A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Ministry of Culture and Canara Bank on 28.06.2023 for disbursal of financial assistance to veteran artists under the “Scheme for Financial Assistance for Veteran Artists”.
Ministry of Culture administers a Scheme namely “Financial Assistance for Veteran Artists” under which financial assistance of Rs. 6000/- per month is provided to artists and scholars above the age of 60 years who have contributed significantly in their specialized fields of performing arts and culture in their active age or are still contributing, but due to old age they are facing difficulty and are in penury condition. Currently, under the scheme, disbursal of financial assistance in respect of artists selected before 2017 is made through LIC while for the artists approved post 2017, it is made directly by the Ministry. It has been noted that the receipt of documents from the beneficiaries often get delayed resulting in disbursal of amount as lump sum instead of being released on a regular basis. With the signing of the MoU with Canara Bank, in a period of approximately two months post streamlining of the process, disbursal of financial assistance to the veteran artists would commence on monthly basis, also ensuring redressal of long pending grievances of beneficiaries.
This initiative is reflective of the Culture Ministry’s commitment to constantly improve the interface with the artists’ community and the services provided to them. Canara Bank, one of the leading PSU Banks, has expressed their sincere commitment for ensuring the smooth and continuous disbursal to the veteran artists given their experience of handling many schemes for the various Ministries of Government of India.