The Delhi government has reconstituted the Urdu academy with renowned academicians, performers and poets and announced a threefold increase in artistes’ pay.
The Urdu Academy will pay its artistes Rs 15,000 from the previous amount of Rs 5,000 for their recitals and poetry at events, an official statement said.
“This is a huge threefold increase and while it doesn’t seek to put a price to their incisive and brilliant poetry, Shaayari and Ghazals but seeks to give a dignified living to art, culture and languages in Delhi,” it added.
Also, Majid Siddiqui was appointed as the vice-chairperson of the Academy.
Siddiqui has participated in numerous literary mushairas, conferences and seminars across the country and abroad. He been awarded numerous times for his works including the President award and Abul Kalam Aazad Urdu Poetry Award.
The government also asked that all the events that promoted languages via the different academies like the Urdu, Maithili, Bhojpuri, Hindi, Sanskrit and Punjabi, to be held at large central locations in all parts of Delhi to create print, electronic and social media campaigns that ensure maximum outreach of their content, it said.
Previously, such events used to be confined to Lutyens’ Delhi for the consumption of political elite, not for the citizens, it added.
—PTI