Suresh Amiya Memorial Trust

About Suresh Amiya Memorial Trust (SAMT)

The Suresh Amiya Memorial Trust (SAMT) was formed in 1985 by late Dr. Sadhan C. Dutt, Founder Chairman, DC Group of Companies in memory of his parents, Suresh Chandra Dutt and Amiyabala Dutt. The Trust aims to promote education, art, handicrafts, healthcare, particularly for the benefit of the underprivileged population of West Bengal.

SAMT organises the annual Nabanna Folk Art and Craft Fair at Shantiniketan. A free medical camp is arranged for the participating artisans and their family in association with Sri Aurobindo Seva Kendra, Kolkata.

The Trust has also created a Chair for Environmental Studies at the Benaras Hindu University.
Suresh Amiya Memorial Trust’s skill development programmes include kantha stitch, jute and tailoring for women Self Help Groups in and around Shantiniketan, sponsored by the Government of West Bengal. It also has around twenty-five Design and Technical Development workshops on terracotta, jute, leather, glazed pottery, dhokra, cane and bamboo, enamelling and various other crafts at Shantiniketan sponsored by Development Commissioner Handicrafts, Government of India (GoI), a 5-year cluster development programme in North Bengal on terracotta, a number of training on plaster mould making for artisans, teacher’s training programme, and twenty outreach programmes for school children in and around Shantiniketan under GoI.

It is building a two-storied, 12500 sqft Art & Craft Museum at the fair venue with the objective to preserve, document and showcase a vast range of indigenous art and craft primarily from Bengal.

See the complete list of festival organisers here.