The President of India, Droupadi Murmu, visited Ulihatu village in Khunti district of Jharkhand on Tuesday morning on the Janjatiya Gaurav Divas and paid her respects before the statue of Bhagwan Birsa Munda.
The President reached Ranchi in the morning and was welcomed by Governor Ramesh Bais, Chief Minister Hemant Soren and other dignitaries at the Birsa Munda Airport. The president was then given a magnificent Guard of Honour by the VC Paltan of Stryker Brigade of the Indian Army. The parade was commanded by Col Prashant Mishra and the entire event was coordinated and organised by Lt Col Saurabh Chaudhury, SM, a son of soil of Ranchi.
The President then left for Ulihatu, the village of Bhagwan Birsa Munda, where she paid tributes to the tribal icon of the country and one of the most revered tribal freedom fighters of the nation. After garlanding the statue and paying floral tributes to Bhagwan Birsa Munda, the President interacted with family members of Bhagwan Birsa. She also met Lugni Munda, a divine lady, and her son Dilip Munda whom the President had adopted and funded his education.
Later, the President left for Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh where she addressed a Janjatiya Samagam. Addressing the gathering, the President greeted the fellow citizens on the occasion of Janjatiya Gaurav Divas. She said that Madhya Pradesh has the largest tribal population in the country. Therefore, organising this Samagam in the state was appropriate.
The President said that the spirit of sacrificing everything in the interest of justice has been the speciality of the tribal society. In our freedom struggle, different ideologies and activities have played an important role. The history of freedom struggle also includes several streams of struggles by the tribal communities. Many great personalities like Bhagwan Birsa Munda and Sidhu-Kanhu of Jharkhand, Tantia Bhil and Bhima Nayak of Madhya Pradesh, Alluri Sitarama Raju of Andhra Pradesh, Rani Gaidinliu of Manipur and Saheed Laxman Nayak of Odisha have enhanced tribal pride and also amplified the pride of the country. Many revolutionary warriors of Madhya Pradesh include Kishore Singh, Khajya Nayak, Rani Phool Kunwar, Sitaram Kanwar, Mahua Kol, Shankar Shah and Raghunath Shah. Revered as the 'Gandhi of Chhindwara', Shri Badal Bhoi had chosen the path of non-violence for the freedom struggle. The President paid her tributes to all such freedom fighters.
The President said that most of the tribal areas have been rich in forest and mineral wealth. Our tribal brothers and sisters live a life based on nature and respectfully protect nature. They had fought fiercely during British rule to protect this natural wealth from exploitation.
Conservation of forest wealth was, to a large extent, possible due to their sacrifices. In today's time of climate change and global warming, everyone needs to learn from the lifestyle of tribal society and their determination towards forest conservation.
The President said that tribal communities give equal importance to humanity and nature. They give priority to the community over individuality, cooperation over competition and equality over distinctiveness. Equality between men and women is a feature of the tribal society. Gender-ratio in tribal society is better than that of the general population. These characteristics of tribal society are exemplary for all.
The President was happy to note that the Central and State Governments have taken several steps for the development of tribal communities in the past few years. She said that the holistic national development and the development of the tribal community are interlinked. Therefore, efforts are being made to maintain the identity of tribal communities, increase the sense of self-pride among them and at the same time benefit from the fruits of development. Development of tribal areas in the spirit of harmony is beneficial for all.