President Droupadi Murmu is scheduled to attend Muria Darbar in Jagdalpur on October 23 during a two-day visit to Chhattisgarh, bringing national attention to a historic forum where Bastar’s traditional tribal representatives engage with the administrative establishment.
According to the tentative Jagdalpur programme reported by Times of India, the President is expected to arrive at Jagdalpur airport at 10.30am. She is scheduled to visit the Danteshwari temple before proceeding to Sirhasar Bhavan, where she will participate in Muria Darbar from approximately 11am to 11.30am. She is then expected to travel to Lalbagh Maidan and depart for Delhi around 3pm.
Muria Darbar is held as part of Bastar Dussehra, one of India’s longest-running festival traditions. The gathering brings together Manjhis, Chalkis and other representatives of communities from across the Bastar region. It has historically served as a platform for local concerns to be placed before the ruling or administrative authority.
The institution’s origins are associated with Bastar’s erstwhile royal system. During the princely era, community representatives used the Dussehra gathering to interact directly with the ruler. After the end of princely rule, the forum continued in an adapted form, becoming a meeting point between traditional tribal leadership and the modern administration.
The President’s scheduled participation therefore combines a ceremonial engagement with an established local institution that has a public-facing administrative function. The programme places the forum within the wider national visibility of Bastar Dussehra while retaining its connection to community representation in the region.
Murmu’s Chhattisgarh visit will begin in Raipur on October 22. At Lok Bhawan, she is scheduled to release a Rs 200 commemorative coin and a special postal stamp marking the 200th birth anniversary of Mata Sahib Hasi Devi, the fifth spiritual head of Shadani Darbar. The coin and stamp are being issued by the Government of India to commemorate her spiritual and social legacy.
Later that day, the President is scheduled to attend the ‘Seva Samman Parv’ and ‘Yuva Probodhan’ programme at the Indoor Stadium. The programme is linked to Nuakhai, the agrarian festival associated with the new harvest.
The visit will move from Raipur’s religious and social commemorations to Jagdalpur’s tribal cultural and administrative setting on the following day. The tentative programme places Muria Darbar between the President’s visit to the Danteshwari temple and her scheduled appearance at Lalbagh Maidan, before her return to Delhi.
