Lok Sabha Question No. 1207 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-12-11
Subject: Encouraging Folk Artists in Rajasthan
Ministry: CULTURE
Asked by: Rahul Kaswan

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1207 ANSWERED ON 11.12.2023

## ENCOURAGING FOLK ARTISTS IN RAJASTHAN

† 1207. SHRI RAHUL KASWAN:

Will the Minister of CULTURE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  is  taking  any  steps  to  promote  the  rich  cultural heritage of Rajasthan;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) the steps being taken by the Government to encourage folk artists in the State of Rajasthan;
- (d) whether  the  Government  is  encouraging  folk  songs  and  folk  dances  of Rajasthan across the country;
- (e) if so, the details thereof and the details of the amount spent in this regard during the last three years and the current year;
- (f) whether the folk artists of Churu district in Rajasthan have remained in demand for  playing  'Daf',  a  kind  of  musical  instrument  and  folk  dances  in  foreign countries and have also visited foreign countries several times; and
- (g) if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  whether  the  Government  proposes  to  extend financial assistance to them?

## ANSWER

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

(a) to (c) To  protect,    preserve  and  promote  rich  cultural  heritage,  folk  art  & culture in the country including Rajasthan, the Government of India has set up seven Zonal Cultural Centres (ZCCs) in the country with headquarters at Patiala (Punjab), Nagpur  (Maharashtra),  Udaipur  (Rajasthan),  Prayagraj  (Uttar  Pradesh),  Kolkata (West Bengal), Dimapur (Nagaland) and Thanjavur (Tamil Nadu). Annual grant-in-aid is provided to these ZCCs to organize cultural programmes/activities in their member States  on  a  regular  basis  throughout  the  year.  Folk  artists  from  all  over  India  are engaged by these ZCCs who showcase their talents during these programmes for which they are paid honorarium, DA/TA, boarding & lodging and local transportation.

Rajasthan  is  the  member  State  of  West  Zone  Cultural  Centre  (WZCC), Udaipur,  North  Zone  Cultural  Centre  (NZCC),  Patiala  and  North  Central  Zone Cultural  Centre  (NCZCC), Prayagraj. To  encourage folk artists in Rajasthan, these ZCCs implement a number of schemes like Award to Young Talented Artists, Guru Shishya  Parampara,  Theatre Rejuvenation,  Shilpgram,  OCTAVE  and  National Cultural Exchange Programme.

(d) & (e) To encourage folk songs and dances of Rajasthan across the country, the  Ministry  of  Culture  organizes  Rashtriya  Sanskriti  Mahotsavs  (RSMs)  in  various parts of the country including Rajasthan. Since 2015, the Ministry has organized 14 RSMs and three Zonal Level RSMs up till now through its seven ZCCs. A RSM and a Zonal Level RSM were organized at Bikaner and Kota, Rajasthan from 25 th February to  5 th March,  2023  and  on  5 th September,  2023  respectively.  In  addition  to  this, WZCC also organizes a number of  Regional Festivals every year to encourage folk artists,  folk  songs  and  folk  dances  in  the  State  of  Rajasthan.  Festivals,  fairs  and regional  programmes  like  Shilpdarshan  Mela,  Dharohar,  Shilpgram  Utsav,  Tribal Festivals like Baneshwar Mela, Vagad Mahotsav, Ghotia Amba Mela, Bheru Ji Mela, Lokrang,  Workshops,  Exhibitions,  Seminars  etc.  are  organized  by  WZCC  in  this regard. Details of expenditure  incurred by WZCC on these programmes during the last three years and the current year are as under:-

Expenditure

|   Sl. No. | Financial Year       |   Expenditure (Rs. in crore) |
|-----------|----------------------|------------------------------|
|         1 | 2020-21              |                         1.89 |
|         2 | 2021-22              |                         3.25 |
|         3 | 2022-23              |                        14.05 |
|         4 | 2023-24 (as on date) |                         3.22 |

(f) & (g) In  order  to  make  the  world  aware  of  India's  rich  cultural  heritage, Ministry  of  Culture  implements  a  scheme  titled  'Global  Engagement  Scheme'  to promote India's rich cultural heritage and enhance India's image in the global arena in a concerted manner. The objective of the scheme is to provide an opportunity to artists practicing Indian art forms to perform abroad under the banner of 'Festival of India'. Under this scheme, artists from diverse cultural fields and experts in various art  forms  like  folk  music,  folk  dance,  folk  theatre,  puppetry,  classical  &  traditional dance,  experimental/  contemporary  dance,  classical/  semi-classical  music,  theatre etc.  perform  in  the  'Festival  of  India'  abroad.  In  this  regard,  entire  expenditure  on deputation of an artist for performing in 'Festival of India' abroad is incurred by the Government.

Ministry of Culture has empanelled artists/groups under various art forms and artists are selected from this empanelled list for performing in the Festivals of India abroad. Currently, fifteen (15) artists/groups, including seven (7) folk artists/groups, from Rajasthan, are empanelled with Ministry of Culture. No artist from Churu district of  Rajasthan  is  empanelled  with  this  Ministry.  So  far,  three  (3)  folk  troupes  from Rajasthan have participated in 'Festivals of India' held in three (3) countries, namely Senegal (2016-17), Qatar (2018-19) and Kuwait (2022-23).