Lok Sabha Question No. 432 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-02-05
Subject: Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav
Ministry: CULTURE
Asked by: Annasaheb Shankar Jolle, Kanakmal Katara

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.432

ANSWERED ON 05.02.2024

## AZADI KA AMRIT MAHOTSAV

## 432.SHRI ANNASAHEB SHANKAR JOLIE: SHRI KANAKMAL KATARA:

(a)the detailed  account    of  the  events held as  a  part  of the  Azadi  Ka  Amrit Mahotsav (AKAM);

Will the Minister of CULTURE be pleased to state: (b)the details of the funds used for these  events; and

(c)the specific action taken by the Government to honour freedom fighters ?

## ANSWER

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

(a) to  (c)  Under  Azadi  Ka  Amrit  Mahotsav  (AKAM)  about  2.00  lakh  events/ programmes have been organised in last two years. The entire country has participated  in  these  events.  The  main  events/programes  organised  under AKAM including honouring freedom fighters are as under:

1.The Ministry of Culture organized the 217th Pazhassi Veerahuthi Raja Day on November 30th, 2022 and celebrated the contributions of Pazhassi Raja in

- Valliyoorkavu Temple ground, Mananthadavy.
- 2.Har Ghar Tiranga -    The Hon'ble Prime Minister announced the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign on 22nd July 2022, encouraging people to bring home the National  Flag  to  mark  the  75th  year  of  independence.  More  than  20  crore households hoisted the flag from 13th to 15th August 2022 and in the year 2023,  more  than  10  crore  people  uploaded  their  selfies  with  Tiranga    on harghartiranga.com.
- 3.Rani  Durgavati  Commemoration:  Hon'ble  Prime  Minister,  Shri  Narendra Modi performed 'bhoomi poojan' of 'Veerangana Rani Durgavati Smarak aur

Udyaan' in Jabalpur in line with the 500th birth centenary celebrations of Rani Durgavati.

4.SWASTI  Zonal  Rashtriya  Sanskriti  Mahotsav  was  organized  from  29th September - 2nd October 2023 at Central Park, Connaught Place. Hon'ble Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah graced the occasion on 2nd October with his presence. 5.To mark the 125th Birth Anniversary of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, on September 8, 2022, Hon'ble PM unveiled Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's 28-ft jet  black  granite  statue  near  India  Gate.  Govt.  of  India  also  declared  23rd January as Parakram Divas. 6.On  the  special  occasion  of  150th  Birth  Anniversary  of  Sri  Aurobindo, Hon'ble Prime Minister released a commemorative stamp and coin in honour of Sri Aurobindo's memory. 7.Shruti  Amrut  -  Campaign  under  the  theme  'Cultural  Pride'  is  a  musical fiesta dedicated to honor the memories of unsung heroes. The performances by renowned singers is being organized across the nation from 1st October 2022 to 5th February 2023. 8.An exhibition on Women Freedom Fighters was organised in Rampur Raza Library, Rampur on the occasion of birth anniversary of Rani Laxmi Bai from 19 th   to  29 th   November, 2022. From the start, Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav has made special effort to increase the awareness and spotlight unsung heroes of freedom struggle and enable people to pay their tributes to those who made out freedom possible. 9.Large  scale  efforts  such  as  Azadi  ki  Railgaadi  aur  station,  events  in Meghalaya  commemorating  Tirot  Sing,  national  events  connected  to  Lachit Borphukan,  inauguration  of  Biplabi  Bharat  Gallery  in  Victoria  Memorial  are some of the key initiatives in this direction. 10.Under the aegis of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav,  an outreach program called KRANTITEERTH  planned  across  India  to  commemorate  unsung  heroes, organisations, and places related to the freedom movement. The idea was to explore the marginalized or hidden histories of the leaders of India's freedom struggle and bring out their historical contribution to the mainstream narratives.  More  than  190  events  have  been  organized  across  Bihar,  Uttar Pradesh,  Jammu  and  Kashmir,  Ladakh,  Madhya  Pradesh,  West  Bengal,

Tripura,  and  Odisha  and  included  painting  competitions,  debates,  essay writing  competitions,  seminars,  nukkad  naataks,  institutional  activities  for students and youths. Families of martyrs were also honoured and felicitated under Krantiteerth. More such events are still being organized.

11.Digital Jyot campaign: Through a sky beam light installed in Central Park, Delhi, people paid their tributes to the sacrifices made by our Bravehearts. A website was created for people to pay their tributes digitally, and more approx. 97 lakh people paid their tributes.

12.Meri Maati Mera Desh: A program that connected Indians with their land, history,  and  heritage  -  fostering  national  pride  and  conservation  of  India's cherished cultural heritage. More than 2.33 lakh Shilaphalakams have been built across 36 States/UTs till date. Almost 4 crore Panch Pran pledge selfies have  been  uploaded  on  website  till  date.  More  than  2  lakhs  Braveheart felicitation  programmes  have  been  organized  across  the  country.  On  31 st October, Hon'ble Prime Minister poured mitti in the Amrit Kalash, paying his tribute to the Bravehearts of our country.

13.Through  the  campaigns  Qila  aur  Kahaniya  and  Wonder  Caves,  the contribution of India's forts and caves to the freedom struggle were highlighted.  Through  Janjatiya  Gaurav  Diwas,  the  contribution  of  Tribal freedom  fighters  was  also  highlighted,  and  commemorations  were  held  in remembrance of freedom fighters.

14.Karpoori  Thakur:  Ministry  of  Culture  celebrated  the  life  and  sacrifices  of Karpoori  Thakur  ji  on  the  occasion  of  his  100th  birth  anniversary  on  24th January 2024. His contribution to freedom struggle and his honest public life as  a  politician  were  portrayed  through  an  exhibition  and  a  commemorative stamp  and  coin  were  released.  On  the  eve  of  his  birth  centenary,  the Government of India announced that Shri Karpoori Thakur Ji will be conferred with the Highest Civilian Honour, Bharat Ratna posthumously.

15.A Digital District Repository has been compiled to discover and document stories of people, events, and places linked to the freedom struggle of India at the  micro  level  of  the  district.  As  on  date,  about  14500  stories  have  been compiled  and  uploaded  on  the  portal.  These  stories  are  broadly  classified under  the  heading  -  People  &  Personalities,  Events  &  Happenings,  Hidden treasures -Built & Natural Heritage, and Living Traditions & Art Forms.

All Ministries/Departments, State Governments, UTs and their Attached/Subordinate/Autonomous  Bodies,  PSUs  etc.  Incur  the  expenditure on  the  events  organised  by  them  from  their  respective  budget  heads  and there is no separate budget for AKAM.

******