BHOPAL: Eighteenth century’s legendary Holkar dynasty queen Devi Ahilyabai Holkar – who is famous for good governance and social reforms, besides cultural patronage and religious contributions – is presently at the centerstage of BJP’s development politics in Madhya Pradesh.
Ongoing celebrations marking the 300th birth anniversary of the visionary queen of Malwa kingdom, which began in September 2024, will reach its zenith on May 31 (the birth anniversary date) – when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the ‘Lokmata Devi Ahilyabai Mahila Sashaktikaran Mahasammelan’ at Bhopal’s Jamboree Maidan.
The mega gathering of women (perhaps the first all women mega gathering to be addressed by the PM anywhere since Operation Sindoor) will see the presence of two lakh women from across the state.
“The gathering will have the presence of women entrepreneurs, workers, self help group members as well as beneficiaries of various women-oriented welfare schemes, like CM Ladli Behna Yojana. It will also see the PM virtually inaugurating the metro railway for Indore, unveiling new airports in Satna and Datia and foundation laying of a Kshipra river ghat in Ujjain,” state’s urban development and housing minister Kailash Vijayvargiya said.
“While the PM will inaugurate the projects virtually from Bhopal, union ministers are likely to be present in each of the locations, Indore, Ujjain, Satna and Datia simultaneously,” he said.
The PM is also likely to release a Rs 300 commemorative coin of the 18th century queen to mark the historic occasion.
The mega gathering of the women marking the 18th century queen’s birth anniversary in Bhopal on May 31, will happen 11 days after the May 20 state cabinet special meeting at Rajwada Palace of Indore, the principal seat of the Holkar dynasty’s kingdom.
The special state cabinet had approved development projects and schemes worth Rs 3867 crores, including the in-principle approval to the Lokmata Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Training Scheme, aimed at providing employment-oriented skill development to state’s youth and women.
Under the scheme, eligible individuals will receive an annual interest subsidy of Rs 1,000, with a lifetime cap of Rs 10,000 per person on loan interest. The scheme will entail an annual expenditure of approximately Rs 100 crore.
The meeting had also approved an ambitious scheme of building working women hostels in all industrial areas of the state to increase and ensure safe participation of women workforce in the industrial process.
With Devi Ahilyabai Holkar being particularly known for contribution to Hindu religion through restoration and construction of temples, ghats and other religious structures (among them the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi and the Somnath Temple in Gujarat), the special state cabinet meeting had also approved Rs 2195 crore-plus for construction of the Acharya Shankar Museum ‘Advait Lok’ under the Ekatma Dham Project at Omkareshwar. The funding will cover: Advait Lok Museum, Acharya Shankar International Institute of Advaita Vedanta, Advait Nilyam, Project Information Center, Shankar Setu and Abhay Ghat.
The special state cabinet meeting on May 20 in Indore was the second special state cabinet meeting (as part of the year long 300th birth anniversary celebrations) after January 24 similar state cabinet meeting in the riverside religious town of Maheshwar, which was the capital of Ahilyabai’s empire between 1765 to 1796.
At the January 24 meeting, the Dr Mohan Yadav led cabinet decided to impose a total liquor ban in 19 religious cities and towns which was termed by the CM, as the starting point to a more ambitious total liquor ban across the state in the times to come.
Ahead of the May 31 mega gathering of women to be addressed by the PM in Bhopal, several other events are being held across the state, including essay, painting and debate competitions in schools and colleges. On Wednesday, a state-level fair of women entrepreneurs was addressed by the CM in tribal dominated Betul district.
On May 29, health check camps till the block level with special focus on breast cancer will be organised across the state, followed by Ahilya Vahini motorbike rally for women across the state on May 30.
Summed up Indore mayor and BJP leader Pushyamitra Bhargava, “The year long 300th birth anniversary celebrations of Devi Ahilyabai Holkar is particularly important as she was famous for good governance and women empowerment. The same theme is also guiding the BJP government led by Dr Mohan Yadav in the state. The celebrations, particularly the unveiling of multiple projects on May 31, including the much-awaited metro rail for Indore, will establish that the legendary queen is not just a motherly figure for Indore, but iconic mother ‘Lokmata’ of development for the entire state.”
According to Bhopal-based senior journalist Rajeev Soni, “Devi Ahilyabai Holkar is synonymous to good governance and particularly enjoys an iconic status in the entire Malwa region with Indore being its nucleus. The grand celebrations to mark her 300th birth anniversary also assumes special significance as it’s the first time that any CM (Dr Mohan Yadav hails from adjoining Ujjain) is the guardian minister of Indore. Further celebrating motherly iconic legendary queen’s tricentenary birth celebrations on such major scale with women empowerment being in the focus, is also likely to help the government, particularly the CM Dr Mohan Yadav bolster its already strong connect with women, who since decades have formed the backbone of BJP’s prime support base in MP.”
As per politically informed sources, the grand celebrations which started in September are part of BJP’s parent outfit RSS’s year-long series of engagements reflecting on Devi Aahilyabai Holkar’s life and times.
In his Vijayadashami speech in October 2024, the RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat had described Devi Ahilyabai as a skilled administrator and a dutiful, conscientious ruler who strived for the welfare of people and was proud of Dharma, Sanskriti and motherland.
“The celebrations are in line with the RSS’s events across the country to project Devi Ahilyabai Holkar as an icon of cultural nationalism. With an MP having a CM with strong RSS roots, the major celebrations and related development-oriented decisions were bound to happen in the state of the queen's rule,” an RSS source said.
The opposition Congress, however, has a question amid the ongoing celebrations. “Devi Ahilyabai Holkar’s 300th birth anniversary is a prideful moment for all of us. She was also known for her unflinching commitment towards women empowerment, exemplified among other initiatives by her advocacy and sustained efforts for widow remarriage. But what BJP and the state government did in the year of these celebrations, it has failed to sack cabinet minister Vijay Shah, for his “sister of terrorists” remarks about the female face of Operation Sindoor, Colonel Sofia Qureshi,” said state party spokesperson Bhupendra Gupta.