President to confer Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards April 11

New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee will Friday present the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowships and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards for 2013, an official statement said. The Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowships (Akademi Ratna) and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskar) are national honours bestowed on performing artistes, teachers and scholars in the field of performing arts. Established in 1953, the Akademi is responsible for the promotion and preservation of the country`s performing arts. One of the important activities of the Akademi is to recognise the contribution of outstanding musicians, dancers and theatre artistes, and bestow on them its fellowships and awards. The activity aims to create benchmarks in the practice of the performing arts. The awards will be conferred at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here.