-Celebrating International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples
Bhubaneswar: Ever wondered how the indigenous community boys propose their ladylove? Love in the air, romance in the eyes, smile on the lips and no, not a rose but a comb, an intricately designed comb, carved out of bamboo in hand and they gift it to the girl while proposing. We are talking about the Juang tribe of Odisha.
The story is quite interesting. The Juang boy gifts it to the girl of his choice and if the girl accepts and wears it in her hair, then it’s a match. And, whoa, they are good to marry each other.
This hardly known interesting tradition of the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group stole many hearts at the celebration of International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples by Tata Steel Mining in association with Tata Steel Foundation at its Sukinda Chromite Mine on Wednesday.
The company, in a heart-warming celebration of traditional tribal cultural heritage, had organised a captivating exhibition highlighting aboriginal artifacts, indigenous kitchen utensils, musical instruments, farming tools, dresses and jewelleries. The event attended by tribal communities like Ho, Santhal, Munda, Bhumij and PVTGs like the Juang and Mankidia mesmerised the visitors with fascinating stories that spoke volumes about the unique customs and rituals of various tribal groups.
Gracing the event, Pritiranjan Gharai, Hon’ble Minister, Rural Development, Skill Development & Technical Education, Govt. of Odisha expressed his delight and said, “It’s my pleasure to be here on this special occasion and I thank all the team members for organising such a beautiful event to celebrate various aspects of tribal heritage.”
Addressing the gathering at the do, Parmanand Patel, State Coordinator of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Research and Training Institute highlighted the rights of the SC and ST communities and shed light on the various welfare schemes implemented by the government for the communities.
Pankaj Satija, Managing Director, Tata Steel Mining, said, “We have always strived to protect and celebrate the diverse tribal heritage and culture and to foster respect for the indigenous way of life. This one is part of a series of initiatives on the promotion of tribal and indigenous food, medicinal practices, music, heritage, etc. to ensure the rich tradition is preserved for future generations. We remain committed to empowering tribal communities through our various initiatives.”
In its attempt to promote traditional tribal treatment therapy, tribal music and musical instruments, authentic tribal foods and document indigenous community stories on biodiversity, Tata Steel Mining in the past has successfully organised numerous events like Green Therapy, Sarjom Baa, Prajatiya Khadyotsav, Jaiba Kala Vividhata, Snakes Are Friends and unique story telling sessions on biodiversity. The company is currently documenting the indigenous community stories on biodiversity.
