Staff Correspondent

Religious Minister Md. Faridul Haque Khan said that culture carries the identity of a nation. It is the ruler of unity and strength. We are uncompromising on the question of culture.

The minister said these while addressing the chief guest at the joint conference of the Greater Mymensingh Cultural Forum at the Directorate of Public Health and Engineering in the capital's Kakrail on Sunday evening.

The Minister said, we do not hesitate to give our lives for the question of culture. So we gave blood in 1952. I gave blood in 1971. We are vocal in protecting the originality of our culture. The current government is implementing various initiatives in the field of nurturing and practicing Bengali culture. Providing necessary patronage in the cultural field.

Highlighting the cultural heritage of Mymensingh, the Minister of Religion said that the people of greater Mymensingh region have a glorious role in the great liberation war of Bangladesh, including the history-tradition, art-literature, culture of Bangladesh. Mymensingh is a very fertile land in the field of literature. This region is anointed in the footsteps of many memorable and distinguished poets and writers of Bengali literature including the world poet Rabindranath Tagore, national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam. "Mymensingh Geetika" is the bright name of the world literature of this region.

Highlighting the characteristics of culture, the minister said that culture is changing. Culture changes due to expansion of education, development of technology, economic prosperity, development of communication system etc. Culture takes on new forms. This is the reality. No culture in the world is beyond it. There is no room to be too conservative in this changing religion of culture. He emphasized on passing on cultural practices to the next generation.

Justice Md. Jahangir Hossain, former senior secretary Md. Abdus Samad, prominent dramatist and cultural personality Md. Hamid and General Secretary of the Forum Mr. Rashedul Hasan Shelly were present.