As part of the second installment of the ‘Kala Utsav’- an initiative of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), a state level event was today organized by Rashtriya Madhyamik Siksha Abhiyaan here at Gulshan Ground Jammu.Minister for Education Naeem Akhtar was the chief of guest on the occasion while Minister of State for Education, Technical Education, Culture, Tourism, Department of Horticulture, Floriculture and Parks Priya Sethi was the guest of honour.Speaking on the occasion, Naeem Akhtar said that events like Kala Utsav provide students a channel for expression of their talents and also allows students to invest their energies in a positive, constructive manner. He said that this event is part of the national campaign for preservation and promotion of the regional arts, cultures and traditions which specially focuses on our students.He said there is an unfortunate deficit in learning of arts in the state especially as part of the school curriculums. Despite healthy efforts, the focus on co-curricular activities alongside theoretical learning hasn’t completely penetrated in the region. Mr Akhtar stressed on focusing on encouraging the students to learn varied art forms and nurture their talent with right guidance.
Addressing the gathering, Minister of State Priya Sethi said that though India has a long tradition of art and artistic practices, a uniform process of identifying artistic talent in school education is yet to be developed. Integration of art in education benefits learning in many ways. It helps to encourage creativity, develop problem solving ability and improves the mental capability.‘Kala Utsav is an initiative to bridge this gap and establish connect between school and society. It will also provide equal opportunities to students with special needs to express their hidden talents and share limelight with their counterparts’, she said adding that through Kala Utsav, students will get the opportunity to understand and celebrate cultural diversity at school, district, state and national levels.In today’s event, divisional level winners showcased their talents in the music, dance, theatre and visual arts (drawing, painting, sculpture, crafts) categories.Team from HSS Billawar District Kathua who presented Dogri Lok Sangeet ‘Geetru’ secured the first position in music while dance category was won over by BHSS Leh, who presented ‘Jabro’ form of dance.
In Theatre category, HS Pollee district Budgam who presented ‘Baand Patter’ secured first position and visual arts was won over by BHSS Leh.These winners will be representing the state in the National level finale to be held in Delhi from November 15 - 17, 2016.Kala Utsav initiative has been started with an aim to promote arts in education by nurturing and showcasing the artistic talent of secondary level school students. Kala Utsav has also been envisaged as a fully integrated platform to mainstream students with special needs (differently abled and from diverse socio economic backgrounds) and celebrating their abilities.Principal Commissioner Income Tax Sangeeta Gupta, Director SSA/RMSA Saugat Biswas, Deputy Commissioner Jammu Simrandeep Singh, Director School Education Jammu Babila Rakwal, , other officers , prominent citizens and a large number of students were present in the function.