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India Marks Birsa Munda’s 150th Birth Anniversary as Centre Puts Tribal Agenda in Focus

The government highlights museum projects alongside development missions to embed tribal history in national memory.

Overview

  • Vice-President C P Radhakrishnan notes the conclusion of the yearlong observance that began in 2024 and recalls the 2021 designation of Nov 15 as Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas.
  • The Centre reports a target of 728 Eklavya Model Residential Schools with 479 functional, while beneficiary counts vary across reports between about 3.5 lakh and 1.38 lakh students.
  • Narendra Modi was the first prime minister to visit Birsa Munda’s birthplace in Ulihatu and announced the PM-JANMAN mission for Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups.
  • Eleven Tribal Freedom Fighters’ Museums have been sanctioned, with reports differing on inaugurations—three or four—citing facilities in Ranchi, Chhindwara and a digital museum in Raipur.
  • Government accounts highlight larger tribal allocations, including reported overall spending of Rs 1.25 lakh crore in 2024–25 and a tripling of the Tribal Affairs budget to Rs 13,000 crore, alongside missions such as PM JUGA and sickle cell screening drives.