The Global Engagement Scheme of the Ministry of Culture aims to promote India’s rich cultural heritage including Maharashtra, internationally and enhance India’s global image.
The key Scheme objectives include strengthening cultural ties with foreign nations, promoting bilateral cultural contacts, projecting India’s cultural identity on the world stage and encouraging inbound tourism.
The Global Engagement Scheme is administered through Indian Missions Abroad and has following 03 components:
- Festival of India:
The artists, practicing Indian art forms, are given opportunity to perform abroad under the banner of ‘Festival of India’. The artists from diverse cultural fields such as Folk Art including Folk Music, Folk Dance, Folk Theatre & Puppetry, Classical and Traditional Dance, Experimental/ Contemporary Dance, Classical/ Semi Classical Music, Theatre etc. perform in the ‘Festivals of India’ abroad. - Grant in aid to Indo Foreign Friendship Cultural Societies: Grant in aid is released to Indo Foreign Friendship Cultural societies actively functioning in foreign countries through our Indian Missions with the object of fostering closer friendship and cultural contacts between India and foreign country concerned
- Contribution Grant to International Organizations :
Funds are released to International Organizations of which India is a member.
India is member state of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and is a part of several important cultural conventions of UNESCO such as 1972 Convention on World Heritage, 2003 Convention for Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN), Memory of the World (MOW) Programme. India is also a member of Inter-Governmental Organizations like International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) among others.
There is no provision for specific partnerships with institutions of any State.
Under the “Festival of India” component of Global Engagement Scheme, all expenditure on deputation of an artist for performing in “Festival of India” is incurred by the Government. Ministry of Culture has empanelled artists/groups from all over India including State of Maharashtra under various art forms and artists are selected from the empanelled list for deputing to perform in the Festivals of India abroad.
Currently, out of 627 artists/groups empanelled with the Ministry, 37 artists/groups are empanelled from Maharashtra. Of these 7 artists/troupes have been deputed to perform in the following Festivals of India abroad:
- Oman, Netherlands, Ghana (2016-17),
- Venezuela and Vietnam – Freedom 70 events (2017-18)
- Qatar (2018-19)
- South Africa (2019-20).
