More than 1,300 items gifted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, including an exquisitely crafted statue of Goddess Bhavani, an Ayodhya Ram Temple model and sporting memorabilia from the 2024 Paralympic Games, have been put up for an e-auction that began in New Delhi on Wednesday, officials said.
The start of the seventh edition of the online auction coincides with the birthday of Modi, who turned 75 on Wednesday. The e-auction will continue till October 2.
According to the PM Mementos website, the base price of the statue of Goddess Bhavani is Rs 1,03,95,000, while that of the model of the Ram temple is Rs 5.5 lakh.
Culture ministry officials on Tuesday said these two items, along with three pairs of shoes of Paralympics medallists, each pair with a base price of Rs 7.7 lakh, are in the top-five bracket in terms of the base price.
Other items which are part of the e-auction include an intricately-embroidered Pashmina shawl from Jammu and Kashmir, a Tanjore painting of Ram Durbar, a metallic Nataraja statue, a Rogan Art from Gujarat depicting the Tree of Life and a handwoven Naga shawl.
A special highlight of this edition is the sports memorabilia gifted by India's para-athletes who participated in the Paris Paralympics 2024. These tokens symbolise the para-athletes' resilience, excellence and indomitable spirit, the culture ministry said in a statement earlier.
The first edition of the e-auction was held in January 2019.
"Since then, thousands of unique gifts presented to Prime Minister Narendra Modi have been auctioned, raising more than Rs 50 crore in support of the Namami Gange project," the Culture Ministry said on Tuesday.
Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh on Tuesday told reporters that more than 1,300 gifts received by the prime minister will be auctioned online. The collection reflects the cultural diversity of India, ranging from traditional art, paintings, sculptures, handicrafts and tribal artefacts to ceremonial gifts of honour and respect, the ministry said.
These items are currently on display at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA).
As in previous years, all proceeds from the e-auction will go to the Namami Gange project, the government of India's flagship initiative for the rejuvenation, conservation and protection of the Ganga river and its ecosystem.
"The e-auction is not just an opportunity for citizens to own a piece of history, but also to participate in a noble mission -- the preservation of our holy river, the Ganga," the ministry said.