INTACH Puri Urges Members to Become Heritage Ambassadors for Cultural Preservation

Puri: Emphasising community-led conservation and wider public participation in preserving Odisha’s rich cultural legacy, the Puri Chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) organised a heritage orientation programme at the Youth Hostel in Puri, encouraging members to actively take up the role of heritage ambassadors.

Around 40 Life Members of the INTACH Puri Chapter participated in the day-long orientation designed to deepen understanding of heritage conservation and strengthen grassroots engagement in protecting both tangible and intangible cultural assets.

The programme featured a series of presentations by experts and practitioners working across heritage, history and cultural documentation. Convener of INTACH Cuttack Chapter, Dipak Samantarai, spoke on Odisha’s broader heritage framework and the importance of integrating conservation efforts with local communities and governance structures.

Scholar Kapileswar Mishra focused on the region’s living cultural traditions and highlighted the significance of preserving intangible heritage that continues to shape local identity.

Adding another dimension to the discussions, Guinness World Records holder and noted conservation advocate Sasank Dash shared insights into safeguarding palm-leaf manuscripts and sustaining the tradition of handmade paper, drawing attention to the need for preserving traditional knowledge systems.

Former Culture Department official Prafulla Samantaray discussed policy approaches and community participation in heritage management, while historian Golak Bihari Singh presented on documenting Puri’s built heritage and identifying lesser-known historical sites that require greater public attention.

Welcoming participants, INTACH Puri Chapter Convener Subash Rath said the initiative aims to create a network of informed citizens who can promote awareness and act as custodians of local heritage.

Interactive discussions followed each session, during which members resolved to undertake documentation of oral histories, disappearing traditions and endangered crafts in their respective localities.

The programme concluded with a collective pledge to preserve and promote Puri’s cultural legacy and pass it on to future generations. Organisers also announced plans to expand similar awareness programmes to schools, colleges and block-level institutions in the coming months.

Among those present were cine actor Srikant Gautam, heritage expert Debi Prasanna Nanda, hoteliers T. Banambar Patra and Santosh Patra, educationists Prakash Khatoi and Panchanan Swain, engineer Sashibhusan Mishra, museologist Harishchandra Dash and several heritage enthusiasts. The vote of thanks was delivered by Sanjay Baral, co-convener of the INTACH Puri Chapter.