Parliament Question: National cultural mapping

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CULTURE RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 675 TO BE ANSWERED ON 05.02.2026 NATIONAL CULTURAL MAPPING

675. SHRI S. SELVAGANABATHY:

Will the Minister of CULTURE be pleased to state:-

(a) the present status of nationwide cultural mapping initiative under the Ministry’s scheme;

(b) whether any centralised national database or digital platform has been developed to integrate the data collected from States/UTs, Zonal Cultural Centres and field agencies and if so, the details of its structure and accessibility;

(c) the steps taken to ensure accuracy, verification and regular updating of cultural mapping data; and

(d) manner in which this mapping exercise is being used for policy planning, delivery of grants and strengthening of cultural tourism circuits? ANSWER MINISTER OF CULTURE AND TOURISM (SHRI GAJENDRA SINGH SHEKHAWAT)

(a) Mera Gaon Meri Dharohar (MGMD) Programme under National Mission on Cultural Mapping (NMCM), culturally maps villages across India. Currently, 6.23 lakh villages have been covered.

(b) Under NMCM, the Mera Gaon Meri Dharohar (MGMD) Portal has been developed as a centralized digital platform to integrate and present cultural data collected from across Indian villages as part of the nationwide cultural mapping exercise. The information related to MGMD Portal is as per Annexure I.

(c) The MGMD is a comprehensive and interactive digital platform. To ensure periodic updating of information, the portal enables local communities/villagers to submit cultural information related to their village through the ‘Contribute’ tab. Such submissions are made available on the portal after due validation and moderation.(d) The Mera Gaon Meri Dharohar (MGMD) Programme has been envisaged as a digital documentation and archiving initiative under the National Mission on Cultural Mapping. The availability of structured village-level cultural data on a single national portal supports informed policy planning and reference. However, no specific provisions relating to delivery of grants, livelihood support or strengthening of cultural tourism circuits have been incorporated under the MGMD Programme.

*******ANNEXURE-I Annexure referred to in reply to part (b) of Rajya Sabha Unstarred Question No.675 asked on 05th February, 2026 regarding ‘National cultural mapping' STRUCTURE OF MGMD PORTAL

MGMD Portal is available in public domain and can be accessed at https://mgmd.gov.in/. Data is organised as per state, district, block, panchayat, and village wise. A unique profile is created for each village, whereby respective cultural elements with images are documented under the

following headings: i. Cultural Profile ii. Heritage Places iii. Fairs and Festivals iv. Traditional Art and Craft v. Traditional Food vi. Traditional Dress vii. Traditional Ornaments viii. Beliefs and Customs ix. Famous Personalities x. Prominent Artists xi. Geographic and Demographic Profile xii. Developmental Profile Additionally, culture of selected village and blocks is available in the form of vibrant videos under the ‘Village Walkthroughs’ tab.