Jamshedpur, June 28: Artists and artistes, primarily of the steel city, would be brought under one banner to promote all types of art forms.

The announcement to begin the forum was taken at a felicitation ceremony held at Kadma this morning. The function was organised to felicitate the martyrs of the Santhal Hul.

The proposed umbrella organisation would be called Ekta Manch and it would focus on grooming the various forms of performing arts and fine arts. Samarpith Art, a Jamshedpur-based art organisation, would be looking after the functioning of the new association.

The president of the association, S.K. Barua, said: ?Till date, there has not been a single forum in the city where artists from every genre can come together on a platform. Therefore this forum would give artists in the city a base to put their point across.?

Even budding artists and artistes will find help, not only in terms of promotions but also in terms of education. For, the new association also plans to seek the state government?s permission to open an art college in the state. A statue of tribal leader Sidhu Kanhu was also unveiled during the event. The statue would be placed at the National Institute of Technology campus in Adityapur on June 30.