Hon'ble Minister of Finance Mr. Abdul Rahim Rather unveiled the calendar at an colourful function at the bank's Northern Zonal office in Gurgaon. J&K Bank calendar for the year 2010 with ‘Contemporary artists of J&K: Changing colours as the theme. The calendar and other associated stationary offerings like diaries, pens and pads have been dedicated to the contemporary and the young artists of the state whose medium is oil and water color paintings. The calendar seeks to capture the cautious re-emergence of the artists who are beginning to reclaim their space in the society.
Lauding the role of bank for all its initiatives regarding preservation of cultural heritage, Mr. Rather said, "J&K Bank has sets a remarkable precedent. I feel truly delighted to know how J&K Bank has been engaged in protection and preservation of the rich cultural and crafts legacy of our State.
"I am equally glad to learn that the bank has tailored various financial products not only to promote this cultural industry but to ensure sustenance of the livelihood of those related to this important segment of our economy", said Mr. Rather.
Earlier, speaking on the occasion, Chairman and Chief Executive J&K Bank Dr Haseeb A Drabu informed the gathering about various initiatives taken in this direction and their impact on the cultural economy of state.
Dr Drabu said, "Through these initiatives we basically want to project who we are. We are trying to bring the people of J&K and their legacy both in terms of their culture and economy at the center of contemporary Kashmir frame.
"The sales of Kashmiri shawls saw a surge in sales when we came up with calendar displaying various types of Kashmiri shawls and their unique design work", he added.
Dr Drabu further stated, "To augment our efforts, we have given an explicit cultural orientation to the entire range of our stationery items. Besides, ad-campaigns of our bank vis-à-vis different occasions of festivities do carry strong messages of heritage preservation both in terms of content and their graphical representation".
Dr Drabu took the Finance Minister on a guided tour of the zonal office. Impressed to see the Khatamband ceilings, the papier machie columns and sozni art on glass partitions at J&K Bank Gurgaon office, the minister said, "It is a beautiful building that represents the best of modern architecture and design, embedded with the best of Kashmiri traditions. We must preserve and reflect tye culture of our state wherever we go."
A small exhibition of all such previous initiatives was also organized on the sidelines of the launch ceremony. At the exhibition calendars and diaries of previous years, greeting cards, ad-campaigns, bank stationery, button buddies etc were put on display.