Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday greeted the tribal communities on the occasion of Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas.
The Chief Minister said, “Our unique tribal culture enriches our state and country. There can be no development if culture is not given due importance”.
“Recognizing its importance, we have expanded Special Development Councils to 23 districts from the initial 9. We are laying great emphasis on culture as part of our ‘Ama Odisha, Nabin Odisha’ initiative. This year, 9 SDCs have been allocated additional funds of Rs 175.5 crore”, the CM added.
The Special Development Council under the aegis of the ST & SC Development, Minorities & Backward Classes Welfare Department conducted a State Level Event on the occasion of Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas.
The event held at the Convention Centre, Lok Seva Bhavan, focused on the distribution of musical instruments and dance costumes to tribal cultural troupes of 9 SDC districts – Sundergarh, Rayagada, Nabarangpur, Mayurbhanj, Malkangiri, Koraput, Keonjhar, Kandhamal and Gajapati.
The Chief Minister said that he is happy to share that musical instruments and dance costumes will benefit over sixty thousand tribals.
“Let’s use these resources and work towards the promotion of our culture,” the CM urged.
Jagannath Saraka, Minister, ST & SC Dev., M & BCW Department, and Law, Odisha, graced the occasion with an impactful address, emphasising the importance of cultural preservation.
“The government set up SDCs to protect and promote tribal culture. So far, over 1,800 tribal groups have received musical instruments, and 1,000 dance troupes have been given costumes to preserve their culture. Under Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s leadership, we’re seeing progress in agriculture, education, healthcare, skill development, social security, women empowerment, and sports, setting an example for other states,” the Minister said.
The event commenced with a welcome address by Roopa Roshan Sahoo, Commissioner-cum-Secretary, ST & SC Development, M&BCW Department, where she underscored the achievements of the SDC.
“Launched in 2017-18, SDC has expanded from 9 to 23 districts, covering 173 blocks, in just 5 years, with 14 districts added in the 2023-24 financial year. Today (November 15), on the occasion of Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas, I express a lot of pride in the state’s commendable work. The SDC aims to organise 500 cultural festivals by March 2024 and plans a state-level conclave for tribals on February 14, 15 and 16, 2024. By then, we would have also established over 2,800 culture clubs across the state,” she said.
Musical instruments worth Rs. 7.49 crore provided to 1,891 tribal cultural troupes, while dance costumes valued at Rs. 11.63 provided to 818 troupes which will be distributed across 9 Districts. Collectively, 2,709 tribal troupes will benefit, impacting about 67,500 individuals from tribal communities.
The event concluded on a note of gratitude, with Indramani Tripathy, Director, ST, ST & SC Development, M&BCW Department, expressing thanks to all participants.
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