The native artistes protesting under the banner of Uttarakhand Kalakar Kalyan Mahasangathan alleged that the Virasat festival organised by Rural Entrepreneurship for Arts and Cultural Heritage (REACH) has continued to treat the arts of Uttarakhand with a negative bias.
Patron of the Mahasangathan, Virendra Bisht, said that due to the absence of a culture policy in Uttarakhand, the arts and crafts of the State were not being provided space in the national level Virasat festival being organised in the State capital.
He said that after this symbolic protest, the UKKM will reveal details of the budget spent by REACH in the name of promoting folk arts. He further alleged that REACH secures most of its budget from ONGC for the Virasat festival, but there are irregularities in the spending of this budget. The folk artistes of Uttarakhand have also been insulted on the stage during this festival, he added.
The protesting folk artistes also questioned the apathetic attitude of the State Government and said that if the government continues to remain insensitive towards the folk arts then the artists will be forced to take to the streets against the State Government.
They said that the State Government should draft a culture policy for Uttarakhand in consultation with the native artistes. Protests were held against Virasat in all districts of the State on Thursday, they
further claimed.