Odisha Chief Minister urged people to offer millet prasad to Goddess Laxmi during Manabasa ritual across the state

Bhubaneswar:10/11/24: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi today urged people to offer millet prasad to Goddess Laxmi during Manabasa ritual across Odisha in the upcoming Hindu month of Margashira.

The Chief Minister made this appeal while inaugurating the two-day international symposium on ‘Shree Anna & Forgotten Foods’ in the capital city here today.

“People should offer millet prasad before the Goddess Laxmi during the Manabasa ritual in the month of Margashira. This will play a great role in promoting millet as nutritious food among the masses. We all should create awareness on the nutrition aspect of Shree Anna or millets among people,” said the Chief Minister.

The state government is making all arrangements for the cultivation of millets on a large scale in Odisha. Steps are being taken to promote the export of millets from the state, he added.

“The state government is providing incentives for the processing of millets in Odisha. It has announced to provide a 40 percent subsidy to entrepreneurs in this regard. Food items made from millets have been supplied to hospitals, schools, and government-run canteens to fight malnutrition,” revealed the Chief Minister.

On the occasion, the Chief Minister announced that the state government would take the necessary steps to make Odisha the ‘millet hub of India’.

The government has allocated Rs 649 crore in this year’s Budget to promote and facilitate the cultivation of millets in the state.“Millets will play a key role in ensuring food security to the people. The people of Koraput district were earlier cultivating millets in large scale. Now, the crops are being cultivated by farmers under 177 blocks in the state. Two women farmers from Odisha were selected as the Millet Ambassadors during the G20 summit in New Delhi last year,” stated the Chief Minister