Dikhyaa Mohanty 
On August 2, 2023, the Odisha Millets Mission hosted a state-level collaborative millet workshop-cum-tasting event with the theme “Millets for Better Health and Nourishing Future” in Bhubaneswar’s Convention Center. The event’s goal was to promote the consumption of millet for better health and a nourishing future. The main goal of the gathering, which included significant participants from the Department of Health and Family Welfare, the Department of School and Mass Education, Private Schools, and Private Hospitals, was to promote collaboration between the Health and Education sectors.
A large gathering of about 400 participants including officials from the Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment, Mission Shakti Department, the Department of Health & Family Welfare Department, the Department of School & Mass Education, All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), Bhubaneswar, and representatives from hospitals such as Capital, Apollo, AMRI, KIMS, SUM, CARE, Kanungo Diabetes Centre, representatives from KIIT, KISS, Mothers Public School, Sai International School, DAV School, ODM Public School, KIIT International School, Narayana School, representatives from women self-help groups, and others attended the state-level millet workshop-cum-tasting event.
The work being done by the state government through the Odisha Millets Mission program is for a great cause and commendable, Ranendra Pratap Swain, Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment and Fisheries & Animal Resources Development, said in a speech to the attendees. Instead of redesigning millets, we are rediscovering them.
The Odisha Millets Mission is working tirelessly to reintroduce millets to our diets. Millets are incredibly nutrient-dense and may improve the health of residents of our state, particularly young children. We need to make food based on millet tasty for them. Collaborations with many stakeholders are essential for the program’s success, and I am encouraged by the Department of Health and Family Welfare’s, Department of School and Mass Education’s, Private Schools, and Private Hospitals’ dedication to the cause. Our aim is to make millet-based meals accessible to everyone on par with rice and wheat. If we all work together, millet will eventually become a staple in our daily diet.
