On Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a surprise visit to the ‘Hunar Haat’ organised by the Ministry of Minority Affairs in the India Gate lawns of Delhi. PM Modi interacted with artisans from all across India and relished the Bihari dish ‘Litti-Chokha’ with a Kulhad (earthen cup) tea.
Reportedly, PM Modi had headed to Rajpath where the Hunar Haat is being organised by the Ministry of Minority Affairs soon after a cabinet meeting. The officials of the Ministry were surprised when they came to know about the PM Modi’s visit.
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PM Modi, who was there for 50 minutes, ate Bihari dish Litti-Chokha and paid Rs 120 for it. The dish is popular in Bihar, Eastern Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand. He later had tea served in a Kulhad with Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and paid Rs 40 for two cups. The food stalls at ‘Bawarchikhana’ section in the Haat were for a range of traditional dishes from all over India.
PM Modi even tried his at traditional chimes and tweeted, “Trying my hand at some music in #HunarHaat…”
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PM Modi also met and appreciated various artists for their exemplary work who had assembled at the Hunar Haat to showcase their talents with traditional handicrafts and textiles. “Efforts such as #HunarHaat have given a platform to many talented individuals. I met some of them earlier this afternoon,” tweeted PM Modi.
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‘Hunar Haat’ is an initiative by the Government to provide employment opportunities as well as promote India’s indigenous traditional legacy, several of which are on the verge of extinction. More than 250 such stalls have been set up at India Gate lawns. Also, more than 50% of the artisans participating were women.
The Hunar Haat is based on the theme of ‘Kaushal Ko Kaam’ and will be held till February 23. Master artisans, craftsmen and culinary experts, a majority of whom are women, from across the country are participating at the Haat.
As per reports, about 3 lakh master artisans, craftsmen & culinary experts have been provided employment and employment opportunities through ‘Hunar Haat’ in the last 3 years. Similar events are being organised across India as part of an effort to empower master artisans.
The Ministry of Minority Affairs had last year announced that over 100 Hunar Haats for promoting traditional arts and crafts will be held in the coming five years. The ministry had stated that Haats will be organised in Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Dehradun, Patna, Indore and other places. The first Hunar Haat was organised in Jaipur last year.