First ‘Culture Working Group’ meet of G20 to begin today in MP’s Khajuraho
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan to launch exhibition
BHOPAL / Khajuraho, a World Heritage (WH) site of history and culture in Chhatarpur of Madhya Pradesh, is all set to organise the first G20 Culture Working Group (CWG) meeting on the theme of ‘Protection and Restitution of Cultural Property’, under India’s Presidency, which will be held, from February 22-25.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will inaugurate an exhibition, ‘Re(ad)dress -Return of Treasures’ being organised at Maharaja Chhatrasal Convention Centre in the town on February 22. Union Minister for Culture G Kishan Reddy will especially present on this occasion. More than 125 delegates of Group 20 and nine special invitee countries will attend the four-day meeting.
“Khajuraho is all set to organise the CWG meeting and the local people are eager to welcome the delegates. During the event, several activities will be held to promote the local as well as state’s culture and its heritage”, the collector of Chhatarpur, Sandeep G R told The Sun Today.
The delegates will also visit the Western Group of Temples of Khajuraho and be taken to Panna Tiger Reserve. They will enjoy the 49th edition of the Khajuraho Dance Festival (KDF), being organised, from February 20-26.
The Collector said that a special event of a folk dance will be organised during the KDF on February 23 in which delegates would also be performing along with the local artists. the folk dancers will perform dances like ‘Badhai’, ‘Dewari’ etc to welcome the guests. To promote the Millets, specially-made cuisines would lay the table for the guests, he also said.
At the programme venue, an exhibition of millets products will also be organised showcasing its characteristics and benefits to human life. The exhibition will focus on traditional Bundeli food and other kinds of regional meals. The United Nations has announced Millet Year-2023 on the proposal of India.
Taking an initiative, collector Sandeep has formed a platform, ‘Friends of Khajuraho (FOK)’ to promote the district’s features, in which those people who live abroad and come from the Chhatarpur district have been included in it. They have also been made brand ambassadors. The members of FOK have been invited to the event.
“The delegates will be taken to visit the Aadivart Tribal Museum which has been developed, showcasing the culture (lifestyle, houses, food habits, attire etc.) of various tribal communities of the state such as Baiga, Koul, Gond, Sahriya, Bhil etc”, the collector of Chhatarpur further said.
Saplings of Khajur (date palm) have been planted at the entry to show an ancient look of the town. It is considered that the name Khajuraho was taken from the Hindi word Khajur once the archaic town was surrounded by palm trees but they disappeared with time.
The ancient ponds located in the town and its vicinity have been rejuvenated keeping in the CWG meeting, besides, the civic body has left no stone unturned to make the town clean and beautified.
Khajuraho, UNESCO’s WH site is known for its majestic temples and elaborate sculptures constructed on Nagara-style architecture and ornamented with aesthetics. The site, a group of monuments, was constructed by the Chandela dynasty between 950-1050 AD and acted as a window into the sociocultural practices of the time.
India has assumed the G20 Presidency, articulating the philosophy of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ – ‘One Earth, One Family and One Future’. According to sources, adopting ‘Culture’ to renew multilateral and multicultural cooperation at all levels will be discussed during the meeting, aiming to forward this ideology and inform future global cultural policies and initiatives.
The priority areas of the CWG meeting will be the protection and restitution of cultural property; harnessing living heritage for a sustainable future; promotion of cultural and creative industries, and creative economy; leveraging digital technologies to protect and promote culture.
