Strong in cultural pride and modern aspirations President, Droupadi Murmu visited the Antarrajyiy Jansanskritik Samagam Samaroh – Kartik Jatra at Gumla- Jharkhand on Tuesday December 10 Good vibes are full of good feelings! Speaking to a rapt ocean of tribal peoples from Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha, the President’s sentiment was nimble in its depth: the future of India’s adivasis (indigenous people) is in the subtle equilibrium struck between safeguarding ancestral practices, promised by tradition, and commanding modern education, offered through it.
The two-day festival, that took place at Manjhatoli in the Raidih block of the district, doubled up as a homecoming for the President. Describing her visit to Jharkhand as a “pilgrimage“, Gandhi paid tribute to the land where Bhagwan Birsa Munda worked and was born as an iconic figure of tribal resistance and social justice.
Remembering Kartik Oraon
The occasion, which was well-planned to coincide with the 100th birth anniversary of Pankhraj Saheb Kartik Oraon — a visionary leader who came up from the rural heartlands of Gumla to emerge as one of the most articulate voices in Parliament representing India’s Vanvasis (forest dwellers).
Murmu complimented Kartik Oraon as the leaven which bonded old and new. Despite being brought up with elite education abroad, Oraon preferred to return back in the home land and his life became devoted to tribal consciousness monitor and cultural continuities.
He also welcomed the assurance of the president that Kartik Oraon’s old dream to setup a university in Gumla is soon going to be fulfilled and it will open new sessions for higher growth of youth.
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Education as Path to ‘Inclusive Growth’
Education and its importance in tribal empowerment was a core of the President’s statement. She noted with worry that educated tribal boys and girls are moving to the cities in a drift from their own villages. The new generation, she said needed to be “cultural ambassadors” and “information bridges.”
The Call to Action for Youth
Rooted Progress: Embrace science and technology but not at the cost of tribal identity or the mother tongue.
Soil Service: The soil is not to respond Use the experience of education to educate less-educated colleagues about government welfare programs, and let them take advantage of it.
Leadership: Own the narrative of development, trickle down the dividends of growth to reach the “last person” in society.
A Tapestry of Interstate Unity
The Kartik Jatra is an exclusive cultural mahakum held together by more than 1,000 cultural groups from three states. The tri-junction of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha is forested, with many rivers passing through mountains.
Jharkhand Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar and Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai were among the dignitaries sharing the stage with the President, underlining interstate collaborative efforts to conserve these common heritage. The Governor noted that the congregation was a tangible embodiment of “Ek Bharat–Shreshtha Bharat” where varied folk dances, music and philosophies converge to form one national identity.
Remembering the Heroes of the Soil
In her address, the President also mentioned other eminent personalities from Gumla:
Jatra Tana Bhagat : The gandhian way of life non violent revolutionary who spearheaded the Tana Bhagat movement.
Shaheed Albert Ekka – A Param Vir Chakra Awardee whose bravery during the 1971 war is a source of national pride.
Safeguarding India’s ‘Living Museums’
The Central Government is setting up tribal museums in different parts of the country so that stories of tribal heroes do not disappear from history, said President Murmu. But she also reminded the audience that the most valuable museum is a living one, bequeathed through oral traditions and localized festivals and children’s use of his or her native language on weekdays.
It was the President’s visit to Gumla in a three-day trip where he celebrated Ol Chiki script and addressed its centenary in Jamshedpur amongst others, including addressing the convocation at NIT Jamshedpur. Her visit to the local headquarters in Gumla was a significant enough reminder that while the President’s office is located in the corridors of power in New Delhi, her heart beats for the struggle and rhythm of the tribal heartland.
It was just one message that reverberated through the hills of Gumla with the drums beating for Kartik Jatra — that India is not merely in an Adivasi past, but an Adivasi future.
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