ST Morcha to mark Tribal Pride Day under Seva Saptah

KOHIMA – The Bharatiya Janata Party’s Scheduled Tribe wing in Nagaland will observe Tribal Pride Day on 15 November as part of Seva Saptah, a week of service activities it has planned from 11 to 18 November.

The Nagaland State ST Morcha announced the plan in a press release issued to Nagaland.News on 10 November by its president, Thomas Magh. The four-page release sets out the themes of the observance. It does not give a schedule, venues or the names of guests.

What ST Morcha plans for Tribal Pride Day

According to the release, the day will honour tribal freedom fighters, social reformers and community leaders “who have dedicated their lives to protecting their land, culture, traditions and identity.”

The morcha said the observance is tied to Seva Saptah so that pride in tribal identity is matched by service on the ground. It listed the kinds of work it has in mind: awareness drives, community engagement, cleanliness activities and help for vulnerable sections of society.

Service “should not remain limited to symbolic gestures but should become a continuous commitment towards social welfare,” the release said. It called on individuals, volunteers, community organisations and other stakeholders to work together on local needs.

Youth, women and tribal development

The release also uses the occasion to press for better access to education, healthcare, livelihoods and skill training in tribal areas. It singles out tribal youth as “future leaders,” and says tribal women’s role in sustaining families, local economies and community initiatives “deserves greater recognition and support.”

It adds that development must respect cultural identity and traditional values, and that tribal communities’ knowledge of conserving forests, biodiversity and natural resources “offers valuable lessons for a sustainable future.”

The morcha summed up its message in two lines: “Tribal Pride is our heritage, our identity and our strength. Seva is our responsibility, our commitment and our way forward.”

Programme details not yet announced

What is confirmed is the date of Tribal Pride Day, 15 November, and the Seva Saptah window, 11 to 18 November. The release does not say where events will be held, whether they will take place in Kohima only or across districts, or which party leaders will attend.

A search by Nagaland.News on 10 November found no published schedule from the morcha or from BJP Nagaland. The BJP has used the name “Seva Saptah” before for week-long service drives, most often around the Prime Minister’s birthday in September. The release does not say whether this week is part of a wider national programme.

What is Tribal Pride Day?

Tribal Pride Day, or Janjatiya Gaurav Divas, was declared by the Union Cabinet in 2021. It falls on 15 November, the birth anniversary of Birsa Munda, the tribal leader from present-day Jharkhand who led an uprising against British rule in the 1890s and died in custody in 1900.

This year the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs is running a Janjatiya Gaurav Pakhwada from 1 to 15 November, with more than 300 tribal projects to be inaugurated or started, according to DD News. BJP national president Nitin Nabin is expected at the main event in Chhattisgarh’s Raigarh district on 15 November, PTI reported.

In Nagaland, the state’s Tribal Affairs Department marked the day in 2024 with a tribal walkathon in Kohima. The ST Morcha took part in the first observance in 2021 through a virtual national event, with members joining from all districts.

Thomas Magh was named president of the ST Morcha when BJP Nagaland announced its morcha heads in July 2025.