Shri Arjun Munda, Union Minister of Tribal Affairs, Agriculture, and Farmers' Welfare graced the celebratory event on the auspicious occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Constitutional recognition of the Santhali language.

It was organised by the Adivasi Socio-Educational and Cultural Association at Pandit Raghunath Murmu Memorial school ground in Jhargram, West Bengal in the presence of Shri Kunar Hembram, MP from Jhargram and important dignitaries belonging to the Santhal Community. 

The Minister expressed his gratitude to the former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji for the inclusion of the Santhali language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, passed at a meeting of the Tribal Advisory Council meeting in 2003. 

For the first time in the country after Independence, the art and culture of the tribal society and their contribution to the freedom movement and nation-building are being remembered with pride under the leadership of Shri Narendra Modi ji, Prime Minister of India, Shri Arjun Munda said. 

He further added that the Prime Minister also launched the Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM JANMAN), with a budget of around Rs 24,000 crore for the overall development of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) this year on 15th November on the occasion of Jan Jatiya Gaurav Diwas. 

Smt Droupadi Murmu ji, belonging to the Santhal tribe, has made history by becoming the first woman tribal President of India, he added.