The Ministry of Culture is the

Indian government The Government of India (ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of 36 states and union territor ...

ministry charged with preservation and promotion of

art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

and

culture of India Indian culture is the cultural heritage, heritage of social norms and history of science and technology on the Indian subcontinent, technologies that originated in or are associated with the ethno-linguistically diverse nation of India, pert ...

Gajendra Singh Shekhawat Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (born 3 October 1967; ) is an Indian politician who is serving as Minister of Culture and Minister of Tourism since 2024. He is a member of parliament from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) representing Jodhpur in the ...

is the current Minister of Culture. Recently the government has established the National Mission on Libraries India under this ministry.

Characteristics

The restoration of ancient idols smuggled out of India comes under the Ministry of Culture. As of 01 October 2021, the Government of India has recovered 211 idols. Till 2014 only 13 idols were recovered. 198 idols have been restored since 2014. In June 2022, more than 10 idols were recovered and handed over to the Tamil Nadu Idol Rescue Unit. 228 idols have been recovered till 2022.

Organisation

*Attached offices **

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexander ...

**Central Secretariat Library **

National Archives of India The National Archives of India (NAI) is a repository of the non-current records of the Government of India and holds them in trust for the use of administrators and scholars. Originally established as the Imperial Record Department in 1891, in Ca ...

*Subordinate offices **

Anthropological Survey of India The Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI) is an Indian government organisation involved in anthropological studies and field data research, primarily engaged in physical anthropology and cultural anthropology, while maintaining a strong focu ...

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

** Central Reference Library,

**National Research Laboratory for Conservation of Cultural Property,

Lucknow Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...

National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi The National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) is the premier art gallery under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. The main museum at Jaipur House in New Delhi was established on 29 March 1954 by the Government of India, with subsequent ...

National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai was opened to the public in 1996. It hosts various exhibitions and art collections of famous artists, sculptors and different civilizations. It is situated in the Cowasji Jehangir Hall, near Regal Cinema ...

** National Gallery of Modern Art, Bengaluru **

National Library of India The National Library of India is a library located in the Belvedere Estate, Alipore, Kolkata, India. It is India's largest library by volume and public record. The National Library is under Ministry of Culture (India), Ministry of Culture, Gove ...

National Museum, New Delhi The National Museum in New Delhi, also known as the National Museum of India, is one of the largest museums in India. Established in 1949, it holds a variety of articles ranging from the pre-historic era to modern works of art. It functions un ...

*Autonomous organisations **

National Mission for Manuscripts National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

, Delhi **

Allahabad Museum The Allahabad Museum is a national-level museum in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Established in 1931, it is known for its rich collection and unique objects of art, and is funded by Ministry of Culture. Moreover, it is a premier research centre for ...

Prayagraj Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

Asiatic Society The Asiatic Society is an organisation founded during the Company rule in India to enhance and further the cause of " Oriental research" (in this case, research into India and the surrounding regions). It was founded by the philologist Will ...

Central Institute of Buddhist Studies The Central Institute of Buddhist Studies, formerly known as the School of Buddhist Philosophy, located in Leh town of Ladakh is a deemed university under Ministry of Culture. It was founded in 1959 and formerly affiliated to the Sampurnanand Sa ...

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...

Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies The Central University for Tibetan Studies (CUTS), formerly called the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies (CIHTS; ), is a Deemed University founded in Sarnath, Varanasi, India, in 1967. It is an autonomous university under India's Minis ...

(CIHTS) **

Centre for Cultural Resources and Training The Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT) is autonomous organisation under Ministry of Culture of Government of India. Established in May 1979, to support cultural education, with its inceptio ...

, New Delhi **

Delhi Public Library Delhi Public Library is a national depository library in the Indian Union Territory of Delhi. The library has 37 branches across the state. History The library was established on 27 October 1951 as a pilot project sponsored by UNESCO and th ...

, Delhi **

Gandhi Smriti Gandhi Smriti, formerly known as Birla House or Birla Bhavan, is a museum dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi, situated on Tees January Road, formerly Albuquerque Road, in New Delhi, India. It is the location where Mahatma Gandhi spent the last ...

and Darshan Samiti, New Delhi **

Indian Museum Indian Museum (formerly called Imperial Museum of Calcutta) is a grand museum in Central Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It is the ninth oldest museum in the world and the oldest, as well as the largest museum in Asia, by size of collection. It ...

Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi is a premier government-funded arts organization in India. It is an autonomous institute under the Ministry of Culture. History The Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts was ...

(IGNCA), New Delhi ** Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manava Sangrahalaya,

Bhopal Bhopal (; ISO 15919, ISO: Bhōpāl, ) is the capital (political), capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes,'' due to ...

** Kalakshetra Foundation, Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai **

Khuda Baksh Oriental Public Library Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Library is one of the national libraries of India, located in Patna, Bihar. It was opened to public on 29 October 1891 by Khan Bahadur Khuda Bakhsh with 4,000 manuscripts, of which he inherited 1,400 from his father Maulvi ...

Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...

** Lalit Kala Academy, New Delhi **

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies The Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies is an autonomous research institute based in Kolkata. It is funded by the Ministry of Culture of the Government of India. It was founded on 4 January 1993. The foundation stone of the insti ...

(MAKAIAS),

National Council of Science Museums National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) is an autonomous scientific organization functioning under the Ministry of Culture, Government of India for science communication through its network of science museums or science centres spread acr ...

, Kolkata ** National Museum Institute of the History of Art, Conservation and Museology (NMIHACM),

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

National School of Drama National School of Drama (NSD) is a drama school situated at New Delhi, India. It is an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. It was set up in 1959 by the Sangeet Natak Akademi and became an independent school ...

, New Delhi ** Nava Nalanda Mahavihara,

Nalanda Nalanda (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: , ) was a renowned Buddhism, Buddhist ''mahavihara'' (great monastery) in medieval Magadha (Mahajanapada), Magadha (modern-day Bihar), eastern India. Widely considered to be am ...

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

** Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi (

Teen Murti Bhavan The Teen Murti Bhavan (''Teen Murti House''; formerly known as Flagstaff House) is a building and former residence in New Delhi. It was built by the British Raj and became the residence of the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, ...

) **Raja Ram Mohan Roy Library Foundation,

, registered under the West Bengal Societies Registration Act, 1961 ** Raza Library, Rampur **

Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of the Indian government. Its off ...

(SA), New Delhi **

Salar Jung Museum The Salar Jung Museum is an art museum located at Dar-ul-Shifa, on the southern bank of the Musi River, India, Musi River in the city of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It is one of the List of museums in India, notable National Museums of India. ...

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

Sangeet Natak Akademi Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in English language, English) is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India. It is an autonomous body of the Ministry of Culture (India) ...

(SNA), New Delhi **

Saraswathi Mahal Library Saraswathi Mahal Library, also called Thanjavur Maharaja Serfoji's Saraswathi Mahal Library is a library located in Thanjavur (Tanjore), Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of the oldest subsisting libraries in Asia established during 16th century by ...

Tanjore Thanjavur (), also known as Thanjai, previously known as Tanjore,#Pletcher, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 12th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian c ...

Victoria Memorial Hall The Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall is a performing arts centre in the Central Area of Singapore, situated along Empress Place. It is a complex of two buildings and a clock tower joined together by a common corridor; the oldest part of the ...

*Zonal Cultural Centers (based on Cultural Zones of India) **,

North Central Zone Cultural Centre

Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

North East Zone Cultural Centre North East Zone Culture Centre in Chümoukedima in Nagaland state is one of many regional cultural centres established by the Indian Government to preserve and promote traditional cultural heritage of India. The North East Cultural Zone is on ...

North Zone Cultural Centre North Zone Cultural Centre or ''NZCC'' (ISO 15919, ISO: ) in Patiala in Punjab, India, Punjab state was first among several regional cultural centres established by Government of India to preserve and promote arts, crafts, traditions and cultur ...

** South Central Zone Cultural Centre,

Nagpur Nagpur (; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Nāgapura'') is the second capital and third-largest city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is called the heart of India because of its central geographical location. It is the largest and most populated city i ...

** South Zone Culture Centre,

Tanjavur Thanjavur (), also known as Thanjai, previously known as Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 12th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of southern Indian religion, art ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

West Zone Cultural Centre The West Zone Culture Centre in Udaipur, Rajasthan is one of seven Cultural Zones of India, Cultural Zones established by the Government of India to preserve and promote India's traditional cultural heritage. The centre works to retain and devel ...

*Public Sector Undertakings ** National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation

List of ministers

Cabinet Ministers

*Note: MoS, I/C Minister of State (Independent Charge)

Ministers of State

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control

Culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

Culture of India

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...