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ODISHA REVIEW

E-mail : [email protected] : http://odisha.gov.inContact : 9937057528(M)

VOL. LXXIV NO.10 MAY - 2018

HEMANT SHARMA, I.A.S.

Commissioner-cum-Secretary

LAXMIDHAR MOHANTY, O.A.S

Director

DR. LENIN MOHANTYEditor

The Odisha Review aims at disseminating knowledge and information concerning Odisha’ssocio-economic development, art and culture. Views, records, statistics and informationpublished in the Odisha Review are not necessarily those of the Government of Odisha.

Published by Information & Public Relations Department, Government of Odisha,Bhubaneswar - 751001 and Printed at Odisha Government Press, Cuttack - 753010.

For subscription and trade inquiry, please contact : Manager, Publications, Information& Public Relations Department, Loksampark Bhawan, Bhubaneswar - 751001.

Rs.5/- Five Rupees / Copy

Editorial AssistanceBibhu Chandra Mishra

Bikram Maharana

Production AssistanceDebasis PattnaikSadhana Mishra

Cover Design & IllustrationManas Ranjan Nayak

D.T.P. & DesignHemanta Kumar Sahoo

PhotoKishor Kumar Sinha

Raju SinghManoranjan Mohanty

Niranjan Baral

CONTENTS

Good Governance ... ... 1

Bhubaneswar 'The Skill City' Dr. Jyotirmati Samantaray ... 13

Jayadeva - Legend, History and Folklore Dr. Prafulla Chandra Tripathy ... 17

Varaha Avatara of Jayadeva's Gitagovinda as Depictedin the Inscription Bharati Pal ... 24

Heat Wave : An Alarming Concern for Contemporary Tapas Ranjan PatraWorld - A Case of Odisha Dr. Ashis Chandra Pathy ... 26

Protecting Child Rights : Mahila and Sishu Deskas a Potent Way Out Dr. Ramesh Chandra Nayak ... 32

Strategies to Improve Farm Women's Access to Laxmi Priya Sahoo,Quality Seed in Odisha Abha Singh & Sabita Mishra ... 38

Education - A Tool for Empowering Women Pradipta Kumar Biswal ... 42

Social Security Schemes in India - A Study Dr. Prafulla Ch. Mohanty ... 47

Odisha to Carve a Niche in the Industrial Sector Ravi Prusty ... 52

The Temple Architecture in Odisha Sujata Routray ... 54

Jayadev's Influence on the Odia Literature Rabindra Kumar Behuria ... 58

Depiction of Disease, Medicine and Witchcraft inSarala Mahabharat Dr. Chittaranjan Mishra ... 61

Sweet and Sour Tales of Mango Growersin Koraput Asim Kumar Mahapatra ... 76

Hedonism : A Critical Review Sasmita Debata ... 81

Anita DasOdia Cine Star

Our Sincere Obeisance

Chandrabhanu PatnaikSenior Journalist

1MAY - 2018

Odisha Review ISSN 0970-8669

Today is a significant day for all of us. On this day, Utkal Gourab Madhusudan Das was born. He wasthe symbol of Odia dignity. He was also the first Odia industrial entrepreneur. He has sacrificed a lot forthe reputation of Odisha in industrial sector. I am glad to attend Odisha Skills Competition programmeon his birthday. On this occasion, I pay my sincere tributes to him.

Odisha Skills 2018 is the first-of-its-kind State-level Skills Competition organized by the Governmentof Odisha.

I am sure, this event will provide students andtrainees across the State with a platform toshowcase their talent and prove their merit on abigger stage. It will also help in attracting youthtowards skill development.

I am confident that such events will lead to moreopportunities for the youth at the global level andwill make skill aspirational for them.

It is a matter of great pleasure that Odisha hasbeen adjudged as the best State in the countryunder DDUGKY for the second time in a row.Odisha’s ITIs are also among the best in the country. I congratulate the Skill Development & TechnicalEducation Department, Odisha Skill Development Authority and all those who are involved in Skilled-in-Odisha mission.

I am overwhelmed to see large participation from our young competitors from all over the State in 25Skills across 6 sectors.

I am happy to announce a cash prize of Rupees One Lakh for Gold Medalist and Rupees Seventy FiveThousand for Silver Medalist and Rupees Fifty Thousand for Bronze Medalists at the national levelfrom our State. Our Mission for World Skills has to be Mission-1-2-3, that is 1 Gold, 2 Silver and 3Bronze.

I also take this opportunity to congratulate all the participants and organizers. I convey my best wishesto all of you. Let “Odisha’s Best be World’s Next”.

I now declare “Odisha Skills 2018” Open.

(Speech of Hon'ble Chief Minister)

Odisha Skills 2018

Odisha ReviewISSN 0970-8669

2 MAY - 2018

On the eve of the 70th Capital Foundation Day, Hon'ble Chief Minister Hon’ble Shri NaveenPatnaik unveiled the logo and official website of Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited (BSCL) alongwith another city website named Bhubaneswar.me developed by Bhubaneswar DevelopmentAuthority (BDA) and a promo video on the city for attracting visitors to the City of Temples.

Unveiling the BSCL logo at the Third Floor Conference Hall of the Secretariat, the HonourableChief Minister said - "I remember the devastation caused by Super Cyclone of 1999 and how farwe have come since then. Bhubaneswar has evolved as a truly Global City. Our cultural heritage,warmth and hospitality of people coupled with smart, modern amenities make the Capital city aunique urban experience."

BSCL LOGO

This LOGO of BhubaneswarSmart City Limited with itsvibrant colours represent a fastdeveloping smart city in theform of a butterfly signifyinggrowth, motion and youthfulenergy. The five colours usedin this LOGO trace their originto the five visions ofBhubaneswar Smart Cityproposal i.e. Liveable city, Eco-friendly city, Child Friendly city, Transit-oriented city and emergenceof Bhubaneswar as a Regional Economic Hub.

The square shape represents strength, solidarity, purpose, symmetry, professionalism and efficiency.The shaded colours given to the boxes arranged creatively in different shapes along with the Wi-Fi symbol signifies the element of technology.

To promote and brand Bhubaneswar as the HUB of education, sports, IT and heritage tourism, acircle has been used to creatively carve out the word “HUB” out of Bhubaneswar.

Hon'ble Chief Minister Unveils Logo ofBSCL, Websites Showcasing Bhubaneswar

3MAY - 2018


Liveable City: Blue colour implies integrity, sincerity, calm; associated with authority and success;implies professionalism, serious mindedness.

Eco-Friendly: Green colour emphasizes natural and ethical credentials. Other meaning ascribed toit include growth, vitality and freshness.

Child Friendly: Yellow colour represents warm, welcoming and friendly Transport: Red color impliespassion, energy and dynamic nature of city.

Economic Development: Purple colour associated with wealth, richness, ambition, stability andmagic.

BSCL WEBSITE

The Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited (BSCL) has come up with its ‘Smart’ websitewww.smartcitybhubaneswar.gov.in , which features all important aspects of BSCL, ongoing andupcoming projects and announcements.

In line with its vision of promoting universal accessibility at every stage and every project, thisBSCL official website has been designed as inclusive for all by having differently-abled friendlyfeatures such as screen reader, font enhancement and colour contrast to ensure that each andevery person can access and use the website. The website also has home page which connectsalmost the entire website and provides a summary of the entire activities to the user on a singlepage. The web portal features details on the Board of Directors, organogram, child friendly cityfeatures, details and updates on each of the projects, events, and last but not the least, detailsabout the Smart City Contest, Smart City Mission and Challenge, Bhubaneswar Smart CityProposal, vision and details on Area Based Development and Pan-City Proposal along with sociallysmart initiatives being undertaken by the city.

While under the “Know Bhubaneswar” segment it describes the transformation of the city fromtemple city to planned city and towards a child friendly smart city and it’s emergence as a regionaleducation hub and gateway to Golden Triangle in Odishan tourism industry. It also projects thecity’s potential as a proposed UNESCO World Heritage City as it has the largest density ofprotected monuments. The website has also incorporated city’s natural resources, heritage, artand culture, economic growth, connectivity and civic administration among others.

BHUBANESWAR.ME WEBSITE

This all-in-one city website showcases the city and its rich heritage, art, culture, architecture,cuisines, traditions, natural treasures, urban development and tourist information etc. for visitorsplanning to explore the city. The one-of-its kind portal presents a sort of visual walkthrough of theentire city with interesting photographs and videos on the city, for any visitor wishing to exploreand experience Bhubaneswar.

The portal has five major segments: Explore, Experience, Stay, Taste and ‘This is Bhubaneswar’.Under explore segment detailed description with photographs can be seen on heritage circuits,temples, parks and recreation facilities, shopping centres and gateways. Similarly, visitors can


4 MAY - 2018

experience museums, tours and shows, festivals, events and exhibitions and sports amenities inthe city, envisioned as the emerging sports capital of India, by visiting the experience segment.

Visitors can find details with photographs on the best places to stay in Bhubaneswar includinggovernment accommodations, budget hotels and luxury hotels. For the foodies the portal presentsthe best of multi-cuisine restaurants in the city along with exclusive Odia cuisines, temple cuisines,and local sweets delicacies. To the culinary enthusiasts who wish to try preparing typical Odiadishes, the portal has a special segment under learn local in taste segment.

History and evolution of Bhubaneswar has been beautifully documented and presented under‘This is Bhubaneswar’ which also showcases the best of art and crafts in the city along with vividpresentation of must see places in the city. This segment also provides weather, event calendarand important tourist information such as transport, emergency contacts, and safety tips alongwith easy communication tips for conversing in vernacular Odia language.

VISIT BHUBANESWAR VIDEO

Bhubaneswar’s beauty from a visitor’s perspective is captured through this short video film of 2minutes 15 seconds duration. Odissi dancer from Argentina Anandini Dasi, who has made theTemple City her second home, is the protagonist in this short-film. The film progresses as shetravels across the city’s beautiful State Botanical Garden adjoining Kanjia Lake, Nandankanan,wades through the beautiful orchidarium and then moves to picturesque Ekamra Kanan witnessinga great cactus collection, numerous gardens while enjoying the beauty of its lake and lovely birds.After the green sojourn, Anandini visits the meticulously curated and maintained Tribal Museumnear CRP Square, State Museum near Kalpana Square before getting into soulful meditation atthe historic caves and iconic Jain heritage sites of Khandagiri and Udayagiri.

Reaching the heritage treasure of Old Town area, which, in the past was known as Ekamra Kshetraas a major Shaiva Shrine, she explores the beautiful Ekamra Van medicinal plant garden on thebank of holy Bindusagar lake, majestic temples of Lord Lingaraj and Mukteswar and finally reachesthe Dhauli International Peace Pagoda as it stands as a mute spectator of Kalingan valour near theDaya river valley and the place of historic Kalinga War. It was this place, where, after winning thehistoric war Emperor Ashoka’s historic transformation from “Chandashoka” to “Dharmashoka”happened and the entire world benefitted from the teachings and philosophy of Buddha. Theprotagonist meditates near the Buddha statue to feel the aura of the historic land followed by thebeautiful light and sound show at the pagoda which also finds its place in the video.

The video also features cultural hub of Rabindra Mandap and Kalinga Stadium, the epicentre ofsports in the city, the emerging sports capital of India, as the city is gearing up to host HockeyWorld Cup towards the end of this year.

5MAY - 2018



6 MAY - 2018

On the eve of the 70th Capital Foundation Day, I congratulate all the citizens of Bhubaneswar fortheir untiring efforts to make Bhubaneswar a great place to live, work and enjoy.

I am happy to note that our beautiful city is constantly trying to upgrade its infrastructure forbenefits of its citizens. Today, the city makes the beginning of a journey to incorporate smart technologyenabled solutions to help every citizen in “ease of living”.

I am glad that the Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited has come out with a vibrant logorepresenting a fast developing urban economic centre. The logo significantly captures strategicvision of the city. Smart City Company’s website will provide information on various projectsbeing taken up by the State Government for development of the capital city.

I do hope that the Bhubaneswar.me website of the Bhubaneswar Development Authoritywould immensely help the tourists who are planning to visit our city. In days to come, it should becomea single point for all the information required by the tourists for their visit and travel to the city.

The promotional video on “Visit Bhubaneswar” shows the city from a visitor’s perspective andshould help in positioning of our city as a “Must See” City in India.

I convey my best wishes for the celebration of the Capital Foundation Day.


Our Beautiful City is Constantly Tryingto Upgrade its Infrastructure for Benefits

of its Citizens

7MAY - 2018


I am delighted to be here this evening amongst all of you at the valedictory function of OdishaAdministrative Officers’ Association. I extend my warm greetings to all of you.

The Odisha Administrative Service plays a pivotal role in the state administration, whichsignificantly banks on the executive efficiency and competence of the officers of this cadre. Startingfrom the grassroots level to blocks, tehsils, districts and state headquarters level, they are responsiblefor the successful implementation of most of our pro-people initiatives. The turnaround of Odishathrough our major development initiatives and unique welfare schemes owes a lot to the committedefforts of these administrators. I would expect more of this from you in the coming days.

People’s welfare remains at the centre of our Governance’, I want that not even a singleindividual be deprived of his rightful entitlements; more so in case of disadvantaged sections of thesociety. We need to be more sensitive to the needs of the poor and the deprived.

Since 2000, we have overcome many hurdles to make Odisha a better governed State.The learnings of the 1999 Super Cyclone helped us to achieve zero-casualty during Phailin of2013. A food grain deficient state is now a food grain surplus state and the third largest contributorto the National Public Distribution System. We continue to grow at a rate higher than the nationalaverage. We have brought more than eight million people above the poverty line. The indicators inhealth sector have shown very significant improvements especially in IMR, MMR and Immunisation.

We now need to speed up the implementation of our flagship schemes till the last miledelivery point and reach out to our people. The whole hearted support, dedication and commitmentof the administrators in properly assessing the grassroots level needs and in providing necessaryimpetus to the Government schemes and programmes would be highly essential for accomplishmentof our objectives.

My Government has always been sympathetic to the problems that the administrators facewhile diligently discharging their duties. I assure you all support and protection, wherever it is needed.I thank all of you for this wonderful function and wish you all success in your personal andprofessional life.

(Speech of Hon'ble Chief Minister at the Valedictory Function of OAS Association at XIMB)

People's Welfare Remainsat the Centre of our Governance


8 MAY - 2018

I had launched the Startup India-Odisha Yatra from the Secretariat on 30th January, 2018. I amglad to know the yatra van could impact nearly ten thousand youth across 50 academic institutions. Iam also happy to know that during the yatra 3600 ideas were received, out of which 125 ideas wereshortlisted for the Accelerator Programme. Today, 75 of them are getting incubation offers from differentincubators namely, IIT Bhubaneswar, STPI, KIIT University, Centurion University and many otherinstitutions.

This is an excellent initiativeto scout grass root levelinnovators, who will be incubatedat least for 3 months for theirfurther development and possibleconversion into Startup enterprise.I congratulate all the innovators,who are getting incubation offersand Youth Innovation Awardstoday and call upon them to worksincerely to convert their dreaminto reality.

I am further glad to announce that the number of Startups registered with Startup Odisha Initiativehas crossed 200 startups across various sectors. 23 of these startups are already getting assistancefrom Startup Odisha. I am happy that a booklet profiling these startups has been released. Recently, myGovernment has made certain amendments in the Startup Odisha Policy to further encourage the startups,innovators and young entrepreneurs. I am sure, the State will be able to achieve the vision of supportingone thousand Startups by 2020.

I wish the Startup Odisha Initiative all success.


State will be able to Achieve the Vision ofSupporting One Thousand Startups by 2020

9MAY - 2018


During the Grand Finale of Startup India-Odisha Yatra held at Jayadev Bhawan, Hon’bleChief Minister Shri Naveen Patnaik distributed free incubation offers to 75 young innovators. Heexpressed his happiness on the fact that the yatra van received an overwhelming response andstated that the yatra van could address 10,000 youth across 50 academic institutions located in 16districts. Out of the total 3,600 ideas received, 125 were shortlisted for 3-day AcceleratorProgramme. Experts shortlisted 75 of them for incubation offers, who will be given free incubationat IIT, Bhubaneswar, STPI, I-Create at Ahmedabad and BIMTEC, New Delhi, CenturionUniversity, KIIT TBI, NIIST, Berhampur and Sri Sri University, Cuttack. He appreciated thejoint initiative of Startup India and Startup Odisha to scout grass root innovators. These selectedincubators will undergo 3 months’ incubation programme and the best of them will get a grant ofRs.50,000/- to pursue their ideas. Hon’ble Chief Minister also released the yatra booklet on thisoccasion.

Hon’ble Chief Minister announced that the number of startups registered with Startup OdishaInitiative has crossed the 200 mark. 23 of them are getting financial assistance from the StartupOdisha. He also released the profile booklet of these startups on this occasion. He hoped thatwith recent amendments in the Startup Odisha Policy will further encourage the startups and thestate will be able to achieve the Mission-1000 startups by 2020.

On this occasion Shri Prafulla Samal, Hon’ble Minister, MSME, W&CD & SSEPD statedthat MSME Department and Startup Secretariat at IED are making best efforts to build one of thebest eco-system in the state. He added that many of the ideas received during the yatra arebrilliant and can make lasting impact on the society.

While speaking on the occasion, Shri A.P. Padhi, Chief Secretary stated that Odisha StartupPolicy is one of the best in the country. We are offering capital as well as matching grant to theincubators to enable them to build suitable ecosystem. Recently, a grant of Rs.2.5 crore has beengiven to IIT, Bhubaneswar to set up a Centre of Excellence (CoE) on Artificial Intelligence &Virtual Reality. The Centre, which has received contribution from a private philanthropist andSTPI, is a unique example of partnership between State Government, Government of India and aprivate philanthropist. He added that Odisha is offering the highest benefits and maximum support

Number of Startups Crosses 200 Mark :Free Incubation Offers to 75 Incubators


10 MAY - 2018

to the recognised startups and budding entrepreneurs, which is reflected in the fast growing numberof startups in the state, which has crossed now 200 mark.

Shri Atul Chaturvedi, Additional Secretary, DIPP stated that Odisha represent a very goodexample of Center — State partnership which has also brought Startup India Yatra to Odisha.While Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion is responsible for driving Startup India initiativesat the central level, it is the states which must build the ecosystem at the ground level. In Odisha,over the last year, I have seen that incubators are being built as well as scaled up, seed grants havebeen given out to over two dozen Startups, market exposure opportunities have been extended atNational events as well. The Startups here have grown at the pace of 20 Startups every month,making it one of the fastest growing eco-systems in the country. I believe this has been possibledue to the robust and transparent nature of the Startup Odisha policy. It may just be a beginning ofStartup ecosystem here, but it’s a very encouraging start.

Shri L.N. Gupta, ACS, MSME stated that ideas received during the yatra are very interestingand if successfully incubated, these can make a huge impact on quality of our life. Some of themare Asthama Relief Shirt, Hybrid Crop Harvester, AR/VR based tourism guide, Eco-friendly pensand pencils, IoT based soil nutrient meter, Brain controlled wheel chair, Smart wearable devicefor cattle etc. He added that, all Odisha based incubators namely IIT, Bhubaneswar, STPI, CenturionUniversity, KIIT TBI, NIIST, Berhampur, Sri Sri University, Cuttack happily agreed to offer freeincubation to them. He also shared that two external incubators namely I-Create at Ahmedabadand BIMTEC, New Delhi are also offering incubation offers to 08 selected youth. The free incubationoffer includes mentorship support, equipped work space, access to labs and free internet andelectricity. 15 innovators, who will successfully complete incubation at these institutions will get aseed grant of Rs.50,000/- for further development on their ideas.

Dr. Mrutyunjay Sutar, CEO, KIIT TBI, which partnered the Startup Yatra, extended voteof thanks.

11MAY - 2018


A new Department of Odia Language, Literature and Culture created alongwith a separate HeritageCabinet constituted for the promotion and conservation of Odia language, culture and literature.Two Chairs established at Jawaharlal Nehru University and Benaras Hindu University named afterAdikabi Sarala Das and Kabisamrat Upendra Bhanja respectively to promote study and researchon Odia language and literature outside Odisha.

The State Government has proposed Amendments in the Odisha Official Language Act, 1954 andin the Odisha Shops and Commercial Establishments Act, 1956 for making use of Odia languagecompulsory in official correspondence and on signboards in shops and commercial establishments.

Decision taken to provide Land Rights to the slum-dwellers in NACs and Municipalities and soalso Property Rights to the poor slum-dwellers in Municipal Corporations. Odisha is the first Statein the country to have come out with such legislation for the slum-dwellers.

‘Special Development Council’ constituted in the nine tribal dominated districts for the developmentof tribal areas, welfare of the tribal people and preservation and promotion of their cultural heritage.

‘Mo School’ initiative, a unique citizen–connect programme launched to provide a platform foralumni associations, individuals and organizations to give back to the schools to which they areemotionally attached.

The general public and their representatives at the Gram Panchayat level directly interact with theChief Minister through video conferencing and deliberate about their much needed projects andschemes through ‘Ama Gaon, Ama Bikash’, a newly launched initiative.

With a view to encourage agricultural growth in the State, provision of crop-loan @ 1% interestalongwith 50% to 75% of subsidy for shallow tube-wells, bore-wells and implementation of lift-irrigation projects.

The income of the farmers as well as agricultural productivity in the State doubled. Odisha has nowbecome the third highest contributor to the country’s Public Distribution System.

Nearly 60 lakh women organized into 6 lakh Self Help Groups across the State have beenempowered socially, economically and politically through ‘Mission Shakti’.

30.83 lakh Mothers and newborns covered under ‘Mamata’ scheme.

Odisha : A Saga of Progress and Development


12 MAY - 2018

Pandit Raghunath Murmu Medical College and Hospital, Baripada and Saheed Laxman NayakMedical College and Hospital, Koraput have been made operational from the current academicsession. Steps taken up for functioning of Medical College and Hospitals at Balasore and Bolangirfrom the next academic session.

About 17 lakh girl students from Class 6th to Class 12th to be provided free sanitary napkins undera new initiative ‘Khusi’.

Through the Department of Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, monthlypension being provided to 43.45 lakh beneficiaries.

Construction work completed for 15 lakh 50 thousand pucca houses for the rural poor. StateGovernment working on a mission mode to ensure pucca houses to all the rural poor households.

State Government accords priority on providing safe drinking water to all villages under ‘Basudha’scheme.

‘Unnati’, an urban transformation initiative to ensure inclusive development in urban areas.

During 2017-18 construction of 8000 kms of rural roads and 145 bridges completed under BijuSetu Yojana, Rural Infrastructure Development Fund, Mukhyamantri Sadak Yojana etc. meant forrural development. Apart from this, another 150 bridges and 14,230 kms of rural roads to becompleted during 2018-19.

Out of total length of 650 kms. of Biju Expressway, 160 kms of Sambalpur-Rourkela Road hasalready been completed and dedicated to the people of Odisha.

So far, 160 Odisha Adarsha Vidyalayas have been opened in 21 districts and 40,409 studentsavailing quality education in these schools.

Vision-2025 prepared for industrial development with a target to attract Rs.2.5 lakh crores of newinvestments and generate 30 lakh new jobs and to meet the target, the 2nd edition-2018 of Make-in-Odisha launched in Bhubaneswar.

‘Abadha’ (Augmentation of basic amenities and development of Heritage and Architecture) Yojanalaunched for provision of better facilities in and around the Srimandir and overall infrastructuraldevelopment of Puri.

Odisha is the No.1 State in the country in distributing the dwelling and farming rights titles in forestland.

With the mega success of 22nd Asian Athletics Championships and Hockey World League Final atBhubaneswar, Odisha has now become the 1st State in the country to sponsor both the Men andWomen National Hockey team for the next five years.

