[ Vol1-Index ] - [ Vol2-Index ]

3.12 ART AND CULTURE

3.12.1. It is wide1y recognised that there is an integral relationship between art and culture on the one hand and socio-economic development on the other. More than any other sector of contemporary life, it is art and culture which has been the truly unifying, enduring and meaningfully integrating instrument of harmony and social cohesiveness. It is in the realm of culture that the Indian dynamics of internalising change within tradition, of bringing about consonance between modernity and traditional wisdom has most effectively manifested itself.

Progress Since Independence

3.12.2. Since Independence, the main concentration was on the building up of cultural institutions in the field of Archaeology, Anthropology, Ethnography, Archives, Libraries, Museums, Akademies etc. for conservation and promotion of the country’s cultural heritage. Central Conservation Laboratories were set up. Cultural institutions of higher learning and research in universities and departments were further developed to promote creative talent and specialised studies through various scholarship schemes. Cultural relations with other countries were also strengthened by developing the Indian Council of Cultural Relations. Since 1970’s, attention has also been given to increasing the cultural awareness among the students by strengthening the cultural content of the curriculum at various stages of education, thereby linking culture with education so that the educational system could help in building up the cultural and social identity of the nation. Basic infrastructural facilities have been expanded. Culture has also been recognised as one of the basic concepts to be integrated with all development activities, particularly at various levels in the education sector for making it more relevant in the life of the people. During the successive Plans, in order to build up cultural momentum in the country, emphasis has been laid on contemporary creativity, preservation, documentation and conservation of cultural heritage through Archaeology, Archives, mural and tribal arts etc. Special attention has been given to sensitising the Indian youth regarding the country’s rich cultural heritage and for promoting community participation. A number of programmes for preservation of monuments and sites of national importance were also taken up on priority basis. While formulating programmes for welfare of tribals and other social and ethnic groups in different sectors, the element of cultural development has also been taken into account. Similarly, in the development of Indian languages and book promotion, important components of our cultural policy have been incorporated.

Progress in the Eighth Plan

3.12.3 During the Eighth Plan the thrust was on strengthening the regional and local museums; promoting tribal and folk culture and their systematic documentation by institutions like Anthropological Survey of India, Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya, Zonal Cultural Centres (ZCCs), National and State Akademies of literature, performing, plastic and visual arts, State Departments of Culture, and setting up Shilp Grams to bring the craftsmen and artisans from all corners of the country to display and market their products. People’s initiative for dissemination of knowledge about the country’s various folk, tribal and classical arts, music, dance, theatre etc. was encouraged. Stress was also laid on improving literacy through libraries and associated activities.

3.12.4. One important scheme emphasised during the Eighth Plan was that of financial assistance for the establishment of multi-purpose cultural complexes in States, including those for children, for creating infrastructure like auditoria, libraries, museums etc. The Archaeological Survey of India continued the work of conservation of 3,562 Centrally protected monuments, including 16 World Heritage monuments. As many as 450 monuments were taken up for comprehensive conservation work including structural conservation and environmental development.

3.12.5. The Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies was established at Calcutta as a research and training centre on the life and works of Maulana Azad. The Institute undertakes studies on social, cultural, political and economic movements in Asia from the middle of the nineteenth century. Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra has been set up for protecting, preserving and promoting the cultural heritage of the people of Assam. Kalakshetra, Chennai was declared an institute of national importance. Financial assistance was also provided through a number of schemes to dance, drama and theatre ensembles, as also to persons distinguished in arts and letters and such other disciplines for their creative work. Training was imparted to a number of teachers and resource persons by the Centre for Cultural Resource and Training to promote interlinkages between culture and education. Cultural kits and audio-visual programmes were distributed among students. Young children were awarded cultural talent scholarships.

3.12.6 The Sahitya Akademy brought out six volumes of Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature, an Integrated history of Indian Literature and an Anthology of Modern Indian Literature. It published more than one thousand titles in various languages and launched a Translation Bureau at Bangalore. The Lalit Kala Akademi and the Sangeet Natak Akademi continued with their on-going programmes. The National School of Drama opened a regional centre at Bangalore and organised exhibitions and festivals of plays.

3.12.7 The National Council of Science Museums executed the Science City Project at Calcutta. The Convention Centre was opened on 21^st December, 1996 and the remaining wings were opened on 1^st July, 1997. The National Museum launched the scheme of conservation of wall paintings in 1996-97. The National Archives of India continued with its various programmes. The Public Record Act was enacted in 1995. The National Archives of India established its regional centre at Bhubneshwar and provided financial assistance to 23 States/UTs and 178 organisations for the development and preservation of archival repositories and preservation of manuscripts. The Archives also brought out Vol.III and IV of the Guide to the Sources of Asian History.

