States paired in unique marriage of cultures

'Ek Bharat, Shresta Bharat' mission to kick off on Oct 31

Karnataka will partner with Uttarakhand in a new marriage of states proposed by the Centre to promote understanding of each other’s culture, traditions, language, food and other practices.

The year-long cultural exchange programme, Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat (One India, Great India), will kick off on October 31 (birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel).

WB stays out

Every state, except for the Mamata Banerjee-ruled West Bengal, has paired with another state to organise a host of activities for exchange languages, cultures, traditions and practices.

“Many of these states have already signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with their partner state to organise common activities,” official sources told DH.

Tamil Nadu has paired with Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab with Andhra Pradesh, Kerala with Himachal Pradesh, Telangana with Haryana, Rajasthan with Assam, Odisha with Maharashtra, Gujarat with Chhattisgarh, Delhi with Sikkim and Jharkhand with Goa.

Madhya Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland have come together to organise year-long cultural exchanges.

Uttar Pradesh has partnered with Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya,  while Bihar with Tripura and Mizoram.

A committee, comprising secretaries of six Union ministries, has been formed by the Prime Minister’s Office to drawn up a list of “suggested activities” to be organised by the pairing states. The committee held its first meeting recently.

The Human Resource Development Ministry is the nodal ministry for implementation, while Information and Broadcasting Ministry will be in charge of dissemination of information on the programme.

“The programmes will cover the spheres of music, drama, cuisine, language, history, tourism and other forms of exchange between the states. The year-long engagement is expected to result in an enhanced understanding and bonding between the states them,” official sources said.