To safeguard India’s priceless monuments and archaeological sites, the Government has recently amended the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, which declares that no construction, including public projects, would be allowed within the 100 metre ‘prohibited area’ which begins from the end of the protected area of monuments of national importance. It also stipulates that Heritage Bye-laws shall be prepared for each of these protected monuments so as to regulate building activities in the next 200 metre ‘regulated area’ that lies beyond the 100 metre ‘prohibited area’.

Reforming and modernizing the major government museums of India have also been taken up, on a priority basis. These interventions cover, the improvement of lighting and display of objects; increasing their appeal through digital and other attractive modes; computerizing the inventory of resources; imparting professional training to museum officials; involving interested citizens and making available to visitors, books and souvenirs of international standard.

Development of Museums

In a major boost to the ‘museums movement’, financial assistance for the establishment and/or modernization of Regional and Local Museums has been increased to record levels in the last year, covering over a score of museums, many of which are of the State governments. This has given a new spurt of energy in the promotion of the ‘museum movement’ in the country. Apart from languishing local museums and heritage centres that look forward to rejuvenation with Central assistance, those covered represent a large variety and range, i.e., a museum of dance, a museum of Naga art and crafts, a museum of endangered trees, a museum of transport heritage, some palace museums, a rail museum and a Gandhi museum, and a number of conventional museums. Alongside the assistance, necessary emphasis is being put on the needs for capacity building; conservation and documentation; and sustainability. Another Plan scheme of the Ministry of Culture provides financial assistance up to Rs.25 crore to museums in metro cities, under which the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (formerly known as the Prince of Wales Museum) of Mumbai and the Government Museum at Egmore, Chennai, have benefited.

Professionalization of Cultural Institutions

For years together, several institutions directly administered by the Ministry of Culture had no ‘heads’ and a conscious policy decision was taken to take these posts outside the purview of the UPSC and embark upon a Search-cum-Selection Committee (SCSC) mode, as also to increase the age limits substantially. Under this programme of professionalism of cultural institutions, the SCSCs could locate qualified professionals to head 3 important cultural institutions, namely, the Archaeological Survey of India, the National Library and the National Archives of India. Professionals are also being inducted as heads of other cultural institutions and at other senior levels, below that of the head

Salary And Production Grants Scheme

The Ministry’s scheme of ‘Salary and Production Grants’ provides direct sustenance to hundreds and thousands of performing artistes and Directors/Gurus practicing traditional and contemporary forms of dance, music and theatre. In the last year, the financial assistance under the scheme of Salary Grant has been doubled from Rs. 3000 to Rs. 6000 per month for artistes and from Rs. 5000 to Rs. 10000 per month for the Gurus. After many years, a hundred new professional groups practicing performing arts were brought into the scheme and many more are open to consideration. In the year 2009-10, an overall financial assistance of Rs. 27 crore was provided under the scheme as compared to about Rs. 18 crore spent in the year 2008-09.

Artistes’ Pension Scheme

Under the ‘artiste pension’ scheme, the Ministry provides a monthly honorarium to those practitioners who have made significant contribution to the performing arts, letters, etc,. in the prime of their life, and are now living in indigent circumstances, in their old age. This monthly honorarium or pension has been doubled from Rs. 2000 to Rs. 4000 per month, thus assisting the 2000 odd existing beneficiaries of the Scheme. During the year 2009-10, about 670 more artistes were identified and declared eligible to draw the honorarium from 1st April, 2010. To mitigate the delays and the procedural hardships of the beneficiaries, the Life Insurance Corporation of India has been engaged to handle the disbursement of assistance under the scheme.

Cultural Functions Grants Scheme

To encourage and to extend support directly to the cultural organizations in the non-government sector, that work tirelessly across the length and breadth of our country, an old scheme of support was revamped and reintroduced in October, 2009 as the ‘Cultural Functions Grant Scheme’. Under this modified scheme, it became possible to give financial assistance to a large number and a large variety of cultural events, like festivals, exhibitions, seminars, conferences and small research projects, representing many different art forms and important cultural subjects. Before the end of the year 2009-10, over a hundred such events were sanctioned financial support, and this has blossomed into a very popular scheme.

Visiting Fellows Scheme

The cultural institutions with the Ministry can hardly display, utilize or make available more than a small portion of its treasures. The Indian Museum in Kolkata, for instance, can display less than ten percent of its holdings. To unravel these ‘hidden’ resources for the knowledge of scholars and for the benefit of the public, a new scheme of ‘Visiting Fellows in Art, Culture & Heritage’ was announced in November, 2009. It is expected that the scheme will provide an academic orientation to the activities of our national level cultural institutions and that researchers of the highest caliber will delve into the vast reservoir of cultural resources waiting to be explored and interpreted. The scheme generously compensates and facilitates those eminent scholars who are attached to these institutions, for a period of about two years, to take up serious research projects that may add to the existing body of knowledge and the understanding of our rich cultural heritage.

Zonal Cultural Centres

In the mid-1980s, seven Zonal Cultural Centres (ZCCs), were set up with their headquarters at Patiala, Thanjavur, Nagpur, Dimapur, Udaipur, Allahabad and Kolkata, to focus on the and promotion of traditional folk art forms. During the year 2009-10, the rates of honorarium/remuneration for the folk artistes who participate in the National Cultural Exchange Programme and other programmes of the ZCCs were substantially enhanced. Similarly, under the Guru Shishya Parampara Scheme that is operated by the ZCCs to sustain our rich cultural traditions, the monthly payments have been doubled from Rs. 2500 to Rs. 5000 for the Gurus, from Rs. 900 to Rs. 2500 for the accompanists and from Rs. 500 to Rs. 1000 for the pupils. These enhanced rates have become effective from 1st April, 2010.

