New Delhi: The exhibition-cum-e-auctioning of mementos received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi drew to a close on Friday, with the best bid of Rs 25 lakh for a painting of the PM and Mahatma Gandhi, a statement from the government said.
The income from the e-auction are going tobe given towards funding the Namami Gange Mission.
The Union culture ministry organised the e-auction from 14 September to sell 2,772 mementos gifted to the prime minister.
The items were kept on display at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) here and included memorabilia, paintings, sculptures, shawls, jackets and ancient musical instruments.
The e-auction was supposed to be held till 3 October. However, a decision was taken to increase the process for another 3 weeks. As of today, all things on auction stand sold-out.
Celebrities, activists and politicians have shown interest within the auction, with Bollywood stars, including actors Anil Kapoor and Arjun Kapoor, and singer Kailash Kher, endorsing it.
The lowest base value was kept at Rs five hundred for things like a small sculpture of Lord Ganesha and attractive wooden box in lotus shape.
The highest base value of Rs 2.5 lakh was reserved for an acrylic painting with a tri-colour background of the prime minister and Mahatma Gandhi, that has received a final bid of Rs Twenty five lakh.
A framed photograph of the prime minister receiving blessings from his mother, with a base value of Rs Thousand, has received a bid of Rs Twenty lakh.
Other popular auctioned things include an exhibit of Manipuri folk Arts, that had an original base value of Rs fifty thousand, but sold for a bid of Ten lakh.
A metallic sculpture of a cow feeding a calf, with a base price of Rs four thousand, sold for a bid of Rs Ten lakh and a metallic 14-cm statue of Swami Vivekanand, with a base price of Rs Four thousand, received a final price of Rs Six lakh.
Neither the Culture Ministry nor the NGMA could may give details regarding the painting or about who gifted it to the prime minister.
