Youth keen to connect with tradition: Dr Jitendra

NEW DELHI, Feb 21: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh has said that, contrary to wide-spread perception in certain quarters, Indian youth of 2017 is keen to connect with tradition and has the capacity to imbibe tradition in its futuristic outlook. On a visit to the 15-day “Hunar Haat” at the invitation of Union MoS (I/C) for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Dr Jitendra Singh, while going around the various stalls, said that he was amused to notice that majority of visitors there were from the younger age groups and were evincing keen interest in different pieces of art, handicraft and conventional food cuisines at these stalls. The youth of India today, Dr Jitendra Singh said, is inspirational but, at the same time, he gives full-play to his instinct for experimentation and exploration, as a result of which, he has a natural curiosity to rediscover the symbols from remote past and synergism them with the real-time reality of the present. It is therefore, he said, our responsibility to ensure how best we are able to showcase the faces of tradition in a manner which could inspire a young mind. During the one hour visit, Dr Jitendra Singh interacted with the caretakers of the stalls as also with some visitors and sought to elicit their views about the format and display. In the “Bawarchi Khana” segment, Dr Jitendra Singh went through different counters serving, for example, Kashmiri Wazwan, Lucknowi Biryani and Thandai, Delhi Chaat Masala, Gujarati Pav Bhaji, Kerala Malabar delicacies, Rajasthan Roti and Tamil Nadu Medhu Vada. Similarly, on the garment side, he visited each of the stalls from North-Eastern States like Manipur and Nagaland to Kashmiri carpets and Banarsi original creations. He also visited the handicraft stalls put up by “Gharana” artisans from Uttar Pradesh and generations-old craftsmen from Kashmir to Kerala. Later speaking to media persons at the venue, Dr Jitendra Singh said, this was a unique opportunity to experience the feel of every part of the country from cuisine to garment. He congratulated the Ministry of Minority Affairs and its energetic Minister, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi for having undertaken this exclusive initiative.