13MAY - 2018


Bhubaneswar 'The Skill City'

Dr. Jyotirmati Samantaray

The Odisha Skill Development Authority (OSDA)has been taking up various interventions to boostskill development and thereby generate opportunitiesfor employment to the youth of the State. One ofsuch intervention being taken up by the Odisha SkillDevelopment Authority is to provide moreopportunities with revitalized skill ecosystem to theyouth of Odisha. The opportunities created by thislinkage caters for increased employmentopportunities for many unemployed orunderemployed youth. Odisha Skill DevelopmentAuthority is focused to achieve this objective of theState Government to provide an ecosystem forskilling - where skill is demonstrated and taught from

the basic level to cutting-edge global technology -including future technologies in the sector.

The vision of the authority is to make thebrand “Skilled-in-Odisha” a global identity, andproject Odisha as the hub of Skilled Manpower.Bhubaneswar, the capital of the state and “TempleCity of India” is also the seat of Tribhubaneswar.Bhubaneswar is an important pilgrimage and learningcenter of India. Over time, the city has evolved asmajor educational hub in Eastern India, with institutesof international repute - such as IIT, AIIMS, NIFT,IIIT, XIMB, NISER and many more making theirpresence felt here. Moving a step forward, and also

realizing the Government’s focus area to empoweryouth with skills and employment opportunities, astrong network of high quality Skill DevelopmentInstitutes has been created across Odisha andBhubaneswar. Within a radius of 25 Kms, the cityhas access to more than 100 Skill DevelopmentInstitutes, which includes 3 GovernmentPolytechnics, 4 Government ITls and 96 TrainingCenters.

The main idea of showcasing Bhubaneswaras “Skill City” is to attract overwhelming globalattention towards the quality of skilled manpoweravailable in the state, and generate employment, sothat it becomes a paradigm of the new pathways

14 MAY - 2018


and interconnections that form a central part of theGovernment’s vision of making brand “Skilled-in-Odisha”, global.

‘Skilled In Odisha’

‘Skilled In Odisha’ will be known as a globalstandard of excellence in skill-training. Our newbrand identity has emerged from this intent.

After extensive rounds of testing anditerations, we have arrived at this identity for ‘SkilledIn Odisha’. It is a simple, and memorable visual thatresonates well with our core external and internalaudiences, which encompasses everyone fromprospective students to existing trainees and thecommunity as well as Indian and internationalcorporations.

In a world where more and more peopleare using icons and emojis to express themselves,we have built our own visual language, from symbolsrepresenting the wide range of industries and sectorsin which we provide skill-training.

It is an open sphere resembling a world ofskill that is inclusive and ever expanding. The coloursare vibrant and dynamic, to reflect the spirit of theyouth. The font is bold to evoke confidence thatcomes from being skilled, and the ‘script’ style of itis to display flexibility and dynamism that helps insmooth life transformation.

The identity lends itself to a vast array ofsub-brands and applications across media, andplatforms. The visual palette is wide enough toencompass everything we have to offer today, andall that is to come in the future.

Odisha Skills 2018

The Government of Odisha throughOdisha Skill Development Authority announced

finals of the state level skills competition“Odisha Skills 2018”. In order to recognise thetalent of the youth and give them exposure tocompete with best in their field, OSDA organizedOdisha Skills 2018 State-level Competition, whichwas held on 29-30 April, 2018 at IDCOExhibition Ground, Unit 3, Bhubaneswar

Odisha Skills 2018 is the state-levelchapter of the India Skills Competitionorganised by the National Skill DevelopmentCorporation.

Odisha Skills 2018 is the first-of-its-kindstate-level skills competition organised by theGovernment of Odisha and was held in grandmanner with the objective to catch imaginationof skill talent and youth all over the state. Theevent aims to provide students and traineesacross the state with a platform to showcasetheir talent, prove their merit on a bigger stageand make skills aspirational for the youth.Odisha Skills will bring together competitors,experts, industry, education and governmentleaders from around the world, giving youth theopportunity to compete and a globalperspective on the standards of excellence inevery sector.

The Opening Ceremony of Odisha Skills2018 was held in Cuttack on Apr 28, 2018 inJawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium. The event hasseen overall participation by 6951 participantsfrom across Odisha competing in 6 sectors and25 skills.

Winners at the State Level will representOdisha at the Regional level followed by the IndiaSkills Competition 2018, in New Delhi. National-level winners will go on to participate in the 45thWorld Skills competition in Kazan, Russia, in2019.

15MAY - 2018


Government launches Skilled-in-Odisha Logo

Hon’ble Chief Minister, Shri NaveenPatnaik unveiled the brand identity Logo of‘Skilled-in-Odisha’ campaign of the stateGovernment Skill initiatives.

Unveiling the Logo, Chief Minister said“Our Mission ‘Skilled in Odisha’ will be known

as a global standard of excellence in skill-training”.He congratulated SD &TE Department andOSDA for bringing up brand identity for themission, which is youthful, vibrant and global. Healso congratulated ITI students for their activeparticipation for developing the logo.

On the occasion, Hon’ble CM also unveiledthe “Bhubaneswar — Skill City” map. Heappreciated this noble concept to attract globalattention towards the quality of skilled manpoweravailable in the state and generate employment,so that it becomes a paradigm of the newpathways and interconnections that form a central

part of the Government’s vision of making brand“Skilled-in-Odisha”, global.

Mr. Subroto Bagchi, Chairman, OSDA,Chief Secretary, Development Commissioner andother Senior Officials of the Government werepresent during the ceremony.

Odisha Signs 5 MoUs in Technologyand Skill Development

The State Government’ signed five MoUswith leading organisations on the sidelines of“Odisha Skills 2018”. MoUs were signed inpresence of Hon’ble Chief Minister Shri NaveenPatnaik.

On the occasion Hon’ble Chief Ministersaid “Technical Education and Vocational Traininghas been at forefront of our approach foreconomic planning and sustainable growth. Lotof focus is being accorded to both short termand long term skill training in the State and theseMoUs will further strengthen our commitment forskilling in technology’.

1. The first MoU is between the University ofMassachusetts Dartmouth Center forInnovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) andBiju Patnaik University of Technology(BPUT) in the field of Internet of Things (IoT)and Robotics. The signatories would be Dr.Tobias Stapleton, Assistant Vice Chancellorand Director University of MassachusettsDartmouth Center for Innovation andEntrepreneurship (CIE) and Professor C. R.Tripathy, Vice Chancellor, BPUT.

2. The second MoU is between Centre forDevelopment of Advance Computing (C-DAC), Govt. of India and Biju PatnaikUniversity of Technology (BPUT) in the fieldof Super Computation, Artificial Intelligence

16 MAY - 2018


and high-end reasearch. The signatorieswould be Dr. Hemant Darbari, DirectorGeneral, C-DAC and Professor C.R.Tripathy, Vice Chancellor, BPUT.

3. The next MoU is between Centre, forDevelopment of Advance Computing (C-DAC), Govt. of India and CenturionUniversity of Technology & Management(CUTM) in the similar field of SuperComputation and its use for skill developmentand research. The signatories would be Dr.Hemant Darbari, Director General, C-DACand Sri H. Panda, Vice Chancellor, CUTM.

4. The next MoU is between Director ofTechnical Education and Training, Odisha andCentral Tool Room & Training Centre(CTTC) for establishment of five Mini ToolRooms in five of our leading ITIs atBerhampur, Balasore, Cuttack, Talcher andHirakud for imparting professional training

to ITI passouts in handling high-end machinesand technology. The signatories shall be SriBalwant Singh, Director, Technical Educationand Training and Sri Sibasis Maity, ManagingDirector, CTTC, Bhubaneswar.

5. The last MoU is between Odisha SkillDevelopment Authority and Eye-Mitra 2.5New Vision Generation, a division of EssilorIndia for sector specific skill development forself employment in vision care. Thesignatories shall be Sri Patil RajeshPrabhakar, Director, Employment-cum-CEO, OSDA and Sri Milind Jadhav, Head,2.5 NVG-India.

Dr. Jyotirmati Samantaray, Research and ReferenceOfficer, I & P.R. Department, Bhubaneswar.

17MAY - 2018


Legend and history are both complementary toeach other. History draws upon legends to fill upgaps. Legends may contain exaggerations, andyet history can be created on discovery of truthscontained in the legends by proper research andanalysis. The life history of Sri Jayadeva is basedon the truthful analysis of the legends in vogueamong the people and from the texts of later days.

Birth and Childhood:

In Utkala (at present Orissa), SriJayadeva, the famous poet of the Gitagovindawas born in the village Kenduvilva, a BrahminSasan1 situated on the bank of the sacred river

Prachi. This area was also called Toshali fromancient times, prior to its merger with the Kalingaempire.

The Maithili Poet Chandradutta of the17th century A.D.in his ‘Vaktamala’ narrates instanza 2 of Jayadev Charitam… “JagannathaPuriprante dese Chouvektalavidhe Kenduvilwaiti khyato gram Brahman sankula” (JayadevCharita by B.Panda Page-I in Odia, publishedby Rastra Bhasa Samavaya Press, Cuttack –1986). It has been mentioned that Kenduvilva wasin Puri province (past). Pranta meant province/region here and not “close to” or by the side of.In Sanskrit in Bharata Desa Utkal was a ‘Pranta’.

The whole of Utkal Desa was introduced asJagannatha Desa those days. No wonder Kenduliwas referred to as being close to Jagannath Puri.

Jayadeva’s father was Bhoja Deva andmother was Bama Devi. Bhojadeva was areputed scholar. Jayadeva was immenselyinfluenced by his learned father Bhojadeva. Withfather’s guidance he acquired in a short time vastlearning in Sanskrit literature and theology asprevalent at that time.

Close to Kenduvilva is situated Trivenighata on the bank of the river Prachi. It is a holyplace. Every year a big fair is held here

commencing on Triveni Amavasya2 which lastsfor seven days.

The worship of Madhava Visnu waswidely prevalent in the Brahmin colonies settledon the banks of the river Prachi. Time passed.Bhojadeva and Bama Devi, the parents ofJayadeva, breathed their last. Soon after the deathof the parents of Jayadeva, taking advantage ofhis non-worldly nature, the mischievous peopleof the village tried to grab his paternal property.Unfamiliar with the ways of the crooked world,Jayadeva handed over the responsibility of themaintenance of his paternal property to Parasara,his friend from the childhood and left for Puri, the

Jayadeva - Legend, History and Folklore

Dr. Prafulla Chandra Tripathy

18 MAY - 2018


abode of Lord Jagannath carrying with him theimage of Madhava, his family and home deity.

On his arrival at Purusottam Puri, as thelegend goes he took shelter under a tree with hisMadhava and spent his time on composingdevotional songs and singing them in the templeof Lord Jagannath. For days together he forgotto eat and accepted food only if somebodyoffered it to him voluntarily. So strong was hisdevotional ardour that hunger did not show onhis face and there was no sorrow. Hundreds ofpeople from Puri and pilgrims were fascinated byhis beautiful complexion and his sweet melodiousvoice. But Jayadeva was quite indifferent toworldly fame and reputation. On the other hand,he focussed his whole-hearted devotion on thelotus feet of Madhava, his home deity and LordJagannath, the Lord of the Universe.

It is to be noted here that this legend doesnot tell anything as to how Jayadeva learnt theragas, raginis, talas and could compose themusical lyric of the highest standards ofGitagovinda. Subsequent research has nowestablished that Jayadeva went to Kurma Pataknear Kalinganagar and was educated there inSanskrit, music, dance, drama and the sastras.Such a genius could not have wasted his time asa wandering mendicant in Puri town without doinganything. All the complex ragas and talas and theartistry of composing a dance drama of the statureof Gitagovinda could not have come to him fromthe streets of Puri.

Marriage at Purusottam Puri:

Once a Brahmin from South namedDevasarma had come to Purusottam Kshetra withhis family to have a darsan of Lord Jagannath.He had a beautiful daughter Padmavati by name.

As Devasarma was blessed with a daughter onlywith the mercy of Lord Jagannath earlier he haddesired to gift his daughter Padmavati to the Lordas devadasi1. Padmavati was exquisitely beautifuland was an adept in the art of music and dancing.The temple had adequate number of devadasiand Devasarma was refused. During his stay atPuri, Devasarma got a divine indication in a dreamto offer his daughter’s hand in marriage to saintJayadeva instead of leaving her as a devadasi. Asimilar directive was also conveyed in dreams tothe emperor of Kalinga and to the head priest ofthe temple. After a prolonged search, Devasarmaat last met Jayadeva. But Jayadeva had no aim toraise a family. He refused to marry. But, later inhis dream Jayadeva also received the Lord’scommand and gave his consent to marryPadmavati.

After the marriage Jayadeva built acottage at Puri and lived there with Padmavati.Jayadeva composed devotional songs, whichcould be set to dance and Padmavati displayedthem through music and dance. In this way thecouple spent their days. Parasara who wasentrusted with the property of Jayadeva in hisvillage used to send the scanty income from thelands for their maintenance at Puri.

Legend of Krsna as a writer :

During his stay at Puri Jayadeva beganthe composition of the famous Gitagovinda inhonour of Lord Jagannath. Jayadeva used tocompose the verses of the Gitagovinda andPadmavati displayed the same before LordJagannath in a melodious voice and artisticperformance of a very high order. The 19th stanzaof the 10th canto of the Gitagovinda dedicatedto the love episode of Radha and Shyama (Krsna)was unparalleled in contemporary Sanskrit

19MAY - 2018


literature and marked the climax of poetic beautyand excellence as explained below.

“It is a moonlit night. Radha sits awakeat the entrance of the grove eagerly waiting forher beloved Madhava. Broken at heart due topangs of separation from her beloved, she stilleagerly looks forward for his arrival with tearsrolling down her cheeks. The night has advancedand it was dawn. At this juncture Madhava(Shyama), the prince of Braja appears at theentrance of the grove. But Radha sits silent anddoes not respond. This is because Shyama hasjust returned from the home of a gopika,Chandravali, after passing the whole night withher. The garland of flowers on his chest has fadedaway and the peacock-plume on his head hasslipped off. He offends her feelings and she isgreatly shocked at the deliberate delay causedby Krsna. Instead of receiving him cordially shebecomes indifferent. Madhava had to come backdisappointed repenting for his guilt. Requested byShyama, the sakhis (girl mates) of Radhaapproach her with sweet and consoling wordspersuading her not to mind the delay of Madhavaand to receive him back lovingly. This pacifiesthe wounded feelings of Radha and the cloud ofsorrow and despair disperses from her lotus face.The bliss of her joy is shared by the sweetmurmuring Yamuna. The jungle creepers swingto and fro by the slow morning breeze. Thehumming of the black bee and the cooing of thecuckoo fills the atmosphere with joy. Mad withjoy the rivulets push through the sandy beds ofYamuna to plunge into the sea in happy union.The creator is mad with his creation.Overwhelmed with heavenly love Madhavaentreats Radha saying “Dear Radhe, we are notseparate entities? Is there any difference betweenyou and myself?” Still Radha with her face blushed

with anger and does not respond. At last heartbroken with despair Madhava, the Lord of theUniverse, surrenders Himself before Radha andsays :-

“Smara garala khandanamMama sirasi mandanam”.

While writing at this point the pen ofJayadeva faltered. He uttered in a loud voice “No,I cannot proceed any further. Should I pull downthe status of my Lord whose lotus feet is adornedand worshipped by the entire animal and inanimateworld in respectful devotion to the level of touchingthe feet of Radha, a woman by way of an apology?I can, on no account, do this”.

Jayadeva could not proceed further. Hedid not know what to write and how to proceed.He kept aside the palm-leaf manuscript and wentfor a bath in Prachi. It was mid-day. After sendingher husband for bath, Padmavati arranged for hismeal. Jayadeva returned rather early. He broughtout the palm-leaf scripture and completed theverse composed by him, had his food and wentto the bedroom for rest. Just after she had finishedher food, Padmavati sat at the plate of Jayadevaand took the remains of the food served to herhusband. Then Padmavati was taken aback tosee Jayadeva again returning after bath. She wasspellbound with wonder and Jayadeva was alsoamazed to see Padma having taken her foodbefore his return from bath. On hearing everythingthat had happened he called for the palm-leafscripture of the Gitagovinda and was thrilled tosee the verse completed with a new line added;exactly as he had thought -

“Dehi padapallava mudaram”

There was none in the bedroom. Onlythe fragrance of deer-musk and sandal paste

20 MAY - 2018


permeated the room. Mad with joy and devotionJayadeva caught hold of the feet of his wife Padmaand exclaimed, “Hail to thee, Padma! You couldsee with your physical eyes the Lord of theuniverse whose mysterious existence is beyondthe conception of the entire creation. No womanis so fortunate and blessed as you are”. Theintense love and devotion of the couple forMadhava melted down to tears and started rollingdown their celestial faces. They recited togethervery sweetly those verses. The whole of theuniverse was merged as it were in the all-pervading stainless love of the creator.

The Village Kenduvilva sanctified by thesacred dust of the feet of ‘Brajaraj’ (prince ofBraja) still exists. The sweet murmuring riversPrachi and Kusavadra still keep on flowing.Stricken with despair Kanhu (Krsna) is still in hiseternal quest for the sweet and blissful union ofthe past.

The Tulasi garland on Jagannath :

Once Padmavati cherished a desire towrite in full the verses of Gitagovinda on tulasileaves with sandal paste and offer it to LordJagannath. It was a difficult task in deed. But atnight two saints came to the cottage of Jayadevaand got the work done. On her arrival nextmorning at srimandira with the garland of tulasileaves to offer it to Lord Jagannath, the sevakasdid not allow this offering. Dismayed at heart,Padmavati threw the garland away to the opensea. But the Lord Himself picked it up from thesea and sevakas were astonished to see thegarland flung around the chest of the Lord. Sincethen Padmavati like her husband Jayadeva wasaccorded great honour and reverence as a greatdevotee of Lord Jagannath.

Food for Padmavati:

Once Jayadeva had gone out of Puri.There was no provision of food at his home. WhilePadmavati was pondering over the matter, acowherd boy approached at the door of thecottage with a bhara (shoulder-load) of foodstuffand told Padmavati that Jayadeva had sent it forher. The boy identified himself as a cowherd boytending his cattle nearby. Inspite of repeatedpersuation by Padmavati, the boy was reluctantto accept any food. On return of Jayadeva,Padmavati narrated everything to him. Jayadevawas greatly surprised and said that he had notsent any food and only Lord Jagannath could haveHimself arranged it for His devotee. It was SriKrsna who came as a cowherd boy and providedthe food.

Birds and monkeys follow Jayadeva :

On his way to Puri from Kenduli Jayadevaonce sheltered himself for rest in a mango grove.While lying down to overcome fatigue he sang afew verses from the Gitagovinda. The monkeyson the branches of mango tree were greatlyfascinated by the sweet voice and assembledbefore the poet listening to the verses with raptattention. Gradually their number increased. Manybirds and beasts also joined the monkeys andlistened to the Gitagovinda. These birds andbeasts followed the poet up to Puri. The peopleat Puri were dumbfounded to see this strangesight and hailed Jayadeva as an incarnation of LordJagannath.

I want the original, not an imitation :

Gajapati Purusottam Dev, the emperorof Utkal discontinued the recital of theGitagovinda as a service in the temple. Inimitation of the original Gitagovinda he got

21MAY - 2018


composed by Dibakar Misra a Gitagovinda ofhis own and desired to dedicate it to the Lord.But the then Empress of Kalinga opposed it. Asdecided by the queen the Gitagovinda ofJayadeva and that of the emperor were placedon the jewelled throne of the Lord. It was settledthat of the two Gitagovindas the one, which theLord would Himself hold in hand was to beconsidered superior to the other. The door of thetemple was shut for the night and on opening inthe morning it was found that the Gitagovindaof Jayadeva was in Lord’s hand. The vanity andpride of the Emperor was crushed and he had toaccept the command of the Lord. But strickenwith sorrow he abandoned food and drink andmeditated on the Lord. Moved by the devotionof the emperor the Lord commanded for inclusionof one stanza of his Gitagovinda in every cantoof the Gitagovinda by Jayadeva. In latter times,these were known as interpolated slokas of theGitagovinda. The Gitagovinda of Jayadevaalone was included in the rituals services of LordJagannath since that day. This is the legend andthe folklore. The truth is that it was PrataparudraDeva, son of Purusottam Deva who had such atest undertaken. It was Prataparudra whoinscribed the royal order at the Jaya Vijaya gateof the Jagannatha temple, which can be seen now.

The Gitagovinda Khandua scarf fromKenduli :

Once Jayadeva had gone to his nativeplace Kenduli. The weavers of Banamalipur, avillage adjacent to Kenduli, presented him a scarfcontaining the verses of the Gitagovinda wovenon it. In a dream Lord Jagannath beggedJayadeva this scarf. How strange it is that the Lordof the universe assumes the role of a beggarbefore his devotee. Being directed by the Lord,Jayadeva gifted the scarf at the lotus feet of the

Lord. Even now the same practice continues andwhen the Lord retires to sleep the scarf containingthe verses of the Gitagovinda is spread over Him.It is known as Kenduli pata or sari. The sari forLord Jagannath today comes from Nuapatna inCuttack district.

The robber gang and the poet:

Jayadeva had once gone to anotherkingdom called Krauncha. While returning fromthe kingdom the king gave him rich presents. Butwhile passing through the forest on the way hewas attacked by a gang of robbers, who robbedhim of his treasures and mutilating his hands andfeet, threw him to a well. The king of Kraunchawhile wandering in the forest for hunting, chancedto come across Jayadeva in such a plight andremoved him to his palace. After careful nursingthe wounds healed up. But what about his losthands and feet? Lord Jagannath who could nevertolerate the slightest injury to His devotee couldnot rest at peace on the jewelled throne andthrough His grace the lost hands and feet grewup again. Once the very robbers came to theCouncil of the king disguised as Brahmins in orderto ask for alms. Jayadeva could recognise themthere and yet behaved well with them. The kinggave a lot of wealth to these robbers who camein guise of Brahmins and sent some officers toguide them through the forest. On the way therobbers told the king’s employees that Jayadevawas sentenced to death in the kingdom of theirking but only through the kind interference of thoseBrahmins he was let off with his hands and legsmutilated. At this utter falsehood there were fromthe heaven, untimely thunder strokes and therobbers disguised as Brahmins were all dead.Jayadeva was sorry at heart hearing the reportsof the royal servants, regarding the death of therobbers.

22 MAY - 2018


Brinjal thorns on Lord Jagannatha:

Once an old lady was singing in amelodious voice the sweet verses of theGitagovinda while plucking brinjals in a brinjalfield at the last quarter of the night. Her sweetvoice was very pleasing and enchanting. All on asudden there came floating rhythmically in the airsweet and charming notes of the flute from thedistant fields in perfect harmony with the singingvoice of the woman. Surprised indeed was theold lady and on looking back, she saw a lovelyand lustrous youth excelling the blue clouds incolour and complexion and clothed in yellowapparel following her dancing and playing uponthe flute rhythmically with the song. The sweetfragrance of musk and sandal paste filled thesurroundings. Who is this youth? The voice ofthe old lady was choked in utter astonishment.The heavenly youth disappeared from the sight.The old lady returned home with strangeemotions.

In the morning the priests, on opening thedoor of srimandira, were astonished to theyellow apparel of Lord Jagannath stuck withbrinjal thorns and reported the matter toPrataprudra Deva, the Gajapati emperor ofUtkala. Giving up food and drink, the emperor,afflicted with grief surrendered himself to the Lordand begged for his compassion. At night LordJagannath appeared in the dream and told theemperor, ‘O King, I can’t control myself on thejewelled throne the moment the sweet melody ofthe Gitagovinda reaches my ear. Beingfascinated by the song of the old lady, I wasfollowing her in the thorny brinjal field. The royalcouncillors searched for the old lady and theemperor received detailed information from her.Since that day singing of the Gitagovinda wasforbidden at public places and it was given the

status of devotional temple anthem in Utkal, fromwhere it got spread to Kanyakumari in the southto Badrinath in the north, and to Dwaraka in thewest to Assam in the east.

There is a myth prevailing in Odisha thatif one sings the Gitagovinda standing, LordJagannath listens to it in sitting position and if onesings it sitting, He listens to it in standing position.Even today many common householders ofOdisha sing the melodious verses of theGitagovinda every morning and evening and offertheir prayers to Lord Jagannath in devotionalreverence.

