BHUBANESWAR: Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on October 1 wrote letters to chief ministers of Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh seeking personal intervention for promoting and preserving Odia-based education in the states.

Last week, Pradhan had also written letters to Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy suggesting bilateral discussion with Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik for an amicable solution to the Odisha-Andhra Pradesh faceoff over interstate boundary.

In today’s letter to Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, Pradhan said, "I would like to underscore the shared history of Odisha and Jharkhand which goes back to ages and binds the two states together till this day. Saraikela and Kharsawan districts in Jharkhand were once Odia speaking princely states and among two of 26 Garhjats which made up the state of Odisha," he said. "I am writing this letter to seek your personal intervention for implementation of the values enshrined in the New Education Policy 2020, and preserving the best interests of Odia speaking school children in Jharkhand."

The union minister further stated, "During state reorganisation exercise in 1948, these two princely states were clubbed with the erstwhile Bihar State which has become present-day Jharkhand. It is estimated that around 20 lakh Odia speaking people live in Jharkhand today concentrated around Kolhan Division of Jharkhand consisting of Saraikela-Kharsawan, East

Dharmendra Pradhan in his last-written letter, it was also said since settling boundary issues is time-consuming and requires the involvement of a mature political leadership at the highest level, “there is need for building an enabling environment to facilitate talks between the states in view of the flared up situation on the ground.”

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