Odisha CM appeals women to offer millet to Goddess Lakshmi

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Sunday appealed to Odia women to offer millet grains to Goddess Lakshmi on the occasion of the upcoming 'Manabasa Gurubara' festival.

'Manabasa Gurubara', a festival of Goddess Mahalaxmi is celebrated on every Thursday of the Odia month of 'Margasira' (November-December). The people usually offer foodgrains including rice to the Goddess of wealth on this occasion.

Majhi appealed to Odia women to offer millet or millet-made dishes to the Goddess on 'Manabasa Gurubara' while inaugurating the two-day long International Symposium on Shree Anna (millet) & Forgotten Foods (ISSFF) here. This move will go a long way in the promotion of millet, he said.

The chief minister said the state government is committed to develop Odisha as the millet hub of India. The state has made a provision of Rs 649 crore in this year's budget for the promotion of millet, he stated.

Millet cultivation, which was started in undivided Koraput district of Odisha, has turned out to be a revolution across the country and spread to 177 out of 314 blocks in the state.

The state government is providing necessary support to farmers to increase the production of millet, he said, adding, "We have to include it in the daily food chain of the people." The chief minister has called upon food bloggers to bring new types of dishes and new cooking styles to make millet a delicious foodgrain.

"Our women farmers have turned millet cultivation into a movement in Odisha", Majhi said.

He said that Odisha is playing a key role in reviving millet, the nutrient-rich forgotten crop.

Addressing the gathering, Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo said, "People living in our tribal areas are producing forgotten crops and using them as food. It is more nutritious and vitamin-rich than the food we eat. Under the guidance of the Prime Minister, millet-like grains have been revived. We all need to include this nutritious grain in our food chain." Ramesh Chand, member (agriculture) of NITI Aayog, said that promotion of millet in Odisha would bring prosperity in tribal areas of the state. He suggested the Odisha government to rope in some private investors for value addition and trade-based production of major crops.