1,200 gifts received by PM to be auctioned, proceeds to go for Namami Ganga project

More than 1,200 items gifted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by people from different walks of life including sportspersons and politicians are set to be auctioned from September 17, and the proceeds will go to the Namami Gange Mission.

New Delhi:More than 1,200 items gifted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by people from different walks of life including sportspersons and politicians are set to be auctioned from September 17, and the proceeds will go to the Namami Gange Mission. The auction will be conducted through web portal pmmementos.gov.in, and will conclude on October 2, said Adwaita Gadanayak, the Director General of National Gallery of Modern Art, where the gifts are displayed.

He said a wide range of gifts including those presented by a common man and as well by various dignitaries, representing India's rich culture and heritage, are to be auctioned. The base price of the gifts ranges from Rs 100 to Rs 10 lakh. The list of gifts includes a statue of Rani Kamlapati gifted by Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, a Hanuman idol and a sun painting gifted by Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath, and a trishul gifted by Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur.

It also includes a statue of goddess Mahalaxmi, situated at Kolhapur, gifted by NCP leader Ajit Pawar and a wall hanging of Lord Venkateshwara gifted by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy. This will be the fourth edition of the e-auction of gifts received by PM Modi. The National Gallery of Modern Art's Director Temsunaro Jamir said there is a special collection of sport items such as T-shirts, boxing gloves, javelin and racquets signed by medal-winning players.

The gifts also include exquisite paintings, sculptures, handicrafts and folk artefacts. Several of these are items customarily offered as gifts, such as traditional angavastras, shawls, head gears, ceremonial swords and so on, she said. Other memorabilia of interest include replicas and models of the upcoming Shri Ram Mandir at Ayodhya and the Kashi-Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi, she added. (PTI)