PESHAWAR: Senior artists and culture activists have said that setting up of ‘endowment fund’ and implementation of cultural policy in letter and spirit can resolve the issues of artists and literati.

They said that their real issues had not been addressed and the stipend schemes or charity packages were not enough to help them pick up cultural activities. They said that the government’s rhetoric regarding ameliorating the plight of artists required to be translated into action.

Senior artists told this scribe that unless practical steps were taken by the government, writers and artists would continue to suffer.

Seek enforcement of cultural policy in letter and spirit

“The artists and writers cannot live on charity for long because they are the ones, who become the role model for the entire society. The endowment fund, I think would help resolve issues of the artists. I cannot think of an artist begging every time for financial assistance,” said ghazal maestro Ustad Khial Mohammad.

Noted TV artist Mohammad Ilyas, who is also chief of Fankaar Ittehad, said that in the first tenure of PTI government the then chief minister Pervez Khattak had announced an amount to the tune of Rs500 million but it could not be materialised and instead came up with a monthly stipend under the ‘living human treasure’ scheme. He said that in the second tenure, PTI soon after coming into power stopped the scheme but then released its first three quarters following the directives of Peshawar High Court.

Mr Ilyas said that his community had come to conclusion that government should first of all implement its own cultural policy and set up an endowment fund on the pattern of the Sindh government.

“The Nishtar Hall and the cultural directorate hall should be immediately handed over to senior artists and writers. How cultural activities can get picked up in a province where there is no place available for the artists and where they are insecure. No incentives are there in health and education departments for our community,” he said.

An official of culture directorate told this scribe that they had been working on pros and cons of the endowment fund and had proposed an amount Rs300 to Rs500 million to be allocated for the same.

He said that provincial government was serious in addressing the issues of the artists and writers. “The proposed draft will be sent to the department concerned. The endowment fund will address many issues of artists in the province,” said the official.

Published in Dawn, May 13th, 2019