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Bilaspur, November 15, 2025: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Dev Sai today announced the installation of a life-size statue of Bhagwan Birsa Munda in Bilaspur and the naming of a prominent square in the city after him, on his 150th birth anniversary.
A grand and dignified celebration of National Tribal Pride Day was held here to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Bhagwan Birsa Munda. Addressing a large gathering, Chief Minister Sai said that the history of tribal society is steeped in valour, sacrifice, and pride.
Sai said that the contribution of tribal heroes in the country’s freedom struggle has been incomparable and unforgettable, but they have not received the respect they truly deserve in the pages of history.
On this occasion, the Chief Minister announced the installation of a life-size statue of Birsa Munda in Bilaspur and the naming of a prominent square in the city after him.
He also announced the naming of the Lal Khand Overbridge after Martyr Veer Narayan Singh, the establishment of state-of-the-art post-matric hostels with 300 and 200 seats for tribal boys and girls, and the construction of a community hall for the tribal community in Kota block.
Sai said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has rectified this historical neglect and has done unprecedented work for the respect, upliftment, and development of the tribal community. He personally visited the land of Birsa Munda and launched numerous welfare schemes for the progress of the community. Prime Minister Modi’s decision to celebrate Birsa Munda’s birth anniversary as ‘Tribal Pride Day’ has awakened a new sense of self-respect and pride across the country.
The Chief Minister said that Modi has honoured the contributions of tribal heroes and leaders across the country by inaugurating the Rani Durgavati Museum in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, and the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh Tribal Museum in Raipur. These museums are also available in digital format, so that the new generation can better understand their history.
Remembering former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, the Chief Minister said that it was Atal ji who gave a new identity to the tribal community by creating the states of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. He established the Ministry of Tribal Welfare and ensured special budget provisions for tribal development.
The Chief Minister informed that through the Dharti Aba Gram Utkarsh Yojana, rapid development work is being carried out in more than 6,600 villages across the country with an amount of more than 80 thousand crore rupees.
Additionally, the PM Janman Yojana is being implemented for the Specially Backward Tribes, under which roads, housing, and basic amenities are being rapidly expanded, he said.
Chhattisgarh ranks first in the country in the implementation of these schemes and the state has been honoured by the President for this achievement, Sai said.
At the event, the Chief Minister congratulated the public on the inauguration and foundation stone laying of development works worth more than 329 crore rupees in Bilaspur district. Talented tribal students, cultural artists, social workers, and sketch artist Deepika Dhruv were honoured at the event. The Chief Minister discussed with prominent public representatives and assured them of fulfilling their demands.
The programme was presided over by Deputy Chief Minister Arun Sao. He stated that today is a day of good fortune and honour for Bilaspur, with development projects worth over Rs 329 crore. Describing Birsa Munda as a great hero of the freedom movement, he highlighted the features of the Tribal Museum in Nava Raipur and urged everyone to visit it.
On this occasion, MLAs Dharamlal Kaushik, Amar Agarwal, Dharamjeet Singh, Sushant Shukla, Dilip Lahariya, Atal Srivastava, Chhattisgarh CREDA President Bhupendra Savanni, Textbook Corporation President Raja Pandey, District Panchayat President Rajesh Suryavanshi, Mayor Pooja Vidhani, tribal community members Hemant Raj, Virendra Singh Raj, Umesh Kashyap, Vandana Uikey, Ved Singh Markam, Divisional Commissioner Sunil Jain, Inspector General of Police Sanjeev Shukla, Collector Sanjay Agarwal, SSP Rajnesh Singh, and a large number of public representatives and officials were present.
