Preparations are nearing completion in Nemra, the ancestral village of Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren in Ramgarh district’s Gola block, where a community feast is scheduled for October 18 after the shradh rituals of his mother, Rupi Soren. The 10th-day rituals will be held on October 17 in accordance with Santhal traditions and customs.
The district administration has arranged catering, drinking water, parking facilities and security for the gathering. Three large pandals have been erected for the Sanskar Bhoj, with each designed to accommodate around 1,500 people at a time. One of the pandals has been designated for VIPs and VVIPs expected to attend from different states.
People from across Jharkhand and neighbouring states are expected to travel to Nemra for the rituals and feast. Visitors are likely to arrive from Gola, Ramgarh, Bokaro, Ranchi, Dumka and other districts, increasing the need for coordinated crowd movement and local security arrangements in the village.
A senior police officer said additional personnel and barricades had been deployed in Nemra. The measures are intended to manage the expected gathering around the ritual venues and maintain access and movement during the programme.
Hemant Soren has distributed white invitation cards printed in Hindi and Ol Chiki, the Santali script, inviting people to attend the shradh ceremony. Male members of his family and relatives have joined him in performing the rituals, and he has remained in Nemra since the last rites.
Fagu Besra, state general secretary of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, said the maternal side of the family had performed its customary role under Santhal rites. Relatives brought male goats, hadia, matchboxes and sal leaf plates, locally known as khala patta. Families unable to bring goats contribute cocks or other items, he said.
Rupi Soren, 75, wife of Shibu Soren and mother of Hemant Soren, died at a private hospital in Ranchi on October 7. Her last rites were performed at Nadi Ghat in Nemra on October 8. Politicians from different parties have also visited the village to pay their respects.
The October 18 feast will be the next major public gathering linked to the family’s rituals, with the administration’s arrangements focused on accommodating visitors while providing basic amenities and security at the venue.
