Koraput, Jul 5: Koraput witnessed a historic spiritual and developmental convergence as Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan took part in the Bahuda Yatra festivities at Sabara Srikhetra near Mausi Maa Temple.

Marking a first for the region, Pradhan led the pulling of Lord Balabhadra’s chariot from Bada Danda (Grand Road), igniting enthusiasm among thousands of devotees.

Alongside the Union Minister, key dignitaries including local MLA Raghuram Machha, Odisha School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond, Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj, Fisheries and Animal Resources Minister Gokulananda Mallik, and several other officials graced the occasion. To ensure smooth conduct of rituals and crowd management, the district administration deployed 7 platoons of police under the supervision of the Collector and SP.

Later in the day, Pradhan is scheduled to lay the foundation stone for multiple development projects within the Central University of Koraput. A ₹480 crore initiative includes academic blocks, health centres, residences for the Vice Chancellor, faculty and staff, and a host of other infrastructural upgrades aimed at transforming the campus.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will be signed between six prestigious centrally funded HEIs in Odisha — Central University of Odisha, IIT Bhubaneswar, IIM Sambalpur, NIT Rourkela, IISER Berhampur, and National Sanskrit University, Puri. This MoU marks a new chapter in collaborative higher education and resource sharing across institutions.

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