Government should not make any investment in arts, as it is a sheer wastage

Government should not make any investment in arts, as it is a sheer wastage

Government should not make any investment in arts, as it is a sheer wastage. It should use that money in public services rather.
Do you agree with the statement?

Art is generally described as the application of human creative skill and imagination to create a visual form such as painting, sculptures etc which are appreciated for their aesthetics and emotional connections to a culture or life forms.

Like said by Aristotle “The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance”, I firmly believe that art is one of the biggest heritages of a country and culture. The Governments in the developing countries like India should in fact,
invest more in art. It is not wastage, rather an investment which is done to enhance the cultural heritage of a country and to portray its strong foundations.

Art is a means that allow people to use their personal strengths in meaningful ways and provide opportunities for self – expression. For a healthy nation, it is very important that its people have various means of expressing themselves and art is one of them. Art is responsible for enhancing the social, critical and creative skills of people. It provides a sense of Independence and collaboration, both of which are needed to create a happy and healthy nation.

It is due to its art forms that India is so high on the list of tourism, for tourists from all over the world. Indian paintings which have their roots in the Indus Valley Civilization, Indian pottery, sculptures dating back to the Harappa period, various dance forms like Bharat Natyam, Kathakali , Manipuri etc are responsible for extracting millions of tourists every year and generating huge amounts of tourism income. Not to forget Indian theatre is one of the oldest in the world and world still has number of ardent fans of the same.

It’s true that public services are basic necessities that every citizen has a right on and in developing countries; there is a lot of scope for their improvement and enhancement. But according to me, diverting the investments from the field of arts into public services is not the solution. Both these fields are important in their own ways and need attention but not at the cost of each other. Funds for both should be raised through more effective strategies and financial planning, rather than curbing funds for each other.

Neither can one survive without public services like fire brigade, army, paramedics etc nor can one live in a concrete jungle without colours, patterns, sculptures or to put it together – without art.