BHUBANESWAR: In a significant cultural and patriotic initiative, the Odisha government has announced a statewide programme for the collective singing of Vande Mataram across all educational institutions on January 12, marking the 150th anniversary of the iconic national song. The event will coincide with the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, celebrated nationwide as National Youth Day.
As part of the programme, students from schools, colleges, and universities will collectively sing Vande Mataram and recite the Atmanirbhar Bharat Swadeshi Sankalp, reaffirming their commitment to self-reliance and national values. Each educational institution will nominate one student as an Atmanirbhar Bharat Ambassador to promote self-reliance and patriotism among peers. In addition, various competitions will be organised, and meritorious students will be felicitated for their performance and participation. Youth clubs across the state will also actively participate in the collective singing initiative.
The programme is being coordinated by the Odia Language, Literature and Culture Department, which has issued detailed instructions to all district collectors to ensure smooth and effective implementation. As part of the preparatory process, a statewide Vande Mataram Training Programme has been conducted. For this purpose, the state was divided into five zones—Jeypore, Berhampur, Balasore, Sambalpur, and Bhubaneswar—where zonal-level training programmes were organised.
Zonal training sessions were held at Berhampur, Balasore, and Jeypore on December 23, 30, and 31, 2025, respectively. The Sambalpur zonal training programme was completed on January 2, 2026, while the Bhubaneswar zonal-level training concluded on January 3, 2026. Three teachers from each block, municipal corporation, and NAC—two from school level and one from college or university level—nominated by the respective district collectors, participated in these sessions. These trained teachers will further conduct training programmes at the block, municipal corporation, and NAC levels. The department has directed that all such training programmes be completed by January 10, 2026.
Addressing the Bhubaneswar zonal-level training programme held at Utkal University, Culture Minister Suryabanshi Suraj highlighted the historic significance of Vande Mataram, stating that the song became the voice of India’s freedom movement and continues to inspire national consciousness and patriotic fervour. He added that the song instils courage and inner strength among citizens.
The event was attended by Ekamra MLA Shri Babu Singh, Secretary of the Odia Language, Literature and Culture Department Dr. Bijay Ketan Upadhyay, Khordha Collector Shri Amrit Ruturaj, Additional District Magistrate Shri Pratap Chandra Beura, Odisha Sahitya Akademi Secretary Dr. Chandrasekhar Hota, Utkal University Vice-Chancellor Prof. Yajneswar Dandapat, noted social worker and Saha Kshetra Pracharak of RSS Shri Jagadish Prasad Khadanga, and eminent musicians Shri Rajanikanta Mahapatra, Shri Yamini Kanta Mishra, Shri Niranjan Panda, and Shri Deepak Raut.
