The third meeting of the SAARC Culture Ministers is currently on to chart out a roadmap for cultural ties in the region for the period 2014-17.
The ministers are expected to come out with a Delhi Declaration, the details of which will be made known by Thursday afternoon.
The major activities envisaged in the agenda include strengthening of cultural institutions in member-countries, cultural festivals in the region, preservation and conservation practices and promoting literacy and reading habits.
Culture Ministers of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives and India are taking part in the deliberations. Bhutan, Nepal and Pakistan are being represented by senior Officials.
On Wednesday, senior SAARC officials met to review the Agenda for Culture that was adopted by the second meeting of SAARC Ministers of Culture held in Colombo in 2006.
On Thursday, SAARC Culture Ministers will discuss developments in their countries in the areas of heritage conservation before adopting the Delhi Declaration.
The inaugural session was addressed by Minister of State for Culture and Tourism, Shripad Naik, this morning. He will also deliver a banquet speech at an official dinner being hosted in honour of SAARC delegates.
The event would focus on ways to bolstering maintenance of heritage of the member-countries and improving cultural cooperation. The SAARC Cultural Centre, which began functioning in 2010, has proved to be a powerful tool to bring the SAARC countries closer with launching a strategic five-year programme.
India also expressed willingness to commit itself to instituting a technical assistance programme for strengthening SAARC cultural institutions through the Archaeological Survey of India, National Archives of India, the National Museum and the National Gallery of Modern Art.
Cricket connects the people of the region like no other sports does. To celebrate the cricketing heritage of the subcontinent, India had proposed to conduct the 'Cricket Connects' Exhibition in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. India has received positive responses from many countries to conduct the exhibition.
This meet will be followed by a three-day dance festival.