3.12.8 The Anthropological Survey of India continued with its "People of India" project, covering the anthropological profile of 4635 communities of the country. Out of the proposed 43 volumes, it has already brought out 14 (6 in the National and 8 in the State series). Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (IGRMS) organised an international meet on tribals and analogous people, attended by delegates from 27 countries, besided the representatives of all the States of India.

3.12.9 The National Library, Calcutta initiated the work of computerising its data base. The Central Secretariat Library at New Delhi, as part of modernisation effort, installed an automated integrated system for giving on line public access catalogue. The Raja Ram Mohan Roy Library Foundation, Calcutta promoted library services in the country by providing matching financial assistance to 18 States, 2 UTs and other organisations working in the field. It also extended its mobile library services to the physically and socially handicapped persons. Some of the manuscript libraries like Thanjavur Raja Sarfoji Sarswati Mahal Library (TRSSML), Khuda Baksh Oriental Public Library, Patna and Rampur Raza Library, Rampur continued with the work of preservation of the manuscript heritage of the country. The TRSSML is also preparing micro-film copies of their manuscripts.

3.12.10 The Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts continued its work through its five divisions viz. Kalakosa, Kalanidhi, Kaladarshan, Janapada Sampadha and Sutradhara. Its building project is in progress.

3.12.11 The Salarjung Museum, with its wide range of collection of art objects, and rare manuscripts in Persian, Arabic and Urdu, undertook the preservation of more than 2000 objects by chemical treatement and restored 20 oil paintings.

3.12.12 The Nehru Museum and Library, engaged in research in modern and contemporary Indian history, brought out 19 publications. The Asiatic Society, Calcutta continued its activities for the improvement of library and museum services, besides scientific preservation of its collection. It has introduced computerised cataloguing of old books, papers, paintings by old masters, sculptures, photographs, pictures etc.

Objectives and policy framework for the Ninth Plan

3.12.13. The activity in the culture sector will continue to be the preservation, conservation, dissemination and promotion of all aspects of art and culture. The focus will be on comprehensive plans for conservation of the archaeological heritage and development of the monument complexes in the country. There will be an emphasis on the development of museum complexes which are a hub of activity for the community and where not only the heritage is preserved and displayed but is actively linked to education and entertainment also. In the field of promotion and dissemination of culture, the effort would be targeted towards documentation of rare and vanishing art forms, promotion of folk and tribal arts and crafts and oral traditions which are threatened with extinction. Zonal Centres are the arm of the department for this purpose and need to be strengthened by providing additional financial support. A National Mission for Manuscripts is being launched in three phases to identify, list, preserve and provide access to rare manuscripts strewn all over the country which are the repository of our ancient wisdom. Networking of Central and State institutions of culture including State Governments, State Akademies and Zonal Cultural Centres, Libraries and Museums will be a high priority item.

Implementation and Delivery System

Art and Culture

3.12.14.The Archaeological Survey of India would take up 300 monument complexes, including 16 monuments on the World Heritage list, for comprehensive development. A scheme of cataloguing through the establishment of a central computerised documentation centre for movable and immovable cultural properties is proposed to be undertaken. A scheme for site management of monuments will be initiated for preserving the monuments and reviving the historic gardens in their original style. Setting up and upgradation of Site Museums will be another important area of work. Computerisation and modernisation of circle offices of Archaeological Survey of India will also get attention.

3.12.15. Courses in Museology will be introduced in various institutions to overcome the shortage of qualified personnel for the existing cultural institutions. Priority will be given to the publication programmes of the ASI, National Museum, Anthropological Survey of India, National Archives and the three national Akademies so as to bring out publications of high quality. Fellowships for authors and writers would be provided to make the programmes attractive. Royalty could also be given as an incentive.

3.12.16. The scheme for conservation of wall paintings, initiated in 1996-97, will be carried forward. A scheme will be initiated to have one museum in each district of the country, which would be multi-disciplinary in nature and specific to that area for acquainting the people about the country’s heritage.

