Aadi Mahotsav (National Tribal Festival), a joint initiative of Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India & Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) begins at Polo Ground, Leh-Ladakh today. The 9 day event from 17th August till 25th August, 2019 was inaugurated by Shri Arjun Munda, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs in the august presence of SmtRenuka Singh, Minister for State for Tribal Affairs and Shri R. C. Meena, Chairman TRIFED.The theme of the festival is: “A celebration of the spirit of Tribal Craft, Culture and Commerce”. TRIFED essentially is to play the role of a ‘Service provider’ & ‘Market Developer.Delivering inaugural address, Shri Arjun Munda said that the national object of inclusive development (sabkavikas) includes the development of tribes as an important component. Our constitution enjoins upon the Government the responsibility of addressing the special needs of the tribals. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs is committed for the overall development of tribal people across the country who are deprived of the benefits of the many schemes of the government. The Government plans to setup 3000 Van DhanVikasKendras (VDVK) across the country in 2019-20 which include 13 VDVKs planned to setup in Ladakh, the Minister added.He wished grand success to the AadiMahotsav in Leh-Ladakh.In her address, Renuka Singh said that the Ministry of Tribal Affairs will organize many more such AadiMahotsav in all State capitals and in other parts of the country in the near future which will benefit large population of tribal people of our country in all respects. She said that now the products of Tribal artisans are being marketed all over the country through 104 retail outlets run by TRIBES India and to 190 countries across the country through Amazon, with whom TRIBES India has an agreement.The inaugural event had two reputed local cultural troupes presenting Ladakhi folk dances. The troupes performedJabro Dance - a nomadic dance and song of people inhabiting eastern Ladakh and Spawo dance, a heroic song and dance associated with a legendary hero of Himalayan region called K’sar.
Further on in the coming days other dance performances like Flower Dance, Abex Dance/song, Ghazal Dance, Aleyyatoo will regale the visitors.The first of its kind event in Leh-Ladakh will see around 160 Tribal artisans from more than 20 states across the country, actively participating and showcasing their masterpieces. The product range will comprise of Tribal Textiles from Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Odisha, West Bengal; Tribal Jewellery from Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and North East; Tribal Paintings like Gond art from Madhya Pradesh, Warli art from Maharashtra; Metal craft from Chhattisgarh; Black pottery from Manipur, and Naturals and Organic products from Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka.Mahotsav is also covering to identify:(a) Food and Forest Produces, which can be processed, value added and marketed under the Van Dhan Scheme of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs ; and (b) Artisans and master craftsmen and women of Ladakh for empanelling them as suppliers of TRIBES India. These products can then be marketed all over the Country through the 104 retail outlets run by TRIBES India across the country and 190 countries across the world through AMAZON, with whom TRIBES India has an agreement.The tribes constitute over 8% of the country’s population. This is a very significant number. In real terms it corresponds to over 10 crore Indians. Moire than 70% population of Ladakh region are tribes. The government has conceptualized of organizing AadiMahotsav in Leh-Ladakh in Arptil 2019.As the name of this event AadiMahotsav suggests, it is the ‘adi’ factor that is important about them. The Adivasi way of life is guided by primal truths, eternal values and a natural simplicity. The greatness of the tribes lies in this that they have managed to retain the primal skills, the natural simplicity. Their creations issue from the depths of time. This quality gives their arts and crafts a timeless appeal. The crudest tribal handicraft instantly touches a primal instinct in all of us. This is particularly true of tribal music and dance.The Tribal Artisan Mela (TAM) has been organized during the currency of the event for livelihood generation of tribal artisans of Ladakh. During TAM, the artisans were identified and empanalled for their products selected for marketing through retail chain of network of TRIFED and also connect them for participating in the National Tribal Festivals which are being organized in all major cities/towns in the country.