Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurates Sangeet Sandhya as a part of 550th Birth Anniversary celebrations of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji

New Delhi : Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism (IC)  Prahalad Singh Patel inaugurated a Sangeet Sandhya programme as a part ofthe 550th Birth Anniversary celebrations of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji yesterday in New Delhi.While inaugurating the event he said that Guru Nanak is the ideal of the world and his teachings are relevant even today.The Sangeet Sandhya was organisedby the Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts under the aegis of the Ministry of Culture, Government of India on 13th September 2020. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha and renowned singer Shri Hans Raj Hans enthralled the audience with beautiful Sikh Kirtans and Sufi Kalams in the Sangeet Sandhya.Dr.Sachchidanand Joshi, Member Secretary, IGNCA, in his welcome address gave a detailed account of the events held throughout the year (2019 – 2020); a series of conferences, lectures exhibitions and poet meets (Kavi Darbars) were held in different parts of the country, including Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan etc. Some worthy events were held in Dubri Sahib-Assam, Vadodara, Gujarat, Ayodhya, Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, Jodhpur in Rajasthan, Panipat, Chandigarh. All these programmes were conducted continuously even amidst the lockdown due to Covid -19 pandemic. Furthermore, a number of new books on Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji have been released. More than 150 poets and students from various universities attended the Kavi Durbars (Poet Meets) online. Also, more than 15 onlinelectures were organised on various aspects of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji by professors, senior social workers and scholars of Sikhism.The program was moderated by Dr.Achal Pandya, Head of the Department, Conservation Department, IGNCA and the vote of thanks was proposed by Dr.Abhijit Dixit. The event was made live via Facebook and about 50 people were seated at the venue followingCovid-19 norms.