3.12.17. The National School of Drama (NSD), the State Akademies and the Zonal Cultural Centres have worked towards taking culture to people through various schemes of promotion and dissemination. The Zonal Centres have created a meaningful dialogue between artists of different regions and the craftsmen representing the traditional mode of life. During the plan, Zonal centres would concentrate more on tribal/folk art forms and establish documentation of rare and vanishing art forms as their priority area. They will also increase their outreach so as to cover district headquarters and mofussil towns. The centres will be strengthened by addition to their corpus fund over the plan period, as a falling interest rate regime has shrunk their incomes from the existing corpus. To provide sustenance to artists engaged in performing arts, an increase in the scale of salary and production grant under ‘Guru-Shishya Parampara’ scheme is proposed. The scale of assistance to artists in indigent circumstances is also proposed to be increased to cover the increase in cost of living. Such financial assistance under ‘Guru Shishya Parampara’ is currently being provided to about 2000 artists annually.

3.12.18. The Department of Culture will strengthen the network for preservation of classical folk and tribal arts and crafts consisting of the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya, the Anthropological Survey of India, the Zonal Cultural Centres, the three national Akademies, the NSD, the State Departments of Culture and the State Akademies. The scheme of National Culture Fund, initiated in 1996-97, will be given a thrust during the Ninth Plan for promoting corporate involvement and people’s participation in preserving the cultural heritage of the country.

3.12.19. Another area of focus will be linkage between culture and education. The Centre for Cultural Resources and Training would develop a programme for training of trainers and cultural inputs for the school curriculum. Other programmes would include a training scheme for cultural administrators in the Akademies, Zonal Centres and Govt to improve their management skills and impart knowledge of art and culture and a scheme of assistance to State and Central institutions for developing cultural software.

3.12.20. There is a proposal for opening more Regional Resource Centres of the National School of Drama in other parts of the country. The NSD will also work for propagating Indian theatre through workshops, seminars and exchange of troupes both within the country and abroad. A theatre festival at national level is also planned.

3.12.21. Computerisation will be undertaken with special focus on the creation of an inventory of archival heritage, preservation of public records and manuscripts kept in the archives and archaeological artifacts and manuscripts kept in the museums and libraries.

Inter-Sectoral Coordination

3.12.22. Efforts will be made to bring about inter-sectoral coordination among the Ministries/Departments having inter-related subjects like tourism, education, information and broadcasting, etc. A media policy for culture will be initiated with the twin purpose of emphasising cultural aspects within India and propagating Indian culture to the outside world.

3.12.23. Special emphasis will be laid on regular monitoring of the schemes of the Department and expenditure of autonomous organisations/institutions receiving grants under Plan and for this State Govts. and State institutions will also be involved.

3.12.24. To have a forward linkage with the National Literacy Mission, it is imperative that we increase the spread of our public libraries to new areas in rural regions of the country. A scheme for assisting and establishing libraries at Panchayat level is proposed in 9^th Plan with initial coverage of the North-East region, as they already have a tradition of village libraries. Later on, the scheme will be spread to other parts of the country. In addition the emphasis will also be on old libraries with rare manuscripts such as Khuda Baksh Oriental Public Library, Patna and Thanjavur Saraswati Mahal Library, Thanjavur.

3.12.25. To keep pace with the latest in Information Technology the facilities in public libraries will be upgraded and latest equipment provided. A networking of Central and State libraries is also planned.

3.12.26. Under Anthropology and Ethnology, it is proposed to give a thrust to up-gradation of institutions such as Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya, Bhopal and improvement of infrastructure of Anthropological Survey of India. This will be part of the Department’s effort to preserve and document vanishing rare art-forms, with special emphasis on tribal and folk traditions and crafts.

3.12.27. For the optimum utilisation of available resources in the computer and communication technology more effectively, a proper networking of all libraries and resource centres will be given due emphasis. For this purpose, the development of a national network of libraries is envisaged.

3.12.28. Efforts will be made to harness the advances made in the field of electronics to provide better facilities to physically handicapped people, especially those visually handicapped. It is proposed to have Braille Sections in public libraries and to extend other facilities as well.

Manpower

3.12.29. Adequate finances will be provided for developing expertise in terms of trained manpower for both physical and chemical conservation of monuments through Central/State Plans.

3.12.30.In the field of Libraries and Informatics, besides formal courses of Library Science and Information, continuing education for practising librarians, quality improvement programmes for faculty and modernisation of existing library schools to enable them to teach modern information technology would be introduced.

3.12.31.The Centre for Cultural Resources and Training will devise new training programmes for programme officers of State Akademies and Directorates of Culture / Zonal Cultural Centres and National Akademies. Management input would be provided to achieve optimum results.

^^ Top

<< Back to Index