The first G20 meeting under the culture track will begin from Wednesday in Madhya Pradesh's Khajuraho, and the delegates will engage in a range of activities, besides visiting its iconic temples and the Panna Tiger Reserve. Khajuraho is home to an exquisite group of temples -- part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The first G20 Culture Working Group (CWG) meeting will begin from tomorrow at Khajuraho. The meeting is scheduled to be organised from February 22-25.
Union Minister for Culture, Tourism and DoNER, G Kishan Reddy, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Virendra Kumar and Minister of State for Culture Meenakashi Lekhi, will inaugurate an exhibition titled 'Re(ad)dress: Return of Treasures' at the Maharaja Chhatrasal Convention Centre (MCCC) tomorrow, the Culture Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.
Protection and restitution of cultural heritage will be the theme for the first G20 culture track, a top official said on February 15. On their arrival at the Khajuraho Airport, the delegates will be welcomed with folk performances - 'Badhai' and 'Rai', it said. The delegates will be provided traditional arts and cultural experiences and they will also participate in DIY (do-it-yourself) activities using papier mache, block printing, and henna art, during the meeting, it said.
On the first day of the meeting, Padam Shri Nek Ram, known as the 'Millet Man' has been invited, to celebrate the International Year of Millets (IYM) 2023, the statement said. On the following days, cultural programmes will be organised, including the Khajuraho Dance Festival Cultural performances.
The delegates will also visit the Western Group of Temples, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. They will also be taken to the Panna Tiger Reserve. More than 125 delegates will attend the meeting, the statement said. During the meeting, four working group sessions are planned at the Maharaja Chhatrasal Convention Centre, in which G20 member states, international organisations along with officials from the Ministry of Culture will participate, it said.
The inaugural session will be addressed by Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Virendra Kumar and Minister of State for Culture Meenakshi Lekhi. Union Culture Secretary Govind Mohan will chair the session. Remarks by the G20 Troika (Indonesia and Brazil) will also be presented, it added. Briefing the media in Chattarpur, near Khajuraho, the culture ministry's joint secretary, Lily Pandeya said four culture working group meetings are being organised under India's G20 presidency, at Khajuraho, Hampi, Bhubneshwar and Varanasi.
The theme of G20 this year is 'Vasudev Kutumbakam' -"One Earth. One Family. One Future".Union Culture Secretary Mohan, during a recent media interaction here, had also said the second and third meetings under this track will be held at Bhubaneswar in Odisha and Hampi in Karnataka."The location for the fourth meeting is yet to be decided," Mohan had said. Culture richness and diversity of India will be "prominently showcased" during the G2O meetings, he said.