Padmavati comes back from the world of thedead :

Once in the absence of Jayadeva, themaharani (chief queen) of Kalinga out of fun toldPadmavati that Jayadeva met his death due toattack of a tiger. At this news Padmavati instantlycollapsed to death. On return Jayadeva brokedown with grief at the sad demise of Padmavati.With bitter agony at heart, Jayadeva sang in aheart-rending voice the Gitagovinda at the deadbody of Padmavati and miraculously enough therethrobbed life in Padmavati who got up alive.

Years rolled on. It was at Purusottam Purithat Jayadeva left his mortal body. Padmavati alsobreathed her last after the passing away ofJayadeva.

A Muslim devotee:

It was the period of Muslim rule inOdisha. A Muslim young cavalier, while riding onthe high way thought, out of curiosity that the HinduGod Lord Jagannath appears if one sings theGitagovinda. Thinking this he rode along singingfrom the Gitagovinda. His voice was veryappealing. But where is Lord Jagannath? Naturally

23MAY - 2018


the young soldier thought that Lord Jagannath didnot appear before him because he was a man ofdifferent faith. Suddenly there came floatingthrough the air sweet and thrilling notes of flute. Itseemed as if the flute player went running afterhim keeping pace with the speed of the horse.The youth was spell bound and looked around,but could see none. He again sang theGitagovinda. What wonder! The charming flutenotes came again through the air. The Muslimyouth stepped down from the horse and offeredhis sincere devotional reverence to that invisiblepower. He narrated his experience to others. Thisestablished how dear was Gitagovinda to LordJagannath. This also established that LordJagannath did not distinguish between a Hinduand a Muslim. Salbeg was as dear to him asSantha Tulsidas. Vaisnavism embraced quite anumber of Muslims in its fold.

The cobbler is dearer to me than theBrahmin:

A cobbler used to sharpen his tools forcutting leather on a piece of polished stone in hisfootwear shop. He was a very pious man and agreat devotee of Lord Jagannath. While working,he was chanting in a sweet voice the verses of theGitagovinda. A Brahmin having gone to thecobbler’s shop for a pair of shoes, observed thesharpening stone to be a beautiful salagrambearing the symbol of chakra on it. Shocked atthe shameful disregard of the salagram, theBrahmin took it away from the cobbler andworshipped it at his home. He thought that Godwould be pleased with him because he saved Himof the disgrace of being robbed with the cuttinginstrument of the cobbler. But at night the Lordappeared in his dream and told the Brahmin, ‘OBrahmin, give back the salagram to the cobbler.I was always fascinated by the cobbler’s

melodious recital of the Gitagovinda. I cannotafford to miss it. On receipt of the divine commandin dream, the Brahmin returned the sacredsalagram to the cobbler. Thereafter, the cobblerinstalled the salagram at his cottage and whileworshipping it daily he chanted sweetly to theLord, the Gitagovinda. This story establishesthree things. (i) God was extremely fond of hearingthe Gitagovinda. (ii) He did not distinguishbetween His devotees, whether Brahmin or acobbler. (iii) Rituals of worship through mantraswere less important to God than love of thedevotee, which He could get from the sincererending of the Gitagovinda by the cobbler.

The temple that turned its face :

In a small village named Kualo nearDhenkanal town in Odisha there was a temple ofLord Siva. A leper used to be left there in thetemple premises every evening by his brother. Hissole object was to cure himself from the uglydisease by singing the Gitagovinda at night. Hisvoice was very sweet and heart touching. Onenight a voice thundered, “He who sings from theGitagovinda behind my temple should come tothe front and recite it”. At this the leper replied,“anybody interested in my song, may come toappear before me. I am invalid and cannot walk”.At this there was a roaring noise shaking the wholetemple and the temple in a moment made an aboutturn with its main door facing the patient. Whatwonder ! Not even the slightest trace of thedisease was left in his body.

Dr. Prafulla Chandra Tripathy, Plot No.1181, DevarajVidyapitha Road, Govinda Prasad (Bomikhal),Po- Rasulgarh, Bhubaneswar.

24 MAY - 2018


The Gitagovinda of Sri Jayadeva is a uniqueliterary creation. It stands unrivalled in Indianliterature. The creation of Dasavatara Tattva inGitagovinda is a landmark evolution in the historyof Sanskrit literature. The ten incarnations of LordVishnu has worldwide acclamations. Lord Vishnuone of the trinity of gods in the Hindu pantheonpresides over the world as its creator, sustainerand destroyer. Lord Vishnu presides over theuniverse as its sustainer and benefactor. He isbelieved to incarnate as often as required foreliminating the forces of evil and re-establishingrighteousness. Among the ten incarnations VarahaAvatara is a significant contribution of Jayadeva.

The description of Varaha Avatara isfound widely starting from stone, bronze, copperplate inscriptions, pattachitra and also in thepalmleaf paintings. In the Varaha Avatara, it isseen Boar rescuing the earth, from the waters inwhich it had been submerged. This Avatara isassociated with sacrifice. The demon Hiranyakshacaused damage and destruction to all those whoopposed him. After capturing Bhudevi the earthgoddess he descended into the Patala Loka andbegan beating the waters of the ocean with hiscudgel, thus causing trouble for Varuna, Lord ofthe ocean, Vishnu assumed the form of a boar tokill the tyrannous Hiranyaksha and rescueBhudevi. As he manifested himself in the three

worlds resounded with loud thundering sounds.The Boar carried Bhudevi on his golden tusksout of the water of the ocean. Hiranyaksha thenchallenged Varaha to a fight, a titanic battleensued between Varaha and Hiranyaksha,ironically the same tusks that had tenderly heldBhudevi also ripped the demon apart and killedhim.

The literary and epigraphic sources throwconsiderable light on the Varaha Avatara of LordVishnu.

In the Kapilas inscription, Narasimha-Iof Ganga Dynasty compares the great Boar(i.e. Vishnu in his Boar Incarnation) that raised

up the Vedas and world from the ocean.

The Velicherla grant of PrataprudraGajapati opens with a prayer to Ganesha and tothe Varaha incarnation of Vishnu who raised theearth from the ocean.

The Chiruvreli grants of Hambiradeva ofGajapati Dynasty begins an adoration of the Boarincarnation of Vishnu.

Apart from these Odishan dynastiesreferences of Varaha Avatara in form ofinscriptional sources are also found from differentdynasties of early mediaeval period ruling overIndia.

Varaha Avatara of Jayadeva's Gitagovindaas Depicted in the Inscription

Bharati Pal

25MAY - 2018


The Garvapadu grant of Ganapati Devastates that Varaha the Boar incarnation of Vishnuis the sole presiding deity of the three worlds. Bhu,Bhuvah and Svah bestow royalty even on thosethat were once devoted to sacrifice. The referencehere might be to the story of Varaha, Vishnu whowas devoted to sacrifice having vanquished thedemon Hiranyaksha.

The Thana plate of Ramachandradevanarrates that may Hari assuming the form of Boar,aids the three worlds, he who bears on the tip ofhis tusk the Earth, which has the gracefulappearance of a swarthy cloud conspicuous onthe crown of the mount of snows; attached tothose body of seven oceans, spreading out insame corner.

The Dandapalle plate of Vijayabhupatistates that “Let the glorious Varaha who borethe delighted Earth sunk in the water of the ocean,procures fortune to us in abundance.

The Porumamilla tank inscription ofBhaskara describes that may Achyutya (Vishnu)protect the three worlds freed from misery, whoin the form of a Boar having extracted with the tipof His tusk the earth submerged in the ocean.

In the 37 verse of Ajmer Stone Inscriptionof Vigraha Raja of the Chauhan Dynasty refersto the ten incarnations or Dasa Avatara likeKurma, Mina, Varaha, Nrusingha, Vamana,Jamadagny, Parsurama, Krishna, Buddha,and Kalki.

The Yenamadala inscription ofGanapamba narrates that the tusk of Vishnu Whodiported himself in the shape of a Boar places on

which tusk the earth resembled a parasol withthe golden mountain (Meru) as its top.

The Ajayagadh stone inscription of Nananarrates the incarnation of Lord Vishnu in theforms of Fish, Tortoise, Boar, Nrusimha,Vamana, Parsurama and Rama are invoked forblessings. It states that may Madhava in the formof a Boar who by the mighty thrust of his longcruel tusks delivered the Earth in the shape of amuddy lump of clay and who extended the fixedorder or religion and duty, the abode ofintelligence and the habitat of the universe andwho is ever ready to destroy the mental agoniesand increase your blessing.

References:

1. Epi, Indica Vol-xxx-p.41-45

2. Ibid-Vol-xxviii-p.206

3. Ibid Vol-xxxiv-p.182-183

4. Ibid-Vol-xxvii-p.37

5. Ibid Vol-xviii-p.346

6. Ibid Vol-xiii-p.200f.

7. Ibid Vol-xxv-p.1420143

8. Ibid Vol-xiv-p.79

9. Ibid Vol-xii

10. Ibid Vol-xii-96-97 ff.

11. Epi. Vol-xxviii- p.100 f.

Bharati Pal, Epigraphist, Odisha State Museum,Bhubaneswar.

26 MAY - 2018


Introduction

A heat wave is a prolonged period ofexcessively hot weather, which may beaccompanied by high humidity. Heat wavecondition prevails over a region when themaximum temperature of that region continues tobe 45ºC for two consecutive days. It differs fromcountry to country like in Netherlands, when themaximum temperature increases above 25ºC(77ºF) for at least 5 consecutive days it is definedas heat wave. In Denmark, a national heat waveis defined as a period of at least 3 consecutivedays of which period the average maximum

temperature across more than fifty per cent ofthe country exceeds 28°C (82.4°F).

Table 1. Temperature ranges for heat wavedesignation (IMD)

I The normal temperature is < 40° C. Anyincrease from the above normal temperatureis called a Heat Wave.

+ (5 or 6) ° C – Moderate Heat Wave orsimply Heat Wave Days (HWD)

+7° C or more – Severe Heat Wave Day(SHWD)

II The normal temperature is >40° C. Anyincrease from the above normal temperatureis called Heat Wave.

+ (3 or 4) ° C – Moderate Heat Wave (orHWD)

+5° C or more – Severe Heat Wave Day(SHWD)

III If the maximum temperature of any placecontinues to be 45° C consecutively for twodays (40° C for coastal areas), it is also calleda Heat Wave condition or HWD

Origin of Heat wave

The weather patterns in summer changesslower than in winter. As a result, the mid-levelhigh pressure also moves slowly. Under highpressure, the air sink towards the surface of the

earth. This sinking air acts as a dome capping theatmosphere. This cap helps to trap the terrestrialheat instead of allowing it to lift. For which thereis little or no convection and therefore noconvective cloud formation with minimal chancesfor rain. This result in continual build up of heat atthe surface that we experience as a heat wave.Rise in greenhouse gases intensifies an unusualatmospheric circulation pattern which becomesmore pronounced at a particular period leadingto such an extreme situation.

Some meteorologist has the opinion thatadvection of heat waves from the northwest Indiadue to the strong westerly to north westerly wind

Heat Wave : An Alarming Concern forContemporary World - A Case of Odisha

Tapas Ranjan PatraDr. Ashis Chandra Pathy

27MAY - 2018


is the cause of heat waves over central and easternIndia. Some anticyclones moving over northcentral India helps in thermal advection and causeheat waves. Favourable conditions which leadto the development of heat waves are as follows:

There should be a region of warm dry air andappropriate wind direction for transportationhot air over the region.

There should be no moisture in the upper airover the area.

The sky should be cloud free to allowmaximum insolation over the region.

The lapse rate should approach to dryadiabatic rate.

There should be a large amplitude of air flow.

Objectives:

1. To analyse the heat wave situations in Odisha

2. To assess the major impacts of heat wave

3. To bring out awareness & adaptive measuresfor different vulnerable groups.

Heat wave scenario in Odisha

Heat wave in 1998 brought havoc in the statecausing 2042 deaths which can be termed as“Heat wave year for Odisha”. Different remedialmeasures, awareness programmes wereintroduced by the state government to tackle theheat wave situations in future.

Figure 1. Heat Wave related deaths inOdisha

Data Source: Special Relief Commissioner,Odisha

Though extensive awareness campaignshave largely reduced the number of casualtiesduring post 1998 period, still a good number ofcasualties are being reported each year. Heatwave has become a menace during the hardsummer causing insurmountable human suffering.

28 MAY - 2018


The poor people, farmers and workers are themost vulnerable groups. Surprisingly, while coastalOdisha experiences less rise in temperaturescompared to western Odisha, analysis by HeatAction Plan for Odisha reveals that there is anincreased incidence in heat related illness in coastalOdisha which merits further attention. One of thefactors could be the difference in humidity levelsacross the zones, while plausibility may be thelower adaptability of the people in coastal areastowards sudden increase in heat causing HeatWave related morbidity and consequent mortality.At the same time, there is a need to assesscommunity vulnerability for Heat Wave.Accordingly, suitable strategies can be designed

Heat index plays a vital role in heat relatedillness which combines the air temperatureand relative humidity. North central districts ofOdisha like Dhenkanal, Khurda, Angul evencoastal districts like Ganjam are having highestnumber of casualties when heat wave isconcerned. Western Odisha receive hightemperature but due to the less relative humidityin the atmosphere there are less number of deathsowing to heat wave. South Odisha districts likeNawarangpur, Gajapati, Koraput are leastaffected by heat wave due the geo-physicalorientation.

Heat wave in Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar is the capital of Odisha. Itis the largest city in Odisha and is a centre of

to prevent and mitigate the problem. Limitedattention has been given to community vulnerabilityassessment as well as creating mechanisms forbuilding community resilience in the context ofHeat Wave (HAP, 2017).

Figure 2. Heat Wave related deaths in 30 districts of Odisha during 1999-2009

Source: Special Relief Commissioner, Odisha.

economic and religious importance in EasternIndia. Due to rapid expansion of the cities withchanging land use and land cover Bhubaneswaris experiencing change in weather patterns inrecent times.

Bol

angi

r

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Figure 3. Peak Temperatures ofBhubaneswar

Data Source: Indian Meteorological Department(IMD), Bhubaneswar

Most of the green patches has beendeforested for construction activities. It is havinga humid climate due to its proximity to sea forwhich rise in temperature is more dangerous forits inhabitants. Over the period Bhubaneswarexperienced number of deaths in different years.

Figure 4. Number of deaths due to Heat wavein Bhubaneswar

Data Source – Indian Meteorological Department(IMD), Bhubaneswar

In 1998, 123 people died due to heatwave after which in 2005, 39 people died due tothe heat wave related to the El-Nino phenomena.With different remedial measures from

Government of Odisha and BhubaneswarMunicipal Corporation heat related death hasbeen diminished.

Impacts of Heat Wave

Heat wave has various impacts onenvironment, human health & different socio-cultural impacts on our society. Heat waveimpacts on human health:

Heat Cramps: It is a type of heat illness, aremuscle spasms that result from loss of largeamount of salt and water through exercise.Heat cramps are associated with cramping inthe abdomen, arms and calves. This can becaused by inadequate consumption of fluidsor electrolytes. Heavy sweating causes heatcramps, especially when the water is replacedwithout also replacing salt or potassium.

Heat exhaustion: it is caused by failure of thebody’s cooling mechanism to maintain anormal core temperature. Due to physicalwork blood flow to skin increases, causingblood flow to decrease to the vital organs.This results in a form of mild shock.

Heat Hyper pyrexia: a condition marked bydizziness and nausea and weakness causedby depletion of body fluids and electrolytes,insolation, sunstroke, thermic fever, suddenprostration due to exposure to the sun orexcessive heat. Type of: collapse, prostration.an abrupt failure of function or completephysical exhaustion.

Heat stroke: a condition marked by fever andoften by unconsciousness, caused by failureof the body’s temperature-regulatingmechanism when exposed to excessively high

30 MAY - 2018


temperatures. It is life-threatening and oftenreferred as sunstroke.

Apart from the health impacts it alsoaffects other aspects. In addition tophysical stress, excessive heat causespsychological stress, to a degree which affectsperformance, and is also associated with anincrease in violent crime. High temperatures areassociated with increased conflict both at theinterpersonal level and at the societal level. Heatwave badly affects the agricultural activities. It isvery tough to work in field when there is a heatwave condition. Even it sometimes destroys thecrops, with excess of heat that creates shortageof moisture content making it harder for the cropsto survive. Heat wave affects the daily wagelabourers. In summer it becomes hard to workunder the scorching sun. sometimes the workinghours are changed to maintain the gap, it seemssimple but there are lots of complexities with it.Energy consumption during the heat wavecondition rises. The electric transmission systemis impacted when power lines sag in hightemperature. The combination of extreme heat andadded demand for electricity to run airconditioning causes transmission line temperatureto rise. There are several impacts ontransportation too. Aircraft lose lift at hightemperatures. Stress is placed on automobilecooling systems, diesel trucks and railroadlocomotives. This leads to an increase inmechanical failures. Train rail develop sun kinksand distort. Refrigerated goods experience asignificant greater rate of spoilage due to extremeheat. The demand for water increases in duringperiods of hot weather. In extreme heat waves,water is used to cool bridges and other metalstructures susceptible to heat failure. This causesa reduced water supply and pressure in many

areas. The rise in water temperature during heatwaves contribute to the degradation of waterquality and negatively impacts fish populations. Itcan also lead to the death of many other organismin the water ecosystem. High temperatures arealso linked to rampant algae growth, causing fishkills in rivers and lakes.

Adaptive measures for heat wave:

Safety measures to be taken before Heat wave:

Listen to local weather forecasts and stayaware of upcoming temperature changes.

Be aware of both the temperature and theheat index. The heat index is the temperaturethe body feels when the effects of heat andhumidity are combined.

Discuss heat safety precautions with membersof your household. Have a plan for whereveryou spend time— home, work and school—and prepare for power outages.

Check the contents of your emergencydisaster kit in case a power outage occurs.

Know those in your neighbourhood who areelderly, young, sick or overweight. They aremore likely to become victims of excessiveheat and may need help.

If you do not have air conditioning, chooseplaces you could go to for relief from the heatduring the warmest part of the day (schools,libraries, theatres, malls).

Be aware that people living in urban areasmay be at greater risk from the effects of aprolonged heat wave than are people livingin rural areas.

Get trained in First Aid to learn how to treatheat-related emergencies.

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Ensure that your animals’ needs for water andshade are met.

Measures to be taken during heat wave condition:

Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of fluids evenif you do not feel thirsty. Avoid drinks withcaffeine or alcohol.

Eat small meals and eat more often.

Avoid extreme temperature changes.

Wear loose-fitting, lightweight, light-colouredclothing. Avoid dark colours because theyabsorb the sun’s rays.

Slow down, stay indoors and avoid strenuousexercise during the hottest part of the day.

Postpone outdoor games and activities.

Take frequent breaks if you must workoutdoors.

Check on family, friends and neighbours whodo not have air conditioning, who spend muchof their time alone or who are more likely tobe affected by the heat.

Check on your animals frequently to ensurethat they are not suffering from the heat.

Treating heat related illness:

Get the person to a cooler place and havehim or her rest in a comfortable position.Lightly stretch the affected muscle and gentlymassage the area.

Give an electrolyte-containing fluid, such as acommercial sports drink, fruit juice or milk.Water may also be given. Do not give theperson salt tablets.

In case of emergency consult to a doctor asfast as possible.

Conclusion:

Heat waves have significant implicationsfor human beings and environment. This is

compounded by the increased frequency, lengthand intensity of heat waves in future predicted bya number of organisations such asintergovernmental panel on climate change.Existing studies played more focus onenvironmental issues. Future studies are requiredto focus on socio-cultural impacts to informdecision making. Think about a daily wagelabourer and the dependence of their family onhim/her. If he/she don’t work for a day due toheat wave their family members suffer.

References:

1. Akompab DA, Bi P, Williams S, Grant J, Walker IA,Augoustinos M. Awareness of and attitudestowards heat waves within the context of climatechange among a cohort of residents in Adelaide,Australia. Int J Environ Res Public Health.2013;10(1):1-17. doi:10.3390/ijerph10010001.

2. Heat action plan, 2017, OSDMA

3. http://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/types-of-emergencies/heat-wave-safety

4. Panda G K, Das G R (2014). Heat Waves and theirMitigation Measures. Artech, 24, Bhoumnagar,Unit-4, Bhubaneswar-751004.

5. Zuo J, Pullen S, Palmer J, Bennetts H, Chileshe N,Ma T, Impacts of heat waves and correspondingmeasures: A review, Journal of CleanerProduction (2015), doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.12.078.

Tapas Ranjan Patra, M.Phil Scholar (JRF), P.G. Dept. ofGeography, Utkal University, Bhubaneswar.

Dr. Ashis Chandra Pathy, Asst. Professor, P.G. Dept. ofGeography, Utkal University, Bhubaneswar.

32 MAY - 2018


The Prelude

A child is a biological specie, female ormale, under 18 years of age, needing care andprotection. Courage, sacrifice, determination,commitment, toughness, heartfulness, talent, guts,that’s what girls are made up of; the heck withsugar and spice. A personification of love,fondness, innocence, sentiment, sympathy andprospect successor of the race, a girl child, isdeprived of her minimum rights due to theengendered culture shadowing the society andendangering humanity. The rights of a girl childare violated even before she sees the light of theday.

The Plight of Girls

The nastiest instance of brutality againstgirls is female foeticide, a violation of the humanright to life guaranteed under article 21 of theConstitution of India. Figure as recorded byUNICEF, said that in 1984 in Bombay out of the8,000 abortions that took place, 7,999 of themwere girls. Girl children are murdered shortly afterbeing born when the family comes to know thesex of the child or killed slowly through neglectand abandonment. Moreover, between the years1981-1991 a whopping 11 million girls joinedIndia’s missing women a group of 35 and 40million. According to the United Nations Cyberschool bus paper on the girl child, out of 130

million children not in school, almost 60% are girls.In India, the Ministry of Human ResourceDevelopment showed the average enrolment rateof girls, ages 6-14 and 14-18, as 93.47% and36.77%. But they also show 61.5% of girlsdropped out of school before completing classXII. According to a special report on the girl childand labour by International Labour Organisation(ILO), more than 100 million girl children betweenthe ages of 5 and 17 are engaged in child labour.The Human Rights Watch says that prostitutionages have dropped from 14-16 years in the1980’s to 10-14 years in 1991. According toUnited Nations Cyber school bus paper at least

one in three girls and women worldwide has beenphysically harmed or sexually abused in herlifetime.

Protective Measures

Steps are being taken to protect the rightsof the girl children globally and locally. Thelandmark initiatives taken in India in this directionare The National Policy for Children, 1974 ; TheNational Plan of Action for Children, 2005; ThePre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation andPrevention of Misuse) Act, 1994; The ImmoralTraffic (Prevention) Act 1986; The Juvenile JusticeAct 2000; Indian Penal code; Balika SamriddhiYojana and Kishori Shakti Yojana. In addition,

Protecting Child Rights : Mahila and SishuDesk as a Potent Way Out

Dr. Ramesh Chandra Nayak

33MAY - 2018


the Government of India has started a “save thegirl child” campaign with the slogan “A happy girlis the future of our country”. The UN has manyinitiatives that aim at the welfare of the girl child.The most significant one is the UN Girls’ EducationInitiative launched in April 2000, at the WorldEducation Forum in Dakar, by United NationsSecretary-General Kofi Annan. In 2004 the NikeFoundation was founded with the aim ofaddressing developmental issues of the teenagergirls. They released a series of videos and createda sub web page for their campaign: “The GirlEffect”. The Foundation works with otherorganisations such as CARE and the UNFoundation to create opportunities for adolescentgirls. Thus this paper presents a ground-breakingmeasure to protect the rights of girls on the basisof the doctoral research completed by the authoron the gender facets of women police entitled “JobChallenges and Coping Strategies of WomenPolice in Odisha- A Sociological Study in the TwinCity of Cuttack - Bhubanewsar”. The objectivesof the paper are:

1. To present a picture of the origin andgrowth of policing in the world, India and inOdisha and the Commissionerate nationally andregionally.

