic textile, craft and architectural assets of the State of Tamil Nadu, Aatmanirbhar Bharat Centre for Design (ABCD) has  collaborated  with  the  Kalakshetra  Foundation  (an  autonomous  organization under Ministry of Culture), Chennai to facilitate Design Incubation in Weaving (Pattu Peetaabarum),  Wood  Block  Printing  (Achu-adagam)  and  Kalamkari  Hand  Painting (Vraathapani).  The  Kalakshetra  Foundation  aims  to  revive  the  authentic  motifs, borders and vibrant colors used in textile making of Tamil Nadu with the help of their weavers, dyers and designers of traditional textiles. Further, ABCD has collaborated with the Centre for Weavers of the Kumaraguru Institutions in Bhavani, Erode (Tamil Nadu)  to  facilitate  design  incubation  in  weaving  of  Jamakkalam  (coloured  coarse threads),  a  unique  cotton  carpet/  durrie  woven  in  pit  looms.  'Project  Jamakkalam' aims  to  create  a  culture  of  innovation  and  design  among  aspirational  weavers  of Tamil Nadu through the national exposure.

The Office of the Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) under Ministry of Textiles,  Government  of  India  is  the  Nodal  Agency  for  over  all  Development  of Handicraft Sector in the country at central level. In order to assist the artisans through various  schemes  of  Office  of  the  Development  Commissioner  (Handicrafts),  67 Handicraft  Service  Centres  (HSCs)  are  located  in  the  country  including  04  such centres located in the State of Tamil Nadu.

The Office of DC (Handicrafts) has identified 72 craft categories for artisan all over India including the State of Tamil Nadu, a list of which is at Annexure .

Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India also implements a flagship scheme by the name of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), to impart short duration skill development training to youth of the country to improve  the  local  and  rural  culture  including  traditional  artisans/  craftsmen.  Under PMKVY, training has been imparted in various job roles of different sectors including job  roles  of  traditional  arts  and  crafts  under  Handicrafts  and  Carpet  Sector  Skill Council  (HCSSC).  As  a  result,  a  large  number  of  candidates  have  been  trained/ oriented in various traditional job roles such as Bamboo Basket Maker, Bamboo Mat Weaver,  Beading  Artisans,  Carpet  Weaving,  Carving  Artisans,  Tarakashi  Jeweller, Decorative  Painter,  Sketching  &  Painting  Artisans,  Hand  Rolled  Agarbatti  Maker, Crochet Lace Trailers, Hand Embroiderer etc.

(d) & (e) The  Office  of  Development  Commissioner  (Handicrafts)  extended  the benefit to the handicraft artisans under 'National Handicraft Development Programme (NHDP)' and 'Comprehensive Handicrafts Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS)' to provide sustainable  livelihood opportunities  to  the  artisans  during  the COVID Period. Virtual  meetings  were  also  organized  with  State  Governments  and their  agencies  to  provide  all  benefits  in  a  mission  mode  to  artisans/  craftsmen. Further, implementing agencies registered with Office of Development Commissioner (Handicrafts)  were  also  requested  to  extend  all  possible  support  to  the  artisans/ craftsmen.

The  number  of  programmes  &  funds  sanctioned  under  'National  Handicrafts Development Programme (NHDP) and Comprehensive Handicrafts Cluster Development  Scheme  (CHCDS)'  to  the  State  of  Tamil  Nadu  during  the  last  three years is as under:

| Schemes      |   No. of Programmes |   Amount Sanctioned (Rs. in lakhs) |
|--------------|---------------------|------------------------------------|
| NHDP & CHCDS |                 188 |                            1404.04 |

## ANNEXURE

## Annexure referred to in reply to parts (a) to (c) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No.  1219 for 11.12.2023

## 72 Craft Categories (including Miscellaneous Craft Categories) under which Pehchan Cards are issued to Handicraft artisans

|   SI. No. | Name of Craft                  |   SI. No. | Name of Craft                   |
|-----------|--------------------------------|-----------|---------------------------------|
|         1 | Carpet & other floor coverings |        37 | Wood (turning and lacquer ware) |
|         2 | Art metal ware                 |        38 | Coir twisting                   |
|         3 | Wood wares                     |        39 | Applique                        |
|         4 | Hand printed Textiles Scarves  |        40 | Lace                            |
|         5 | Embroidered & Crochetted goods |        41 | Screwpine                       |
|         6 | Shawls as art ware             |        42 | Jute Craft                      |
|         7 | Zari & Zari goods              |        43 | Kathputtli                      |
|         8 | Immitation Jewellery           |        44 | Lacbangles                      |
|         9 | Jewellery                      |        45 | Painting                        |
|        10 | Cane & Bamboo                  |        46 | Polystone                       |
|        11 | Miscellaneous                  |        47 | Paper machie                    |
|        12 | Pot work                       |        48 | Beads craft                     |
|        13 | Bidri                          |        49 | Wall Hanging                    |
|        14 | Rogan Arts                     |        50 | candle                          |
|        15 | Conch-Shell                    |        51 | Ceramic work                    |
|        16 | Doll & toys                    |        52 | Mala Baddhi                     |
|        17 | Filigree& silverware           |        53 | Sital Pati                      |
|        18 | Folk painting                  |        54 | Thewa                           |
|        19 | Furniture                      |        55 | Incense sticks                  |
|        20 | Grass, leaf, reed & fiber      |        56 | Paddy                           |
|        21 | Horn & bone                    |        57 | Crewel                          |
|        22 | Ivory                          |        58 | Glass                           |
|        23 | Leather (footwear)             |        59 | Mithila Painting                |
|        24 | Leather (other articles)       |        60 | Dry Flower                      |
|        25 | Metal images (folk)            |        61 | Tuli & Sirka                    |
|        26 | Metal images (classical)       |        62 | Kauna                           |
|        27 | Musical instrument             |        63 | Glass Beads                     |
|        28 | Pottery and clay objects       |        64 | Tie & Dye                       |
|        29 | Rugs & durries                 |        65 | Fusion Craft                    |
|        30 | Stone (carving)                |        66 | Meena Kari                      |
|        31 | Stone (inlay)                  |        67 | Fabric Painting                 |
|        32 | Terracotta                     |        68 | Tanjore Painting                |
|        33 | Theatre, Costume & Puppet      |        69 | Sujani                          |
|        34 | Textile (handloom)             |        70 | Gold Smith                      |
|        35 | Textile (hand embroidery)      |        71 | Sanjhi Art                      |
|        36 | Wood (carving)                 |        72 | Kite making                     |