Bhubaneswar, May 17: Union Minister of State for Culture and External Affairs Meenakashi Lekhi on Wednesday said culture can be a way of engagement to bring everyone together especially at a time when a lot of stress and strain are showing up.
During an interaction with media persons here after the second Culture Working Group (CWG) meeting’s discussion sessions came to a close on Tuesday, the Union Minister said culture connects.
Echoing Prime Minister’s desire to take India to greater heights during the Amrit Kaal i.e. 25 years from now, the Minister said India has to work really hard to regain the position it once used to be in.
The Minister said for the first time in G-20 Culture working group has been created as a separate group. She said when G-20 talks about harmony and peace, culture is something one needs to look at.
She expressed happiness that the second culture working group meeting was held in Odisha or Utkal, which transliterates into ‘Utkarsh Kala ki Bhumi’, which means the land of glorious art and culture.
The first two sessions of the CWG meeting witnessed the delivery of statements by the delegates, followed by an open discussion on the third and fourth priority areas.
Lekhi concluded the second session of the day with a special address. The concluding session outlined details and the timeline concerning the working process of the Culture Working Group going forward.
On Tuesday , the concluding day of the meeting, he Minister along with the delegates visited famous caves at Udaygiri, which dates back to more than 2000 years. They also visited the museum at the Gandhi peace centre at Bhubaneswar which is dedicated to the life and vision of Mahatma Gandhi. the delegates were taken for a specially curated visit to the Konark Sun Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Puri.
Later, in the evening the G-20 delegates were feted with the Gotipua dance performance by local artists, which is one of the ancient dance forms associated with the temple tradition of Shree Jagannath temple, Puri.
With this the four days long activities and brainstorming sessions under the G-20 second culture group meeting came to a close.
The 2nd Culture Working Group Meeting attended by delegates from G20 members, guest nations, and several international organizations, provided a platform to discuss pressing issues faced by the culture sector to further deliberation towards tangible, action-oriented recommendations.
The meetings of the Culture Working Group that spread over six sessions and two days, focused on 4 key priority areas articulated under Culture Track of India’s G20 Presidency.
The 4 priority areas are: Protection and Restitution of Cultural Property; Harnessing Living Heritage for a Sustainable Future; Promotion of Cultural and Creative Industries and Creative Economy; and Leveraging Digital Technologies for the Protection and Promotion of Culture.
The CWG meetings aim to promote an inclusive and collaborative forum to deliberate on key issues concerning the cultural sector and its pivotal role in sustainable development. The meeting seeks to promote a global dialogue on cultural diversity and its role in fostering inclusivity and sustainability.