2. Offering an outline of the entry of womeninto policing globally, nationally and locally alongwith its reasons.

3. Mapping out the development of MahilaThanas (All Women’s Police Stations) and Mahilaand Sishu Desks (Women and Child Desks) inOdisha along with the reasons behind suchinitiatives.

4. To assess the role played by Mahila andSishu Desks in protecting the rights of the childrenin general and girl children in particular.

Introducing Policing

As crime or deviance is a ubiquitous socialphenomena, all societies and civilizations, sincethe very beginning of organized life have beencharacterized by some kind of watch and wardsystem to bring the evil-doers to justice in oneform or the other. Thus police system as anindependent unit in the administrative organizationof the state has developed and Article 246 of theConstitution of India places it in the State List.Oxford English Dictionary defines police as asystem of regulation for the presentation of orderand enforcement of law. In modern society it refersto an organised body of civil officers in a place,whose particular duties are the maintenance ofgood order through the prevention and detectionof crime to ensure justice through enforcement oflaws. In India policing is an ancient system. TheRig Veda and the Atharva Veda eloquently talkabout certain kinds of crimes and punishmentsknown in Vedic India. On April 1st, 1936 boththe state of Odisha (earlier Orissa) and the OdishaPolice were born and Odisha Police comprisedof 4000 policemen approx. of all ranks takentogether (Nayak, 2012). In fact the BritishGovernment realized that the district system wouldnot work efficiently in metropolitan areas, whichfaced different police problems. Therefore,another system i.e. the Commissionerate systemof policing was introduced in certain metropolitanareas like Calcutta, Bombay, Madras andHyderabad. Now the number of Cities where theCommissionerate System is functioning in thecountry is 47. The highest number of cities withPolice Commissionerates is in Maharashtra,followed by Tamil Nadu and Kerala (Pathak,2013). The cities with this system of policing area) Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad, Vijayawada andVisakhapatnam, b) Gujarat – Baroda,Ahmedabad, Rajkot and Surat, c) Punjab-Amritsar, Jalandhar and Ludhiana, d) Haryana-

34 MAY - 2018


Gurgaon, Faridabad and Ambala-Pankhula,e) Karnataka – Bangalore City, Hubli-DharwadCity, Mangalore city and Mysore city, f) Kerala -Kochi, Kozhikode, KLM City, TSR City andThiruvanatapuram, g) Maharastra - Mumbai,Nashik, Aurangabad, Solapur, Pune, Thane, NewMumbai, Nagpur, Amaravati and R.Mumbai,h) Odisha- Cuttack and Bhubaneswar,i) Rajasthan- Jaipur and Jodhpur, j) Tamilnadu –Grater Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Salem,Tirunelvelli and Trichy, k) West Bengal- Howrah,Asansol-Durgapur and Kolkata and l) UnionTerritory of Delhi- NCT Delhi (Pathak, 2013).

The Commissionerate, Bhubaneswar andCuttack was first conceived in 1998. A formalproposal along with Draft Orissa Police UrbanBill was submitted by State Police Head Quartersduring May, 1999. After series of discussions inHome Department and vetting by LawDepartment, the Orissa Urban Police Bill(OUPB), 2003 was introduced in OrissaLegislative Assembly on 4th April, 2003 and wasreferred to the Select Committee. A delegationof the Committee visited Mumbai, Hyderabadand Delhi to see the functioning of the PoliceCommissionerate and after 4 sittings, submittedits report on 21st October, 2003 recommendingsome changes in the Bill. After a marathon overnight uninterrupted session of nearly 16 hours on10/11.11.2003 the Orissa Legislative Assemblypassed the Bill which received the assent of thePresident of India on 24.9.07 and became an Actand the system took its birth on 1st January, 2008.

Women Stepped Down

Women were not generally preferred forpolicing and military due to male domination inand masculine culture of the organizations. But indue course there arose recognition of their valuein dealing with cases relating to women andchildren and to turn police force into police service.

The United States inducted women as PoliceMatrons with custodial duties in the New YorkCity of America in 1845, first time in the world.Great Britain inducted them in 1907 to recordstatements and interrogate female victims of sexualassault for the London Criminal IntelligenceDivision. Then other countries followed the footprint i.e. Australia inducted them into its policingin 1915; Poland, 1925, India, 1938; NewZealand, 1942; Japan, 1946; Singapore, 1949;Indonesia, 1951; Guyana, 1953; Nigeria, 1955;Sweden, 1957; Israel & Malaysia, 1960; France,1969 and West Germany in 1993 (Vishnoi, 1999and Ghosh 1981).

India pulled them into policing first timein Kanpur in 1938 to handle a labour strike(Government of Uttar Pradesh, 1962) in whichwomen labourers laid down at the entrance ofthe factory for obstructing the entry of the non-willing workers. The male police faced a delicatesituation of lifting the women workers physicallyoff the ground. Women were introduced intoKanpur Police in 1939 against any such eventualityin future (Rao, 1975; Ghosh, 1981; Mahajan,1982). In addition the realization of the need tohave women in the police force in India can beattributed to four conditions which emerged duringthe national struggle for independence and post-independence period. a) For providing securityto the Prime Minister from the daily approach ofwomen with grief and distress due to communalfrenzy and need with the Ministry of Relief andRehabilitation to recover abducted women duringpartition (Bhardwaj, 1976), b) To counter theobjections of the national leaders regardinghandling women participating in satyagrahas bypolice men during the national struggle forindependence and handling women involved inpolitical agitations, bundhs, strikes, linguistic andcommunal riots in many states immediately afterindependence (Rao, 1975). c) To successfully

35MAY - 2018


implement the laws like Children Act, Suppressionof Immoral Traffic in Women and Girls Act(SITWGA) in the post-Independence years andd) Force put forth by weak economic conditionsof the girls for employment and its availability forthem, attempt for women’s emancipation andincreasing involvement of women victims andaccused in delinquency and crime (Bhanot andMisra, 1978).

After Uttar Pradesh, other Indian statesappointed women police such as Maharashtra &Kerala in 1939; Gujarat, Punjab & Delhi, 1948;West Bengal, 1949; Andhra Pradesh, 1950;Bihar, 1952; Rajasthan, 1955; Madhya Pradesh,1956; Karnataka, 1960; Manipur & Orissa,1961; Jammu & Kashmir 1965; HimachalPradesh & Haryana, 1966; Assam, 1967;Nagaland, 1968; Tamil Nadu, 1973; Chandigarh,1977 (Ghosh, 1981) and some other state/UTssuch as Pondicherry, Tripura, Meghalaya and Goabut the data on the years of their induction arenot available. Women entered into Odisha Policein 1961 in the rank of Sub Inspector and theirnumber was two.

The total number of women police in Indiawas 105,325 as on 1.1.2014. From amongst allthe states/UTs Maharashtra police has the highestnumber of women incumbents and the lowestbeing in Lakshadeep. Their number inMaharashtra police is 17957,Tami Nadu 13842,UP 7238, Rajasthan 6568, Bihar 2341, Sikkim333, Andhra Pradesh 4622, Gujarat 2691,Jharkhand 2906, Karnatak 3682, West Bengal3791, A & N Islands 445, Madhya Pradesh 4190,Manipur 2040, Meghalaya 329, Mizoram 568,Chandigarh 1017, Nagaland 253, Punjab 4761,Odisha 4381, Kerala 3067, Chhatishgarh 2348,Himachal Pradesh 1552, Daman and Diu 34,Tripura 777, Puducherry 165, Haryana 2734,Jammu & Kashmir 2252, Delhi 5413, Lakshadeep

16, Uttarakhand 1528, Arunchal Pradesh 582,Assam 510, Goa 366, D & N Haveli 26, totalinginto all India 105,325. (BPRD,2014). The numberof women in the Commissionerate Police Cuttack-Bhubaneswar was 367 in 2011.

Women police in general are comfortablein dealing with cases involving women andchildren because women/children (victim/accused)can be best handled by women police as womenand children are sensitive to soft approaches.Women police can properly counsel them withaffectionate approach that the police men can’tdo, so easily (Nayak, 2012). Keeping this in viewsix Women Police Stations in Odisha-one eachin Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Berhampur, Rourkela,Jaypur and Sambalpur have been set up to dealwith rape, domestic violence, dowry victims andchild related cases.

There were 518 women police stationsall over India as on 1.1.2014. The number State/UT wise is 199 in Tami Nadu, UP 71, Bihar andRajasthan 40 each, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat32 each, Jharkhand 22, Karnataka and WestBengal 10 each, Madhya Pradesh and Manipur09 each, Meghalaya and Punjab 07 each, Odisha06, Kerala and Chhatishgarh 04 each, Tripuraand Puducherry 03 each, Haryana, Jammu &Kashmir and Uttarakhand 02 each and there isonly 01 all women police station each inArunachal Pradesh, Assam, Goa and D & NHaveli. However there are 10 States/UTs wherethere are no separate women police stations atall (BPRD, 2014). Moreover all the 537 policestations in Odisha have established Mahila andSishu Desks commencing with 40 stations onexperimental basis to facilitate integratedapproach towards crime against women andchildren vide Odisha Police PO No 301/dated15.3.2005 (Mohanty, 2011).

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Role of MSD in Protecting the Rights ofChildren

Women officers of the rank of S.I / A.S.Iavailable in the Police Stations are designated asDesk Officer of the Desks. A desk officer will beassisted by at least one lady constable. Whereno woman officer of the rank of S.I / A.S.I. isavailable, a Junior S.I. is to be designated as theDesk Officer. In the absence of any woman officer,at least two lady constables should be attachedto the Desk. The District S. P. will select personnelfrom the existing strength of the Police Stationsand attach them to the Desks by issuing formalorders, which is to be published as D.O. and acopy sent to the concerned Police Station. The‘Mahila and Sishu Desk shall function under theoverall control and supervision of the Officer-in-Charge of the Police Station. The initiative takenfor having MSDs has fixed the duties andresponsibilities of the Desk Officer. The DeskOfficer of the Mahila and Sishu Desk shall beresponsible for receiving all complaints eitherlodged at the Police Stations by women and childvictims or relating to them. The responsibilities ofthe desk officer in relation to the protection of therights of girl children are:

The OIC of the Police Station, the DeskOfficer of the Desk as well as the staff attachedto the Desk should be conversant with laws inforce relating to girl or children.

They will ensure that the guidelines prescribedunder various laws and by the Apex Court relatingto arrest and treatment of children while at thePolice Stations are meticulously followed.

The Traumatized women victims as well aswomen and juvenile accused of any offence whileat Police Stations shall be segregated from others,and examined and interrogated separately in aseparate room of the P. S. with due regard totheir privacy and in accordance with law.

The girl victims and juveniles shall be takencare of and dealt with sympathy in accordancewith provisions of law relating to children.

The traumatized girls may require counsellingand temporary shelter before they are acceptedback in the families or otherwise rehabilitated. TheDesk Officer of the desk shall refer such cases tothe Short Stay Home, Destitute Home andChildren’s Home etc. as the case may be.

The Officer-in-Charge of the Police Stationand the Desk Officer should be accessible to theNGOs and co-ordinate efforts to improve thecondition of children within the legal framework.

The traumatized girl children may requiremedical attention for their medico-legalexamination and treatment. The Desk Officer ofsuch Desk shall maintain a list of lady doctorsavailable in the P. S jurisdiction, Sub-Division andDistrict Hdqrs. for referring the cases of victims.

Trafficking in girl children is another majorarea which the officers and men attached to suchDesk will be required to focus their attention. TheOfficers and men attached to the Desk shall collectinformation regarding trafficking in girl ‘Children’on false promises of marriage, providingemployment etc. and their subsequentexploitation.

It has been observed that Police officersduring interviews to the media allow girl childvictims to be photographed after raids on brothelsetc. While briefing the media, the Mahila and SishuDesk personnel should bear in mind that lawprohibits revelation of name of victims of offencesU/s. 376, 376A, 376B, 376C and 337D I.P.C.,and child participants in offences under the I.T.P.Act are often victims of crime. This aspect maybe borne in mind while allowing media coverageof such offences.

37MAY - 2018


The Desk Officer shall identify placesfrequently by large number of women and girlseither regularly or occasionally during fairs andfestivals and take proactive measures by way ofpatrolling and deployment of women policeofficers to prevent eve-teasing, kidnapping,abduction, molestation etc.

Training: A ‘Sensitization Training Course’ forOfficers and Constables attached to such Desk,Os.I.C/Is.I.C/C.ls/SDPOs and Hqrs. Dy. Ss. P.shall be organised at the Range level. The DistrictSs.P. will ensure that all officers and constablesattached to such Desk attend the training course.Suitable entry to that effect may be made in theirService Books.

Conclusion

In spite of different legislations institutedto protect the rights of the girl children, the violationof their rights follows an ascending trend globally,nationally and locally. Thus the researcher suggeststhe concentration of the government on MSD forthe protection of their rights. This initiative shouldbe followed and propagated by the global,national and local civil society activism committedto the cause of the girl children. Women policeworking in the MSDs should be properly trainedand motivated to treat the girl victims and accusedwith conscience, sympathy, love and affection.

References :

Bhanot, M. L., & Misra, S.( 1978), “Criminality AmongWomen in Indian” Bureau of Police Research andDevelopment, New Delhi.

Bhardwaj, A. (April, 1976), “Police Modernization inIndia: A Study of Women Police in Delhi”, The IndianJournal of Social Work, Vol.37, No.1.

Convention on the Rights of the Child, The Policy Press,Office of the United Nations High Commissioner forHuman Rights.

Data furnished by Orissa Police State HeadquartersCuttack, as on 21.05.2011", Letter No. 26101.Cuttack,Odisha.

Data on Police Organisation as on January 1, 2014,(2014), Bureau of Police Research and Development(BPRD), New Delhi.

Data supplied by the reserve Inspectors of Cuttack &BBSR, UPDs on the recommendation of theCommissioner of Police, Commissionarate police,Cuttack-BBSR through the Deputy Commissioners ofCuttack-BBSR as on 27.09.0210(Cuttack) and 29.03.2010(BBSR).

Ghosh, S.K. (1981), “Women in Policing”, Light andLife Publishers, New Delhi.

Mahajan, A. (1982),”Indian Police Women”, Deep andDeep Publications, New Delhi.

Mohanty, R.K. and Mohanty S. (b) (2010), “Women inPolice: Issues and Concerns”, Compendium ofProceedings, 4th National Conference of Women inPolice, p.25, Biju Patnaik State Police Academy,Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

Mohanty, S. (2011), “Community Policing Strategies ina Marketing Framework: Case Study of Mahila & SishuDesk of Orissa”, PGPPM Project, Indian Institute ofManagement, Bengaluru.

Nayak, R.C., (2012), Job Challenges and CopingStrategies of Women Police in Orissa- A SociologicalStudy in the Twin City of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar,Ph.D Thesis, Bhubaneswar.

Pathak, H.P. (2013), Data on Police Organisation in Indiaas on 1 January 2013, Bureau of Police Research andDevelopment, New Delhi.

Rao, S. V. (January-March, 1975), “Women police inIndia’’, Police Research & Development. Delhi.

The Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary,(1971), Vol. I, Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Vishnoi, O.R.S, (1999), “Women Police in India”, AravaliBooks International (P) Ltd., New Delhi.

www.humanrightsinitiative.org

Dr. Ramesh Chandra Nayak, Faculty, Department ofSociology, Ravenshaw University, Cuttack.

38 MAY - 2018


Role of farmwomen is crucial in all sectors ofagriculture and agro processing which contributeto the household economy. Farm householdderives its total sustenance either from crops orlivestock, in which women contribute substantiallyto either one or both. However associated withtheir contribution in farm sector, different issuesalso emerge which retard their working attitude,renders severe monotony and sometime exposesto undesirable occupational health hazards. Thesegender issues differ in nature and magnitude withrespect to the working area, occupation, socialstructure, economic condition and educationalstatus. Farmwomen’s access to resources, inputs,

services, information, produces, benefits andextent of control, level of participation in decisionmaking, scope for skill up gradation, developmentof entrepreneurship skill are the important areasof gender study.

Studies indicated that participation offarmwomen in different agricultural operations isquite significant in Odisha. Their role became morecrucial recently with response to massive malemigration and increase in female headedhouseholds. So there is urgent need for capacitybuilding of farmwoman in crop husbandry,marketing management. Equally important is to

improve their access to seeds and plantingmaterials, fertilizers, pesticides, crop weatherinformation and knowledge on farming.

Farmwomen have always less access toquality seeds and planting materials of desirablevarieties. Success of government promotedagriculture schemes very often becomesunsustainable due to lack or less access to qualityseeds. So access to quality seeds is the key forachieving quality participation of women inagriculture.

Quality seed

Seed refers to any botanical seeds, tubers,

cuttings, suckers, implants etc. which are usedfor producing a new plant. Quality seed is theseed, which has good germination or regenerationability, desirable moisture content, true to motherpopulation, uniform, free from disease causingorganisms and insect pests.

Importance of farm saved seed

As per farmer’s right of PPV & FR(Protection of plant varieties and farmer’s rightsact-2003) farmers can produce, sell and exchangetheir produced seed. So the seed saved andproduced by the farmer is called farmer savedseed. In India we have an organized seed

Strategies to Improve Farm Women's Accessto Quality Seed in Odisha

Laxmi Priya Sahoo, Abha Singh& Sabita Mishra

39MAY - 2018


production and distribution system organized byNational Seed Corporation, State SeedCorporations and State Seed Certifying agencies.Parallel to this public owned system, privatecompanies of all sizes operate largely inproduction of HYVs, Hybrids and Geneticallymodified seeds of high value crops and occupy amajor market share. Besides these two systemsfarmers produce their own seed and farm savedseed occupy minimum of 50% share in Indianseed industry. So farm saved seed is veryimportant and there is a need to improve thequality of farm saved seed.

Present involvement of farmwomen in seedproduction

From beginning of agriculture in ancienttimes, farmwomen played an important role inseed collection, conservation and maintenance.However in the post green revolution era, theirimportance diminished due to the use of moreHYVs and hybrids. Men took control over seedprocurement and management. So access offarmwomen reduced to the main farmland andseed and women dominated in other operationslike transplanting and weeding, which are moredrudgery prone activities.

Need for more access of women to qualityseed

Small and marginal women farmers, whoare desirous of cultivating crops and to maintainhomestead nutrition garden, face acute shortageof quality seeds. Though seeds available theycannot access it in the village and depend on malemembers for its procurement. Due todiscontinuance of seed production andmaintenance activities, they did not develop muchskill in it.

Strategies to improve their access to qualityseed

1. Awareness Generation

Often farmwomen of Odisha hesitate toexpress the difficulties faced by them in farmingand quality seed need is taken less seriously.Arrangement of seeds usually becomes moredifficult and farming is delayed and compromised.So awareness generation becomes imperative todocument their perceived need for quality seedand their concerns for less participation inagriculture due to lack of seed. This step leads toformulation of programmes to address their seedneeds

2. Capacity Building

Seed production and distribution systemin India takes care of all released and notifiedlocation specific high yielding varieties for seedproduction. At times it happens that seeds of fewpromising varieties are multiplied and distributedto farmers. So many promising local varieties withgood adaptability to climatic fluctuations, insectpest resistance, indeterminate fruiting type remainsout of seed multiplication chain. So capacitybuilding of farmwomen in production andmanagement of both high yielding varieties andlocal varieties will definitely improve their accessto quality seed and conservation of these localraces.

3. Working Knowledge

For involving farmwomen in seed andplanting material production of crops, vegetables,flowers medicinal plants etc. working knowledgeis essential in their part. So step by step trainingon soil and climate requirement of crop, sowing,transplanting, rouging, isolation requirement, offtypes, supplementary pollination, fruit and seedset, time of harvesting, threshing, processing and

40 MAY - 2018


storage will help in developing skill in farmwomen.Proper seed labeling and packing will add valueto the produced seed.

4. Community Involvement

Community involvement will provebeneficial. In a community farmwomen will bemore confident in learning skills and sharing ofresponsibilities. This will help in effectivepenetration of knowledge. The community canbe a unit involving all the village households or afarmers’ interest group, a SHG, a group of fewlikeminded people or a joint family. Seedproduction in a community can be characterizedin three ways:

- Seed production individually but with acommon goal

- Seed production in a common land withequal benefit sharing

- Seed procurement by a community orSHG from all producers and handlingdistribution

In this model of seed productionfarmwomen can enjoy easy and immediate accessto quality seed and can have exchange option inabsence of working capital. Then both essentialseeds of food crops and prized crops likevegetables and flowers will be equally availableto the rural farmers. Certified seed production ofnotified varieties can also be taken up in acommunity with collaboration of State SeedCorporations for marketing dealership for easyaccess at the village level.

5. Organizational Participation

For enhancing the quality and quantity offarm saved seeds and improving access offarmwomen to quality seed by involving them inseed production and management activities,

organizational support is necessary. Participatoryevaluation of scope and opportunities, provisionof source seeds, quality control, maintenance ofthreatened local races, marketing assistance,entrepreneurship development etc. has to be donein participatory mode with farmwomen. Forsustainable development of agriculture much stresshas to be given on seed and planting materialproduction. Bulk seeds having heavy transportrequirement like potato, tuber crops, sugarcane,plantation crops like coconut, banana etc. can beproduced in their vicinity or in their field, therebysaving in the investment and maximizing benefit.Impact of one successful area can be multipliedby organizational participation by producing morenumber of skilled manpower from the locality.

6. Contract Production

Contract production of seeds and plantingmaterials by farmwomen by private companies,Krishi Vigyan Kendras, State farms, SeedCorporations can be very convenient. Contractproduction is a package which comes with sourceseed, proven technology and assuredprocurement and marketing. The major challengein contract growing is cancellation of contracts, ifquality parameters are not met. So contractproduction should follow organizational supportand handholding for development of adequate skillof farmwomen in specialized production methods.

7. Policy Support

With advent of green revolution, highinput dependant High Yielding Varieties (HYVs),and hybrid varieties, rural agriculture becamecorporate dependant. Farmers becamedependant for everything on corporate sector andpublic distribution system. Local varieties whichare suited to the local climate and have thecapability of giving good return by using familyresources are being replaced by few HYVs due

41MAY - 2018


to lack of organised seed multiplication systemfor them and gradually being out from thescenario. This made agriculture highly risk proneas investment has gone high. Along with this itleads to erosion of precious germplasm which aresource for future development of HYVs. So thegene pool is becoming very narrow which willaffect effective plant breeding.

So suitable programmes and policies forcreating inventory of the local varieties still beingcultivated, determination of their yield potential,quality analysis, documentation of specificadvantages, and conferring the local people thelegal rights of these cultivars on seed productionand distribution is necessary. This will involve morewomen in seed multiplication.

So in addition to quantity of this farmsaved seed, qualitative improvement is necessaryby skill training. Maintenance of carryover seeds,proper storage environment provision, makingseed activities mandatory, inclusion of farmwomenin large numbers will be quite helpful. Properconservation of surplus seeds for enabling quickresowing at times of disaster, when, first sowingis damaged is quite logical for quick recovery ofdisaster damage. Inclusion of women SHGs ascontract growers of seed corporations by relaxingthe minimum land size requirements, involving themmore in vegetable seed production can help themgrow as seed growers.

9. Lesser quality standards for farm savedseed

Development of lesser seed standards forlabeling of these seeds and development of

authorized mini seed testing laboratories in everyblock or panchayat for this farmer notified varietieswill be useful for giving a boost to womeninvolvement in seed production and increasingtheir access to quality seed.

8. Promotion of women seed distributors

Promoting farmwomen or women SHGsas seed distributors and retailers of both certifiedseed and farm saved seed is an important step inincreasing seed access of farmwomen. The seedrequirements of the local people will be betterassessed by women and seed procurement fromlocal growers will be faster.

