The Khadial Patna Kshyatriya Samaj celebrated its 42nd Annual Foundation Day at Mahakhand village of Balangir district recently. Thousands of men, women, youths, students and children of Nuapada and Balangir districts attended the event and participated in different socio-cultural and educational activities organised on the occasion.
President of the Samaj Sambhu Kishore Dandsena presided over a meeting held on the occasion. Chief guest Kantabanji MLA Santosh Singh Saluja said the first war of Independence against British was by Paikas of Odisha in 1817.
Khariar MLA Adhiraj Mohan Panigrahi, guest of honour, said the contribution of Kshyatriyas in the security of the country was unique. Among others, ZP Member Chitta Ranjan Behera, senior member Gyan Prakash Singh, Nand Lal Barik, Dillip Naik, Surendra Kumar Pradhani were the main speakers.
Hundreds of competitions were held during the festival.
The Khadial Patna Kshyatriya Samaj has created a unique identity as a disciplined body by bringing reformation in the society," said coordinator Parameswar Barik.
The Kshyatriya Youth Sports and Cultural Association celebrated Dussehra Navami a few days back at Khariar. A procession was held in the memory of great fighters of the past who fought bravely to protect the society. The youths performed various traditional martial art skills wielding traditional weapons. Young women also stepped forward to exhibit weaponry skills for the first time. "This was to honour the contribution of women in protecting society and country," said the organisers.