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Odisha Day celebrated in New Jersey
Consul General Binaya Srikanta Pradhan and Swami Sarvapriyananda attended as special guests.
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Staff Reporter - Tue, 07, Apr 2026
- 01:15 EDT
- 15
Consul General Binaya Srikanta Pradhan at the Utkal Dibas celebration / Indian in New York via X
The Odisha Society of Americas marked Utkal Dibas on April 4 in Somerset, New Jersey.
Utkal Dibas, or Odisha Day, is observed each year on April 1 to commemorate the formation of Odisha as a separate province in 1936. The day honors the struggle for a distinct identity and leaders such as Madhusudan Das and Gopabandhu Das.
It also reflects the Odia community’s long fight for linguistic recognition and celebrates the state’s cultural heritage, language and contributions.
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Held at Tagore Hall at Anand Mandir, the event brought together members of the Odia community from across the tri-state area.
Along with speeches by community leaders and cultural performances marking the 91st Utkal Dibas, the event included the release of a biography of the late Lata Mishra, a former president of the Odisha Society of Americas.
India’s Consul General in New York, Binaya Srikanta Pradhan, attended and praised the Odia diaspora for preserving and promoting the language and culture, particularly among younger generations.
Swami Sarvapriyananda of the Vedanta Society of New York also attended. A senior monk of the Ramakrishna Order, he spoke about the inclusive Jagannatha tradition, drawing on the Upanishads.
More than 350 people attended the celebration, with over 120 participants performing Odissi, Gotipua, Sambalpuri and other traditional forms.
The event also saw the launch of a new initiative, “Nilachakra,” aimed at connecting younger generations with Odia culture.
The Odisha Society of Americas organized the event in collaboration with the Consulate General of India in New York, which also thanked community leader Nilasundar Jena, head of the group’s New York-New Jersey chapter, for his role in organizing the celebration.
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