On October 28, 2023, the Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, in the presence of Odisha BJP president Manmohan Samal, flagged off the ‘Amrit Kalash Yatra’ train at Odisha’s Bhubaneswar railway station. The flagging-off ceremony was graced by the presence of BJP MPs Aparajita Sarangi and Pratap Sarangi and several party MLAs and other senior leaders along with railway officials.
Earlier, Dharmendra Pradhan along with Odisha BJP leader Manmohan Samal participated in padayatra under Amrit Kalash Yatra, started from state party headquarters and ended at Bhubaneswar railway station.
Collecting Soils
Dharmendra Pradhan, on the occasion, while speaking to media personnel said, “Today is a fortunate day. At the call of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the campaign of collecting soil from the villages, cities and panchayats of bravehearts, is reaching towards its conclusion.”
Around 1400 members from all the 314 blocks across Odisha boarded on special train, who have collected sacred soil from houses in the state and brought Amrit Kalash to state party headquarters.
He further said, “The soil has been gathered from 13250 villages of Odisha as we reached the villages of all those who have sacrificed their lives from independence till now. Today, 1400 representatives have left for Delhi and at the completion of the Amrit Mahotsav, an Amrut Vatika would be built.”
Amrit Kalash Yatra is a special train under the ‘Meri Maati Mera Desh’ campaign.
Meri Maati Mera Desh Campaign
As the culminating campaign of two-year-long Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, “Meri Maati Mera Desh- Maati Ko Naman Veeron ka Vandan” is the unified celebration of India’s soil and valour. It has witnessed tremendous Jan Bhagidari (public participation) with more than 7000 blocks from 766 districts of the country.
In its first phase, the campaign became a massive success, with over 2.33 lakh Shilaphalakams built in 36 States and UTs, nearly 4 crore Panch Pran pledge selfies uploaded, and over 2 lakh Veeron ka Vandan programs nationwide. Additionally, more than 2.36 crore indigenous saplings have been planted, and 2.63 lakh Amrit Vatikas created under the Vasudha Vandan theme.
In the second phase of Meri Maati Mera Desh, Amrit Kalash Yatras were planned to touch every household in the country. Soil and rice grains were collected from over 6 lakh villages in rural areas and from wards in urban areas across India. Collected soil from each village was mixed at the block level and then brought to the state capital, and with a ceremonial send-off, sent to the national capital with thousands of Amrit Kalash Yatris. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the final event of the ‘Meri Maati Mera Desh’ campaign in the national capital on October 31.
