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Mediris hold community meet

— Photo: Lingaraj Panda

Members of the ‘Interstate Mahendra Mahasangh’ taking out a rally in Berhampur on Sunday.

BERHAMPUR: The members of Mediri or Mahendra community in south Orissa held five yearly community meeting in the city on Sunday.

Mediris are one of the ancient inhabitants of south Orissa, who are traditionally famous for their bamboo craftsmanship. A number of Mediri families still live in the city. The members of the community took out a rally in the city to show up their presence.

The elders of the community then sat together for day- long meeting to settle down disputes and problems of families of the community. As per the tradition of this ancient community such meeting of elders is held once in every five years to keep their bonding intact. This tradition continues despite advent of modernity.

A sizeable number of Mediri families still continue with their traditional profession of bamboo craftsmanship. The Mediri families living in the city have formed a cooperative named, Sri Venkateswar Bamboo Industries Cooperative. With the help of the Berhampur Development Authority they have also established a community hall in the city.

Problem in procurement of bamboo which is their raw material was also a point of discussion at the meeting. They alleged that due to restrictions of the Forest Department they are not finding it easy to get proper amount of bamboo needed for their trade. They demanded the government to make some arrangements so that they can get sufficient amount of bamboo directly from nearby jungles.

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