Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2025 In Odisha: All You Need To Know About The Mega Convention In Bhubaneswar

The biennial Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is being organised for the first time in Odisha, a state famous for its rich history and cultural heritage.

Bhubaneswar: In a few hours from now, the three-day Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) celebrations will go live in Odisha's capital city Bhubaneswar. Preparations have reached the final leg for the mega convention being organised by the Central government in partnership with Odisha government this time.

The PBD is being organised for the first time in Odisha, a state famous for its rich history and cultural heritage. The PBD convention will be formally inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 9th January, while chief guest Christine Carla Kangaloo, President of the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago, will virtually address the convention.

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2025 In Bhubaneswar, Odisha (ETV Bharat)

The theme of the 18th edition of PBD Convention 2025 is "Diaspora's Contribution to a Viksit Bharat".

DAY-1 OF PRAVASI BHARATIYA DIVAS

Addressing the curtain raiser press conference in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday (Jan 7), Arun Kumar Chatterjee, Secretary (CPV & OIA), informed that Odisha will host Youth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas on the first day, i.e., on 8th January. This will be jointly organised by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (GoI) in partnership with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Dev Pragad, CEO and co-founder of Newsweek will be the Guest of Honour at Youth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas on 8th January.

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, EAM Dr S Jaishankar, External Affairs MoS Pabitra Margherita, and Dev Pragad will address the Indian diaspora delegates at the youth convention on Day-1.

The inauguration of youth PBD will be followed by a special plenary session on the theme titled - 'Beyond Borders: Diaspora Youth Leadership in a Globalized World'; which will be chaired by Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Dr Mansukh Mandaviya.

Parallelly, Odisha CM Mohan Majhi, EAM Dr Jaishankar would be chairing business session with the business community of visiting Indian diaspora.

EAM Dr Jaishankar with his wife in Raghurajpur (ETV Bharat)

In the afternoon of the first day, the state government would be hosting two plenary sessions — the first on 'Unraveling India's Best Kept Secret' and 'Odisha, a land of opportunities'. At these two sessions, the state government will showcase the enormous potential that could be harnessed by Indian diaspora in Odisha through their engagement in developing and promoting tourism, trade and investment in different sectors like textile and garments, forest products, healthcare, pharma, food processing, and start-ups.

The Odisha government would also offer PBD delegates an opportunity to have a glimpse and feel of its rich cultural heritage embodied in its intrinsic and diverse art forms and its popular festivals, by facilitating their visit to several places of touristic and cultural attractions in and around Bhubaneswar.

Arrangements have also been made to serve several cuisines of Odisha to the delegates during the course of the event over the next three days.

DAY-2 OF PRAVASI BHARATIYA DIVAS

The 18th PBD would be formally inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi on the second day of the convention. The Prime Minister will also address the convention following the inauguration. "Diaspora has an important role to play in fulfilling PM's vision of Viksit Bharat, as it acts as the living bridge between motherland and adopted homeland," Chatterjee said.

On Day-2, PM Modi will remotely flag-off the inaugural journey of the Pravasi Bharatiya Express, a special tourist train for the Indian diaspora, which will depart from Delhi and travel to multiple destinations of touristic and religious importance in India for a period of three weeks. This initiative will be conducted under the Pravasi Teertha Darshan Yojana of the MEA.

The Prime Minister will also inaugurate four exhibitions at the 18th PBD convention:

1. Vishwaroop Ram - The Universal Legacy of Ramayana: This exhibition will present the timeless epic of Ramayana through a curated juxtaposition of traditional and contemporary art forms.

2. Diaspora’s Contribution to Technology and Viksit Bharat: This exhibition would acknowledge the contributions of the Indian diaspora to the development of technology in the world.

3. Spread and Evolution of Indian diaspora in the world with special focus on Mandvi to Muscat: This exhibition will showcase rare documents of people who had migrated from Mandvi in Gujarat to Muscat in Oman.

4. Heritage and Culture of Odisha: This will showcase the rich heritage and cultural traditions of Odisha through its different art and craft forms and highlight its illustrious legacy.

In the afternoon of Day-2, there will be two plenary sessions. The first one is titled, 'Building Bridges, Breaking Barriers - Stories Of Migrant Skills', which will be chaired by MSME MoS, Sushri Shobha Karandlaje. This will be followed by a plenary session called Green Connections - Diaspora's contribution to sustainable development, to be chaired by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

DAY-3 OF PRAVASI BHARATIYA DIVAS

On the final day (January 10), President of India Droupadi Murmu will chair the valedictory session in the afternoon, during which she will confer Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards (PBSA) on 27 distinguished members of the Indian diaspora in recognition of their outstanding contributions and achievements in diverse fields, both in the countries of residence and in India. President Murmu is also scheduled to deliver the valedictory address at this session.

