At the heart of one of India's oldest tribal festivals, a message about trees, reverence, and responsibility rang out — and Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai made sure it reached every corner of the state. On Friday, October 23, 2026, CM Sai shared a powerful quote from President Draupadi Murmu delivered at the Muria Darbar, a traditional assembly held as part of the legendary Bastar Dussehra festivities.

President Murmu's words, shared under the hashtag #बस्तर_दशहरा_2026, cut straight to the heart of tribal philosophy: 'पेड़-पौधे हमें भोजन और हवा देते हैं' — 'Trees and plants give us food and air, fruits, flowers, and medicines. They are our living gods, nature's gift. That is why tribal society worships trees and plants. All of us must plant and protect these trees and forests.'

Why Murmu's Words Land Harder at Muria Darbar

President Draupadi Murmu is the first tribal woman to hold India's highest constitutional office, making her the embodiment of the very communities that have long treated forests as sacred. Her remarks at the Muria Darbar — a traditional convening tied to the Muria tribal community — were not a speech about policy. They were a cultural affirmation: that indigenous forest stewardship is not folklore, it is living wisdom.

Bastar, the region in southern Chhattisgarh that hosts this annual festival, is home to some of central India's densest tribal populations and most ecologically significant forests. The message here, delivered in this setting, carries a weight that a ministry circular never could.

Bastar Dussehra — A Festival That Outlasts Empires

The Bastar Dussehra is no ordinary celebration. Running for over 75 days, it is widely regarded as one of the longest festivals in the world, rooted in the traditions of the Gondi and allied tribal communities rather than the mainstream Ramayana narrative. The Muria Darbar is one of its signature assemblies, a space where tribal voices, deities, and traditions converge.

CM Sai's decision to amplify the President's words through his own platform signals a deliberate state-level endorsement — that conservation and tribal culture are not competing priorities but the same conversation.

Forest Rights, Forest Responsibility

India's Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, legally recognised what tribal communities had known for generations: that their relationship with forests is one of custodianship, not exploitation. President Murmu's message at Bastar Dussehra brings that legal architecture back to its moral foundation.

Successive governments in Chhattisgarh have used the Bastar platform to promote afforestation and community-led forest protection. The current state government, under CM Sai, appears to be continuing — and amplifying — that tradition at scale.

When India's tribal President tells a tribal assembly that trees are living gods, the political calendar fades away. What remains is a civilisational argument for conservation — one that no data set could make more compelling.