Cultural Institutions of India for Competitive Exams

LalitKala Akademi (National Academy of Fine Arts)

It was established in 1954 in New Delhi to promote rid propagate understanding of Indian Art (i.e., paintings, sculptures, architecture and applied arts) ch within and outside the country.

Sangeet Natak Akademi (National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama)

It was established in 1953 at New Delhi to promote performing Indian arts (i.e., dance, drama and music) in collaboration with states and voluntary organizations.

National School of Drama

National School of Drama was established in 1959 at New Delhi as a premier theatre institution. In 1975, was registered as an autonomous institution, fully Danced by the Union Government.

Sahitya Akademi

It was established in 1954 at New Delhi with the objectives of developing Indian Literature: setting high literary standards; fostering and coordinating literary activities in all Indian languages; and promoting through them, the cultural unity of the country.

Archaeological Survey of India

It was established in 1861 at New Delhi with the objective of :

Conserving and preserving archaeological monuments and sites located in different parts of the country and maintaining site museums; and
Undertaking explorations and excavations, epigraphic research, study ofarchitecture and scientific studies and investigations.

National Archives of India

It was established in 1891 at New Delhi and was known as the Imperial Record Department till Independence. It is the official custodian of all non-current records of permanent value of the Government of India and its predecessor bodies.

Asiatic Society

It was established in 1784 at Calcutta by Sir William Jones, an eminent Indologist, with the objective of inquiring into the history, antiquities, arts, science and literature of Asia.

Zonal Cultural Centres

They were set up between 1985-90 for protecting, preserving and sustaining cultural kinship that transcends territorial limits. There are seven such centres :

North Zone Cultural Centre in Patiala
East Zone Cultural Centre in Kolkata
South Zone Cultural Centre at Thanjavur
West Zone Cultural Centre at Udaipur
North Central Zone Cultural Centre at Prayagraj
North East Zone Cultural Centre at Dimapur
South Central Zone Cultural Centre at Nagpur

Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts

It was established in 1985 at New Delhi as a resource centre and database in memory of Smt. Indira Gandhi, former Prime Minister of India. It is visualised as a centre, encompassing the study and experience of all the arts. It is the biggest and the largest cultural complex in the world.

Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti

It was setup by the Department of Culture in 1984 in New Delhi, primarily to maintain the national memorial of Gandhiji. The institution has published several books over the years and also organises the annual Gandhi Memorial Lectures by eminent scholars, both in India and abroad.

Indian Museum

Founded in 1814 by the Asiatic Society in Kolkata, it is the earliest and largest multipurpose Museum in the entire Asia-Pacific region. It houses unique treasures of Indian and foreign art, representing centuries of cultural ethos and traditions.

Khuda Baksh Oriental Public Library

It is one of the national libraries of India. Khan Bahadur Khuda Bakhsh opened it for public in October 1891 in Patna. It has 4,000 manuscripts, of which, he inherited 1,400 from his father Maulvi Mohammed Bakhsh.

Library of Tibetan Works and Archives

Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, founded the library on 11 June 1970 in Dharamshala. It is considered as one of the most important libraries and institutions of Tibetan works in the world. The library contains sources, which were relocated from Tibet during the 1959 escape, including important Tibetan Buddhist manuscripts and archives related to Tibet's history, politics, culture and even art.

National Gallery of Modern Art

It was inaugurated on 29 March 1954 at Jaipur House, near India Gate in New Delhi. The gallery is the only one of its kind, run and administered by the Government of India, and represents the changing landscapes of art from the mid 19th century. It comprises paintings, sculptures, and graphics mainly by Indian and to some extent, international modern artists.

National Library

The National Library is located in Kolkata and serves as a permanent repository of all readings and information material produced in India as well as printed material, written by Indians and material concerning India written by foreigners, wherever published and in whatever language.

National Museum

It was established in 1949 in the Durbar Hall of Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi. The current building was inaugurated in 1960. Its main activities are in the field of acquisition, exhibition, conservation, education and publication of art objects. There are 26 permanent galleries in the Museum, including galleries on Buddhist Art, Tantra Art, Decorative Arts, Evolution of Indian Scripts and coins, Tanjaore and Mysore School of Paintings and a Jewellery Gallery.

Nehru Memorial Museum and Library

Located in New Delhi, it aims to preserve and reconstruct the history of the Indian Independence Movement. Founded in 1964, after the death of India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, it also aims to foster academic research on modem and contemporary history.

Salar Jung Museum

Located in Hyderabad, it derives its name from the Salar Jung (I to III), the erstwhile Prime Ministers of the Nizams of Hyderabad. It is a museum of national importance and houses rare and varied art collections from all over the world acquired by the Salar Jung.

Victoria Memorial Hall

It was built between 1906 and 1921 in Kolkata and is dedicated to the memory of Queen Victoria (1819-1901). It is now a museum and tourist destination.

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies

Located in Kolkata, it is the centre for research and training of the life and works of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, for the study of the social, cultural, political and economic movements in Asia from the mid 19th century.

National Museum Institute of History of Art, Conservation and Museology

Located in New Delhi, it is a Deemed University that has been functional since 1989. Its main thrust is acquisition of teaching aids and software, setting-up a slide studio, preparation of syllabus-oriented video films, awarding Fellowships and Scholarships and conducting seminars and symposia.

Theosophical Society

The Theosophical Society, founded in 1875 in Chennai, is a worldwide body, whose primary objective is Universal Brotherhood without distinction, based on the realisation that life, and all its diverse forms, human and non-human, is indivisibly one.