This session will be preceded by two more plenary sessions. The first one is titled, 'Diaspora Divas - Celebrating women's leadership and influence, Nari Shakti', to be chaired by EAM Jaishankar; while Union Culture & Tourism Minister Gajendra Singh Sekhawat will be chairing the second session - 'Diaspora Dialogues - Stories of culture, connections and belongingness'.

This apart, there will be several cultural performances in the evenings all three days. There would also be promotional stalls set up by several union ministries and departments of Govt of India and by Odisha government and other state government with a view to project the impressive development strides taken by India during the last decade, as part of its march towards Viksit Bharat. Considering the theme of the 18th PBD, discussions will likely take place on how the diaspora can facilitate India's growth and development and its international engagements, and simultaneously what opportunities India can offer to them, specifically that are available in Odisha.

Chief Secretary of Odisha, Manoj Kumar Ahuja, expressed that Bhubaneswar will be buzzing with lot of activities during these three days.

Bhubaneswar city decorated for PBD 2025 (ETV Bharat)

"We have identified nearly 21 tourist sites close to Bhubaneswar. Special arrangements have been made for the guests to facilitate their visit to these places. We have introduced five double decker buses and 10 hop-on hop-off buses, which delegates can make use of to see the city and nearby places," Ahuja said.

The Chief Secretary added, "Besides the main event, lots of programmes will run concurrently, such as Adivasi Mela at Exhibition Ground, Chilika Bird Festival at Mangalajodi, Raja Rani music festival, Mukteswar dance festival, flower show at Ekamra Kanan, International Odissi dance festival, food fest at 'Khao Gali', and other similar programmes. Keeping with the strategy of Purvodaya, Odisha has been selected for the programme this year."

140 Liaison Officers To Assist

A total of 140 officers have been designated as liaison officers (LOs) to assist the priority guests from their arrival at the airport to their departure. These officers, primarily from the OAS and OFS cadre, include several newly recruited personnel and will ensure a seamless experience for the guests.

Each liaison officer will guide the guests throughout their stay, except while in their hotel rooms. Their responsibilities include:

• Reception and Hospitality: Receiving the guests at the airport and ensuring their comfort during their stay.

• Tourism Promotion: Familiarizing the guests with Odisha’s attractions and escorting them to any of the 31 identified tourist sites, including Puri, Konark, Khurda, and Cuttack, as per the guests’ interests.

• Cultural Programs: Accompanying the guests to cultural events and the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas meetings to ensure they don’t miss any key highlights of the celebrations.

Mock drill ahead of PBD 2025 (ETV Bharat)

Security Measures & Traffic Diversions

The Odisha Police, in collaboration with Central Forces, has rolled out an elaborate security plan to ensure the safety of VVIPs and participants during the event.

Deployment Details:

• 90 platoons of police forces.

• 500 officers.

• 12 companies of Central Forces.

• Specialized units like the State Anti-Terrorism Unit (STU), bomb disposal squads, and dog squads.

• Emergency response teams including ambulances and fire brigades.

Police have assured the public of a threat-free environment and assured that all necessary precautions have been taken to ensure the smooth conduct of the event.

In view of the safety and security of the VVIPs and VIPs and ensure better regulation of traffic, the Commissionerate Police has issued a traffic advisory mentioning the different zones where vehicles will not be allowed to ply during specific period during these three days.

No Reason To Panic, Health Department Assures

As Odisha celebrates PBD 2025 with cultural festivals lined up, the state government has advised residents to remain cautious but not panic due to concerns over HMPV. Odisha is exercising caution after the virus was detected in neighboring West Bengal. The Health Department has assured that necessary preparations are in place and urged people to follow safety protocols to minimize the risk of infection.

Dr. Nilakant Mishra, Director of Public Health in Odisha, stated that the state has not yet reported any HMPV cases. “We are monitoring the situation closely. Testing is ongoing at AIIMS and ICMR labs, and there is a 24-hour control room at the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). If the situation demands, the number of testing centers will be increased,” he said.

The PBD is government's flagship event celebrated biennially on 9th January to mark the contribution of overseas Indian community to the development of India. The government chose January 9 as the day of celebrations, to commemorate Mahatma Gandhi's return to India from South Africa on this day in 1915, which led country's freedom struggle and changed the lives of Indians forever.