Delhi CM proposes language promotion, student exchange for fostering cultural awareness

Aiming to promote art and culture of different states in the national capital, the Delhi government has decided to increase the contribution of local artists in festivals of the states.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta informed on Sunday, July 20, that special festivals would also be organized in order to familiarize children with the languages of other states, according to the report by The New Indian Express.

According to the chief minister, the concerned department has to take their activities outside designated areas and present them to the common man to enhance people's involvement. She directed officials to ensure that regional festivals being observed in Delhi include artists from the concerned states since this would generate more interest among the people for such events.

The chief minister also stated that an effort would be made to search for avenues to impart children in Delhi non-Hindi languages so that they could learn the social and cultural identities of other states. She chaired a special meeting with the Department of Art, Culture and Languages.

The goal of the meeting was to promote the cultural life of Delhi and involve all classes of society in cultural activities. The chief minister further stated that while the Department of Art, Culture and Languages has been promoting the cultural heritage of Delhi for a long time, now its outreach has to be increased.

She required activities such as women's art exhibitions, camps for artists, music and dance festivals, stage performances, and religious ones such as Chhath Puja and Durga Puja to be arranged throughout the city to involve the public more.

With reference to Delhi's multistratified population, she emphasized the growing celebration of state festivals and ordered officers to involve artists from different states in such events.

"Delhi is not only the capital but also the symbol of the nation's culture," she said. "We want the art and culture of various states to be available on all streets and every individual to relate to it." She also added that theatre and folk art are strong tools for awareness and information dissemination, often more powerful than words, according to The New Indian Express report.

She reaffirmed the government's vision that Delhi children study the languages of other states so that they would get more familiarized with the states' cultures and traditions. She ordered officers to prepare a detailed report so that it could help in propagating India's multilingual culture in the capital.

The chief minister also proposed initiating a Student Exchange Programme with students from other states. This, she mentioned, would give children the platform to study different cultures and lifestyle, and promote mutual understanding and harmony. This move, she further stated, would significantly add to the nation's unity in diversity.

She further said that the department continues to organize painting competitions on a regular basis and has also gained several paintings through such activities. She ordered the officials to showcase these paintings at the Delhi Secretariat and government offices.