CWG finale: Bengal miffed as OC refuses to pay for troupe

Published>Sat, Aug 14 10 01:22 PM

The West Bengal government is extremely cut up with the Commonwealth Games authorities for refusing to pay for the Santhali dance troupe that will perform at the event's closing ceremony in Delhi.

Nearly a month ago, the Games managers in a letter to the state government asked for a 50-member team to perform the dance. It has sent a similar missive to other states for cultural teams that would add colour to the closing ceremony.

But they will not pay for the troupe's expenses, a state official said. He told Express Online: "The organisers are spending crores of money on other things but they won't pay us a single paisa for the team. We will foot the bill for everything - from train fare to food and stay. The most difficult thing is to arrange for their week-long stay."

He also said some states have written to the CWG authorities demanding money as a prerequisite of sending their artistes.

Minister of State for Information and Culture Saumendranath Bera, however, said it was a good opportunity for artistes to showcase Bengal's tribal art on an international stage. Bera said: "It is true we are not getting any money. But at the same time, our artistes are getting the opportunity. It will be good exposure."

Source: Web Search