Kumar Bahukhandi
Chhattisgarh Governor Ramen Deka and Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai presenting a flower bouquet to President Droupadi, Murmu -Representational Image (File )
IN Short
*Governor, Chief Minister, and members of the Cabinet and Members of Parliament will also be present
*Bastar Pandum is a celebration of tribal art and traditions
Raipur: President Droupadi Murmu will inaugurate ‘Bastar Pandum-2026’, the grand festival of tribal culture, on Saturday February 7, 2026.
The divisional-level Bastar Pandum will be held until February 9. This three-day cultural extravaganza of the tribal community is a festival to preserve and showcase tribal lifestyle, beliefs, customs, and cultural heritage. Bastar Pandum is a festival connected to folk art and culture and local traditions.
This festival is an important platform to promote the identity, pride, and rich traditions of the Bastar tribal community. Through this festival, the culture of the Bastar region will gain national recognition.
The inauguration ceremony of the state-level tribal and folk culture festival “Bastar Pandum 2026,” organised by the Department of Culture, Government of Chhattisgarh, will be held on February 7, 2026, at 11 AM in Jagdalpur.
The ceremony will be presided over by the Governor of Chhattisgarh, Ramen Deka.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, Union Minister of State Shri Tokhan Sahu, Deputy Chief Ministers Arun Sao and Vijay Sharma, Tourism and Culture Minister Rajesh Agrawal, and Forest and Climate Change Minister Kedar Kashyap will be present as special guests.
Pandum is celebrated with great enthusiasm and joy in the Bastar region. This festival offers a glimpse into the lifestyle of the tribal community. This year, Pandum is being organised with great grandeur, featuring presentations in 12 different categories.
Young artists will showcase Bastar tribal dance, songs, drama, musical instruments, costumes and ornaments, worship methods, Bastar crafts, and tribal paintings.
In addition, people will be made aware of tribal beverages, traditional cuisine, regional literature, and Bastar forest medicines. The program will be attended by Members of Parliament Bhojraj Nag and Mahesh Kashyap, MLAs Kiran Singh deo, Lata Usendi, Vikram Usendi, Neelkanth Tekam, Asharam Netam, Chaitram Atami, Vinayak Goyal, Savitri Manoj Mandavi, Lakheshwar Baghel, Vikram Mandavi, and Mayor Sanjay Pandey, along with many other public representatives and a large number of citizens.
