Bhopal: Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated on Monday that the tribal society’s culture and contribution to the independence struggle and nation-building were being proudly honoured and acknowledged for the first time since Independence. He claimed that very little was understood about tribal civilization since people who ruled the country for decades following independence put their own political interests first. “Even though tribals make up about 10% of India’s population, their culture and capabilities have been overlooked for decades. Their problems, such as education and health, were unimportant to them,” he explained.
The Prime Minister was speaking to a crowd after paying floral homage to legendary tribal freedom warrior Birsa Munda on his birth anniversary at Bhopal’s Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas Mahasammelan. “India is commemorating its first Janjatiya Gaurav Divas today,” Modi stated. He went on to say that when the topic of tribal society’s contribution to nation-building came up, some individuals were astonished. “They can’t believe it played such a significant role in preserving India’s culture.” It’s because the country was either never told about it, was kept in the dark about it, or was given very little information about it,” said the Prime Minister, who inaugurated the redeveloped Rani Kamlapati Railway Station that was previously known as Habibganj station.
Modi claimed that development work was underway in 100 inspirational districts that had been left behind by previous governments. CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, earlier said that neither the British nor the Congress had accorded Rani Kamlapati, a Gond queen, the proper historical standing. “It was PM Modi who renamed Habibganj Railway Station after Rani Kamlapati,” he said. He further hit out at the Congress that it said questioned the organisation of the Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas Mahasammelan. “They say it is a waste of money. Some people, who used to say the BJP government is anti-tribal, are going to court. Now, they are perturbed. They spend crores on hero-heroines, on events like IIFA,” Chouhan said.