New Delhi: November 16, 2011

Government of India will be funding for repairs, restoration and renovation of ancient Buddhist and Tibetan monasteries of historical and cultural importance, award of fellowships and scholarships to students, purchase of books, construction of hostel buildings and payment of teachers’ salaries under the scheme of Financial Assistance for the Preservation and Development of Buddhist and Tibetan Culture & Art.

In the last four years nearly 390 such projects have been supported by Union Ministry of Culture. Now this assistance has been increased from Rs. 5.00 lakhs to Rs. 30.00 lakhs per year for an organization. The Expert Advisory Committee (EAC) on Scheme may recommend amounts beyond the maximum limit, upto Rs. one crore, in respect of proposals of outstanding merit. This has been done to strengthen the Scheme in a holistic manner to enable it to generate tangible impact.

In the same spirit, funding for study and research on cultural heritage, preservation of old manuscripts, literature, art and crafts, dissemination of and training in traditional and folk art in the states falling under the Himalayan region (J&K, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh) is provided under the scheme Financial Assistance for the Preservation and Development of Cultural Heritage of Himalayas. In the last four years 54 such projects have been supported by Union Ministry of Culture. For this scheme also the limit has been increased from Rs. 5.00 lakhs to Rs. 10.00 lakhs per year for an organization. The Expert Advisory Committee on the scheme is empowered to recommend the amount beyond the maximum limit, upto Rs. 30.00 lakhs, in respect of proposals of outstanding merit.

In case of both these schemes for Buddhist/Tibetan Culture and Art as well as for the cultural heritage of Himalayas, the maximum grant admissible to an organization would be 75 percent of the total expenditure. The remaining 25 percent expenditure or more would be met by the State Govt. /U.T. Administration, failing which the grantee organization could generate own resources. However, in case of North-Eastern States and Sikkim, funding will be shared between the Government of India and the State Government in the ratio of 90:10 respectively.

PIB

 

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