Conclusion

Farmwomen’s problems are many, and,limited access to quality seed is the majorchallenge in a disaster prone state like Odisha.Seed security is essential for sustaining ruralfarming for minimizing migration from rural areas.Combined effort by farming community,developmental workers, researchers andpolicymakers can convert the seed problem offarmwomen to an opportunity for them to emergeas major seed producers and distributors.

Laxmi Priya Sahoo, Abha Singh and Sabita Mishra,ICAR, Directorate of Research on Women inAgriculture, Bhubaneswar-751003, E-mail:[email protected]

42 MAY - 2018


The Asian and Pacific Centre for Women andDevelopment defines “Empowerment as aprocess that aims at creating the conditions forself-determination of particular people or group.”Empowerment refers to enabling people to takecharge of their own lives. For women,empowerment indicates the importance ofincreasing their power and taking control overdecisions and issues that shape their lives. Literallyto empower women is to give power to women.Delegation of power does not mean to feeling ofsuperiority and dominance upon others. It is asense of internal strength and confidence to facelife. It facilitates for taking part in decision making

and capacity building to contribute towardsnational development.

The Constitutional Guarantee:-

The Following articles to safeguard thewomen.

Article 14 - Equality before law.

Article 15(1) - Prohibition of discriminationon the ground of religion, race,caste, sex and place of birthin the matter of publicemployment.

Article 16 - Equality of opportunity.

Article 39(d) - Equal pay for equal work.

Article 51(a) - Renounce practicesderogatory to the dignity ofwomen.

Article 15(3)- The Constitution allows stateto make special in favour ofwomen and children.

Article 42 - Securing just and humaneconditions of work andmaternity relief.

National policy for Empowerment ofwomen came into force from 2001 whichemphasizes –

Creating an environment through positiveeconomic and social policies for fulldevelopment of women to enable them torealize their full potentialities.

The dejure and defacto enjoyment of allhuman rights and fundamental freedom bywomen on equal basis with men in all spheres-political, economic, social, cultural and civil.

Equal access to participation and decisionmaking of women in social, political andeconomic life.

Education - A Tool for Empowering Women

Pradipta Kumar Biswal

43MAY - 2018


Equal access to women to health care, qualityeducation at all levels, career and vocationalguidance, employment and equalremuneration, occupational health and safety,social security and public office etc.

Strengthening legal systems aimed atelimination of all forms of discriminationagainst women.

Changing societal attitudes and communitypractices by active participation andinvolvement of both men and women.

Mainstreaming a gender perspective in thedevelopment process.

Elimination of discrimination and all form ofviolence against women and girl child.

Building and strengthening partnership withcivil society, particularly women’sorganisations.

Though the different departments hascertain agenda for empowering women bydeveloping their overall efficiency and economiccondition, Education plays a pivotal role incapacity building of women. The department ofwomen Empowerment and child developmentimplements the following programmes.

1. The integrated child development services(ICDS) program – This is a flagship program ofthe department while providing ‘Anganawadi’(Creche) Services and health and nutritionalsupplements to infants, ICDS also provides preand post natal care for pregnant and lactatingmothers.

2. Kishori Balika Yojana (Scheme forAdolescent girls)- It is a part of ICDS programand a special scheme for adolescent girls wasinitiated from 2001. The scheme is intended foradolescent girls in 11-18 age groups who belong

to the BPL family. Training programmes inmanifold dimensions are provided in this scheme.The areas include health and nutrition, familywelfare, providing interpersonal skill and makingthem self-dependent through vocational skills.

There are certain other programmes likeold age pension, pension scheme for widows/homeless/ disabled, financial assistance to destitutewidows, for remarriage of widows, grant tofemale student who have passed intermediate fromBPL family to pursue her study.

Education is a powerful weapon forempowerment of women. It is an investment inhuman capital. Education develops awarenessamong the women regarding their potentialitiesfor active participation in restructuring the society.Realizing the key role of Education in empoweringthe women several schemes have been launched.

Under Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (Educationfor All) necessary steps have been initiated toreduce gender gaps.

i) Early Child Care Education (ECCE) centres:

Those centres playing a pivotal role inpreschooling as it includes all children in the 3-6age group. As the girl children usually look afterthe siblings they get deprived of primaryeducation. But the ECCE centre facilitates theeducation of girl children. So that ultimately theyget enrolled in primary education.

ii) National Programme on Education for girls atElementary level (NPEGEL).

This programme is chalked out since2003 to increase the enrolment rates of girlsbelonging to SC/ST category at elementary stage.It emphasizes on enrolment, retention and qualityeducation.

44 MAY - 2018


iii) Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV)

This scheme is meant for girls belongingto the Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled tribes(STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs),religious minorities and Below Poverty Line (BPL)households for bridging the gender gap. Thoseschools are opened to give chance to ruraldeprived girls to have their study upto or beyondclass V.

iv) Innovative scheme for the adolescent girls

This scheme intends to provide life skilleducation so that adolescent girls will be self-confident.

v) Mahila Samakhya (Education for women’sEquality)

The objectives of Mahila Samakhya are :

a) To create tolerance and mutual respectfor women.

b) To ensure that education becomesaccessible to the socially and economicallymarginalized women and girls.

c) To encourage and promote a genderbased discourse in the society.

d) To enhance self-image and self-confidence of women and enable them to criticallyanalyze their role as individual women and asmembers of the society so that they can begin tochallenge that role collectively and initiate aprocess of social change.

e) To collectively participate in decisionmaking and seek equal rights and opportunitiesfor a more egalitarian society.

f) To enhance participation of women andgirls in formal and non-formal educationprogramme, Education Department of ministry of

HRD launched Mahila Samakhya as a majorprogram for bringing about women’s developmentand empowerment in 1989 on a pilot basis in 6states of India with funding from NetherlandsGovernment.

National literacy mission plays a key rolein providing literacy to all. This mission createsawareness towards literacy, nutrition,environmental protection and skill formation. AdultEducation programme was launched in thecountry on October 3, 1978. It covers the entirepopulation in 15-35 age group by the end of 1983-84. In this programme special emphasis is laid onto equip women with necessary skills andeducation to improve their economic status andwellbeing in the society.

The National Girl’s EducationProgramme, 2004 aims at providing extra facilitiesand economic assistance to girls for education atprimary level. This programme intended to removegender gap by constructing model schools andprovision of textbooks, stationery, uniform etc.

Mid-day-meal programme ensuresnutritional food to the students of class I to VIII.This scheme aims to promote enrolment, retentionand attendance of children in primary school. Dueto this project enrolment and retention of girls hasincreased.

Siksha Karmi Project (SKP) has beenimplemented since 1987, with assistance from theSwedish International Development CooperationAgency (SIDA). The fundamental objective ofthis project is universalisation and qualitativeimprovement of primary education in remote andsocio-economically backward villages ofRajasthan, with primary focus on girls. Keepingin view the teacher absenteeism the project usesthe novel approach of substituting teachers indysfunctional school with local youth known as

45MAY - 2018


Siksha Karmis. They are provided with trainingand supervisory support

Programmes undertaken in Odisha

The Govt. of Odisha also started schemeslike establishment of model public schools in blocklevel, supply of bicycles to the students of class10 free of cost, up gradation of primary schoolsto upper primary and high schools, supply of fourpairs of uniforms free of cost, training to teachersthrough Samarthya Programme, appointment ofSikha Sahayakas etc. for the development ofeducation. Self-defence programme for girls,supply of laptop to meritorious students,establishment of high schools, making the schoolschild friendly by “Ama Vidyalaya” yojana,organization of personality development campsfor girls, Training of MTA members, organizationof “Meenamela” are commendable steps of theGovt. of Odisha for empowerment of women.These schemes are very much helpful formotivating the girls in attending the schools. Thishelps in the path of women empowerment.

The dimensions of women empowerment

Dimensions of women empowerment include :

i. Economic empowerment: Unless there iseconomic emancipation women empowerment isnot possible. Though the women work hard inand outside the home they enjoy very negligibleportion of the family income. Women economicright is definitely a vital index for enhancement oftheir status.

ii. Social empowerment: Social participationof women should be equal to men. They shouldbe empowered to exercise assertiveness incollective decision making. They should beallowed to participate actively in socio-economicactivities.

iii. Physical empowerment: The womenshoulder the productive and reproductiveresponsibilities and do many tedious activities inhome. The male dominant society is not ready torecognize their contribution for a healthy homeand prosperous society. Physical empowermentis dependent upon each of the other dimensionsas all have contributory effect.

iv. Psychological empowerment: Womenhave a negative view of their potentialities andimportance in the society. Though they contributea lot still then they are not psychologically readyto recognize it. It should be recognized by allsections of the society.

Hurdles in the path of Empowerment :

In spite of several commendable stepstaken for women empowerment by both centraland state government there is wide gap still persistsamong the literacy rate of male and female. Manyfactors are responsible for non-enrolment and highdropout rates of girls.

1. Poverty attributed as main cause forwhich girls are deprived of education. The girlshave to look after the siblings and do householdworks and even work outside to supplement theirfamily income.

2. Due to lack of parental awareness girlsare not getting chance for education. Parentsprefer boys’ education to girls’ education.

3. Early marriage of girls is also a factorresponsible for the high dropout rate of girls.

4. Lack of separate institutions for girls isalso a vital cause of non- enrolment and dropoutof girls. As ours is a conservative society parentsin some cases are reluctant to send their girls tocoeducation institutions.

46 MAY - 2018


5. Insecurity for girls is a major concernwhich deters girls eduation.

6. Fixed school hour do not suit girls in ruralareas, as they are wanted for domestic work orin the field.

7. Lack of sufficient number of lady teacheris also another obstacle in the path of womeneducation.

8. Lack of hostel facilities another hindrancein the way of women education.

9. Gender based prejudices in India is themajor hurdle in the path of women empowerment.In India a girl is disadvantaged as soon as she isborn, she is discriminated in feeding, attention,clothing and care. The family is ready to spendmore money on male children for their clothes,schooling, health care and nutrition than on femalechildren.

To achieve the goal some corrective measuresmay be taken.

1. Community awareness for equality shouldbe created at all levels. The old notion that placeof women is in the kitchen should be changed.The young generation should feel that they are noway inferior to their male counterparts inacademic, social, political and economic spheres.

2. The attitude of parents should be changedtowards co-education.

3. Separate schools for girls should beprovided where there is demand.

4. Fifty per cent of the total strength ofteachers should be lady teachers so that girlstudents will be attracted towards education.

5. Improvement of infrastructure of theschool is another aspect of strengthening girls’education.

6. Child Care Centres like Anganawadi /Balwadi and ECCE Centres should be openedso that the elder sisters will be relaxed from takingcare of their younger brothers and sisters. It willfacilitate them to attend the schools.

7. More number of residential schoolsshould be established as per demand.

8. As poverty is the major concern for lowliteracy of girls adequate incentives should beprovided to girls.

References :-

1. Ministry of HRD (2002), Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.A programme for universal Elementary Education.

2. Modi, Anita (2010), Empowerment of womenthrough Education, Kurukshetra, Vlo 58, No-11.

3. Nayak, B.K. (2012), Education is Emerging IndianSociety, AXIS Publication, New Delhi.

4. Panda, Niharika (2011), Education : key for womenEmpowerment, EDUTRACKS, Vol 10, No-12.

5. Pradhan, Niladri (2008), Role of Education forwomen Empowerment in the 21st Century, Vision– Vol XXVIII, No-2-3.

6. Senapati, H.K. (2011), Scenario of ElementaryEducation in India.

7. Shrama, Arpita (2013), Government initiatives toempower women-Areas of concern, Kurukshetra,Vol 61, No-10.

8. Taj, Haseen (2011), Current Challenges inEducation, Neelkamal Publication.

9. www.google.com

Pradipta Kumar Biswal, Lecturer in Education,R.S.Mahavidyalaya, Odagaon, Dist- Nayagarh, [email protected]

47MAY - 2018


Social security has been mentioned in the earlyVedic period which human “wishes everyonehappy, free from all ill health, enjoy a bright futureand suffer no sorrow,” Social Security is thusbased on the ideals of human dignity and socialjustice. Social security is defined as “the securitythat society furnishes, through appropriateorganization, against certain risks to which itsmembers are exposed.” These risks areessentially contingencies against which theindividual, who has small means, cannot protecthimself. Those contingencies include employmentinjury, sickness, invalidism or disablement,industrial disease, maternity, old age, burial,

widowhood, orphan hood and unemployment.Social security is also broadly defined as “theendeavour of the community as a whole, to renderhelp to the utmost extent possible to any individualduring periods of physical distress inevitable onillness or injury and during economic distressconsequent on reduction or loss of earnings dueto illness, disablement, maternity, unemployment,old age, or death of working member.”Friedlander defines Social Security as “aprogramme of protection provided by societyagainst the contingencies of modern life.” Thebenefits or services under Social Security are

provided in three major ways. Social insurance,social assistance or public services.

India has always looked towards stabilityin life more than progress when viewed in theWestern Context. India has always had a jointfamily system that took care of the social securityneeds of all the members. In keeping the culturaltraditions, family members and relatives havealways discharged a sense of shared responsibilitytowards one another. The joint family has alwaysused all the resources and responsibilities thatcould draw upon to the best relief for the specialneeds and care required by the aged and those inpoor health like this the family members were

providing both emotional and monetary security.However, with increasing migration, urbanizationand demographic changes there has been adecrease in large family units. This is where theformal system of social security gains importance.Information and awareness are the vital factors inwidening the coverage of social security schemes.Social security benefits in India are need-based.Social security is a comprehensive approachdesigned to present deprivation, assure theindividual of a basic minimum income for himselfand his dependants and to protect the individualsfrom any uncertainties. The matters of socialsecurity are listed in the Directive Principles of

Social Security Schemes in India - A Study

Dr. Prafulla Chandra Mohanty

48 MAY - 2018


State Policy and the subjects in the ConcurrentList. The Concurrent List in its list Third of theSeventh Schedule of the Constitution of Indiamentions the provisions on social security. In itsitem No.23, social security and insurance,employment and unemployment are dealt and initem no. 24 the provisions on welfare of labourare stated. These include condition of work,provident and old-age pension and maternitybenefits. Some of the social security provisionsare also dealt with part IV directive principles ofstate policy. Article, 41 relates to right to work,right to education and right to public assistance incertain cases. The state shall, within the limits ofits economic capacity and development, makeeffective provision for securing the right to work,to education and to public assistance in cases ofunemployment, old age, sickness anddisablement, and in other cases of underserved.Article 42 works on provisions for just andhumane conditions of work and maternity relief.The state shall make provision for securing justand humane conditions of work and for maternityrelief. Social and labour security is one amongthem which is the aid for uncertainties. The Statebear the primary responsibility for developingappropriate system for providing protection andassistance to its workforce. Social security isincreasingly viewed as an integral part of thedevelopment process. It helps to create a morepositive attitude to the challenge of globalizationand the consequent structural and technologicalchanges. Most Social security systems indeveloped countries are linked to wageemployment. In India situation is entirely differentfrom that of developed countries. The keydifferences are:

1. We do not have an exiting universalSocial security system.

2. We do not face the problem of exit ratefrom the workplace being higher than thereplacement rate. Rather on the contrarylack of employment opportunities is thekey concern.

3. 92 per cent of the workforce is in theinformal sector which is largelyunrecorded and the system of pay rolldeduction is difficult to apply.

Workforce in organized sector:

In Organized Sector :

In the organized sector, different SocialSecurity measures are specifically providedthrough five central Acts namely the ESI Act, theEPF and MP Act, the Workmen’s CompensationAct, the Maternity Benefit Act and the Paymentof Gratuity Act. In addition there are large numberof welfare funds for certain specified segments ofworkers like Beedi Workers, Cine Workers,Construction Workers, etc.

i) ESI Act, 1948: The Act covers factoriesand establishments with ten or moreemployees and provides forcomprehensive medical care to theemployees and their families as well ascash benefits during sickness andmaternity, and monthly payments in caseof death or disablement.

ii) The EPF and miscellaneous provisionsAct, 1952 (EPF & MP Act): Those Actapplies to the specific scheduled factoriesand establishments employing twenty ormore employees and ensures terminalbenefits to provident fund,superannuation pension, and familypension in case of death during service.Separate laws exist for similar benefits

49MAY - 2018


for the workers in the coal mines and teaplantations.

iii) The workmen’s compensation Act, 1923(WC Act), which requires payment ofcompensation to the workman or hisfamily in cases of employment relatedinjuries resulting in death or disability.

iv) The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 (MBAct), which provides for 12 weeks wagesduring maternity as well as paid leave incertain contingencies now, the maternityleave is extended to six months withpaternity leave also.

v) The payment of gratuity Act, 1972 (PGAct), which provides 15 days wages foreach year of service to employees whohave worked for five years or more inestablishments having a minimum of tenworkers.

To understand the dimensions andcomplexities in India, the workforce in organizedand unorganized sector are given in the followingTable.

Census Workforce Total inYear Million

Organized Unorganized

1991 27 Million 287 Million 314 Million

1999-2000 28 Million 369/269 Million 397 Million

Source: NSSO survey of 1999-2000

There was an increase of 1 million inorganized sector in comparison about 55 Millionin the Indian unrecorded labour force within aperiod of Nine Years. Social security in organizedsector: The organized labour force are coveredby different Acts and laws to get the Social

security benefits. These are Indian factories Act,1948, The Shops and Commercial EstablishmentsActs of State governments, the IndustrialEmployment Standing Orders Act, 1946, etc. Awell established Social security Division in theGovt. of India is working to deal with the mattersconcerning framing of Social security policyespecially for the workers of the organized sector,Administration, of the Employees’ ProvidentFunds and Miscellaneous provisions Act, 1952,workman’s compensation Act, 1923, etc.

In Unorganized Sector:

The above Acts and laws are not able tocover the workers of unorganized sector, seasonaland temporary nature of occupations high labourmobility, dispersed functioning operations,casualisation of labour, lack of organizationalsupport, low bargaining power, etc, all of whichmake it vulnerable to socio-economic hardships.The rural area comprises landless agriculturallabourer, small and marginal farmers, sharecroppers, persons engaged in animal husbandry,fishing, horticulture, bee-keeping toddy tapping,forest workers, rural artisans, etc. whereas theurban area, comprises mainly of manual Labourersin construction, carpentry, trade, transport,communication, and also includes street vendors,hawkers, head load workers, cobblers, tin smiths,garment workers, etc. In India, the workers whodo not have access to any formal scheme of socialsecurity constitute about 92 per cent of theestimated workforce of 400 million people. Theyare broadly categorized under the followinggroups.

Group Sector Workforce

A Agricultural sector 180 Million

B Contract, services,construction 60 Million

50 MAY - 2018


C Trade, commerce, Transport,storage & communication 100 Million

D Others 30 Million

Total Workforce in Unorganizedsector 370 Million

Source: NSSO survey of 1999-2000

The above groups are covered by theGovernment by indirect funding i.e., throughsubsidies, public distribution system (PDS), socialassistance programmes, food for workprogrammes, tax concessions etc but are notincluded under any SSSs opened for oganisedworkers. There are number of models of providingSS to the workers in the unorganized sector.These may be classified under: a) Centrally fundedsocial assistance programmes. b)Social insurancescheme. c) Social assistance through welfarefunds of central & state Govt. and Public initiatives.The centrally funded social assistance programmesinclude the employment oriented povertyalleviation programmes such as SwarnjayantiGram Swarojagar Yojana, Jawahar GramSamriddhi Yojana, Employment AssuranceScheme, National Social Assistance programme(NSAP) comprising old age pension, familybenefit and maternity benefit to address the socialsecurity needs of the people below poverty line.The social insurance schemes include severalschemes launched by the Central and the StateGovernments for the benefit of weaker sectionsthrough the Life Insurance Corporation of Indiaand General Insurance Corporation of India.Welfare funds represent one of the modelsdeveloped in India for providing social protectionto workers in the unorganized sector. The schemeof welfare fund is outside the frank work ofspecific employer and employee relationship inas much as the resources are raised by the Govt.

on non-contributory basis and the delivery ofwelfare services is affected without linkage toindividual worker’s contribution. These funds areconstituted from the cess collected from theemployers and manufacturers / producers ofparticular commodity or industry concerned.These welfare funds mainly provide medical care,assistance for education of children, housing,water supply, recreation facilities. There arethirteen major hospitals and more than 300 static-cum-mobile dispensaries covering the targetbeneficiaries under these funds in respect ofmedical care to the workers and their families allover the century. There are various schemes forre-imbursement of expenses incurred on majorsurgeries like coronary by-pass, heart surgery,kidney transplant, cancer, etc. Maternity benefitsare also available to the women workers. Howeverthe coverage under all the above programs is littlemore than ten Million out of an estimated 370Million workers in the unorganized sector. A lotmore has to be done in the matter of providingSocial Security and social protection to theseworkers.

New Initiatives :

The various Central Acts on Socialsecurity are being examined in the light of therecommendations of the 2nd National Commissionon Labour. Relevant are amendments proposedin the EPF and MP Act as also the ESI Act.Innovative measures are proposed in the runningof the SSSs of EPFO and ESIC. This includesflexible benefit schemes tailored to the specificrequirements of different segments of thepopulation. Currently, Social security policymakers and administrators are engaged in a wideranging debate to redress, the problems inproviding Social security in the country. The

51MAY - 2018


debate has thrown up various arguments on theefficacy of publicly managed Social securitysystems as opposed to privately managedschemes. This is no standard model that can beadopted on this issue. In the Indian context theprivately managed schemes can at best besonsider as supplementary schemes after themandatory schemes managed publicly. It is onlythe publicly managed scheme, which will extendto all the sectors of the workforce. The challengeof closing the coverage gap in Social securityprovisos has to be developed at two levels. Thefirst level involves the re-engineering of theinstitutional arrangements to increase efficiency.The second level is to create an-appropriatelegislative and administrative framework forsignificant increase in the social security coverageespecially in the unorganized sector.

References:

1. Badi R,V, HRM (2006) Vrinda Publications(pvt) Ltd, Delhi.

2. Prasad L.M., HRM., (2001) Sultal Chand andsons., New Delhi.

3. Khanka. S, Human Recourse Management(2005), S. Chand & Co. Ltd, New Delhi.

4. Yogokhema, (Oct. 2007) Vol. 51, No- 10, Oct.2007.

5. Punekar S.D &S.B, Deodher, Labour WelfareTrade Union and industrial relations 1992,Himalaya Publishing House Mumbai.

6. Mohanty P.C., HRM in Public Undertaking ofOdisha an unpublished thesis at UtkalUniversity.

Dr. P.C. Mohanty, Retd. Principal, now residing at VillageBoiyali, Mantridi, Dist- Ganjam- 761008,E-mail : [email protected]

52 MAY - 2018


Odisha is one of the important states of Indiawhich is endowed with varieties of mineralresources. The mineral resources of Odisha havereputation for being qualitative for industries. Themineral resources of Odisha include Iron ore,Manganese, Coal, Bauxite, Dolomite, Tin, etc.Mineral resources of our state have played animportant role to make Odisha hot destinationsfor industries, willing to set up their respective units.Mega industries like; Rourkela Steel Plant,National Aluminum Company, National ThermalPower Corporation, have established theirpositions not only in India but also in world marketonly due to these mineral resources. Again, thereforms in infrastructure in recent years havecreated a conducive atmosphere and

opportunities for foreign Investors to set upmineral based plants in Odisha. In Eastern India,Odisha is really growing in real sense to becomean industrial hub in the coming years.

With vast mineral resources, abundanceof raw materials, comfortable power situation andsufficient skilled manpower, Odisha has hugepotential for growth and industrialization. Afinancial resources like FDI can only make thispotential real. This will provide great stimulus toOdisha’s Economic Output, Value Addition andEmployment.

Government of Odisha aims at creatingan industry-enabling and investor friendly climatein the state with a view to accelerate industrial

developments, employment opportunities andeconomic growth. Odisha has already emergedas a major investment destination hub for nationalas well as international investors, especially insteel, aluminum, petrochemicals, power, IT andITES, food processing industries, tourism andother such sectors.

