Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah unveils a grand statue of Bhagwan Birsa Munda in New Delhi on the occasion of his 150th birth anniversary

Ministry of Home Affairs

Posted On: 15 NOV 2024 3:38PM by PIB Delhi

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation, Shri Amit Shah today unveiled a grand statue of Bhagwan Birsa Munda at Baansera Park in New Delhi on the occasion of his 150th birth anniversary year. The event was attended by Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs Shri Manohar Lal, Lieutenant Governor of Delhi Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena, Union Minister of State Shri Harsh Malhotra, and several other dignitaries.

In his address during the program, Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah said that in 2021, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi had announced that the birth anniversary of Bhagwan Birsa Munda (November 15) would be celebrated as Janjatiya Gaurav Divas (Tribal Pride Day). He stated that it was on this very day that Bhagwan Birsa Munda was born in a small village in Jharkhand. Shri Shah said that in commemoration of the 150th birth anniversary of Birsa Munda, the coming year, till 15 November 2025, will be celebrated as Adivasi Gaurav Varsh. He said that on the occasion of the 150th birth anniversary of Bhagwan Birsa Munda, the Modi government has also decided to change the name of Sarai Kale Khan Chowk to ‘Bhagwan Birsa Munda Chowk’.

Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah said that Bhagwan Birsa Munda not only became the savior of his original tribal culture, but in his short life of 25 years, he explained to many people of the country through his deeds how to lead one’s life and what should be the aim and goal in our lives. He said that Bhagwan Birsa Munda has definitely been one of the great heroes of freedom struggle. He said that born in the year 1875, Bhagwan Birsa Munda at a very young age, raised his voice against religious conversion during his secondary education. Shri Shah said that when the whole of India and two-thirds of the world was ruled by the British, at that time Birsa Munda displayed the courage of standing firmly against religious conversion and later this determination and bravery transformed him into a leader of this country. He added that from the jail in Ranchi to the Queen of England, national hero Birsa Munda ji had become the voice of the countrymen.

Shri Amit Shah said that Bhagwan Birsa Munda revived the concept that water, forest and land are integral elements of tribal ecosystem, livelihood and culture and they are everything for the tribals. He said that Birsa Munda spread various other awareness in the tribal society. He opposed alcohol consumption, the exploitative system of the landlords and the British Raj. Shri Shah said that the entire country will be grateful to Bhagwan Birsa Munda for the social reforms of the tribal society of this country, for the freedom struggle and for the anti-conversion movement.

Home Minister Shri Amit Shah said that the life of Bhagwan Birsa Munda, also known as “Dharti Aba” (Father of the Earth), can be seen by dividing it into two parts. The first part is his commitment towards protecting the tribal culture while the second part is his passion to make the supreme sacrifice for the freedom of the motherland and its protection. He added that at the age of just 25, Bhagwan Birsa Munda lit the flame of revolution against the British rule and drew the attention of not only the country but the whole world towards the condition of the tribals and wrote such a saga with his works that even after 150 years, the whole country bows before him today.

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation said that tribals participated enthusiastically in the freedom struggle against the British across the country, but unfortunately these great heroes were forgotten after independence. He said that in the year 2015, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi decided to build museums of 20 tribal great heroes in the country at a cost of ₹200 crore so that children can become familiar with the lives of these great heroes. He said that three museums have been built so far. PM Modi has inaugurated Bhagwan Birsa Munda Museum in Ranchi, Shankar Shah and Raghunath Shah Museum in Jabalpur and Tribal Freedom Fighter Museum in Chhindwara. All the remaining museums will be ready by the year 2026.

Shri Amit Shah said that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s government has done a lot of work for tribal pride. He said that for the first time in 75 years after independence, the Modi government has given a tribal the opportunity to become the President of India. He said that Smt. Droupadi Murmu is the daughter of a poor tribal family and today she is adorning the position of the first citizen of the country. Shri Shah said that in the last 10 years, Shri Narendra Modi’s government has almost eliminated Naxalism, which was blocking development in tribal areas and misleading the children.

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah said that the opposition parties’ government had a budget of only ₹28,000 crore for the development of tribals, while the Modi government has made a provision of ₹1,33,000 crore for the development of tribals in the budget for the year 2024-25. He said that under the Pradhan Mantri Adarsh ​​Gram Yojana, all the basic facilities have been fully provided in 26,428 tribal villages. He said that under the District Mineral Foundation Scheme, ₹97 thousand crore was distributed in tribal areas, 708 Eklavya Model Residential Schools were built, ₹15,000 crore under Pradhan Mantri PVTG Development Mission and ₹24,000 crore under Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Unnat Gram Abhiyan have been given for the complete development of 63,000 villages.

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