In a message to citizens on the eve of the birth anniversary of Birsa Munda, now celebrated as ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas’, President Droupadi Murmu Thursday remembered tribal icons, praised the Narendra Modi government for celebrating tribal cultures and heritage as also bringing development and infrastructure to tribal communities. Even as Birsa Munda’s birth anniversary is being celebrated, 18 assembly seats of the Santal Parganas in Jharkhand – a state with significant tribal populations and also the home state of Birsa Munda – will go to polls on November 20. Greeting people with Johar, Murmu said, “I observe a new consciousness being spread across the country for tribal pride and the ideals of the Constitution. This consciousness is being transformed into action. This spirit will become the foundation of the bright future of the entire country, including the tribal society.” Commending PM Modi for his work among tribals, she recalled that last year on Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas, he became the first Prime Minister to visit Birsa Munda’s village Ulihatu and “sought the blessings of Bhagwan Birsa Munda”. On the same day, he recalled, PM Janjati Adivasi Nyay Maha-Abhiyan (PM-JANMAN) was launched from Jharkhand. Murmu recalled how tribal heroes Sidhu-Kanho and Chand-Bhairav waged an organised revolt, the Santal hool, against British rule in 1855, also recalling the valour of the sisters Phulo-Jhano. “Museums are being built in various parts of the country in memory of tribal heroes. The museum of Bhagwan Birsa Munda in Ranchi has become a site of pilgrimage. A museum named 'Janjatiya Darpan' has also been developed in Rashtrapati Bhavan,” she said. She said that due to the efforts of the government, people in general were getting acquainted with tribal heroes. Breaking with the view that tribals constitute a cultural group separated from the “mainstream”, Murmu in her statement evoked the Ramayana, “For ages, people of tribal society have been enriching the civilization and culture of our country. The eternal life values of our society are visible in the story of Ramayana. During his long exile, Prabhu Shri Ram lived with the people of the tribal society like one of them. Prabhu Shri Ram adopted the forest dwellers and the forest dwellers adopted Prabhu Shri Ram. This spirit of affinity and harmony, found in the tribal society, is the basis of our culture and civilization.” “Even after several decades of independence, most of the people of the tribal communities led their lives with a lot of difficulties due to lack of their own houses and basic facilities like electricity, water and roads,” Murmu said, adding, “But, now these facilities are being provided to them. Their standard of living has improved. Along with this, opportunities for economic development are also increasing for them. The present government is taking forward the journey of tribal development and welfare at a fast pace.” She asserted that the PM-JANMAN Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Modi last year “aims to bring about comprehensive development of the people of the PVTG communities”. Under this campaign, she added, a target has been set to provide many facilities to the people of the PVTG community before the time limit of three years, with an expenditure of more than Rs. 24000 crore. “This year, on 2nd October…, the Central Government launched the 'Dharti Aba Janjati Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan' from the land of Bhagwan Birsa Munda. The objective of this campaign with an allocation of Rs 80000 crore is to ensure that every tribal person should get the benefit of government schemes. Every tribal village should be connected through roads and mobile connectivity. All tribal families should have their own house. About 63 thousand tribal villages will benefit from this campaign of development and welfare. More than five crore tribal people will benefit from this nationwide campaign,” Murmu said. She reiterated that more than 700 Eklavya Model Residential Schools are being built in the country to provide good education to tribal children. The target of eliminating Sickle Cell Anemia, a disease common in tribal communities, from tribal society is included under the goal of building a developed India by the year 2047, she underlined. She also said that budget 2024-25 saw allocation to the Ministry of Tribal Affairs increasing 74-%. “About 100 people from the tribal communities have been honoured with Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri awards during the last 10 years. Governors and Chief Ministers of many states, ministers in central and state governments and many people holding high positions are from the tribal communities,” Murmu said.