In 80s onwards, the richly mineralendowed state has consistently followed a pro-industry development policy for the establishmentof mineral based industries. The huge change hasbeen felt in Odisha after major projects havestarted the grounding work in their respectiveareas.

Though Odisha is predominantly anagricultural region, a major alternative source ofaugmenting economic activity as well as generatinggreater income with a high degree of employment,eventually lies in the growth of the industrial sector.Agricultural restructuring, that would relieve thefarm sector of both the factors and techniques ofproduction operating within a traditional socio-economic framework, is surely the most sensibleway-out for the development impasse in the state.Nevertheless, the role of industrialization iscertainly of crucial importance, as far as optimumutilisation of natural resources and generation ofgainful local employment are concerned.

Odisha to Carve a Nichein the Industrial Sector

Ravi Prusty

53MAY - 2018


The State Govt.’s relentless effort inbringing foreign investment in different sectors likeSteel, Aluminum, Port, Power and Mining in lastfew decade has brought a ray of hope for peopleof Odisha.

It may be noted that the state has createda “ Single Window” mechanism for quick clearanceof investment proposals. This is an attempt tousher in faster and faster economic growth byattracting investments and technology to all thesectors of the economy by following responsibleand industry friendly policies.

State’s investment policies have beensuccessful in bringing in investments in a widerange of economic activities including steel,Aluminum, power, Port and infrastructure. Foreignleading companies like POSCO-India, Vedanta,Arcler-Mittal, AES-India and national companieslike JSPL, Tata Steel etc came to the state to setup their respective units in the State.

Steel Companies that have entered intoMemorandum of Understanding (MoU) with theOdisha Government have invested Rs.80,516.17crore till March 2012, achieving a combined steeloutput of 12.66 million tonne per annum. TheMoU signed steel units going into production havegenerated direct employment for 24,453 peoplebesides creating 54,850 indirect jobs. The directemployment figure of 24,453 includes 17,677jobs for people of Odisha and 6,776 outside thestate.

Among the 30 firms that have startedproduction, Bhushan Power & Steel Ltd is thebiggest investor with an investment of Rs.22,290crore. It has achieved steel capacity of 1.5 mtpa,sponge iron capacity of 1.5 mtpa and CPP of116 Mw at its plant at Lapanga near Sambalpur.It is followed by Bhushan Steel Ltd that hasgrounded an investment of Rs.14,000 crore,clocking steel production of 4.5 mtpa and spongeiron output of 2.38 mtpa at Meramandali inDhenkanal district. Other major steel investors

include Jindal Steel & Power Ltd (Rs.11,392.98crore), JSL Ltd (Rs.6,367 crore), Essar Steel(Rs.5,700 crore), Tata Steel (Rs.3,970 crore) andVisa Steel (Rs.2,808 crore).

The state government had signed MoUswith 50 players with a combined steelmakingcapacity of 83.66 million tonnes with totalinvestment proposal of Rs.2.3 lakh crore.

With this the State Govt. is planning toinvest Rs.1 Lakh crore in the state for thedevelopment in the sectors like infrastructure,Transmission and agriculture. More than 40% oftotal investment would be spent on inInfrastructure and Rs.12,000 crore would be spentin energy sector. In addition, Odisha has allocatedabout Rs.5 crore in developing the irrigationinfrastructure like setting up dams and barrages,mega irrigation projects etc. Similar investmentsare also mooted for construction of bridges androads and development of health and agricultureservices.

The state is also planning to set up aplatform for the local entrepreneurs and getconnected to the world business, trade andcommerce by providing robust infrastructure givingspecial thrust to the MSME sector.

The state would also thrust on facilitatingbusiness alliance, technical collaborations, therebyconnecting the state to global business communityand rekindling entrepreneurial enthusiasm andgrowth.

If the state government is able to translatethe plan into reality, it would able to globalize thestate economy with inclusive growth. A consensuseffort across all political parties and at thebureaucratic level can bring in huge change in thefate of Odisha.

Ravi Prusty, Head, Public Relations, XposeAdvertisement, Mohan Plaza, Satya Nagar,Bhubaneswar.

54 MAY - 2018


The Hindu temple architecture reflects a synthesisof arts, the ideals of religion, beliefs, values andthe way of life cherished under Hinduism. Thetemple is a place for pilgrimage. All the cosmicelements that create and celebrate life in Hindupantheon are present in a Hindu temple from fireto water, from images of nature to deities, fromthe feminine to the masculine, from karma toartha. The form and meanings of architecturalelements in a Hindu temple are designed tofunction as the place where it is the link betweenman and the divine, to help his progress to spiritualknowledge and truth, his liberation is calledMoksha.

The Indian temples are broadly dividedinto Nagara, Vesara, Dravida and Gadag stylesof architecture. However the temple architectureof Odisha corresponds to altogether a differentcategory for their unique representations calledKalinga style of temple architecture. This broadlycomes under the Nagara style. This styleflourished in the ancient Kalinga region or presenteastern Indian state of Odisha, West Bengal andNorthern Andhra Pradesh. The style providessome of the finest examples of the Indo-Aryanstyle of temple architecture, which is totallydifferent form others. The main group of temples

is concentrated in the city of Bhubaneswar wherethere are over thirty of them.

The main temples of this style consist ofthe Lingaraja Temple at Bhubaneswar(11th century), the Jagannath temple at Puri(12th century) the Great Sun Temple at Konark(13th century), Rajarani Temple (10th century),Mukteswar (10th Century), Parshuram Temple(8th Century) etc.

The Kanlingan style consists of threedistinct types of temples Rekha Deula, PidhaDeula and Khakhara Deula. The former two areassociated with Vishnu, Surya and Shiva temples

while the third is mainly with Chamunda and Durgatemples. The Rekha Deula and Khakhara Deulahouses the sanctum sanctorum while the PidhaDeula constitutes outer dancing and offering halls.

In Kalinga, the ancient land of Sakta Cult,divine iconography existed since the mythologicalera. Present day research implies that idols(deities) were placed under auspicious Trees inthe ancient days. The various aspects of a typicalKalinga Temple include Architectural stipulations,iconography, historical connotations, customs andassociated legends.

The Temple Architecture in Odisha

Sujata Routray

55MAY - 2018


Some finest examples of Rekha Deula areLingaraja Temple (Bhubaneswar) and SriJagannath Temple(Puri).

The Great Pidha Deula is the Great Sun Templeat Konark.

The famous Khakara Deulas are BaitalaDeula (Bhubaneswar), Varahi Deula (ChaurasiPuri) and Durga Temple (Baideswar), GouriTemple (Bhubaneswar).

Rekha Deula is a tall building with aSikhara. The most distinct example of RekhaDeula is the Lingaraja Temple at Bhubaneswar.The Rekha Deula means a shrine with differentparts in a line. The Lingaraja Temple has a Vimana(Structure containing the Sanctum), Jagamohana(assembly hall) , Nata Mandir a (Festival hall)and Bhoga Mandapa (hall of offerings, eachincreasing in the height to its predecessor.

Pidha Deula refers to the Square buildingwith a Pyramid- shaped roof, like the Vimanas.The assembly hall at the Konark Sun Temple isan example.

The Khakhara Deula is altogether adifferent style of architecture closely appearingsimilar to the Dravidian Gopuram design. Theword is derived from Kaakharu (Pumpkin, gourd)as the crown looks like a barrel-vaulted elongatedroof. It is a rectangular building with a truncatedpyramid-shaped roof, like the Gopuras. Thetemples of the feminine deities as Shakti are templeof that type.

The Lingaraja Temple of the 11th centuryis considered to be a high point in the tradition oftemple building in Odisha. It has a Deula that risesto a height of about 150 feet. The Temple faceseast and is built of sandstone and laterite. It is

believed that the original deity of the LingarajaTemple was under a mango tree and that is whythe location was called Ekamra Khestra. Thepresiding deity was a Linga (an iconic form ofShiva). The present temple was probably builtby the rulers of the Somavamshi dynasty as aShaiva temple but with the arrival of theVaishnavite Ganga dynasty the temple wasremodelled and elements of Vaishnavism wereinculcated in it. Thus, the temple deity came to beknown as Harihara (Hari-Vishnu, Hara-Shiva) amixed element of Vishnu and Shiva. The templehas four components namely, Vimana (structurecontaining the sanctum), Jagamohana (assemblyhall), Natamandira (Festival Hall) and BhogaMandapa (Hall of offerings). The dance hall wasassociated with the raising prominence of theDevadasi system.

The Sun Temple in Konark popularlyknown as the Black Pagoda perhaps because ofthe black stone used as unique in design. The namederived from two words like Kona (angle) andArka (Surya) as it is dedicated to Sun god. It is a13th century temple in Odisha, built by KingNarasmiha Deva of the eastern Ganga Dynasty.It’s a world heritage site. The whole temple wasdesigned as a chariot for God Surya. The beliefis that Surya rides in his chariot driven by Aruna.The ratha has 24 large wheels, 12 on each side,representing the months of the year. It has sevenhorses at the front to pull it forward as a spiritedgallop. The human and animal figures carried outin black stone are most lifelike. The poses ofdancing apsaras depicted in sculptures arebrought alive by them in their performances. Thetheme of several of the sculptures is amorous.

The Deula of the Konark temple originallystood over 200 feet (60 meters) tall, higher thanany other temple in India. The Jagamohan still

56 MAY - 2018


stands over 130 feet (39 meters) tall. The templeis made of three types of stone – Chlorite, Lateriteand Khondalite. Due to the invasion of Kalapahada, a Hindu convert general of SulaimanKhan Karrani, the ruler of Bengal in 1568, soaringtower of the temple was lost.

The Shree Jagannath temple of Puri is animportant Hindu temple dedicated to LordJagannath, a form of Lord Vishnu, located on theeastern coast of India in the state of Odisha. Thetemple was begun by Ananta Varman ChodagangaDeva of the Eastern Ganga dynasty.

The famous Jagannath temple covers anarea of over 400,000 square feet and issurrounded by a high fortified wall (20 feet high)called as Meghanada Prachira. The temple hasfour distinct sectional structures namely-

1. Deula, Vimana or Gharba griha (SanctumSanctorum) where three main deities Balabhadra,Jagannath and Devi Shubhadra are lodged on theRatnavedi (Throne of pearls). This is a RekhaDeula style.

2. Mukhasala (Frontal Porch)

3. Nata Mandapa (which is also known asJagamohan (Audience Hall/Dancing Hall)

4. Bhoga Mandapa (Offering Hall)

The main temple is curvilinear temple andcrowning the top is the Nilachakra (an eightspoked wheel) of the Lord Vishnu. Among theexiting temples in Odisha, the temple of SriJagannath is the highest. The temple tower wasbuilt on a raised platform of stone and rising to214ft. The Singhadwara which in Sanskrit meansthe Lion's Gate, is one of the four gates to thetemple and forms the main entrance. The

Singhadwara is so named because two hugestatues of lions exist on either side of the entrance.The main gate faces east opening on to the BadaDanda or the Grand Road. The Baaishe Pahaachaor twenty two steps lead into the temple complex.There are numerous smaller temples such asVimala temple, Mahalaxmi temple, MuktiMandap and Kanchi Ganesh Temple etc.

Mukteswar is a 10th century HinduTemple dedicated to Lord Shiva located inBhubaneswar, Odisha. The temple dates back to950-975 C.E. Due to excellent architecturaldesign, Mukteswar is known as the “Gem ofOdisha architecture”. The temple faces west andis constructed in a lower basement amidst a groupof temples. This temple is a smaller one comparedto the other larger temples in Bhubaneswar. Thetemple is enclosed within an octagonal compoundwall and the temple has a porch, called torana,which acts as the gateway to the octagonalcompound. The temple has two structures namely,the Vimana and Mukhasala the leading hall, bothof which are built on a raised Platform. Thesikhara has four Natarajas and Kirtimukhas onthe four faces. A new form of decoration calledbho possibly developed. Except for therectangular plan of its Jagamohana, a Vimana witha curvilinear spire and a Jagamohana with astepped pyramidal roof.

Rajarani temple is an 11th century Hindutemple located in Bhubaneswar. This temple isbuilt in the Pancharatha style on a raised platformwith vimana (Sanctum) with a bada (curvilinearspire) and a viewing hall called Jagamohan with apyramidal roof. The temple was constructed ofdull red and yellow sand stone locally calledRajarani. There are various sculptures on thewalls around the temple, and the vimana depictingscenes of the marriage of Shiva and Parvati. The

57MAY - 2018


temple has Panchanga bada, namely Pabhaga,talajangha, bandhana, uparajangha and baranda.

Baitala Deula is an 8th century HinduTemple of typical Khakara style dedicated toGoddess Chamunda located in Bhubaneswar.The three spires are believed to represent thethree powers of the goddess Chamunda-MahaSaraswati, Mahalaxmi and Mahakali.

Baitala Temple’s striking feature is theshape of its sanctuary tower. The semi cylindricalshape of its roof is a leading example of Khakharorder. Another striking feature is temple’s Tantricassociations, marked by eight armed Chamunda,locally known as Kapalini is the terrifying form ofGoddess Durga.

These are famous temples of Odisha.These temples are not only known for theirreligious vitality but also due to their architectural

superiority with Kalinga Pattern of architectures.All the Odisha temples carry a distinctivedecorative details.

References :

1. Panda, Durga Charana, Kalinga MandiraSthapatya.

2. Behera, K.S- Studies in the cult ofJagannatha.

3. Mahatab, Harekrushna- Odisha Itihasa.

4. Ray, Usha- Studies in History of Orissa.

Sujata Routray, Ph. D. Scholar, Ravenshaw University,Cuttack.

58 MAY - 2018


Goswami Jayadev who is generally assigned tothe 12th century AD, is known to have composedonly one work Viz “THE GITA GOVINDA”.The work consists of 12 cantos, but in bulk. It isso small that, when printed, it forms a booklet.Yet it is charming and so melodious that it has animmense appeal to scholars and general readersalike. In Odisha it is almost a household bookand it was to be found in all collections of palmleaf manuscripts in ancient Odisha and it is nowto be found in all collections of printed books inmodern Odisha. There are innumerable palm leafmanuscripts of the “Gita Govinda” still to be tracedin various parts of Odisha, and some of them areillustrated. One such manuscript illustrates the

whole work containing coloured pictures is nowpreserved in the Odisha State Museum and fromits colophon it is definitely known that it waswritten during the rule of Gajapati Harekrushnadev(A.D 1715-1720) of Khurdha. It has beenexhibited in many Art Exhibitions of India and hasevoked acclaim from all components and critics.

The great Vaishnava poet Jayadev ofOdisha certainly did not complete his matchlesslyrics in the Gita Govinda to please Lord Jagannathwho is considered nothing but Krishna. Mostprobably his great book Gita Govinda wascomposed according to a plan for dancisation ofthe sublime Krishnapadam before LordJagannath. The reincarnated Krishna and Jaydev’ssongs have become part of the daily rituals of the

Jayadev's Influence on the Odia Literature

Rabindra Kumar Behuria

temple Jagannath. The songs composed duringBritish and Pre British period are nothing but thelovely offshoots in vernacular of those revive loveand lyrics of Jayadev in Sanskrit. Poet Jayadev’s(Dasavatara stotram) is a magnum opus of hiscreation. This divinely bestowed poet is notablefor his unfathomable reverence for Sri Jagannathin the semblance of lord Krishna or Sri Govinda.His crystalline purity and irresistible adoration ofLord Sri Jagannath beckoned him as a world classintellectual, erudite scholar and unique poet ofword standing of his own style. As an evidversifier, the poems of Jayadev’s areextraordinarily noteworthy for theirstraightforwardness, simplicity in expression,

lucidity in appearance, eloquence in fluency,persuasiveness, poetical exuberance, high spiritedcheerfulness and the quintessence of divineattribution. The resonance of Sanskrit scriptsthrough which he has masterfully shaped the lyricalpoint entitled “The Gita Govinda” isinsurmountably and inimitably cherished andmemorable work of art which history can nevercreate.

Gita Govinda in one sense means songof the Gobinda and in another sense Gita isGobinda. Gita Gobinda means to worshipGobinda or Lord Jagannath. The supreme LordKrishna and Radha has been enshrined in earthlymould. Gita Gobinda is the poet who describesquintessence of love between Radha and Krishna

59MAY - 2018


or human being with super being. The symphonicsyntax set in rhymes and ragas fascinates eachreader and listener with ecumenical predilection.The sensuous and melodious effects of this super,piece of lyrical poem and classical musictransgresses all human heart, mind and soul. Inthis classic creation the poet’s milieu hasestablished relevance to present and futuregenerations in different cultural contexts.

Jaydev has prescribed particular Ragasand Talas for each song, but he has not depictedthe characteristic features of these Raga and Talas.The Ragas used in the Gita Gobinda are Malav,Gurjari, Vasanta, Ramakeri, Malav Gouda,Gundakeri, Karnata, Desakhya, Desa Varadi,Vairaba, Bivasa and the talas are Rupaka,Nihisara, Jati, Ektali, Astatali, etc. These Ragasand Talas are suitable for romantic sentiment. Thetiming of recital of Odissi Ragas synchronise withdifferent seasonal festivals of Odisha. For Exampleit is enjoyed that Vasanta Raga be recited at anytime between Sripanchami and Vishnu Sayanaand Malabashree from Indra Puja to Durga Pujaon 13th century.

Sri Jaydev has composed illustrious GitaGovind as per the specification of Udramagadhi,Prabrutti, i.e mentioned in the Natya Sashtra ofBharat Muni. Lord Jagannath Himself filled in anincomplete line of Gita Gobinda – “Dehi padapallava Mudaram”. Gita Gobinda recital is integralpart of Odishi music and indicates the uniquenessand classical quality. As Gita Govinda is beingrecited in many parts of the country and abroadthere is every possibility that original music mayundergo a change.

Jayadev’s verses written in simpleSanskrit with an immense musical appeal attractedall Sanskrit scholars of Odisha and all otherpersons who have some knowledge in Sanskrit.Common people had access to this great popularwork through numerous translations andcommentaries of which a lot of manuscripts are

still available. Sri Nilamoni Mishra curator of themanuscript section of the Odisha State Museumhas mentioned about some Odia translators i.e.Dharanidhar Dasa, Vrindavan Dasa, Vajari Dasa,Uddhava Dasa, Krishan Dasa, Chaitanya Dasa,Bhikari Das, Pindika-Srichandana andShyamsundar Bhanja etc. The manuscript copiesof their translations are still available, while thenames of the prose translators still remainundiscovered.

The great Odia poet Sarala Dasa was themaker of the Odia literature. His works includeVilanka Ramayan, The Mahabharat and theChandipurana. The Gita Govinda had attainedgreat popularity in Odisha. The ten incarnationsof Lord Vishnu as described by Jaydev influencedSarala Dasa who not only makes reference tothem, but also speaks of the necklaces and ringsused by women, the representations of tenincarnations. The tenants of Sahajia sect to whichJaydev subscribes in his love lyric, were nothowever followed by Sarala Dasa. It must beremembered that in Odisha during the time ofSarala Dasa Vaisnavism had its own pattern inthis land. It was conceived with Lord Jagannathon one hand and the Buddhist philosophy of the“Great Void” on the other with an admixture ofthe Krishna Cult. The great Odia poet likeJagannath Dasa, Balaram Dasa, Ananta Dasa andYasobanta Dasa who followed Sarala Das inquick succession and who expounded theOdishan form of Vaisnavism have nothing to dowith the form of Vaisnabism described by Jaydevin his Gita Govinda.

Jayadeva’s conception of Sri Krishnawas revolting the orthodox Odia poets till the 16th

century so that no influence of the Sahaji Sect isto be stressed in the vast Odia literature that wasproduced up till that time. Sarala Dasa was atypical Hindu who was a devout worshipper andan upholder of the Sakta Cult, but yet was atolerant of all other sects. The tenants of the

60 MAY - 2018


Sahajia Sect has been reflected in the GitaGovinda wherein SriKrishna has beenrepresented as a freelance. In the opening part ofthis work he has been described as freely mixingand dancing with the cowherd women, and asembracing and kissing them. The choicest wordsand phrases used by Jayadeva in his lyric toproduce sensuous and melodious effects areunparallel in Sanskrit literature, but the tenants oflaw that he expounds in this work, transgress allhuman laws and ethics made to control sexualrelation between men and women.

It will be thus seen that Sarala Dasaabhorred the faith and practices of the SahajiaTantriks whose religious philosophy forms thebasis of Jayadeva’s love lyric, the Gita Govinda.Jagannatha Dasa's Odia Bhagabat was not atranslation of the original Sanskrit. He has madenumerous omissions and additions in this Odiaversion of Bhagabat and therefore he could easilybring Radha in to the picture of his work, but thename of Radha has found no mention in JagannathDasa Bhagabat.

Till the 16th century the Odia poets thusfollowed a pattern of Vaishnavism which wasdifferent from own to be found in the GitaGobinda. A change in the conception of theKrishna Cult however took place in Odisha fromthe time of the long sojourn of Sri Chaitanya atPuri till his death in 1533 AD. It must be said thatthis great saint never followed the type of lovebetween Srikrishna and Radha as described inthe Gita Gobinda. He wanted to idealise the lovebetween Krishna and Radha that had no relationto carnal desire. His followers of Odisha andelsewhere did not however keep the lovepreached by him within the meaning that he hadgiven to it. The great Odia Baisnava Poets likeDina Krushna, Abhimanyu, Bhakta Charana,Baladev and Gopalkrishna have all followed intheir works a model of law between Sri Krisna

and Radha as it is depicted in the Gita Govinda –with one deviation that, like Jayadev they havenot represented Radha as Khandita.

The Gita Govinda has been translated inother Indian languages and also foreign languageslike English, Germany and Latin etc. Gita Govindais recited in each and every corner of Odisha andthe Odias adore Sri Jayadev from the very coreof their heart. Last but not the least, in the greatTemple of Lord Jagannath at Puri, there wasprovision for the recital of the Gita Govinda everyday. Padmavati, the life partner of Jayadev was aproficient dancer who was dancing to the tune ofGitagovind in Lord Jagannath Temple. Therefore,some scholars opine that she was the first DevaDasi of Sri Mandir of Sri Kshetra. Puri has alsobeen named as Devadasi Kshetra. Edwin Arnondsays, “Gitagovinda is an oriental Opera” – manyepics, poems, Nrutyanatikas, Nrutyavinayas,Rasalilas, Gitavinayas have been written andstaged by the Odias in subsequent periods as perthe tradition of Jayadev.

Bibliography:

1. Mishra, P.K –Utkal Prasanga, May 2007

2. Mohapatra, K.M. - Jayadev and Gitagovinda,Grantha Karta, 1973

3. Parhi, K.N. – Orissa Review. Sept-Oct 2006,P.37-40

4. Panigrahi K.C., Image. Vol.II, 1977, P.41-7

5. Dasa, S., New Delhi, Sahitya Academy, 1975,Page.38-40

6. Sahitya Academy. , History of Odia Literature. NewDelhi, P.57-8

7. Behuria, R.K., Abhijan, Sep-Oct, 2008, P.23-5

Rabindra Kumar Behuria, Retd. Lecturer, ChandabaliCollege, Chandabali, Bhadrak- 756133.

61MAY - 2018


Sarala Mahabharat is not only an epic or areligious scripture but also a literary creation havinghistorical database and a geographical mirror ofOdisha. That’s why Sarala Das has been honouredas Adi Kabi (first Odia Poet), Adi Aitihasika (firstOdia Historian) and Adi Bhugolbit (first OdiaGeographer)1 as a result of which his Mahabharathas been regarded as a Trivenidhara or aconfluence of history, geography and literature.Sarala Mahabharat, the master piece of Adi KabiSarala Das, in true sense is regarded as the firstwritten form of Odia encyclopedia that reflectsthe socio, economic, political, military, religious,medical science, festive and cultural scenario of

the medieval Odisha. Frequent references alsofound regarding medieval education, military skill,Vedic philosophy, astrology, astronomy, medicine,mantra, tantra, dance and music in SaralaMahabharat. In fact, Saral Mahabharat is thereplica of medieval Odishan society and culture.2

A number of scholars have discussed on manyaspects of Sarala Mahabharat but no discussionhas been made on Disease, Medicine andWitchcraft. The main aim of this article is to discussabout these things of Sarala Mahabharat.

