WORLD HERITAGE DAY-18th April, 2011

SPEECH OF THE HON. MINISTER FOR CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION ON THE OCCATION OF WORLD HERITAGE DAY ON 18TH APRIL,2011 AT 1430 HRS




I am happy to be invited to this august audience as the Chief Guest on the occasion of World Heritage Day, to inaugurate the function organized by the National Museum, New Delhi today. As you all know, the International Day for Monuments and Sites (informally known as the World Heritage Day) was created on 18th April, 1982, by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and later approved at the 22nd UNESCO General Conference in 1983.

World Heritage Day is being celebrated every year on 18th April. This special day offers an opportunity to raise public’s awareness concerning the diversity of the world’s heritage and the efforts that are required to protect and conserve it, as well as to draw attention to its vulnerability. The Heritage does not refer only to buildings but also includes art objects, crafts and any other aspects of our culture.

Museums play an important role in the preservation of their holdings and utilization of the material for the purpose of dissemination of knowledge and transmitting our heritage to the future generations.

With the changes and ravages of time the art objects and monuments are required to be well preserved. Conservation is rather a specialized field and the facilities to conserve the objects are less in comparison with the obvious and actual needs. In view of the importance some practical thought is to be devoted to the undertaking of research and training in conservation techniques on a large scale. The National Museum and National Museum Institute would lead in this venture.

The museums can propagate our heritage with educational programmes for communities, school and university students. Recently the National Museum took up the initiative by opening its first village Museum at St. Ephrem’s Higher Secondary School, Mannanam in Kerala. For its further development art objects and crafts of the local area would be collected and then documented for the purpose of preservation of the traditions and education of the masses. It is a stepping stone in the propagation of our great Indian heritage.

Though each nation or group of people has a cultural pattern of its own and is legitimately proud of its culture heritage, it is understood that the heritage belongs as a matter of fact to the whole world.

Considering from this point of view, it is the responsibility of all countries to co-operate in the preservation of the cultural heritage which represents so much of our past. It is indeed the primary responsibility of the nation which has built up its cultural heritage to preserve it.

I also understand that the National Museum has organized an on the spot painting competition for school students on this occasion to create awareness as part of the celebrations.

I declare the function open and wish the celebrations all success.

JAI HIND