Inclusion of greater number of traditional art forms in the next State School Arts Festival is under consideration, Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty has said.
The State government had, in a first, introduced five tribal art forms, Mangalamkali, Paniya dance, Irula dance, Paliya dance, and Malapulayattam, at the 63rd State School Arts Festival that concluded here recently.
The Minister, in a statement here on Thursday, said that students spent a lot of money in learning and presenting art forms. This put students from economically weaker backgrounds in hardship. What steps could be taken in this regard would be examined. The Chief Minister had sought that this issue be looked into, he said.
Revision of the art festival manual yet again to bring in uniform structure and transparency in school, sub-district, and district-level arts festivals would also be examined. Some complaints related to the school, sub-district, and district-level events had come to attention. Any changes would factor in the above, Mr. Sivankutty said.
The one-time cultural scholarship for contestants in the festival would be hiked from ₹1,000 to ₹1,500 from next year, the Minister added.
Published – January 09, 2025 08:26 pm IST
