SK Mishra, who was the Principal Secretary to the former Prime Minister of the country, Chandrashekhar, is currently bringing a change in the lives and living conditions of thousands of artisans through the ‘Indian Trust for Rural Heritage and Development’ ie ITRHD. Mishra says that rural heritage and development complement each other. One cannot be thought of without the other.
SK Mishra, 90, says that I worked in the central and state governments for a long time. Getting retirement from government job is a process but I cannot sit idle after retiring. He said that I have got a lot from the society and I also want to give something to the society. Mishra was the head of the ‘Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage’ ie Intake for about 10 years. After this, in 2011, together with some people, ITRHD was established.
Mishra, who was the tourism, civil aviation and agriculture secretary in the central government and principal secretary to the three chief ministers of Haryana, said the intake work was exclusively in urban areas and did not have access to rural areas. He told that to bridge this distance, we started ITRHD.
Mishra told that we are working for rural heritage and artisans (weavers, potters, singers etc.). He told that his projects are in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Jharkhand etc. In these, artisans from Azamgarh, Hariharpur, Nizamabad and Mubarakpur villages are associated with us. Mishra said that there were 108 terracotta temples in Maluti village of Jharkhand, out of which 62 temples are still left. These temples are being protected by ITRHD. This work has been received from the Government of Jharkhand, on which nine crore rupees are being spent. This work will be completed soon.
He told that there is a Birsa Munda Jail in Ranchi, the capital of Jharkhand. The government had asked us to protect this jail. We were given this work after completing only ten months. This jail has been converted into a museum by the state government. Mishra said that ITRHD has also protected the 700-year-old dargah of Sheikh Musa in Nuh district of Haryana.
Mishra said that ITRHD has been conducting Azamgarh Festival for many years. Hundreds of artisans and artists come to exhibit their art in this festival. During this time they make good profits. He said that ITRHD bears all the expenses for the movement, accommodation etc. of the artisans and artists and the entire benefit is passed on to the artisans and artists. He told that this not only gives him recognition, but also strengthens his financial position. He told that it gives us great satisfaction to see that the artisans are getting their homes renovated. They are buying motorcycles and giving better education to their children. This is changing their lives in a big way.
Mishra told that we will soon visit the area around the airport being built in Noida. He said that during this time the heritages present in the villages around the airport will be explored so that they can be preserved. Apart from this, some more projects are to be started. Apart from the CSR funds of private companies, ITRHD also gets financial assistance from its members and the government, he added.