Champakdwadasi is Tigiria’s famous festival of fireworks where controlled application of gunpowder write excellent scripts of ecstasy in the sky in welcoming the season of showers and sowing of seeds in the soil, said eminent journalist Subhas Chandra Pattanayak on the occasion of inauguration of the festival on June 09. A son of the soil, he was felicitated for ‘social service’.
Formerly a Princely State, Tigiria was famous for production of excellent rice. Its richly fertile soil is so immensely suitable for agriculture that cultivators from neighboring States were migrating to Tigiria and amongst all the ex-States, this was the most densely populated, as per statistics recorded by the British. So, when Summer reaches its last stage and monsoon approaches the land, people of Tigiria celebrate the union of Earth with Heaven symbolical represented by Parvati and Siva on the day of Champak Dwadasi.
Power politics having destroyed the unity of the people, this festival was abandoned for decades after Panchayati Raj metamorphosed into a new era of anarchy. A great tradition of Tigiria had died.
But villagers of Puruna Tigiria, Amunihasahi, Paikianra and Chasanra have revived this tradition since four years and this year, it was the ‘Fourth Champakdwadasi Mahotsava’, observed for two days.
The first day dedicated to music and dance performed by local artists and the second day to display of fireworks for which Tigiria is famous since ancient days.
The festival commenced with lighting the lamp of inauguration collectively by the organizers: Kabichandra Nayak (Chairman), Kabichandra Parida (President), Dibakar Pradhan (Vice President) Adhyapak Manoranjan Mohanty (Secretary), Pabitra Mohan Jena (Joint Secretary), Duryodhan Basti (treasurer) of the ‘Sri Sri Shankareswar Mahadev Shanti Pragati Parisad, under the banner of which the celebrations are held. With them were village committee leaders of the four villages: Mana Ranjan Nayak (President, Puruna Tigiria), Laxman Majhi (Secretary, Puruna Tigiria), Basanta Kumar nayak (President, Paikianra), Benudhar Jena (Secretary, Paikianra), Kulamani Swain (President, Chasanra), Narendra Kumar Mohanty (President, Amunihasahi) and Mangaraj Raut (Secretary, Amunihasahi). Local Sarapanch Pramod Kumar Majhi and Samiti member Ms. Madhuyotsna Priyadarshini had joined them along with Panchayat Samiti Chairman Bhagirathi Nanda, Journalist Subhas Chandra Pattanayak, Tahsildar of Tigiria Binod Kumar Jena and Sub-Divisional Police Chief Krutibas Jena.
The meeting was presided over by Kabichandra Parida and coordinated by Adhyapak Manoranjan Mohanty. Chairman of Tigiria Panchayat Samiti Bhagirathi Nanda was the Chief Guest.
Others felicitated were Rajkishre Behera (Journalism), Sambit Kumar Tunga (Bravery),
On the 2nd day of the celebrations, bright students of Tigiria were felicitated. They included Nilakantha Behera (Block Level High School topper) and Ms. Diptimayee Sahu (Panchayat level Matric topper) and Block level Upper Primary Scholarship holders: Rakesk Amahant, Sonali Piroi, Jyotiranjan Jena, Sima Nayak, Snehamanjari Majhi, and Purnima Behera.
When Athgarh Sub-Collector Madhusudan Mishra, as chief guest of the concluding day witnessed the unique display of fireworks, the inaugural day was celebrated with performance of Pala, Pallinrutya, Panchana Nrutya, Balashree, Ghanta Badya o Nrutya, Odissi, Chhau, Sambapuri Nrutya and Bhajan by local artists, specifically of Durga Devi Dance Academy, Panchagan – a village whose participation in Champak Dwadasi in the past was immense.
In placing the annual report of the festival, Parisad Secretary Adhyapak Manoranjan Mohanty advanced the idea of an exhibition of Tigiria’s indigenous products like the unique Khandua fabric of Nuapatna and replicas of Tigiria’s famous Banas like the Haveli and literary works of authors born in Tigiria including palm-leaf manuscripts over and above display of agricultural equipments and technologies for benefit of the cultivators.