The term ‘disease’ broadly refers to a statethat weakens the normal functioning of the body.

It is something that causes illness in one’s bodymakes feel sickness, the state of not being well.

LUDUBUDU BYADHI (DISPEPSIA)

Sarala Das described in Madhya Parvaof his Mahabharat about Khandaba Bana Dahan(burning of Khandaba forest) by Arjuna to recoverAgnidev (Fire God) from Ludubudu Byadhi orAgnimandya Byadhi(dyspepsia). The symptomsof Ludubudu or Agnimandya disease are loss ofappetite, indigestion, weight loss, gastritis etc.Agnidev had suffered from this disease due toover eating of oily food or fat. Poet says in thewords of Agnidev as:-

“Loven khailu ambhe aneka je ghrutaKale para kari nuarilu hoilu yemantaManda agni hoilu Ludubudu je hoiluAtihni lobha kari sarira nasa kalu”3

Khandaba forest is a forest of medicinalplants. With the burning of this forest, Agnidevintake the medicine and recovered from theLudubudu disease. Sarala Das has mentioned anumber of medicinal plants in Sarala Mahabharatin the words of Indra to Arjuna as:-

Bisalyakarani mausadhi yehi bruksha gotiTara mulu hanu nela Sikada Pani Phuti

X X X

Depiction of Disease, Medicine andWitchcraft in Sarala Mahabharat

Dr. Chittaranjan Mishra

62 MAY - 2018


Abara babu dekhai Basu Bruksha gotiyeMrutyu Sanjivani ye brukshara nama hoyeBabu hanumanta yethu pusya gotieka nela

Sabunkara nasa pute neina sungheila

X X X

Sehimati achhi je Amalana pusya gotiGandha amodante samastehne sanya brati uthi

X X X

Pranatarana boli ye bruksha nama hetiBabu Hanumanta yethnu chheli khandei nela

Bati lagabante Lakshmana uthina basila

X X X

Babu Brudhhanaseni boli yeka bruksha gotiePachila kesa kancha hoai yethun piele pani phutiye.Babu Roganasini boli ye bruksha mausadhi

Yethu pani piele tutai Bata Pita Salisama nana byadhiBabu Juganaseni boli yehu bruksha goti

Snahan kari pani pieba pani phutiSarira nohiba ye pakwa galitai

Yeka joge pana kale chari juge brataiBabu ye bruksha goti je Santana Udyana

Yethu phala gotie bhakshivba tila sankaranti dinaKamadev praye upujiba putra.

X X X

Babu klesanasena yek bruksha gotiSarire lepan kariba yethira mula batiJanme janme nahoi se garbha kastiYethira pani piele huai putra goti

Galita kostha byadhi jaye yehara prasade phitiKanayabindu boli yekai bruksha goti

Sate bhara nitya tanhi kanaka phula phutiBabu Anala Amruta boli brukshankara nama

Anale na podai yehe sarire kale lepanaBabu Bala Taruna bolikari yeka bruksha gotie

Akshya Trutiya dina bhakshiva patra gotiye

X X X

Pachisa barasa praye se purusa disaiBabu Mohana bolikari yeka lata goti

Kshira khandie yethu kapale deba phutiGamante subha joga chalantena sohai

Deva Danavanta adi kari samasta mohi hoiBabu Bindu Dharana boli yeka bruksha goti

Sikahandiye yethun kariba bida gotiSahasra jubati babu ramana kariba

Se purusa tanhu amoha reta nakhasibaBabu ye bruksha goti je Kamini Basanta

Stirijana manunkau ye badai padarthaYethiru kshira topiye nari lagaibe kapaleJuba purusaku basa kariba brudha kale

Babu Uddalaka boli je yeka brukshya gotiyeRatra kale phutai yeka pusya gotye

X X X

Arjunara hath dhari dekhanti AkhandalDevatye tapa karanti ye

Amalana Brukshara talaBabu Siddha kalpa boli yeka bruksha gotie

Tula Sankaranti dina yethun pieba pani phutiyeSambasthara parijante na lagai kshudha

Bhoka soka mutra mala byadhi na lagai badha”4

Medicinal plants and their medicinalvalues written in the above verse of SaralaMahabharat needs more research whether theseare the real names of the herbs used at that timeor imaginary poetic creations. But it can be saidand accepted that, with the burning of Khandavaforest, Fire God got an opportunity to intake anumber of medicinal plants and fivers of properlyburnt/cooked, which made him free from theoverburden of fat in his stomach. Names of twoimportant herbs like Mrutyusanjivani andBisalyakarani are found in the ancient scripturethe ‘Ramayana’. These were used by theAyurvedist for the recovery of Laxman during SriRam’s Lanka invasion. Others are not found inany other ancient scriptures of India.

63MAY - 2018


CHART-1

HERBS AND THEIR MEDICINAL USE IN SARALA MAHABHARAT

Sl. No. Name of medicinal Plant Part of the plant Result after useuse for medicine

1 Bisalya Karani leave Lifesaving medicine

2 Basu Bruksha(Mrutyusanjivani) flower Lifesaving medicine

3 Amalana Pusya flower Lifesaving medicine

4 Pranataran Bark Lifesaving medicine

5 Bruddhanasini/maybe Brudhadaruka bark Preventive against premature

old age, whiteness of hair

6 Roganasini bark Remedy of Bata, Pita, Cough

7 Juganasan bark Preventive against prematureold age

8 Santan udayan fruit Medicine for fertilization,especially for male child

9 Klesanasan Root, bark Medicine for fertility, Leprosyand pain in the body

10 Kanaya Bindu flower extract scent to use on the bodyto prevent body odder

11 Anala Amruta bark Use of it protects the bodyfrom burning /Medicine forBorn wounds

12 Bala Taruna leave For ever youth

13 Mohana Use of White fluid as Tilakon the forehead For mesmerism

14 Bindudharana twig Growth of sexual ability

15 Kamini Basanta Use of white fluid as Tilakon forehead (women) For mesmerism

16 Uddalak flower Light giving flower blossomsat night

64 MAY - 2018


17 Amalan Bruksha To sit under the shadowfor meditation For Mental peace

18 Siddhakalpa bark Good for total health

IDENTIFICATION OF POISON

Poet gives a vivid description ofpoisonous plant products in Adi Parva under asub title of “Bhimara bisa ladu Bhakshana”(Bhima’s poisonous sweet eating) as:-

“Dudura manji ganjai sakar misai bhariMachhare misaila taha randhila jatnakari”

X X X

“Jaiphala garala misai dela khanda pana kati

X X X

Adhama bhitare laila achhi mahura singhada jatiTanhu kaporaye dila se Bhimasena kati”

X X X

“Bhojana ante nei parasile biasa laduAhibrateka ladu ta grasa badhu”

X X X

“Ganjai phala dudura phalara kakaraAbara misrita tanhi singhada jati mahura”5

Dudura manji (Datura metel seed), Ganjai(ganja), Jaiphala (croton tiglium), Mahura(mahirigiria or copper sulphate/poison),Kapuraye (Kapur), Bisa/ahibrateka (snakepoison), Ganjai Phala (Ganja seed), Singhada (onetype of poison, may be Nyctanthes arbor-tristis6

all these react poisonously when mixed withdifferent sweets and cause danger to life.

Duryodhana had given poisonous foods to hisrivalry Bhimsena to make an end of his life.

VETERINARY SCIENCE KNOWLEDGE

Adi Kabi Sarala Das has a lot ofveterinary science knowledge. He has given anumber of information on diseases and itssymptoms of horses in Virat Parva of hisMahabharat by the words of Nakul to Virat Rajaas:-

“Nakul boila tu sunasi MasthyaIndraAswankara Lakshyana mu janai sarbapada

Bikata bikarala bikatala bilopa dhokadaBatua karakata badhaka kamoda bihoda

Abikara mura gandaka pangura sirataBikancha ranabhanga je medua nahaphutabantila batila je taraka antabhanja sasikalataluka kankala bhanja birala jalaka pagala

birat palua ghuncha kaunria ankuradadhia bareha kurupa aruha kankera gatira

phalua chandujhara chandak krakancha kuratabiranka jugachandaka palunga dipata tripata

yete lakshyana je aswankar byadhimohara drasane samasta hoye sidhi”7

As per the epic Nakula was an expertcaretaker of horse and knows the diseases andsymptoms affected to the horses with an ampleknowledge of medicines and witchcraft to cure.It is known from the epic story that most of thediseases of the horses can be cured by Mantra,Tantra, and witchcraft.

65MAY - 2018


CHART-II

LIST OF THE DISEASES AFFECTED TO HORSESACCORDING TO SARALA MAHABHARAT

Sl.No Name of the diseases Affected part of symptoms Present namethe body

1 Bikata Appearance Dangerous/stamina Mentally andand nature physically strong

2 Bikarala Appearance Terrible /stamina Mentally andand nature physically strong

3 Bikatala Appearance Furious/stamina Mentally andand nature physically strong

4 Bilopa nature Autocracy Rare species

5 Dhokada Whole body Weakness/debility Debility

6 Batua Leg Unable to walk due Rheumatismto Rheumatism

7 Karakata Any part of the Tumor, swelling, Cancerbody(cancer) or corn/cancer

8 Badhaka Whole body Weakness due to Sedativesuffering(sedative)

9 Kamoda Biting nature (mouth) biting vicious

10 Bihada Nature Untrained Untrained

11 Abikara Nature Aloofness/slowness Not choosy

12 Mura body Bad body odder Foul smell

13 Gandaka Any part of the Tumor/mumps Mumpsmuscles

14 Pangura Dominance by Uncontrolled / ugly Lamenesswitchcraft or walk due to legleg problem problem

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15 Sirata leg Nerve problem Sciatica

16 Bikancha nature Monopolist Madness

17 Ranabhanga nature Escapist Frightened

18 Medua Whole body Fatness Obesity

19 Nahaphuta hood Hood infection H.M (hemorrhagicsepticemia)

20 Bantila Stomach related vomiting Vomiting

21 Batila

22 Taraka nature sensitive Excited /frightened

23 Antabhanja Waist Fracture in waist Lameness

24 Sasikala/chandrakanti Mind Horn and hood disease Chandrakanti(hoodand horn infection)

25 Taluka Throat Cold infection in throat Pharyngitis

26 Kankala Bhanja Chest Fracture in rib Broken rib

27 Birala Quality (rare) Especial in nature Rare species

28 Jalaka Nature Non-reactive Not active/slowness

29 Pagala Mental Abnormal activity Madness

30 Birat Size Huge size Rare species/gigantic

31 Palua Body Not strong Debility

32 Ghuncha Nature Reluctant Frightened orreluctant

33 Kaunria Nature Mentally weak Weakness

34 Ankura Nature of mind Reluctant Idle

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35 Dadhia nature disobedience Roughness in work

36 Bareha nature Rigidity Rigidity

37 Kurupa appearance ugly Ugly/lameness

38 Aruha Tooth Tooth disorder in Ugly andlower jaw unpleasant teeth in

lower jaw.

39 Jankera body Reluctant to cooperate Reluctant

40 Gatira Nature Uncontrolled Anxiety

41 Phalua muscles swelling Multiple abscess

42 Chandujhara eye Running eye/ Lachrymationloss of hair

43 Chandaka Body Hair fall due Worm infectionto infection

44 Krakancha Half trained Suffering from a Need to be trainedcombination of diseasesor not perfectly trained

45 Kurata/Garajana Mouth sound Producer of unpleasant Delirium/roaringsound sound

46 Biranka Nature Not interested Aloofness

47 Jugachandaka Body Baldness Baldness due toinfection

48 Palunga Body and mind Weak in body Debilityand mind

49 Dipata Nature of walk Use of double Untrained for duethorse at a time walk

50 Tripata Nature of walk Use of three horses Untrained for trinity at a time walk

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Again in the words of Sahadev to ViratRaja, Sarala Das has given us a lot of informationabout different diseases of cattle also as:-

“Sahadev boila tu suna ho masthyadhigorunkara saye astottar sina byadhi

Khuraroga khira simulia haboda mandukiMauna galakanda dhokada phatua tatakiKuikanda dharadhara sahana bharathia

Ghosara hampara petaphula drustipada mahuriaGanthia basanta lahasa kaunria mutura

Garibenga marunibengapanibenga tharaharaKhalia hemagiri mahagiri pithi letara

Sukuta singabata anthuabata rumatankuraAntabhanja ajanua aghasa ganduki karkara

Atisula atura karakana kuahana gokhura

Khurakhi galagraha galakasa chhinka galuaGalasotha garbhareha janubhanga jokiaTina taluka dandadhara patuli tharathariaPetakamuda petapoda daruna bhaunria

Malabandha jadura luhaboha kamala ranaSiraroga saluki abua arukana

Adhamata arakatia kaikasa tinkaraGarajana jatajata talusukha baruna gambhira

Talukachhiti dantabhanja talapaka jaraAntabatha chhinali baidhaki arakta chheraKarakati gachia baia kanchasinga pangaraGalakantha anthakarpati antabatha madaKalabata antakosa anuria pihula chhera

Uduria akhiphula tolokamara gilaUemante godhanankara astauttara sate byadhi

Mohara agnyaye semane nuaranti bhedi”8

CHART-III

LIST OF THE DISEASES OF THE CATTLE AS PER SARALA MAHABHARAT

Sl No. Name of the disease Affected part of the body Symptoms of the disease

1 Khuraroga Hood Infection in hood, FMD(footand mouth disease)

2 Khira Teat of udder Non production of milk

3 Simulia stomach Gastritis

4 Haboda/Bheta roga mind shock

5 Manduki joints Swelling in joints, joint pain

6 Mauna Pita (bile) mauna, Slesa Silent due to cold infection,mauna and Bata mauna tumor in the body

7 Galakanda Throat swelling in Glands, throat,humps

8 Dhokada Body Sedative

9 Phatua Hood Infection in hood gaps, FMD

10 Tataki mind stun

11 Kuikanda

12 Dhardhara body Rigor due to weakness

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13 Sahana Neck Hemorrhagicsepticemia(H.S), swelling onneck

14 Bharathia Shoulder Wound on the shoulder due toexcess and heavy burden on itor newly shouldering

15 Ghosara String halt in leg String halt

16 Hampara leg Husk or hoes

17 Petaphula Belly Tympani, Gastritis

18 Drustipada Whole body (covetous eye Loss of appetite, debilitycatching) blind belief

19 Mahuria body Sound production whilerespiration from nose andmouth

20 Ganthia Whole body Multiple abscess/Tumor

21 Basanta Whole body Rinderpest,

22 Lahasa Body Thin, weakness, debility

23 Kaunria Mentally weak Weakness

24 Mutura Urinary part Frequent micturition

25 Giribenga Outer and inner part of Swelling on outer part of thethe throat throat and inflammation of the

tongue

26 Marunibenga Cold infection and Fever Glossitis

27 Panibenga Belly Dropsy/Glossitis

28 Tharhara Body Tetany

29 Khalia/khunta khalia/ Leg String halt in leglata khalia

30 Hemagiri Throat and mouth Cold infection

31 Mahagiri Throat and mouth Cold infection

32 Pithi letera Sign of unbearable pain due Colic pain/stomach acheto stomach ache

33 Sukuta Body Anemia/debility

34 Singabata Root of the horn Swelling /horn cancer

35 Anthuabata Knee and joints Rheumatism

36 Romatankura Body Shivering due to cold andfever

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37 Antabhanja Small intestine Enteritis

38 Ajanua Mind Madness/foolishness

39 Aghasa Body Untrained

40 Ganduki Throat and jaw side Swelling of glands due to cold

41 Karkara Body/eye Shivering of body and rednessin eye

42 Atisuli stomach Enteritis/ pain in stomach

43 Atura Mind Anxiety

44 Karkana Eye Single eye defect

45 Kuahana Body Scar by crow beak bite

46 Khurakhi Hood Hood scar

47 Galagraha Throat Hemorrhagicsepticemia(H.S), swelling onthroat

48 Galakasa Throat Pharyngitis/ throat infectiondue to cold of hot in belly

49 Chhinka nose Rhinitis/Cold infection

50 Galua Jaw side Swelling in jaw side

51 Galasotha throat Throat infection/swelling

52 Garbhareha uterus Impotent/infertility

53 Janubhanga Thai Lameness/Fracture in Thaibone

54 Jokia lever Fascialis

55 Tina

56 Taluka Throat Cold infection/pharyngitis

57 Dandadhara Nature Works due to fear

58 Patuli Throat infection Glossitis

59 Thartharia Body Rigor due to calciumdeficiency

60 Peta kamuda Stomach Worm infection

61 Peta poda Stomach Burning sensation

62 Daruna Mind Cruelty due to madness

63 Bhaunria Mind Giddiness

64 Malabandha Small intestine Constipation

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65 Jadura Skin Scabies/Skin irritation

66 Luhaboha Eye Running eye due to infection

67 Kamala Body Jaundice

68 Rana Nature Anger

69 Siraroga nerve Rheumatism

70 Saluka

71 Abua Body Multiple abscess

72 Arukana Eye Vision imparities

73 Adhamada Whole body Suffering from Fatal disease

74 Arkatia

75 Talusukha Throat Throat infection

76 Baruna Mind Anorexia

77 Gambhira Nature Seriousness/mildness

78 Talukachhiti Throat Gingivitis

79 Dantabhanja Tooth Tooth loss

80 Talapaka

81 Jara Whole body Debility

82 Anta batha Stomach Colic pain

83 Chhinali

84 Baidhaki Whole body Chronic disease

85 Arakta Eye Redness in eye

86 Chhera Stomach infection Diarrhea

87 Karakati Any part of the body(cancer) Cancer

88 Gadhia Mind Foolishness

89 Baia Mind Mental

90 Kanchasinga Horn Fragile horn/Infection in horn

91 Pangara Leg Ugly walk

92 Galakantha Throat Swollen pricket

93 Anthakarpati Joints Rheumatism

94 Antabatha Intestine Colic pain

95 Mada Body Very weak

96 Kalabata Ear Ear infection

97 Antakosa Hernia Hernia

72 MAY - 2018


98 Anuria Mind Madness

99 Pihula Spleen Irritation/swelling in spleen

100 Uduria Belly Jalodar/Cold infection/Glossitis

101 Akhiphula Eye Eye swelling

102 Tolokamara

103 Gila Calcium deficiency Hurry eater due to calciumdeficiency

104 Banjhi Impotent Impotent

105 Madachhi Mind Unholy

106 Adunha Udder Non milking

107 Achhanda/abandha Leg and neck untied

108 Apamrutyu Body Premature death

109 chhera Stomach Diarrhea

110 Kaikasa

111 Tinkara Body/babesiosis Tik infestation/babesiosis

112 Garaja Mind Rabies

113 Jatajata Body Papilloma

114 Gokhura Horn/hood F.M.D9, 10

(Cancer patient). Karkati means the animal, whosuffers from karkata (Cancer). It shows; thedisease cancer was there at that time and wasnot unknown to the people but it was confinedamong the beasts only. Now, doctors advise tomothers for feeding of mother milk (breastfeeding) regularly to newborn babies. It is goodfor the health of both mother and child and itprevents mother from breast cancer.

WITCHCRAFT

According to the poet there are 108types of diseases affected to the cattle and at that

Most of the above mentioned diseases arecollected and tabled after being discussed withsome cattlemen, Lifestock inspector andveterinary surgeons. Some are identified, someare not and some others are recognized by theirliterary meanings, so more research in this regardis highly essential.

KARAKATA/KARAKATI(CANCER)

Sarala Das has written in Banaparva,‘Adunhna gai karkati huanti je gosthe’11

Means non utilization of milk of a milch cow ornot milking of a milch cow becomes karkati

73MAY - 2018


time people tried to cure most of the diseasesthrough practices of witchcraft. Sahadev has alsoa great knowledge of witchcraft as poet says inthe words of messenger to Virat Raja:-

‘Se jananti je Stambana MohanBasa Uchatan

Gutika anjana Dhatubada Vidyajanai Rasa Rasayana’12

Sahadev knows Mantra/Tantra orwitchcraft Vidya like Stambana (hypnotism),Mohan (mesmerism), Basa (induce), Uchatan(stimulation), Gutika(tablet) Anjana (ointment/mesmerized black), Dhatubada Bidya (64 typesof metalliferous Ayurvedic medicine), and alsoknows the preparation of Rasa (syrup), Rasayan(Ayurveda medicine preparation)

‘Gorunka upare jeteka roga thaiMu jhadante sakala byadhi kshyaye jai‘Om’kara akshyarati mula mantra jana

Sabu byadhiki jana mu Bisalyakarana’13

This stanza of Mahabharat speaks aboutSahadev’s expert knowledge on Mantra (JhadanaVidya) and witchcraft.

Poet propagates the glory and power ofsaint Gorekhnath in Virat Parva. Uttar kumar, theson of Virat Raja was bitten by a poisonous snakeat the time of recovery of weapons from the caveof Sami tree and was about to death. But Arjunasaved him by applying Garedi vidya learnt fromSaint Gorekhnath as:-

‘Arjuna padhanti je Garedi mantra gotiBrahma Vishnu Maheswar Durganku hrude

laya kala Kiriti

X X X

Jhadante jhada na jhadun boli Kahara ranaSri Gorekhnath swaminkara koti koti rana

Aho chaitana Arjuna mantre je Chhadigalakagarala.14

X X X’

In Udjoga Parva poet gives an accountof a Babana Bhuta Katha (Babana ghost story)in which he speaks about a person titled Raula (aSaiva with a title Raula) who had a knowledge ofMahajal/Mahamudra/Kilan Vidya to arrest theghosts and cease their ghostly destructive activitiesas :-

‘Se Raula boile mun Mahajal patileYeka ghantike samasta bhuta bandhi parai

mohora bele

X X X

Maha Raula Mahamudra patila bahanaAho swami se samasta Bhuta mananta kalaka

bandhana

X X X

Bhutara cheresta se Maha Raula janilaMahajala Patina Babana bhutaku dhaila

Luhara kanta gheni se kilila belakuBabanabhuta boila gosain rakshya kara

muku’15

It is learnt from Sarala Mahabharat that,at that time, Garedi Mantra (a Hymn chanted torecover from poisonous snake bite), Mahajal (ahymn chanted to create an invisible net to catchinvisible spirits) and Mahamudra (a handform witha hymn to attain power to control the spirit) andKilana Vidyas (a hymn to arrest a spirit with theuse of an iron nail) were practiced in the societyto free from ghosts. Still today rural people of

74 MAY - 2018


India have a faith that ghosts and spirits fears toIron metal.

LEPROSY

In the Bana Parva of Sarala Mahabharat,the story of Chandrabhaga Tirtha and Shamba’srecovery from Leprosy has been described. Inwhich it has been described that Shambameditated with severe austerity at Konark or ArkaTirtha for 12 years and prayed Sun God forrecovery from Leprosy disease as:-

‘Naradanka bachane se chalila Narayenanak sutaChandrabhaga tirthe jai bijaye turita

Ahara maithuna nidra tara nahin kichhiPabana ahare se Kumuda nada bhakshi

Mana bachana kartavye biranchi Narayananku sevaDwadasa barase se prasanna hoile Adideva

Biranchi Narayanankar bachanena kariMahaguru sapa galuta Kostha hoilaka pari’16

This stanza reflects, at that time there wasno medicine for leprosy, so people have a faithon meditation, fasting, holy/pure life without sexand sleep, to recover from this dreaded disease.Only the Kumuda nada or cord (rhizome) of whitewater lily had to intake and expose the whole bodyof the patient to Sun Ray was practiced asmedicine for treatment. Ayurveda Sastra sayswater lily (Nymphaea Alba) is an aquatic plant. Ithas many medicinal benefits ranging from lungconditions, gastrointestinal conditions, and skinconditions. The rhizome (root) of lily plant isantiseptic as well as astringent (causing thecontraction of skin cells and other body tissues)and a major chemical constituent of luteolin. 17

Again Medical sciences say about the presenceof Vitamin ‘D’ in Sun ray, which is very useful fortreatment of skin diseases. As leprosy causesgreat harm to the skin so lily cord/root/rhizome is

very useful for recovery of skin damage. It needsmore scientific research on medicinal value andeffect of Kumuda Nada (Lily cord) and Sun Rayfor leprosy disease.

