Folk artists stage agitation outside Culture dept office against delayed payment

PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun

Protesting against delays in payments and other issues, the folk artists staged an agitation outside the directorate of the Culture department on Wednesday. Artists from Garhwal, Kumaon and Jaunsar Bawar participated in the demonstration. They wore black ribbons on their arms during the stir.  

Queried by The Pioneer on what sparked their demonstration, the president of Lok Kalakar Mahasangh, Gopal Singh Chamyal highlighted the artists’ longstanding, unfulfilled demands. “Artists from across the State, including groups and individual performers, took part in the protest. Our primary demand is timely payment for our work. The Culture department engages our services whenever it needs us though payment often takes two to three years to be disbursed. Besides, with the Centre having increased our honorarium, the State government is still sitting on the same.  A paltry amount of Rs 800 per performance is no longer sufficient for the artists to sustain ourselves,” he added. 

Chamyal also outlined other key demands, including pension provisions on retirement, exemption from GST and official recognition of folk singers by the Culture department. “If our demands are not addressed or if no assurances are given in the least, we will continue with our stir,” he warned. 

Another folk artist, Prajkash Bisht flagged similar concerns regarding delayed payments from the Culture department. “Add the delayed payment to the small honorarium amount and our predicament will be understandable,” he said, adding that payments for work completed in 2021 had been received in 2025.  

Many other folk artists voiced the same concerns and asked the department to address them as quickly as possible. 

Importantly, the convenor of the Uttarakhand Mool Niwas Bhu Kanoon Sangharsh Samiti, Mohit Dimri also joined the stir in solidarity with the folk artists. “We have thrown our full weight behind the folk artists. The authorities should step in immediately and redress their grievances. Or else, the agitation may gain more momentum in the coming days,” he warned.