PM Modi to inaugurate second edition of Kashi Tamil Sangamam on Sunday

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the second edition of the Kashi Tamil Sangamam at his parliamentary constituency Varanasi's 'Namo Ghat' on Sunday and flag off the Kanyakumari-Varanasi Tamil Sangamam train, according to officials here.

The cultural festival will be held from December 17 to 30. The first batch of the Tamil delegation departed from Chennai on December 15. Nearly 1,400 people (seven groups of 200 each) from varied walks of life are expected to be travelling from different parts of Tamil Nadu, they said.

During their stay in Kashi, as per their tour itinerary, they will also visit Prayagraj and Ayodhya, the official said.

"The seven groups of students (Ganga), teachers (Yamuna), professionals (Godavari), spiritual (Saraswati), farmers and artisans (Narmada), writers (Sindhu) and traders and businessmen (Kaveri) have been named after seven sacred rivers of India will travel from Chennai, Coimbatore and Kanyakumari to Kashi," an official statement said on Saturday.

"More than 42,000 registrations were received during the time of registration. Out of them, 200 people for each group were selected by the selection committee," it said.

The Union Ministry of Education will be the nodal agency for this event. The Ministries of Culture, Tourism, Railways, Textiles, Food Processing (ODOP), MSME, Information and Broadcasting, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, IRCTC and related departments of the government of Uttar Pradesh will be participating in the event.

"Leveraging the experience of the first phase and considering its reputation for research, IIT Madras will be acting as the implementing agency in Tamil Nadu and the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in Uttar Pradesh," the statement said.

"The representative itinerary will include a two-day outbound trip, a two-day return trip to Banaras and a one-day trip, each to Prayagraj and Ayodhya. Stalls showcasing art and culture, handlooms, handicrafts, cuisine and other special products of Tamil Nadu and Kashi will be set up. Cultural programmes combining the cultures of Tamil Nadu and Kashi will also be organised at the Namo Ghat in Kashi," it said.

During the event, seminars, discussions and lectures will be organised on various aspects of knowledge like literature, ancient texts, philosophy, spirituality, music, dance, drama, yoga, ayurveda, handloom, handicrafts along with modern innovations, business exchanges, EdTech and other next-generation technologies, the statement said.

"Apart from this, experts and scholars, local practitioners of various disciplines/professions from Tamil Nadu and Kashi will also participate in these exchanges so that a body of practical knowledge/innovation can emerge from mutual learning in different areas," it added.