In the writings of Adi Kabi Sarala Das,references are always to Odisha. He highlightedholiness of different places, greatness of people,the food habits, the dress and ornaments, sportsand entertainments, education and educationalinstitutions, way of life habits and manners, faithsand superstitions, social-religious functions andceremonies, Trade and commerce, wars andweapons, Diseases and medicines and socio-religious rules and ethics of Odisha.18 He adopteda trend of total Odianization of the epic. But thisarticle throws light on the prevailing diseases, theirsymptoms and medicines known to thecontemporary Odisha of Sarala Das and hisknowledge on it. Though it is very difficult toidentify all the names of diseases of that time withpresent name but a humble attempt has made toidentify these names on the basis of their literarymeaning. I invite the scholars to do more researchon this field and explore the knowledge for thebenefit of the society.

References :

1. K.C.Panigrahi, Sar :ala Sahityare AitihasikaChitra, Kitabmahal, Cuttack, 1980, p-2.

2. A.K.Patra,Sarala Mahabharat the Mirror ofOdisha, Souvenir, Paradip College, Paradip,2012,p-14.

3. Madhya Parva, Edt. Artaballava Mohanty, SaralaMahabharat, Sarala Sahitya Sansada, Cuttack,2007, p-436.

4. Madhya Parva, Edt. Artaballava Mohanty, SaralaMahabharat, Sarala Sahitya Sansada, Cuttack,2007, p-444-445.

75MAY - 2018


5. Adya Parva, Edt. Artaballava Mohanty, SaralaMahabharat, Sarala Sahitya Sansada, Cuttack,2007, p-193.

6. Dr.A.K.Sahu, Glossary On useful Plants ofOdisha, The Odisha State Bureau of TextbookPreparation and Production, Pustak Bhaban,Bhubaneswar, Odisha,2014, p-277-298.

7. Birat Parva, Edt. Artaballava Mohanty, Opcit.p-1734.

8. Ibid.p-1740-1741.

9. Oral Discussions with Dr. ChittaranjanKhadanga, Rtd. Veterinary Surgeon, New Busstand, Phulbani, Kandhamal.

10. Sahaja Go Chikischa O Go Palana Byabstha, edt.Devi Das, Dharmagrantha Store, Cuttack, 2007,p-70-90.

11. Birat Parva, Edt. Artaballava Mohanty, Opcit.p-1740.

12. Ibid.p-1739.

13. Ibid.p-1740.

14. Ibid.p-1846.

15. Udjoga Parva, Edt. Artaballava Mohanty,Opcit.p-1987.

16. Bana Parva, Edt. Artaballava Mohanty, Opcit.p-1569.

17. https//easyayurveda.com.

18. Sachidananda Mishra, Sarala Das Ek Adhyayana,Grantha Mandira, Cuttack, 2006, p-57-60.

Dr. Chittaranjan Mishra, Principal, Panchayat College,Phiringia, Kandhamal-762011.

WE OWE OUR GRATITUDE

We are proud of Late Sambit Mohanty for his outstanding contributionas the Director of the Regional Odia Film 'Hello Arsi', which hasrecently bagged the National Film Award as the best Odia Film.

Late Sambit Mohanty(Ex-Information Officer,

I &P.R. Deptt.)

76 MAY - 2018


Koraput became a separate district on 1st April,1936 which was previously within the territory ofVizianagaram District under Madras Presidency.The entire District has been declared as aScheduled Area under the Presidential ScheduledAreas Order, 1950. It was further divided intofour districts viz. Koraput, Nabarangpur,Rayagada and Malkangiri with effect from 2nd

October 1992. The new Koraput District lies inextreme southern part of Odisha and is locatedbetween 180 N to 190 N latitude and 820 E and830 E longitude. (Source: profile of Koraputdistrict, DRDA, Koraput). The whole district is

dominated by scheduled tribes, mainly Paraja,Kondh and Bhattoda and scheduled castes to alarge extent. This is situated in the Eastern Ghatmountain ranges. The inhabitants mainly dependon land and forest for their livelihood. Apart fromthat horticulture also has an excellent opportunityespecially for mango. The cool climate of thisdistrict provides a distinct advantage of delayingof ripening of mangoes and preventing fromdecaying for a longer period of time.

An opportunity to undertake a studyrecently has enabled to make an in-depthinteraction with many mango growers particularly

in the blocks of Boriguma and Laxmipur ofKoraput district. On the basis of the observationsand findings the following facts are attributed:

Mango groves in many of the villageshave been established since ages, i.e beforeindependence by a handful of rich families,belonging mainly to general castes with aphilanthropic mindset and embedding with a statussymbol. The varieties grown here are mostly ofindigenous varieties with less commercial value.With the advent of time those are mostly indilapidated conditions as the new generation rarelytakes care of these plantations. Mango cultivation

in true sense as means of livelihood started since1980 with the input support and technicalguidance of Horticulture Department for plantingquality mango saplings which have largecommercial values. And it got the momentum inbetween 2000-10. Amongst the interactedfarmers it was noticed that more than half of thefarmers have been undertaking mango cultivationsince last 5-10 years. It was also noticed that amajority of them, nearly 68% of the respondentsare growing mangoes in less than 2 acres of land.They have undertaken the mango cultivation insome of the patches of their lands which weremostly unproductive and yielding negligible return

Sweet and Sour Tales of Mango Growersin Koraput

Asim Kumar Mahapatra

77MAY - 2018


of other crops. More than 70% of the respondentsremarked that mango cultivation is remunerativethan other crops and more importantly fallow andupland could be effectively utilized.

This was heartening to know that around18 varieties of quality mangoes are grown by theinteracted farmers ranging from one to more thanfive species by a farmer. However on average 2-3 species are grown by maximum farmersconsidering the size of land. Dasheri andBaiganpalei varieties of mango cultivation areundertaken by majority of farmers while asignificant number of farmers are cultivatingLengeda, Sundari, Amrapalli and the mangoeslocally known as Hatimunda and Kalkatarmaudi.

However there are many challenges inmango farming which are very vital. Some of theimportant challenges, expressed by the farmersare elaborated below.

Planting and caring at the tender age -Planting of the saplings in the right seasonespecially just before the arrival or duringthe rainy season followed by properprotection and caring ensures the survivalof the plants. Before planting certainpreparatory works like digging hole,putting manure and planting the sapling,maintaining adequate space betweenneed to be ensured with the properguidance of an expert.

Irrigating the planted seedlings - As mostof the plantations are undertaken in fallowand upland, scarcity of water for irrigatingthe plants at tender stage, is one of themajor problems which affect the survivaland growth rate.

Pest and insect infestations – It wasobserved that due to pest and insectinfestations especially during the time offlowering and fruiting the yield becomesless.

Watching and guarding – In the areasunder study it was found there many casesof stealing had occurred just before theplucking time as some of the patches areat a distance from the villages. So thefarmers may be in group could ensurewatching and guarding.

Climatic hazards – Heavy fog, hail stormsduring the fruiting time affect the yield. Inone village unusual fire had damaged theyield of some farmers. Though it wasexperienced as one time effect precautionought to be taken.

Adopting poor practices - The adoptionof mango cultivation practices by thefarmers include both old traditional andthe modern scientific practices.

It was found that less than half of therespondents are using stick for plucking thematured mangoes. To mention those who are abit aware use the stick with a wooden hook witha bag tied on the top of the stick and the methodsthey use are ‘pull and push’ to collect the mangoesin the bag. Though the farmers mentioned that asthe trees are small and mangoes are within theirreach, it is felt that most of them do not recognizethe wastage of mangoes because of falling downon the ground while harvesting.

It was observed that after the pluckingonly 21% wash the mangoes while most of them

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do not wash after plucking. The reasons of notwashing were attributed as that they were notaware of the benefits of washing, and there is amyth that washing would cause damage to themangoes. But in reality they fail to understandproper washing could remove the dirt and bringmore glaze and colour to the fruits to attract thecustomers to buy in good price. It was also learntthat lack of enough space in the house as well asin the village level along with sparse availability ofwater also create a huge problem in properwashing.

Nearly as less as 34% undertake thesorting and grading as per the size of the fruits,which impede in fixing different prices for differentsizes. One of the main reasons of not practicingthis is lack of awareness. Those who are sortingnow are mostly new generation growers, belongto producer groups and quite aware of the benefitsof sorting, grading and packaging.

The practice of wrapping the mangoes inpaper and packing in card board boxes with holesfor air ventilation keep the fruits protected fromdecaying quickly. It was noticed that only 18%are undertaking the same while 82% do not. Mostof the non-practitioners expressed that they arenot aware of this practice.

Apart from above it could be noticed thatin many cases the traders come from the villageand orchards to buy the mangoes on contract basisand they bear the expenses of plucking, washing,sorting & grading, packaging and transportingwhich of course quite often resulted in fetchinglesser price.

Storing of the matured mangoes –Plucking of ripe mangoes at a time fromthe trees is a gigantic task and may cause

a lot of damage if the growers wait forthe ripening. So the growers pluck thoseat matured stage which take some days.Non-availability of storing facility manytimes has resulted in waste as well asdistress sale of mangoes. It was alsonoticed that the growers, whoseawareness level a bit high and have somefacilities to store, pluck the maturedmangoes in phases keeping the eye onthe days of local hat. Though many wereapplying carbide to make the fruits ripenthere are still some farmers who still adopttraditional practice of using the straw forthe same.

Marketing and sale of the mangoes –There are two major avenues of salewhich include a) traders from the localarea as well as outside including otherdistricts and states, who collect themangoes from home and garden andb) nearby local markets. Howeverrecently Odisha Livelihood Mission hasfacilitated some of the growers to selloutside.

It was felt that communication andtransportation facilities also play a significant rolein marketing. The villages with goodcommunication facility and closer to the marketplaces enable the farmers to have more option ofmarketing avenues and bargaining power.

Besides, making contract with the tradersto sale the mangoes in return of a lumpsumamount of money also might be one of the factorsof fetching a lesser price. Generally the mangoproducers in Koraput district collect the mangoesin traditional baskets and fix a basket wise sale

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price irrespective of size and type which alsoprohibits them to get fair price.

Apart from the above challenges it wasfelt that accessing information is one of the majorhindrances. Most of the farmers get informationon mango farming from Govt. personnel such aspersonnel of Horticulture Department, OdishaLivelihood Mission, Extension Workers likeCommunity Resource Persons, Udyog Mitras etc.It was interesting to know that they hardly getinformation from TV and newspapers but otherfellow farmers/villagers are one of the importantsources of information.

It is relevant to mention that OdishaLivelihood Mission (OLM), has come forwardto organize, guide and providing handholdingsupport especially in the aspects of yield, valueaddition and sale so that the mango farmers couldfetch good income and this would be a sustainableone. Digital Green, a non-profit charitable trusthaving technology solution to end poverty triedto intensify the effort by training and making thepeople understand on effective mango value chainpractices through evidence based videos toleverage production and sale off mangoes. Dueto this combined effort of OLM and Digital Green,most of the farmers now could be aware onscientific practices of plucking with stick tied withnet and specially designed blade to cut themangoes from the stem to avoid gum, properprocedure of washing, sorting and grading andpackaging. It would be worthwhile to mention thatfor the first time in many of the villages, mangogrowers came to know about the concept ofsorting and packaging which they say will bebeneficial to them in terms of monetary return. Itwas quite evident in the villages where the support

has been extended in comparison to the villageswhere the effort is in nascent stage.

Considering the above it could beattributed that mango cultivation could be seenas one of the major livelihood options as onematured mango tree of a good variety couldproduce 2 qtl. per year, which could give at leastRs.3000/- net return. So 20-25 trees in smallpatch of half acre of land could fetch more thanhalf a lac per year to enhance the family economy.It is important to mention that when the plants aresmall, intercropping of ginger, millets could be doneto generate extra income. However followingsshould be taken care of to make it sustainable inthe long run.

Conscious and conspicuous attemptsneed to be done to make the mangogrowers aware on proper scientificpractices of plucking, washing, sorting &grading and packaging. If possiblepractical demonstrations may be arrangedin the community level.

Equipments like sticks with net andspecially designed scissors/blades,cardboard boxes, crates etc. may beprovisioned or made available byhorticulture deptt./OLM or other linedepartments converging different welfareschemes.

Minimum infrastructure like washingtank, storing facility and drying yard etc.need to be developed in the village level.

Mango growers need to be encouragedto use the organic traditional method of

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ripening the mangoes by using strawinstead of carbide.

Facilitation by Govt. or otherdevelopmental agencies need to map outthe scope of marketing as well asestablishing linkages with them. Separateoutlets or depots temporarily in theseason may be set up for selling ofmangoes.

Efforts are to be taken to form andcapacitate the producer groups and itsmembers who could roll on the processof marketing.

New mango growers may be encouragedto undertake the mango cultivation, layingimportance on the species which havedemand in the market.

Facilitation and encouragement to beprovided to replace the dead trees withnew ones.

Like other non-timber producesMinimum Support Prices (MSP) may befixed and registered traders may beregulated to do the mango trading in closesupervision of Gram Panchayats to ruleout the distress sale and ensuring paymentin time.

Hope in coming years our state will beone of the major mango producers and might notdepend on the neighbouring states to meet thedemand of its inhabitants rather it would be ableto export the surplus to outside.

Asim Kumar Mahapatra, L.B.-22, Phase-II, Bhimatangi

Housing Board Colony, Bhubaneswar -751002.

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Hedonism is the name given to those theorieswhich state that pleasure is the ultimate goal.Hedonism is derived from the Greek ‘hedone’,which means ‘pleasure’. Pleasure is the supremeend of life or summum bonum of man. Actionsare good only in proportion as they are conduciveas means towards this ultimate end or goal. Thuswe judge an action as right or wrong accordingas it tends to produce happiness or misery.“Actions are right in proportion as they tend toproduce happiness wrong as they tend to producethe reverse of happiness.” By happiness we meanintended pleasure and the absence of pain; by

unhappiness or misery, pain and privation ofpleasure.

The distinction between the concepts ofpleasure and pain as two fundamental conceptshas been ignored. In the very generic sensepleasure stands for the agreeable feeling whichindividual seeks to obtain and maximise. Painsignifies forms of non-agreeable experience, whichthe individual seeks to avoid or do away with.

Whenever we say ‘pleasure’ we mustnot forget ‘pain’. Pleasure and pain are two sidesof the same coin. Wherever there is pleasure thereis pain. Life has both pleasure and pain. Whereverthere is light there is darkness. Pursuit of pleasure

and avoidance of pain are the most basic of oursprings of action. We always seek pleasure andavoid pain.

It is often found that some embracevoluntary suffering in order to give pleasure toothers. For example, a mother prefers to takesilent sufferings for the pleasure and the good ofher children. A missionary working in an areadevastated by natural calamity invites strain, painand suffering for himself in order to help theaffected people to get rid of their suffering. A littlereflection will make it clear that such action onthe part of a missionary gives them a different kindof pleasure in the process of their suffering. The

psychic pleasures, which they get, outweigh theirphysical pain. This introduces us to the differentdimensions from which the notion of pleasure andpain can be understood and analysed.

The urge to seek pleasure and avoid painis also found in the non-human world. Given twodifferent kinds of stimuli, one causing the pleasureand the other one causing pain, it is observed thata living creature is more inclined to follow thatwhich, gives pleasure and avoid that which givespain. Some recent experiments on the effect ofmusic on the plant world have revealed that musiccan be used to increase productivity of crops. Itmeans that even the vegetative kingdom becomes

Hedonism : A Critical Review

Sasmita Debata

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positively inclined to pleasurable stimulus. In thisrespect the motivation of pleasure of humanbeings and non-human beings differ with regardto the modes in which pleasure is sought and painis avoided.

The pleasure seeking tendency of livingbeings is manifested in the form of instinctiveurges. Human beings in so far as they are livingcreature are guided by instinctive proportion.Human species are non-distinguishable from thenon-human in respect of the instinctive drives suchas hunger, thirst, sex, fear, etc.

Man seeks pleasure and avoids painboth by nature and necessity. The pursuit ofpleasure and avoidance of pain are the two mainsprings of action. Though the nature of pleasureand pain differ from person to person, the factremains that the prospect of getting pleasuremotivates one to action, which is the means, andthe prospect of pain makes one to refrain fromcertain actions.

The notion of pleasure and pain arerelative. An object or a course of action, which ispleasurable to one may not be so for the other.So what constitutes pleasure or pain may bedifferent from one person to another. There aresome who opine that pleasure is a kind of certainrepeatable sensation which are qualitatively samebut vary in respect of intensity. This view obviouslydoes not take recognition of the qualitative aspectof pleasure and pain. The fact remains that thepleasure and pain not only differ in degree andintensity but also in respect of nature and quality.

The concept of pleasure and pain doesnot depend on external object, which is thoughtto give pleasure and pain on the physiological andpsychological state of the individual. Given thissubjective factor whether a unit of experience is

pleasurable or painful is largely determined by thesubject who undergoes to experience. So it iserroneous to hold that pleasure and pain are ofthe nature of uniform sensation. The same pieceof experience may be pleasurable to one andpainful to another at a given point of time andpleasurable and painful to the same individual atdifferent points of time. Despite our pleasurableor painful experience the fact remains that pleasureis something, which the individual tends to seekand pain, is that which the individual abstains from.Pleasure is an agreeable experience whereas painsignifies its contrary.

So, pleasure and pain become the finalarbiters of good and evil. If this were the onlyalternative, then, indeed, the humanistic principlecould not be the basis for ethical norms. For wesee that some find pleasure in getting drunk,amassing wealth, seeking fame, hurting people,while others find pleasure in loving, sharing thingswith friends, thinking, painting. How can our lifebe guided by a motive by which animals as wellas men, good and bad, normal and sick aremotivated alike? Even if we qualify the pleasureprinciple by restricting it to those pleasures, whichdo not injure the legitimate interest of others; it ishardly adequate as a guiding principle for ouractions.

An empirical analysis of the nature ofpleasure, satisfaction, happiness and joy revealsthat they are different and partly contradictoryphenomena. This analysis points to the fact thathappiness and joy although, in a sense, subjectiveexperience, are the outcome of interactions with,and depend on, objective conditions and mustnot be confused with the merely subjectivepleasure experience.

The view of pleasure is likely to becombined with a similar view of pain, for which

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whenever I seek to avoid or terminate a painfulexperience, whether it be toothache or boredom,it is one and the same sensation of pain. Whenthis view is taken of pleasure and pain by someonewho holds a doctrine of psychological hedonism,human action is seen as directed as just two ends,the obtaining of as much of the sensation ofpleasure as possible and as little of the sensationof pain. Someone who goes to Tan Hauserexpecting pleasure would have gone forthe sheersensation of pleasure without hearing of music atall. It is basically contingent facts that pleasureand pain are not readily obtained in pure form.

Pleasure and pain are relative. There isno absolute pleasure because whatever oneachieves in terms of wealth, power, recognition,leadership, etc., that does not satisfy him. Amillionaire for example wants to be a billionairethereby he gets pain. No one is satisfied in hisexisting circumstances, situation, acquisition etc.So no one is endowed with permanent pleasurefor that matter also permanent pain.

There is pleasure or pain by exclusionor inclusion in the social life. People with higherlevel of intelligence and achievement, who are inthe quest of a new thing, new concept feelfrustrated or satisfied on achieving or not beingable to achieve the desired goal.

Looking at the subject of pleasure andpain, the sensory stimuli cannot be avoided. Theperception arising out of sensory stimuli can giverise to pleasure or pain arising out of somephysical and material situation. For example, thesensory stimuli arising out of sweet smell andpanoramic sight of the blooming flower givespleasure to people moving around whereasagronomist look at the same thing from geneticand other scientific diction. A butcher looks forpainless killing though the consumer hardly bothers

on the dining table as to where and how the disheshave originated though he gets immense pleasureby eating and chewing and thinks about thepotential proteins he would be getting. With thesedifferences, it is difficult to determine the moralstandard and establish universalism andabsolutism, for that matter.

The view that pleasure and pain areindividual sensations cannot be denied. Even ifhearing a particular boring lecture was unpleasant,one would hardly normally call it painful except inorder to be peculiarly rude about it. It may bethought rather that the proper use of ‘pain’ is torefer to a particular sort of physical sensation,which may or may not be unpleasant, and thatmany unpleasant experiences occur besides pain.

It is sometimes held that the brain isprogrammed so that behaviour, which providesthe uniform sensation of pleasure, is positivelyreinforced, and that which provides the uniformsensation of pain is negatively reinforced. Thus,we learn, the spiritual aspirant, or the ‘culturevulture’, with all their pretensions, are after justthe same thing as the common pleasure seeker,or even heroin addict, and simply I pursue it by asafer, though perhaps less immediately effectivemeans.

The key to Spencer’s view of thepleasure-pain principle is the concept of evolution.He proposes that pleasure and pain have thebiological function of stimulating man to actaccording for what is beneficial to him individuallyas well as to the human race; they are thereforeindispensable factors in the evolutionary process.“Pains are the correlatives of actions injurious tothe organism, while pleasures are correlatives ofactions conducive to its welfare.” Individual orspecies is from day to day kept alive by pursuitof the agreeable or avoidance of the disagreeable.

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Pleasure, while being a subjective experience,cannot be judged in terms of the subjectiveelement alone, it has an objective aspect, namely,that of man’s physical and mental welfare.

Ryle sets out to show us that pleasure isnot a sensation. He gives various reasons, suchas that, typically, a pleasure is not experienced insome particular part of the body. He seems togive rather inadequate attention to the manypleasures, which are experienced in some part ofthe body, pleasures of the palate for example.However, he is right that the pleasure of going fora pleasant vigorous walk, or of reading an excitingnovel, is not to any great extent a matter of titillationfelt in some bodily part. Another reason he givesfor saying that pleasure is not a sensation (whilepain is) is that one can attend the pain and thenask for its cause (and often not know the answer).In the case of pleasure, he suggests, it is very oddto attend to the pleasure and ask what is causing.

The painful situation either out of libidinalurge or material gain get into the mind of theperson, a neurotic state of affair. If the personhas got latent qualities those qualities gettransformed into other socially acceptableactivities such as he may become a great painter,great artist, and great dramatist. Here it is aninstance of the latent energies which getsublimated into recognized activities. All painters,artists, poets etc. are basically neurotics. Theyget satisfaction out of recognition. This is the caseof pleasure. If they cannot get out of all efforts isa situation of pain.

All pleasure and pain, elation andfrustration arise basically out of satisfaction or

dissatisfaction of instinct, conflict resolution ofdynamic state of mind versus topographical aspectof mind. The degree of resolution of ego inharmony with super-ego and the propeller ofunconscious of desire stimulus play a vital role ingetting pleasure or pain. Individual differencebeing the fact of life, anything becoming pleasureto someone, could be displeasure to another.Therefore, no universal definition or identificationcan be made on pleasure and pain.

Pleasure and pain are uniformsensations. Pleasure is whatever we tend to persistin, pain whatever we tend to avoid. Pleasure isliked, pain is disliked, experience, where ‘liking;may either a) be a behavioural tendency or b) asubjective mental act; Pleasures and pains areexperiences with a range of hedonic tones, fallingunder the main general classifications of thepleasurable and unpleasurable. A pleasure isalways an experience of some other definite sort,which possesses a pleasurable tone. If I find itpleasant to hear certain sounds, that is not becausehearing them causes pleasure as some furtherdistinctive sensation, but that my hearing them hasitself a positive hedonic tone.

Sasmita Debata, Research Scholar, Department ofPhilosophy, Utkal University, Bhubaneswar.

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