PM Modi in Varanasi: What is Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra, and the Kashi Tamil Sangamam?

The PM will also inaugurated the second edition of the Kashi Tamil Sangamam during his visit.

What is the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra? What is the Kashi Tamil Sangamam? We explain.

Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra

The Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra is a government initiative being undertaken across the country, to raise awareness about and track the implementation of flagship central schemes, such as Ayushman Bharat, Ujjwala Yojana, PM Surkasha Bima, PM SVANidhi, etc.

According to the scheme’s websites, it has four aims: “reach out to the vulnerable who are eligible under various schemes but have not availed benefit so far; dissemination of information and generating awareness about schemes;

interaction with beneficiaries of government schemes through their personal stories/ experience sharing; and enrolment of potential beneficiaries through details ascertained during the Yatra.”

The programme is being undertaken with the active involvement of various Union ministries and state governments.

On December 16, PM Modi had flagged off the Yatra in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram, the five states where Assembly polls were held recently. The yatra had started in other states earlier, but could not take off in these five states as the Model Code of Conduct before the elections was in place. The yatra was launched on November 15 from Khunti, Jharkhand.

According to the government’s Press Information Bureau (PIB), “In a short span of just one month, the Yatra has reached more than 2.50 crore citizens across 68,000 Gram Panchayats (GPs) in the country. Further, nearly 2 crore individuals have taken Viksit Bharat Sankalp and over 2 Crore beneficiaries of Central Government Schemes have shared their experiences under ‘Meri Kahani Meri Zubani’ initiative.” People can take the ‘Sankalp’ (pledge) by filling out a form on the scheme’s website, and then downloading a certificate.

Kashi Tamil Sangamam

Starting last year, the Kashi Tamil Sangamam is aimed at celebrating the many aspects of the historical and civilisational connection between India’s North and South. This year, it will be held from December 17 to December 31. Various cultural groups from Tamil Nadu and Varanasi will perform in Kashi.

According to PIB, “The overarching objective of this people-to-people connect programme is to revive the living bonds between Kashi and Tamil Nadu — two important centres of learning and culture in ancient India. It aims to bring these two traditions of knowledge and culture closer together…The festival also has the objective of rediscovering and strengthening the ancient intellectual, cultural, spiritual and artisanal connect between the two cultures.”

The government’s press release says that stalls showcasing art and culture, handlooms, handicrafts, cuisine and other special products of Tamil Nadu and Kashi have been set up for the event. Seminars, discussions, lectures, etc. will be organised on subjects like literature, ancient texts, philosophy, spirituality, music, dance, drama, etc., along with “modern innovations, business exchanges, EdTech and other next-generation technologies.”

The first batch of delegates for the event, a group of students from across Tamil Nadu named ‘Ganga’, reached Kashi on Sunday. Six more groups, of Teachers (Yamuna), professionals (Godavari), spiritual members, (Saraswati), farmers and artisans (Narmada), writers (Sindhu) and traders and businessmen (Kaveri) will be reaching the city in the coming days.