Vrindavan (UP), Nov 10 (PTI) The Centre and the Uttar Pradesh government are working with full commitment for the development of Braj region with projects worth over Rs 425 crore introduced on the ground, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Wednesday.
Speaking after inaugurating the Braj Raj Utsav and Hunar Haat here, Adityanath said through “Hunar Haat”, all craftspersons and artisans are going to realise Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’.
“Have a look at how rich our Uttar Pradesh and India is with this tradition,” he told the people.
Praising Prime Minister Modi, he said no other leader in the world communicated as closely with citizens during the coronavirus pandemic as PM Modi.
The prime minister gave the mantra of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ to save the life and livelihood of every person, Adityanath said.
He said the central and state governments are working with full commitment for the development of Braj region and there can be no laxity in this at any level.
“I am happy that ‘Hunar Haat’ has also been linked with ‘Braj Raj Utsav-2021’ by the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs,” he said.
Development projects worth over Rs 425 crore have been introduced on the ground by the Braj Teerth Vikas Parishad, the UP chief minister said.
Braj, also known as Brij or Brijbhoomi, is the region around Mathura-Vrindavan and is considered to be the land of Lord Krishna.
The ‘Braj Raj Utsav’, organised by the Uttar Pradesh Braj Teerth Vikas Parishad, is a joint venture of the state government, the Union ministry of minority affairs and the ministry of textiles.
Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Lok Sabha MP Hema Malini, Uttar Pradesh Minister for Power Shrikant Sharma, Uttar Pradesh Cabinet Minister Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary, Uttar Pradesh Braj Teerth Vikas Parishad vice chairman Shailja Kant Misra, among others, were present at the inauguration.
‘Hunar Haat’, a platform to provide market and opportunities to centuries-old traditional and ancestral arts and crafts of India, is strengthening the ‘swadeshi’ and the ‘vocal for local’ campaign, Naqvi said in his remarks at the event.
He said that ‘Hunar Haat’ has also ensured economic empowerment of indigenous artisans and craftspersons.
Naqvi said that in ‘Vishwakarma Vatikas’ being set up in ‘Hunar Haats’, artisans and craftspersons are carrying out live demonstrations on how their handmade products are made.
A “circus” will also be organised at the 31st ‘Hunar Haat’ being held at the Kumbh Mela Ground in Vrindavan from November 10 to 19. Indian circus artists will perform there.
The Braj Teerth Vikas Parishad is organising the 10-day ‘Braj Raj Mahotsav’ from November 10 in Vrindavan to promote Braj culture, a statement said.
Religious, traditional, folk dance as well as cultural programmes related to Braj culture will be organised, it said.
Naqvi said that about 400 artisans, craftspersons and culinary experts are participating in the ‘Hunar Haat’.
The statement said that artisans and craftspersons from more than 30 states and union territories, including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, will bring their indigenous products to the ‘Hunar Haat’.
Traditional vegetarian food from various parts of the country is also available at the Haat, it said.
Renowned artists like Annu Kapoor, Kailash Kher, Suresh Vadekar; Punit Issar will perform the Mahabharat show, Sadanand Biswas, Anoop Jalota, Usman Mir, among others, will take part in various cultural and musical programmes every day in the evening at the ‘Hunar Haat’.
Naqvi said that more than six lakh artisans, craftspersons and people associated with them have been provided employment and employment opportunities through ‘Hunar Haat’ in the last about six years.
‘Hunar Haat’ is also available on virtual platform http://hunarhaat.org and GeM portal. People of the country and abroad can buy products online.
The next ‘Hunar Haat’ will be organised in Lucknow from November 12 to 21; Pragati Maidan, New Delhi (from November 14 to 27); Hyderabad (November 26 to December 5); Surat (December 10 to 19); New Delhi (December 22 to January 2).
It will also be organised in Mysuru, Guwahati, Pune, Ahmedabad, Bhopal, Patna, Puducherry, Mumbai, Jammu, Chennai, Chandigarh, Agra, Prayagraj, Goa, Jaipur, Bengaluru, Kota, Sikkim, Srinagar, Leh, Shillong, Ranchi, Agartala and other places in the coming days, the statement said.
