Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda and Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated the 3-day Uttarakhand Tribal Festival in Dehradun, informed the Ministry of Tribal Affairs on Friday.
The ministry stated that Uttarakhand Tribal Festival is part of the celebrations of 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' being celebrated across the country and is one of the curtain-raiser programmes being organized ahead of the week-long celebrations of Amrit Mahotsav from 15th-22nd November 2021.
As one of the themes of the AmritMaohtsav is the Whole of Government approach and Jan-bhagidaari, the State-Tribal Research Cum-Cultural Centre and Museum (T.R.I.) in collaboration with the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, the Government of India has jointly organized the festival to promote and showcase the rich traditions, culture, art, handicrafts and food of the tribes of Uttarakhand namely Jaunsari, Tharu, Boksa, Bhotia and Raji.
On the occasion, Munda, acknowledged the commitment of the Central Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the overall development of the tribal community. He thanked PM Modi for declaring15th November 2021 as "Janjaati Gaurav Diwas".
Munda congratulated and appreciated the efforts of the Uttarakhand Government towards the development of tribal communities. He promised to fulfil the demands of the Chief Minister by setting up 2 EMRS, a Museum for Freedom Fighters and 5000 tablets for tribal students. He thanked citizens of Uttarakhand and the Tribal community of Uttarakhand for organizing the festival and participating the event with great enthusiasm.
Munda, on this occasion, paid his tributes to Bhagwan Birsa Munda, who was a freedom fighter and sacrificed his life fighting for "Jal, Jungle and Jameen."
He urged the Uttarakhand Government to send a proposal under Article275 and other schemes of Ministry which would go a long way for the empowerment of Tribes under Article 275 of the Indian Constitution.
He congratulated the students and teachers of Eklavya Model Residential School, Kalsi Dehradun on their exceptional performance in the field of Education and for emerging as a role model in quality education. He emphasized the significance of educating the communities regarding the Forest Rights Act and Community Forest Rights and working with TRIFED on increasing the livelihood of the tribal community.
Speaking on the occasion, Dhami payed homage to freedom fighter Veer Shaheed Keshri Chand ji and said that Uttarakhand has been a land of freedom fighters. He said the event demonstrated the rich and diverse tribal art and culture.
The main attraction of the event is Jhanki by all five tribes of Uttarakhand which depicted the traditional cultural ethos of Uttarakhand. (ANI)
