Odisha CM Mohan Majhi urges people to offer millet before Goddess Lakshmi on ‘Manabasa Gurubara’

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Majhi on Sunday urged the people of the State to offer food prepared from millet before Goddess Lakshmi on the occasion of the upcoming ‘Manabasa Gurubara’ in the Odia month of ‘Margasira’.

According to CM Majhi, the initiative will go a long way to provide a boost to the use of millet.

The Chief Minister made the special request to the people of Odisha while addressing the International Symposium on Shree Anna and Forgotten Foods (ISSFF) organised by the Agriculture Department of the Odisha government.

Various kinds of millet and forgotten foods have been demonstrated at the symposium.

“Our mothers will observe the first ‘Manabasa Gurubara’ of ‘Margasira’. I request all the mothers and sisters to offer millet before Goddess Lakshmi on the special occasion and serve food prepared from millet to all the members of the family,” said CM Majhi.

“The initiative will go a long way in promoting the use of millet in the coming days,” he added.

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 food grain.

“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.