BHUBANESWAR: In a bid to promote the Odia language, literature, and culture, the state government has decided to celebrate Odia Pakhya for a fortnight from April 1 (Odia Day) to April 14 (Odia New Year), with pomp and grandeur.
Announcing this at a media conference on Sunday, Odia Language, Literature, and Culture Minister Suryabanshi Suraj said the government has scheduled various programs during this 15-day period. The programs will be organized under the aegis of the Information and Public Relations, Odia Language, Literature and Culture, School and Mass Education, Women and Child Development, and Sports and Youth Services departments, among others, he added.
While Odisha Day will be celebrated on April 1 at the state, district, and sub-division levels to mark the formation of a language-based state, the School and Mass Education department will organize various events on April 2.
Similarly, on April 3, the Department of Handlooms, Textiles, and Handicrafts will hold a program on the theme ‘Our Dress, Our Identity’ to promote traditional Odia wear and the handloom and textile industry of the state. On April 4, the Labour and Employees’ State Insurance Department will hold a name plaque campaign in Odia, which will be an awareness march to encourage people to put up nameplates in the language in shops and markets across the state, the minister said.
"A cleanliness drive will be held on April 6 to keep the temples and heritage sites in Odisha clean. This program will be jointly organized by the Odia Language, Literature and Culture, Tourism, and Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water departments,” Suraj said.
Meanwhile, April 7 will be celebrated as ‘Varnbodh Utsav’ to mark the distribution of ‘Varnbodh’, a devotional poem written by Madhusudan Rao that provides an early introduction to the Odia language. The event will be organized by the Department of Odia Language, Literature and Culture.
A campaign, ‘Come, Buy a Book’, will be launched on April 9 to promote Odia literature and encourage book reading among the masses. “Several such programs will be organized on all days of the fortnight to promote, popularize, and spread Odia language, literature, and culture,” the minister said.
The Opposition BJD has, however, strongly criticized this initiative by the government. Terming it as a drama planned by the BJP government to cover up its failures, Deputy Leader of the BJD Legislature Party Prasanna Acharya said, “The government has failed to present its demands to the Centre in a strong manner. Central funds are decreasing, which is affecting the implementation of various schemes in the state. In this scenario, the government speaking of celebrating Odia Pakhya to promote ‘Odia Asmita’ is ridiculous