Indira Gandhi National Centre For Arts

In the last year or so, the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) has organized eight major cultural events, namely, the Braj Bhumi festival, Nature Bazar, Surabhi Theatre festival, Inter-cultural Dialogue between North East India and South East Asia, International Federation of Library Association Conference, Vasant Bazar, Gharana festival and Women on Record: A Musical event estimated an approximately seven to eight lakh people witnessed these events. The more vibrant IGNCA has now emerged as a major cultural hub in the eyes of the public and the press.

Bal Sahitya Puraskar

To encourage children’s literature in the 24 Indian languages recognized by the Sahitya Akademi, this national body has instituted a new award to be known as Bal Sahitya Puraskar. The General Council of the Sahitya Akademi has approved the scheme in February, 2010 and the award amount is Rs. 50,000/-. The first list of Award-winners will be declared during August 2010, and the first Bal Sahitya Puraskars will be presented around 14th November, 2010, on the Children’s Day.

National Akademies

During the last one year, the cash component of Sahitya Akademi Awards (including Bhasha Sammans), the Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards and the National Awards of Lalit Kala Akademi have all been enhanced from Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 1 lakh, so as to give better recognition to excellence in literary, visual and performing arts as well as to the writers, painters and the artistes. Similarly, the prize money of Sahitya Akademi’s Translation Prizes and Sangeet Natak Akademi’s Yuva Puraskars has been increased from Rs. 20,000 and Rs. 25,000 respectively to Rs. 50,000 each. The Sangeet Natak Akademi’s Fellow (Akademi Ratna) is the highest honour in the field of performing arts, but the number of Akademi’s Fellows had remained static since 1961. During the year 2009-10, it was decided to increase the number of Sangeet Natak Akademi’s Fellows from 30 to 40 and to enhance the purse money for Akademi Ratnas from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 3 lakh.

Central Institute Of Himalayan Culture Studies

To preserve the unique cultural heritage of the North-East, the Central Institute of Himalayan Culture Studies has been approved to be set up in Dahung, in West Kameng District of Arunachal Pradesh with an initial outlay of Rs. 9 crore. This is the first such Institute in the Region, patterned on the Central Institute of Buddhist Studies at Leh (Ladakh) and Central University of Tibetan Studies at Sarnath. The Report of the Mungekar Committee on review and improvement of standards of Buddhist Studies in Institutions under the Ministry of Culture is under consideration by the Government.

Commemorations And Memorials

Rs.20 crore have been sanctioned for the upgradation of Sardar Patel’s Memorials at Ahmedabad and Karamsad. A Web Portal on Gandhiji being hosted by Sabarmati Ashram, with the support of the Ministry and a ‘master list’ of the Gandhian Heritage Sites is also being published. Preparations have also started to commemorate the 150th Birth Anniversaries of Rabindranath Tagore and Swami Vivekananda, both nationally and internationally. Two high level National Committees under the Chairmanship of the Prime Minister have been constituted which meet on two separate occasions on 20th May, 2010 to consider policies and frame guidelines for celebrations of commemoration in a befitting manner. The Celebrations of the 150th Anniversary of India’s First War of Independence have been completed, according to the approved Plans. A Corpus Fund of Rs. 4 crore has been released to Delhi University for establishment of Chairs in memory of Aruna Asaf Ali and Tantia Tope and Rs. 2 crore to Jamia Milia Islamia University for a Chair in the name of M. A. Ansari. A National Register of Martyrs is being prepared by the ICHR. A Project to set up a Memorial for Shaheed Bhagat Singh, at his native place at Khatkar Kalan, has been sanctioned at a cost of Rs. 16.80 crore. Rs. 46.38 crore have been released to Government of Punjab for development of Talwandi Sabo and Anandpur Saheb as part of the concluding phase of the Tri-Centenary of Guru-ta-Gaddi of the Guru Granth Saheb.

Digitisation Of Library Collections

Keeping pace with technological developments, the Ministry has been actively pursuing the digitization of catalogues and other ‘knowledge resources” in its cultural institutions.. This has progressed well in National Library where the catalogues of the books will be put on its refurbished, dynamic Website, in stages, from this year. Other major Libraries, like the Khuda Baksh Oriental Public Library Patna, Asiatic Society, Kolkata, Nehru Memorial Museum and Library and Delhi Public Library have also taken up important E-Projects.

Commonwealth Games, 2010

The Commonwealth Games-2010 is being held in Delhi. During this period a large number of domestic as well as foreign visitors are expected to visit Delhi. The Commonwealth Secretariat has adopted a slogan ‘Welcome to Historical City of Delhi’. Keeping in view the historic importance of Delhi, all major monuments in Delhi are being spruced up specifically for the occasion to make them. 46 monuments in Delhi were exclusively identified which are either popular from tourism point of view or are located on main routes associated with the Commonwealth Games events. The work relating to structural conservation, environmental improvement and scientific preservation at these 46 monuments are going on in full swing. The visitors amenities like clean toilets, drinking water, car parking, publication sale counter, good approach road, signage, disabled friendly facilities, illumination during nights, brochures, etc. are also being upgraded.

Composite Tickets For World Heritage Sites & Other Ticketed Monuments

There are 116 protected monuments, declared as of national importance in the country where entry for the visitors is through entrance tickets. While domestic, SAARC and BIMSTEC countries citizens are required to pay Rs.10/- per person the foreign visitors pay Rs.250/- at the World Heritage Sites. At other ticketed monuments the Indian, SAARC and BIMSTEC countries citizens are charged Rs.5/- per person and foreign visitors Rs.100/- per person. The ASI has introduced specially designed tickets at both the categories of monuments from 3rd December, 2009. These tickets can be purchased in advance from any of the ASI’s outlets in the country and can be used by the visitors for entry into the monument of their choice.