Nagaland misses out on central scholarship for young artists

DIMAPUR — In Nagaland, there have been no recorded beneficiaries under the “Scholarship to Young Artists in Different Cultural Fields” grant scheme over the past five years, resulting in no funds being allocated to the state by the Centre.

According to data presented by Union Minister for Culture and Tourism Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in the Lok Sabha on Monday, Meghalaya and Nagaland are the only two states in the Northeast with no scholarship recipients and have received no funds from the scheme over the past five years.

He explained that the Ministry of Culture is implementing the scheme to support young artists specialising in areas such as classical dance forms, indigenous artwork, and other traditional art forms, enabling them to undergo advanced training in their respective fields.

Under this scheme, a scholarship of INR 5,000 per month is provided to a maximum of 400 scholars for a period of two years, in four equal six-monthly instalments. Selected scholars must be aged between 18 and 25 years and have undergone training under any guru or institution for a minimum of five years.

The scholars are selected based on their performance in a personal interview and interaction with an expert committee constituted by the Ministry, he stressed in his reply.

According to the scheme guidelines, recognised cultural activities, subjects, and fields for which scholarships can be awarded include Indian classical music, Indian classical dance and dance music, theatre, visual arts, folk, traditional and indigenous arts, and light classical music.

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