• The Ministry of Culture is implementing a Central Sector Scheme named ‘Financial Assistance for Promotion of Guru-Shishya Parampara (Repertory Grant)’.
• It is a sub-scheme of an umbrella scheme ‘Kala Sanskriti Vikas Yojana’ (KSVY).
• Under the Guru-Shishya Parampara scheme, financial assistance is provided to eligible cultural organisations engaged in performing arts activities like music, dance, theatre, folk art, etc for imparting training to artists/shishyas by their respective gurus on regular basis in line with ‘Guru-Shishya Parampara’ across the country.
• The scheme was launched to preserve and promote rare and vanishing art forms, whether classical or folk/tribal, so that the young talents be nurtured to acquire skills in their chosen field of art through some financial assistance by the Zonal Cultural Centres in the form of scholarship under the guidance of experts and masters in these fields.
• Financial assistance is provided to one guru and maximum 18 shishyas/artists in the field of theatre and one guru and maximum 10 shishyas/artists in the field of music & dance.
• Under this scheme, as many as 10,497 gurus and shishyas benefitted from the scheme in 2023-24.
• As per the scheme guidelines, the organisations seeking grants are required to submit their applications/proposals every year, for its renewal as well as fresh selection.
• The applications/proposals are reviewed by an expert committee constituted by the ministry for the purpose.
• The expert committee gives its recommendations taking the provisions of scheme guidelines, cultural performances/activities/resources of the organisations, justification for financial support, interaction with the guru/representative of the organisation, etc into consideration.
• The Guru-Shishya Parampara (Repertory Grant) has been encouraging artists in the field of dance, music and theatre by providing financial assistance to shishyas of age three years and above.
• Further, every year, along with renewal category, applications are also invited from new organisations under ‘fresh category’ to encourage budding artists in the field of performing arts including traditional art styles.
(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)